"I have a brother and a sister. Brother lives out on the farm, east of Monet, and my sister lives in Monet as well," I said as I glanced around his home. I wasn’t sure what I was going to see when I walked in. A dude house, with nothing homey in it. A messy place. Or something spartan clean.
It wasn’t any of those things.
It actually was homey.
Comfortable furniture in the living area off of the front door. Open design that showed a warm kitchen with traditional wood cabinets. An island in the kitchen with granite.
It had a warm, woman’s feel to it.
He probably hadn’t changed a thing since his wife passed.
I get that.
"From Monet then. So, you're a small-town boy who escaped to the big city," I said as I pulled off my coat and hung it over the nearby barstool.
He shrugged. "There was already an exterminator in Monet that dominated the business. Not a lot of room for a new guy."
"You always wanted to be an exterminator?"
"I never minded critters when I was a kid. If there was a rat or a snake or something, I was the kid who took care of it. Got a job when I was a teenager working for that exterminator in Monet."
"Why did you come to Barrum, then?"
"Heather." He pulled a corkscrew out of a drawer. "She has people here. We met at the community college in Monet."
"Why did she go all the way out there?"
He raised his eyebrow. "It's like an hour and a half away."
I shrugged. "Whatever. This isn't Dallas, though, where an hour commute anywhere is normal."
He smirked. "She didn't want to go to college with all the same kids she went to high school with."
I nodded because I got that. "And you two met and fell in love?"
"Eventually, yeah." He grinned. Got a bit of a faraway look in his eye.
Shit.
I probably shouldn't have pushed. "So, what is making you want to sell this place?"
“Downsizing,” he replied. “Though finding a buyer right after Christmas is almost impossible.”
“I would imagine so.”
“I need something different. Something without so many memories.”
I wasn’t sure what to say. Part of me wanted to say something smart-assed, but I stopped because I knew what it felt like to want to avoid memories. We'd already drudged over memories tonight.
“The right person will come along, I bet.”
He picked up a couple of wine glasses from the already-set table. “Ready for wine?”
I nodded. Boy was I ready for wine.
The wine glasses were those big ones.
“Nice glasses,” I said.
