turned us both so we were looking out over the water. It was a gorgeous spot, with the best view of the mountains in the distance. And though it was only morning, I could already tell that the sunsets from this vantage would be stunning.
“What do you think about this location?” he asked, watching me closely.
“For what?”
“The gazebo.” His eyes bore into mine, though his mouth was set in a hopeful grin. “I already talked to Dad and got his permission to have the gazebo moved here before he puts the house on the market.”
“Are you serious?”
“Absolutely.” He squeezed my hand. “That gazebo is our place, after all. And I thought putting it here could make this our new place.”
I threw my arms around Hayle’s neck and breathed in his clean scent. “I love it.”
He tucked me into him and sighed. “And I love you. I can’t wait to start our life here.”
“If you’re sure you want this house,” Tristin added, reminding me that it wasn’t a done deal. “We want to do this right and purchase it together, so it belongs to all of us.”
I pulled back from Hayle enough to look at him, Tristin, and Leo. And Toto too, who was currently snuggled against Leo’s broad chest. “I adore it here. You’re right. This place feels like us.”
“But does it feel like home?” Hayle asked rather solemnly. And I knew why. Months ago, when we’d discussed our greatest fears, I’d told him that mine was never having a place to call home.
I’d spent my formative years being dragged from place to place with my mother. Then, I’d had eight miserable years stuck on a farm I hated. Moving to Moss Harbor had been a welcome change, but neither the mansion nor the townhouse had felt like anything more than a place to lay my head.
Now that I stood outside of the perfect house, the truth finally hit me. The abode itself was only the body, but the people who inhabited it were the heart.
Tristin, Hayle, and Leo Sharpe were my heart. My home.
The beauty surrounding me faded away as I focused on the three men who meant more than the world to me. They were my world.
Leaning into Hayle, I reached for Tristin with one hand and Leo with the other. My connection with each of them sparked through me, igniting a fire that burned brighter than anything else in my life.
Hoping they felt the same way, I spoke my truth.
“You’re my home.”
Epilogue
Four Years Later
Leo
I grinned at the sight of the quickly filling parking lot. And Thea had been worried no one would show up. If anything, she probably should have worried about running out of the food that she’d so carefully selected for today’s grand opening.
There wasn’t a cloud in the sky above the Yellow Brick Road Youth Center, making the green accents on the wood and glass structure sparkle even more than usual. When Tristin had insisted on utilizing “green” processes, Thea had taken the idea and run with it. Not only was the building environmentally responsible, shades of green made up the primary color scheme throughout the interior.
On the sidewalk in front of the brand-new structure, I stopped to watch people, young and old, filing into the center. Many of them found the beginning of the literal yellow brick road, following it as it swirled before straightening out to lead into the building. I’d laughed when Thea had said the idea came to her in a dream, but she hadn’t been kidding. She’d insisted that children and adults alike would love it, and from everything I was seeing, she’d been absolutely right.
I stopped to shoot a few pictures to show her later. Though Thea was great at taking mental pictures, she tended to forget to snap actual photos of important events. And today marked a momentous one for her, Hayle, and Tristin.
I was so damn proud of them.
“Hey, Coach,” someone said from behind me, and I turned to find a sophomore on the Harbor U football team with another guy and two girls around his age.
“Hi, Jack. What are you doing here?” Though the entire town of Moss Harbor had been invited to the grand opening, I wasn’t expecting to see any college students here.
He gestured to the girls. “They’re hoping to volunteer at the center, so we decided to check it out.”
“That’s great.” I smiled at the girls. “Look for my girlfriend, Thea, inside. She has a signup sheet for volunteers.”