RESILIENCE

Chapter 34

We drove for about 15 minutes from where my house is situated, still in the same area from what I gathered, though. The property is also very secluded like ours, but still looked rough around the edges with the overgrown trees, shrubs, untamed hedges, broken fences, and gravel road leading to the house.

"Where are we?" I asked as I glanced around the darkness, trying to make sense of what I'm seeing, when a big unfinished house came into full view. It's not as big as ours but still huge.

"This is the property I mentioned I'm busy renovating which will also be my permanent home" he answered as the car came to a stop next to a fountain situated near the main door.

I gave a nod in acknowledgment as I felt his stare burning through my side profile "What's the story behind the property?" I asked, as my interest peaked after seeing the structure of the house that looks very unfinished.

"Sit, I'll open the door and I'll explain on the way" he said, while squeezing my knee. 'What a gentleman' I thought to myself.

He proceeded to get out and walked around the car, opened my door and held his hand out for me as support "after I saw your parents' property and the amazing work they did; I knew I wanted to live in this area and create something similar but according to my taste and style. The boys can freely take a bike ride or drive there when they are older themselves or even walk to their grandparents or from there to here if need be. They seem very attached to your family and I wouldn't want to take that away from them or spend any less time with them. I also like the privacy the property gives and it's so secluded and quiet and that's something I never knew I wanted until I saw yours" he said as both of us came to a stop in front of the house admiring the structure.

His explanation and thoughtfulness made my heart skip a beat. The fact that he has the boys included in his plans says a lot about the type of dad he is as well.

"How long before you move in?" I asked, because it doesn't look like it would be completed soon and last time we spoke, he mentioned soon.

"It would probably take two weeks longer than the estimated completion date before It's move in ready. We had a few setbacks with the roof today. We have to redo the whole thing due to the extent of the rot and we also have to wait for the specific slate I wanted. They were out of stock here in the city, but 3 to 4 weeks should be enough to finish inside, outside the house and the roof" he confirmed.

He enveloped my small hand in his huge warm one, sending tingles throughout my body, instantly giving my insides the warmth, I never knew existed or wanted.

We walked through the front door with him lighting the way holding a huge flashlight in his other hand, and I could instantly see the vision he had in mind even though everything was just framed and raw.

We walked upstairs on a floating stairway as he explained that the rail will be all glass and that the temporary planks that served as rails are just for safety and would be replaced soon.

I could picture his vision of the house, though I can't fully see the extent of the land due to the bad lighting, I know this house will be a dream for him to live in.

The upstairs boasted with 6 bedrooms with on-suites, a lounge with gas fireplace, huge floor to ceiling windows so you can admire the outside of the property and the vast number of trees.

We went downstairs and he took me through an unfinished cinema room, huge lounge with an adjacent dining room. The kitchen was still raw, so there was nothing I was able to imagine there. There were more spaces, but the doors were locked by the workers. He explained that downstairs in the basement was a huge garage to store all his cars, but there's nothing interesting other than a huge space currently.