Seeing Gracie get emotional stirs something inside me. “Why are you crying?” I pull her into a hug and she buries her face in my chest.
“It’s just too much,” she says, sniffling.
“It’s not. You deserve this.”
She shakes her head and pulls out of my embrace. Wiping her tearstained cheeks, she walks into the living room. “I’ve never seen anything so beautiful,” she says reverently, running her hand along the soft fabric of the oversized sectional. “Everything is stunning and perfectly matched,” she snorts. She’s comparing this condo to her Red Hook apartment that she pieced together on her own.
“Come here.” I reach for her hand and lace my fingers through hers. We walk through the living room and down the hallway. When we get to the office, I open the double doors and flip on the light. She gasps again when she sees the office.
“That desk!” she says, running her hand over the generously sized wood desk. A large slab of reclaimed wood sits atop metal legs, giving this desk an edgy, modern feel with a touch of old world charm.
Her fingernails trace the rough edges and she turns to look at me. “Did Shannon pick this out?”
I nod. “She picked out everything except the colors of the fabric. You and I did that. And that’s not what I wanted to show you.” I place my hands on her shoulders and turn her around. Along the back wall, nestled around an oversized chair, sits the two bookshelves from Gracie’s apartment.
Tears roll down her cheeks and her chin quivers.
I stand behind her and squeeze her shoulders tenderly. “I know you told the mover to leave them, but I wanted a piece of you here.”
She wraps her arms around her waist. Shannon filled the shelves with books from Gracie’s apartment and then finished off the shelves with other accessories and plants.
“They’re perfect in here,” I remark, and she nods her head but doesn’t say anything. I swallow hard, hoping I haven’t overstepped. “Are you upset?”
She turns to me and wipes her eyes. “I’m not. I’m just surprised.”
“Why?” I asked, perplexed.
“Because those were bargain finds; they don’t really work in a place like this.”
My jaw tightens. This hurts me. Gracie feels like her belongings aren’t good enough.
“They’re exactly what this office needed,” I tell her, “just like you’re what I needed. Those bookshelves fit into this place, like you fit with me.”
“Drew.” She whispers my name and reaches for me.
Before anything can happen, I say, “There’s one more thing I want to show you.” I shut the lights off in the office. “Tomorrow, you can spend all day going through all the nooks and crannies of this place.”
We take a right down the hallway all the way to the end. The lights in the master bedroom are already on and she steps inside. This time, she doesn’t gasp, she doesn’t cry, she doesn’t move. At all.
Her eyes shift from the bed to the dresser, to the patio doors that lead outside. Shannon decorated the bedroom in a light grey. The walls have a grey textured wallpaper and she used white, cream, and natural woods sparingly in here, with a light-colored burnt orange for accent pillows and throw. I would have never picked this color, but it’s stunning. It amazes me how she mixed colors and textures and how everything just seems to flow perfectly.
“Do you like it?” I ask.
Gracie turns to me, a stunned expression on her face. “It’s so…” She pauses. “Simple and elegant.”
Just like my Gracie. I grin, tucking her hair behind her ear.
“I would have never imagined all of this together like this.” Then she tips her head back and looks up at the coffered ceilings. “And then to have a chandelier like that in here.” She points to the crystals hanging in the center of the room. “It’s remarkable.”
That’s the perfect word for this. Remarkable. “The closet is through the bathroom.” I gesture toward the open door off the other side of the room. “Your clothes are in there and all your toiletries are in the bathroom.”
She nods in understanding and pads over to the French doors that lead out to the terrace. Twisting the lock, she opens the door, the sound of honking horns and New York City traffic suddenly filling the room. She steps outside and turns around, a large smile spread across her face. Fucking perfect. She’s fucking perfect. There is nothing better than seeing Gracie happy, and there is nothing I won’t do to make her happy.
“Drew!” she says, her hand over her heart. “Look at this!” I follow her out the doors and I’m taken aback at the beauty that is the terrace. Plush outdoor furniture fills the space, along with rope lights and large planters full of plants and small trees. Shannon more than outdid herself.
“I could live out here.” She sighs, walking over and throwing herself down on the outdoor chaise. I take a seat next to her, and suddenly, life feels perfect…content. Like this is what I’ve always been missing. Not the luxury condo, but Gracie.
She loops her arm through mine and rests her hand on my shoulder. We sit on the terrace, listening to the cars nine stories below, but there isn’t another place in this world I’d rather be right now than on this terrace with Gracie.
We must have sat outside for hours because there’s suddenly a chill in the air. “Pretty soon we can use the gas fire pit,” she says, and clasps her hands together in excitement.
“We can make s’mores—”
“And wrap ourselves in blankets and lie out here for hours,” she finishes, a soft curve touching her lips.
I imagine us lying out here under blankets and staring at the sky. “Maybe even on really clear nights, we can see the stars.”
She tilts her head. “The sky in New York City isn’t as clear as Montana, but maybe.” She tucks her feet under my leg to keep her toes warm and I chuckle.
“I’d love for you to take me to Montana someday,” I tell her.
She looks at me out of the corner of her eye. I see hesitation there, but she doesn’t outright shut me down.
“Maybe someday,” she comments vaguely.
“I’d love to meet your mom.” With this, she tenses. Maybe I’m pushing for too much too soon. She doesn’t respond to that admission, and I don’t push it further.
“Let’s go inside,” she says, rubbing her hands over her arms. “It’s getting cold.”
I slide off the chaise and help her up.
Once we’re inside, she slips into the bathroom and I hear the bath running. I feel myself relax when I realize Gracie feels comfortable here. She’s making herself at home and there is no better feeling.
I fix a tea kettle of water on the stove and pull mugs down from the cabinet that Shannon has fully stocked. I’m still in awe of her. There wasn’t a detail or item she missed. I shoot her a quick email, thanking her for her work while the water boils in the kettle. I also send her a tip I believe she’ll be most grateful for.
Walking into this place and knowing I didn’t have to lift a finger or purchase anything so I could focus on making Gracie comfortable meant the world to me. The tea kettle starts hissing and I fill the mugs with the steaming water. Shannon purchased an assortment of teas and I choose a peppermint lavender tea for us.