“Right. I’ll see you at six.”
They both stood there for a moment, looking at each other. Mason didn’t turn to get back in his truck and Xeni didn’t hightail it back into the safety of the house. Not that she needed protecting from him. No, she needed to stop herself from letting this go on longer than it already had. They could talk. They could share a meal. She was definitely going to sleep with him, but this thing between them? It wasn’t a pulsing heat. It was starting to feel like warmth, comfort, and she knew her emotions were too muddled to handle it like an adult. She forced her gaze away from his and took a step back.
“Six,” she said.
“I’ll see you then.”
* * *
Xeni’s head was spinning. She’d spent hours going over everything with Mr. Barber and Ms. Jordan. She was grateful to have Bess there to hold her hand. All Xeni could think over and over again was how her aunt could have possibly kept all of this from her family and why her family had kept so much information from Xeni. She wanted to know why her aunt had dumped it all in her lap. There were the two houses to deal with and the liquid assets—she double checked what that meant—her stocks and investments. What scared Xeni were the music publishing rights. Ms. Jordan gave her the information for a Martin Hooper who actually handled everything for her aunt. She’d call him in a few days, but she was terrified of what he would tell her.
Finally at five, Ms. Jordan called it quits. “I have to get back to the city, but call me if you need anything and Monday we can go over any questions you have.”
“I will and I’ll give you a call anyway after I meet with the realtor.” Ms. Jordan had given her opinion on what the best move would be with her aunt’s properties, but she didn’t know much about either local market, so Xeni was handed off to the next expert. She thanked Mr. Barber and Ms. Jordan as they rushed off so Ms. Jordan could jump back into bumper-to-bumper traffic on her way back in Manhattan. Bess hung back.
“You’re doing great,” she said once they were alone.
Xeni sagged against the counter. “You think so?”
“This is overwhelming as hell and part of me wishes I could go back in time and talk some sense into Sister Sable, but we’re here now.”
“Yes, we are.”
“Take it. All of it. Don’t be afraid to embrace this blessing, even though it feels like too much right now.”
“I will. Would you like to stay for dinner? Mason is coming back over to cook.”
Bess smirked as she hoisted her bag over her shoulder. “Do you need a chaperone?”
“No. I just figured if Mason was already planning to cook, you could stay and enjoy the meal as a thank you.”
“No, I have to get home and make sure I see Sydney’s face before she tries to disappear with her friends for the weekend. Maybe another time.”
“Okay.” Xeni walked Miss Bess to the door and they said their goodbyes.
When she was gone, Xeni dug into her contacts and pulled up her Aunt Hazel’s number. They weren’t close, even though they should have been. Her grandmother had started having kids so early, still in her teens. She’d taken a break, then had four more kids. As a result, Xeni was actually older than her Aunt Hazel, the baby of the bunch. Xeni’s mom had always treated her like a child and after a while it had put a strain on their relationship. It was a strange dynamic, but Hazel had always been nice to Xeni, even when she wasn’t getting along with her mom. It took Xeni a few tries to get the wording right, but eventually she finished drafting the text and sent it off to her aunt.
Hi Aunt Hazel.
Sorry to bother you.
I need to ask one of your sisters
some questions about Aunt Sable.
Who has the most information
and is likely to give me the least push back?
She responded right away.
Hi Baby.
You need to speak to your Aunt Alice.
Thank you.
No problem.
