Total pages in book: 82
Estimated words: 79433 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 397(@200wpm)___ 318(@250wpm)___ 265(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79433 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 397(@200wpm)___ 318(@250wpm)___ 265(@300wpm)
She nodded, walking over to the sink. “Tell me this is original.”
I laughed. “It’s original.”
“Please don’t get rid of this if you redo the kitchen.”
“Trust me, I won’t. My mother would kill me.”
Adelaide grinned. “She always was a smart woman. How are Janet and Ken doing? I plan on stopping by to see them soon.”
My parents had always loved Adelaide, and were both thrilled to find out she had decided to move back to Seaside.
“They’re doing well. I’m sure they’d love it if you stopped in to say hi. Dad’s retired now, so he’ll enjoy the company.”
Adelaide turned around and our eyes met. Something moved through me, and I had to fight the urge to pull her into my arms and kiss her.
“I’m so glad you’re back, Addie.”
“It was past time. I mean, I loved my job, but with dad and the heart attack and you…”
She let those words dangle out there, and I found myself smiling back at her.
“I had something to do with you coming back, huh?” I teased.
Winking, she replied, “Maybe.”
I frowned. “You’re not giving up nursing for good, are you?”
She gave me a one-shoulder shrug. “I don’t know. I’ve thought about moving away from patient care, so maybe I’ll do something different. I haven’t decided yet.”
All I could do was nod. I imagined it must have been hard for her to walk away from her job and her life in Boston.
Unaware of my internal musings, Adelaide had walked into the dining room and now moved back into the kitchen. “If you take out this wall, what about that built-in cabinet in the dining room?”
“I’ll move it to another area. Should be easy enough.”
She nodded, and we continued the tour.
“How many bedrooms?” she asked as we made our way to the half bath that was in the back of the house next to the small mudroom that also served as the laundry room. I had a large, stackable washer and dryer with a built-in storage shelf on the other side of the space where you could put boots and shoes and hang up coats. The same yellow color ran through the entire downstairs.
“Four bedrooms, this half bath, and two full baths upstairs.”
We started up the steps, and I watched as Adelaide smiled and ran her finger along the banister. “So beautiful. Look at the wood on these floors. It’s been so well maintained. The O’Gradys lived here for as long as I can remember, and they clearly took care of it.”
“They did. Their family had owned the house since it was built. Katherine only sold it because no one was left here in Seaside, and she didn’t want it to sit empty. When she decided to sell, she told me she only had a few pieces she wanted to take with her; the rest stayed with the house.”
Adelaide turned to look at me as she got to the landing. “Why would she do that? They’re family heirlooms. I can’t believe she didn’t want them.”
“She did keep a few pieces, but she didn’t have the room for anything else. Said she wanted them to stay with the house rather than be sold off. I agreed to keep them here.”
Adelaide shook her head. “I guess that makes sense if no one else wanted them or she didn’t have room for it all.”
I simply nodded.
We stepped into one of the two guest rooms and Adelaide smiled. “I love the different slopes of the ceiling in here. They make for such great little nook areas.”
“Yeah, this is a cool room. I was going to turn it into an office, but I don’t really need one. Will make a cute kid’s room someday, I guess.”
Where in the hell did that come from?
I didn’t dare look at Adelaide, but I could feel the weight of her stare after that bombshell of a comment.
“Planning on becoming a dad soon?” she asked with a teasing tone in her voice.
I glanced over at her and winked. “You offering?”
Her cheeks turned deep red, and she cleared her throat and walked into the next room.
Clearly ignoring my comment, I heard her say, “This is also a cute room. The colors are already perfect for a little girl.”
I followed her into the room. “It was for a little girl. Kathrine said it was painted for her granddaughter.”
“They left this bed?” Adelaide asked as she walked around the four-poster bed.
“They did. Didn’t you hear about Katherine’s son and his family?”
She turned from the bed and looked at me. “No.”
“It’s a sad story. You remember her son was her only child?”
“Yes, I remember that.”
“Well, he and his wife and daughter were all killed in an accident. Katherine said she wanted to sell and move to a warmer spot, needed to leave some memories behind.”
Adelaide’s eyes filled with tears. “Oh my gosh. Poor Katherine. I wonder why my parents never told me. My father’s family was pretty close to Katherine’s when they were growing up.”