I thought carefully before replying.
The house no longer belonged to Scott. It was just a structure waiting for a new story.
When I walked through the door with Laura and my team, she looked around and said with excitement, “We can make something great here.”
And she was right.
Four months later the renovation was complete. Warm lighting replaced the harsh fixtures. Fresh paint softened the rooms. New furniture created spaces that felt welcoming instead of staged.
Laura sent me a photo on move in day.
“It finally feels like my home,” she wrote.
That evening Ethan and I had dinner at a small restaurant in Lincoln Park. He reached across the table and gently turned my hand, noticing the gold ring.
“I like that,” he said.
“So do I,” I answered.
“You take up space,” he said thoughtfully. “You don’t shrink.”
“I used to,” I admitted.
“I’m glad you stopped.”
Later that night I walked through my condo overlooking Lake Michigan and turned off the lights one by one. The city glowed outside the windows and the rooms felt warm and steady.