“What do you think?” the realtor asked.
“My realtor will be in touch.” Carlisle handed a business card to their guide.
He and Merry didn’t speak as they walked with the children back out to the car.
“Are you going to buy it?” Alex asked once Carlisle was driving away from the home. “It’s almost as big as Grandma’s house.”
“He’s talking about Ray’s mother,” Merry whispered.
“I might purchase it. Would you like to live in the house, Grace?” Carlisle asked.
“Yes, but will Grandpapa really come and live with us?”
“Perhaps for a visit.” Grace had come in the night before when Carlisle had been talking to his uncle. The man had been surprisingly amenable to the suggestion he assume responsibility for running the estate—if the old man would let him.
“Did you like the house, Alex?” Carlisle asked. “Do you think it’s scary?” He didn’t look at Merry, but he could feel her gaze on him.
“No. I like it.” He then asked Grace a question, and they seemed to forget the adults.
“I do as well,” Carlisle said to Merry. “It’s large without feeling grand.”
“That’s a good way to describe it.” She squinted at the glare on the snow. “It’s homey. I’ve been thinking about what you said about guests. If you have a housekeeper, would she be live-in or would you hire a company to come out to clean? I’m just thinking about how many bedrooms would be free when you have one of your gatherings.”
“I’m not much of a cook,” he said, turning onto the main road. “I’ll need to find a housekeeper who also cooks. Would you find that troublesome, having a housekeeper? I’d prefer someone who can live in because then I wouldn’t have to impose on your mother anymore.”
“But I like going to Grammy’s house,” Grace said from her seat.
Carlisle was loath to break that particular connection as well. He glanced at Merry. Would it put her off to know how he’d imagined her in each of the rooms in that house?
“I could only host small gatherings in the house, but I like the word you used to describe it. Homey. It has a guest house with two suites which would augment the bedrooms for larger events. What would you think if I made an offer on this one?” He watched her intently.
“It’syourhouse.” She glanced away, but not before Carlisle had seen something in her eyes. Could she see herself living in this house too?
“Yes. It will be my house.”And I hope it will be yours and Alex’s someday too.
* * *
Merry layin bed that night, unable to sleep. When she’d accepted Carlisle’s invitation to go house hunting with him and Grace, she’d wondered if she’d made the right decision. He’d been the perfect gentleman, though, and she’d been glad to spend the time with them.
If only she hadn’t been able to see herself and Alex living there with the Wyndhams. Making a family together. If he’d liked that first place, she’d have known they were too different to make it work. But the very things she’d found appealing in the second house appeared to be the ones he liked too. Didn’t purchasing a home mean he wanted to stay?
Her throat ached, but she refused to cry.
14
“Ihave the keys,” Carlisle said when he stepped into the daycare three days later.
“What keys?” It’d been a long day at the salon, and Merry’s feet hurt.
“To the house,” he said, stepping to the computer to sign out his daughter. “It’s mine now.”
Merry blinked, her mouth open. “That was fast,” she finally said.
“Offering to pay cash simplified the process.”
“Mama,” Alex cried at the same time Grace squealed, “Papa.”
Carlisle picked up his daughter and accepted her tight hug, watching as Merry’s son squeezed her waist. He noticed the dark circles under her eyes. Resisting the temptation to inquire after her health, he reminded himself it might come across as too proprietary, something a sweetheart would ask. If he succeeded in convincing his grandfather to hand over responsibility for the estate to Uncle Reggie, Carlisle must maintain his friendship with Merry.
