Bonnie Winn - To Love Again

Annie must have sensed her discomfort. “How about some orange juice?”

“Thank you.”

Annie poured her a glass. “So, are you here to check out the real estate market?”

“In a way,” Laura hedged. She had been hiding the truth about her abusive marriage for so long it was second nature to keep everything quiet.

“I have a friend, Emma McAllister, whose husband is a contractor. He’s working on a house not far from here. He just built a new home for the owner.” She put the pitcher down. “And they don’t want to sell this one because they want to keep it in the family. Seth’s fixing it up to rent it. If you want to look inside, he’s probably around.”

“Oh, I don’t know….”

“I hope I’m not being pushy. It’s become a habit since I started running the bed-and-breakfast. That, and because I was single so long and rattled around the house alone I tend to treat my guests as friends.” Annie grinned. “Sorry, there I go. But the house really is great—if you want to get an idea of the market here.”

“I could take down the directions, I suppose.” She did have hours to kill and maybe she would show Paul she had initiative and could learn quickly.

“If Seth’s not there, check the back door. It might be unlocked,” Annie said, getting up to find a pen and paper.

“Really? The house is left open?”

“This is Rosewood. We don’t have any crime to speak of.”

But leave an empty house unlocked? Laura couldn’t imagine such a thing. She had lived in the city so long, in the right area, the one Jerry had chosen. Still, security systems were a fact of life.

Intrigued, after breakfast Laura followed the directions Annie had given her. She found the address easily. And sighed as she stared at the two-story folk Victorian, falling immediately in love with the front gable and side wings, corbels, the gothic details, the welcoming porch. The rosebushes that appeared to be as old as the house itself.

A man was sweeping up on the driveway.

“Hi. Are you Seth?”

“No. The boss isn’t here.”

“Oh. I heard I might be able to take a quick look inside.”

He paused, holding the broom still. “Sure. The owners are planning to put it up for rent. I imagine they want people to look at it. The front door’s unlocked.”

“Thanks.” She entered the foyer, then stepped into a large living room with high ceilings and a beautiful fireplace with an intricately carved mantel. Plaster walls, original woodwork, tall arched windows that allowed the light to stream in. It was amazing. The rest of the rooms were just as great. She wasn’t in real estate yet, but this place would have to rent for a small fortune. Well, some lucky family would be happy here.

She checked her watch. Even dawdling, she still had way too much time to kill. She thought about going back to the bed-and-breakfast for a nap, but she didn’t want to wake up disoriented for the meeting. So she decided to check out the town.

The entire place was a step back in time. She wandered around Whitaker Woods, a store full of handmade furniture, each piece a one-of-a-kind design. She peeked into the windows of the costume shop, Try It On, intrigued by the unique designs she hadn’t expected to find in such a small town.

Her phone rang. “Hello.”

“Laura? Paul Russell. I can’t squeeze in a meeting after all.” He sounded tense.

“Oh.” She looked down the street at Distinctive Properties. It was within walking distance.

Before she lost her courage, she headed for his office. “I only need a minute.”

“Another time.”

Paul was still on the phone when she pushed open the door. She took the chair angled in front of his desk.

“I told you I didn’t have time to meet,” he said after he hung up.

“That’s why I came to you.” She gripped her purse.

He frowned. “You just show up here, after I told you I’m too busy?”

Every nerve she possessed crowded into her throat. “We need to talk.”

“I told you. Flipping property isn’t easy. You have to be able to hold steady when you’ve bought a property, poured a ton of renovation money into it. Navigating between investors and sellers…It takes commitment, guts.” He held up his hands as though to say he knew she didn’t have either.

“I have both,” she lied. If she’d had any real courage, she would have left Jerry years ago. But she couldn’t tell Paul that.

“And it takes expertise.”

Laura leaned forward. “Which you can teach me.”

“I’ve already told you—”

“Please don’t reject this out of hand.” Laura bit her lip, wondering how much of the truth she should tell him, guessing he wouldn’t believe much. “I know you think you owe it to Jerry to run the firm as you see fit, but don’t you owe it to him to listen to me, as well? To consider what I can offer? Half the profits will benefit his children.”

She wasn’t convincing him. She could see that.

“You’re forgetting a pretty important technicality.”

She blinked in confusion.

“Even if I agreed to teach you, you live in Houston.”

“But you and Jerry made that work.”

“Because Jerry knew what he was doing. He acquired properties in the Houston area, supervised those renovations. I locate the investors, make sure the money’s in place. And I buy homes in this area for flipping, as well. I can’t teach you how to find and then buy the right properties, not from here.”

She opened her mouth, but no sound emerged. Her grip on the purse tightened. Not from here. Unless she did something more drastic than she had planned. Fortunately, she’d had an idea.

Two days later Laura arrived back in Houston, flushed with anticipation and fear. She had rented the incredible house on Elm Street in Rosewood. To her amazement, it had been surprisingly affordable, far below what she would have had to pay in Houston for something a fraction as nice. Now she had to lease out her own home and tell the children…and her in-laws. At the thought, she nearly turned the car around in the opposite direction. But it had to be done.

“Okay, guys, we need to talk,” she said to the kids as soon as she let herself in. “No, stay—please,” she added to Donna. “I need your support.”

Donna settled back down on the sofa, turning off the TV. Laura had already phoned her on the return trip, cluing her in on her unexpected plans.

Kirsten sighed as she collapsed into the cavernous chair that had been her father’s favorite. Again it struck Laura how much her daughter resembled him.

Gregg snuggled next to Laura, still young enough to be excited by his mother’s return. She smoothed the dark hair on his forehead. He had always taken after her in more than just appearance. They shared the same temperament.

“Since your father died, a lot of things have changed. And we have to make a new life for ourselves. For that to happen, I need to learn about your dad’s work. And the only way I can learn is for us to move to where his partner lives.”

“Move?” Kirsten jumped up, all her casual disdain gone. “We can’t move. All my friends are here.”

“You’ll make new friends—”

“I don’t want new friends.” Kirsten’s voice was shrill. “Nana and Grandpa won’t let you do this.”

Laura knew her declaration of independence wouldn’t be met with enthusiasm. She also knew that she would have to stick firm, not show her fear. “It’s not their decision. You’ll be able to visit them, but we have to stick together as a family, make this work for all of us.”

“Moving to some hick town won’t work!” Tears streamed down Kirsten’s face.

Laura got up to comfort her daughter, but Kirsten backed away. “You can’t make me go!” She galloped up the stairs, slamming her door behind her. The sound echoed through the quiet house.