Total pages in book: 64
Estimated words: 57897 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 289(@200wpm)___ 232(@250wpm)___ 193(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57897 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 289(@200wpm)___ 232(@250wpm)___ 193(@300wpm)
The house hadn’t been lived in for many years, and there were problems with it that were evident right from the start, but I could see past them. I was more interested in the potential here than I was in what it was right now. There was no electricity in the house and hadn’t been for a long time, so I was glad for the flashlight I’d tucked into the backpack.
Taking it out, I turned it on before approaching the front door. I was already reaching for the knob before I thought about the fact that it might be locked and there were no keys left behind. Fortunately, the knob turned, and with some persuasion and a bit of force, the door opened into the foyer of the grand old house.
I spent a long time going from room to room, looking at the old furniture still sitting in place, the knickknacks and other little signs of the lives that used to be lived here. It would have been so beautiful in its day, and I could see how gorgeous it could be again.
When I was finished with my first tour through the house, I stepped outside onto the section of the porch that curved around the back of the house and looked out over the land. The house was perfectly positioned to overlook the farm, originally giving the sisters a view of everything they worked so hard for. I closed my eyes and imagined what it would have been like to stand there and see the carefully manicured fields of Christmas trees stretching out into the glow of the sunset and the satisfaction the sisters must have felt when they saw the fruit of their labor.
It had been so many years since the farm was in working order, but there was still so much of it that looked impressive, and the effort they put into it was obvious. Though they had been taken over by weeds and other plants, the fields were still there, and hundreds of trees that had been planted with the purpose of eventually being sold for the holiday season were still growing. There was so much beauty and so much potential held in the space. It was such a shame it was all probably going to be sold off and torn down.
But maybe it didn’t have to be.
I remembered what the attorney said to me when he called to tell me about my inheritance. He’d encouraged me to come see the property and to reconsider the offer for the logging company to buy it. This was my decision. I didn’t have to sell it. I didn’t have to let someone come in and bulldoze everything my family worked so hard to build. That wasn’t my only option.
Maybe there was some way I could get it going again. The chances seemed slim as I stood there taking in all the challenges that would need to be overcome, but that didn’t mean it was impossible. I was going to need a lot of help. Without help, it was highly unlikely I’d be able to even get the house back to living condition, much less get the business working again.
That wasn’t out of reach, however. Maybe I could hire some people to help me clear the land, cultivate the trees, and get everything working again. If I could do that, a good season would make it possible to pay off the tax bill. Then I wouldn’t have to completely give up the land. I’d be able to keep it in the family, and it would give me the direction I’d been looking for in my life.
Just the thought made me giggle a little bit. Not because there was any real comedy in it, but in the way that came when life was unexpected and funny and hard to believe. That was definitely where I was at that moment. It was hard to wrap my mind around this being an actual thing, something that I might actually change my entire life to do.
It could happen. It really could. This wasn’t so crazy it was out of the realm of possibility. The only problem was I didn’t even know where to start.
20
JASON
Beth Ann disappearing in the middle of the night was really getting to me, and her not answering any of my texts was only making it worse. I fluctuated through different emotions and reactions, not knowing which one I should finally land on, but had finally cooled down at least. I was done beating myself up and had moved away from anger to settle closer to curiosity and confusion.
I couldn’t place what I had done that would make her leave like that, and as much as I wanted to think she was just like Charlotte and just didn’t want to be with me, I had a hard time with it. It really felt like there was some other explanation. I even debated with myself about whether I should just drive over to her place and check on her.