A Promise To Keep

by Christina Tetreault

  Right twice in one conversation. Darn it. She better never tell him it happened.

  “Couples take care of each other. You’d do the same for me.”

  He was good. Somehow Drew knew the perfect words to say. Kelsey nodded in defeat. “Okay, but only a few things. I don’t need much. Ella gave me a ton yesterday. And the Hamilton Mall is fine. The mall in Natick is always too busy.”

  ***

  She expected the rep from the insurance company to be over fifty with graying hair. After all, during their phone conversation, the woman had said her name was Bertha. Kelsey didn’t know anyone in her generation with Bertha as a first name. Honestly, the only Bertha she’d ever met volunteered at the town library and had to be pushing ninety. Miss Bertha Wilson, the woman seated across from her at the moment, was nowhere near fifty. If Kelsey had to guess, she’d say the rep was around her age—and beautiful. As in movie star beautiful, not just yeah she’s pretty.

  Miss Wilson pulled several folders from her leather briefcase. “I brought a copy of your homeowners policy with me.” She pushed one folder across the table toward Kelsey, but her eyes never left Drew. “I’m sure you have a lot of questions about the process. I’ll do my best to answer them all.”

  A lot of questions? More like a boatload of questions. The first one being, can you please stop staring at my boyfriend.

  “Let’s start with temporary housing.” Miss Wilson flipped to a page in the folder. “Your policy provides you with two options. Option one is having a trailer moved onto the property for you to live in until the home is rebuilt. Option two is moving into a rental house or apartment. Ferguson Insurance will cover the full cost of the trailer. We have a contract with a company in Danvers. If you decide to rent, we’ll cover the cost up to the amount set in your policy.” She pointed to a figure on the page. “If you select a location and the rent is over this amount, you’d be responsible for the difference.”

  Kelsey had never actually read her entire homeowners policy. She doubted many people ever did. At that moment, she wished she had. “Do I need to decide what I want to do today?” Drew had invited her into his home, but she wasn’t sure he’d want her staying with him until her house was rebuilt. Building a house could take months.

  “There’s no rush.” The representative glanced down as she turned to another section. “Whenever you decide, call my office, and we’ll make the necessary arrangements. Some clients choose to stay with family or friends.”

  Miss Wilson looked at Drew when she said the word friend. Kelsey assumed the woman was trying to figure out what type of relationship existed between them. The representative wasn’t from North Salem, and thankfully their involvement hadn’t hit the media outlets yet.

  “Great. I’ll think about it.”

  Drew covered her hand with his. “I want you to stay here.” He whispered the words in her ear, but from the way the rep’s eyebrows went up, she’d heard him anyway.

  “We can talk about it later,” Kelsey said. She wasn’t making any decisions with Bertha sitting there.

  The representative’s eyes dropped to their hands and back up to Drew’s face. “Like I said, whatever decision you make is fine with us. Before I move on, do either of you have any other questions?”

  Kelsey shook her head.

  “Good, then let’s move on to how the rebuild process works.”

  For the next two hours, Miss Wilson explained how the homeowner’s policy worked in terms of rebuilding the house and replacing the items Kelsey lost. Throughout the explanation, Kelsey took notes. With so much information coming at her, she didn’t want to forget anything important.

  “We discussed a lot this morning. If either of you has any questions, please call me.” She handed them both her business card. “Helping you through this is my number-one priority.”

  Kelsey doubted that. Although the woman was personable and kind, she worked for the insurance company. Her job and the company’s interests were her first priority. “I appreciate all your help today, Miss Wilson.”

  “Please call me Bertha. And my card has both my office number and cell. Feel free to call anytime.”

  Kelsey closed the door behind the insurance representative and leaned her head against the wood. Done. Finally, she had a moment to collect her thoughts. She hadn’t had one since she got out of the shower.

  Drew’s arms encircled her, and he kissed the top of her head. “How are you holding up?”

  Leaning against him, she closed her eyes. For so long she’d managed everything on her own. While she intended to keep on doing that, it was nice having someone by her side.

