“Did you make us these sandwiches?”

“I may not be a great cook, but I’ve always known my way around a sandwich.”

She knew exactly how busy Adam’s schedule was. He wasn’t just one of the most highly sought-after architects in Seattle—his notoriety was international, with clients from every corner of the world beating down his door to get him to work with them.

And yet, he’d taken the time today to make sandwiches for their impromptu picnic.

Kerry immediately thought about her mother, wishing she could see how wonderful a friend Adam was. Although, surely her mother would read more into this picnic than was actually there, so it was probably for the best that she didn’t know about it.

“The sandwiches look delicious,” Kerry said, and when she took a bite of one, she realized he hadn’t been exaggerating his sandwich-making prowess. “I didn’t know peanut butter and jelly could be this good. What’s your secret?”

He grinned at her. “Secrets have to be earned.”

She grinned back, easily guessing the kind of payment he was looking for as she brought her mouth back to his again. She’d take any excuse to kiss him.

“Time to hand over your secret now.”

But he just stared at her lips and said, “Secret?”

Loving being able to scramble his brain with her kisses, she laughed and reminded him, “Your PBJ-making secret.”

He finally dragged his gaze—dark and full of desire—from her mouth. “I grind up the nuts myself. And more than just one kind of nut.”

“Clearly, your genius isn’t only in working with buildings.”

He raised an eyebrow. “I thought you were worried about inflating my ego.”

“That was before.”

“Before what?”

The first thing that came into her head was Before you made my world go topsy-turvy. But she said, instead, “Before I realized just how modest you really are.”

He shook his head, laughing. “I’m not modest.”

This time she was the one raising her eyebrow. “Any other architect of your stature would take every possible chance to remind the people around him of just how important he is and how ridiculously lucky they are to get to work with him. But instead of doing any of that, you’re here having a picnic with me in front of a house that isn’t grand enough to deserve even an hour of your attention, let alone several months.”

“Grand is overrated.”

Knowing that she was embarrassing him with her compliments, she turned her gaze to the house. “It’s hard to believe it’s mine now.” She couldn’t remember ever feeling this happy before.

“I wish I could have seen the Realtor’s face when you said you wanted to buy it,” he said with a grin. “Did you tell them you’re planning to keep the house, rather than tear it down?”

“They practically said, Are you sure you really want this place? They didn’t even try to negotiate. Clearly, they wanted to take my money and run before I changed my mind.” She shook her head. “If only they knew that I had no intention of changing my mind, because this is where I’m meant to be.”

“I agree,” he said in a serious voice. “I mean, your current place is great, and I should know because I worked on renovating the building. But this house, this property, this neighborhood—it’s all really you. Exactly where you’re meant to be.”

This rambling old house would never be the fancy, glossy, expensive place in the “right” part of town. But somehow this street with kids riding by on their bikes and moms pushing strollers and gray-haired women watering flowers in the front yard was really her in a way that nothing else had ever been.

She took in a deep breath of the air, sweet-smelling from the wallflowers in bloom along the side of the property, then took another bite of her delicious sandwich. She was washing it down with a sip of sparkling juice when he asked, “How were your weddings this weekend?”

“They were all good. All three couples are obviously very much in love, and I think things will last.”

“But?”

She shouldn’t be surprised anymore by the way he always heard the things she wasn’t saying, but it was such a rare gift that she still never expected it. “Well, they were different from Jodi and Paul’s wedding.”

“How?”

Normally, Kerry wouldn’t discuss her clients with anyone. But Adam wasn’t just anyone. He was the one person who always seemed to understand her. “Jodi and Paul are best friends in a way that I’m not sure any of the three couples from this weekend are. I just feel like that makes such a difference.”

“From what I can see with my siblings and cousins who are married, I think you’re right on the money. Same goes for my parents. Mom and Dad always turn to each other first because they aren’t just husband and wife, they’re also best friends, which I think has made a difference for them over the years. In fact, this weekend, when I saw my cousin Ryan and his fiancée, Vicki, at the baseball game, they were more gushy over each other than ever—and they’ve been best friends since they were in high school.”

“Did you have a good time at the game?”

“It was great. You would have had fun with us.”

“At a baseball game?” She was surprised that he seemed to mean it. “Do you really think I’d like it?”