She set down the box and turned to look more closely at him. He really did have a wan look about him. “Have you been to the doctor?”
“I have an appointment on Friday afternoon.”
“Oh?” She pushed a loose strand of hair away from her forehead.
He looked down at the box. “What’s that?”
“Those old black-and-white photos that your grandmother took. You know, from the stairway.” She pulled out a photo of Alex and George. “I thought you might like these here in your bungalow.”
He took the photo from her, gazing at it with a hard-to-read expression. “Thank you.” He set it on the coffee table next to the vase and some rather wilted-looking sunflowers.
“I think these are ready to toss.” She picked up the vase, carrying it to the kitchen where she tossed the flowers into the trash, but she was surprised to see the sink full of dirty dishes. Without commenting on this, she rinsed the vase and set it aside.
“I—uh—I’ve gotten behind on my daily chores,” George said with obvious embarrassment.
“Well, you’re not feeling well.” She resisted the urge to touch his forehead. “I’m glad you’re going to the doctor.” She gave him a weak smile. “I also wanted to let you know that we’re almost ready for the estate sale. Now, don’t worry, you don’t need to lift a finger. It’s all organized and I’ve got people set up to help and—”
“I’ll gladly pay them.”
“That’s not necessary, George. But I do want to be sure you’re on board with the way you can recompense them.” She quickly explained how Savannah and Betty had picked out a few things for compensation and George readily agreed. “Josie is delighted with the pieces you saved for her. And Collin has set aside a bunch of Audubon and nature books that he’d like to keep. But if you don’t agree—”
“He’s welcome to any of the books,” George said quickly. “I already have all the books I want here.” He nodded to his cabinet.
“So you’re really certain that you want the house completely cleared out?” she asked.
He simply nodded.
Willow wanted to ask him if he was dying, but couldn’tthink of a polite way to say it. “Do you think you’ll sell the house?”
He shrugged. “I really don’t know.”
“If you were to sell it,” she said tentatively, “do you think it would be worthwhile to freshen it up some? Perhaps some lighter paint? Remove some of the old, dark wallpaper? After spending so much time there these past few days, I think there are some ways the place could really be brought back to life. And I’m sure you’d get a better price for it.”
“It is very dark, isn’t it?” He frowned. “My grandmother used to always say that very thing. But my grandfather grew up in the house and didn’t see the need to change anything.”
“I have a designer friend—a customer at the gallery,” Willow said. “Donna’s got excellent taste. She might be able to give you some suggestions. I could give her a call if you like.”
“Sure. That’s a good idea.” George sat down on the sofa with a deep sigh.
“Well, I can see you’re not feeling too well.” Willow bent down to give Baxter a couple of good strokes. “Baxter, you take good care of your master now.” She glanced up at George. “Is there anything I can do to help? Wash your dishes or—”
“No, no, you’ve done enough, Willow.” He waved a hand. “I think I just need to rest some ... for the time being. I’ll see what the doctor says on Friday.”
“Let me know how that goes.” She went to the door. “And don’t worry about the estate sale.” She smiled. “Maybe we’ll make enough to cover the expenses for some renovations at your grandparents’ house.”
George looked doubtful. “Just getting things cleared out is worth a lot.”
Willow told him to take it easy then let herself out. But asshe drove home, she felt concerned. George did not look well. And having seen Asher going downhill after his pancreatic cancer diagnosis, Willow wondered if she was about to go through something like that again. Could she take it? She felt unsure. And yet ... George was so alone.
twenty-five
Willow didn’t get a chance to talk to George again until Friday evening. Instead of just popping in on him, she decided to call. That would probably be less stressful for him. “How was your doctor’s appointment?” she asked gently.
“I’m not sure,” he said in a weary tone. “He didn’t find anything specifically wrong with me, but he took a lot of blood tests and whatnot. I suppose I won’t hear about the results for a week or so.”
“How are you feeling?” she asked.
“About the same.” He let out a low sigh that reminded her of Eeyore.