  “I’m okay. It’s a lot to process.” She turned so she faced him rather than the front door. “I have some serious decisions to make.” Did she want to rebuild the house, or simply tear down the structure and sell the property? If she did rebuild, should she have something smaller constructed? Before the fire, the house had had five bedrooms. She lived alone. She didn’t need a house so big. A much smaller two-bedroom home would suit her purposes and lower her tax bill.

  “About what I said earlier.” He caressed the length of her back, and she wished they could stand there for the rest of the afternoon.

  Kelsey rolled her shoulders. All the tension from the last twenty-four hours had settled in her upper back and shoulders.

  Drew’s caress turned into a gentle massage. “I want you to stay here with me.”

  As nice as the massage felt, this was a serious conversation. Kelsey moved out of his arms. “We’re not talking a few weeks, Drew. Rebuilding a house could take months, maybe a year. They might not even be able to start until sometime in the spring. It might be better if I find a place in town to rent.” She’d already dismissed the idea of having a temporary trailer placed on the property. She couldn’t think of anything more depressing than looking out the window and seeing her destroyed home every day. “I don’t think it’ll be hard to find something.”

  Determination crossed his face. “I don’t care how long it takes. I want you with me. You belong here.” Raising her hand to his lips, he kissed her knuckles. “Please stay.”

  How could she resist when he said things like that to her?

  Chapter Ten

  Kelsey played the voice mail message from Carolina Marcus a second time. “Kelsey, we have our first offer. Call me when you have a moment, so we can discuss it.”

  Deleting the message, she pulled up the real estate agent’s contact information. Bancroft Automotive had only been on the market for a little over two weeks. She hadn’t expected to receive an offer so soon. She’d seen homes and businesses in and around North Salem linger on the market for months before getting a single offer. Sometimes they sat for years. But two weeks? Wow. Carolina’s prediction had been spot-on.

  While she waited for Carolina to answer, she added another pile of homework assignments to her bag. Between work, Drew, and issues related to the fire, she’d fallen way behind on correcting student assignments. She planned to spend several hours this weekend tackling the paperwork.

  “Hi Carolina, it’s Kelsey Bancroft,” she said when the agent answered. “Sorry I missed your call.”

  “Right after I called, I realized you were probably still at school. We received an offer this afternoon. Prepare yourself, when you read the offer. It’s on the low side,” Carolina said.

  Kelsey’s shoulders dropped. At their first meeting, Carolina told her to expect some lowball offers; still, it wasn’t what she wanted to hear.

  “I already e-mailed it to you, so you can review it. Obviously you can accept it. My recommendation though would be to go back to them with a new figure. See if they’ll negotiate with you.”

  Decisions, decisions. The word seemed to define her existence these days. “I’ll look it over and get back to you.”

  Her first instinct was to follow the real estate agent’s recommendation. The woman did this for a living. She knew how these transactions were handled. At the same time,
part of her wanted the whole thing over and done with. The fire two weeks ago had added more than enough to her already loaded plate.

  Her laptop remained out, so Kelsey opened her e-mail account. She scanned through the numerous messages until she found the one from Carolina. She didn’t bother to read the actual message. Instead she downloaded the purchase offer and immediately hit print. While she waited for the documents, she sent a quick text message to Drew letting him know she was on her way home. Although it was a Friday night, she didn’t have a shift at the restaurant. Actually, this would be the fourth Friday in a row she hadn’t been scheduled. She hadn’t questioned Junior or Lou about it, but she feared the loss of a Friday night shift might be permanent. That was another good reason to accept the offer, assuming it wasn’t ridiculous, and move on with her life.

  The papers sat on the printer, daring her to pick them up. “Let’s see what you have to say.” She picked up the sheets and scanned through the legal jargon, looking for the dollar amount. At the moment, it was the only part she cared about. She could go back later and read the contract in more detail.

  Her eyes located the numbers. Yikes. While not as low as she’d feared, the figure was well below the asking price. She’d accepted she wouldn’t get the actual asking price. She may have never sold property before, but she knew buyers rarely paid the price listed. However, she couldn’t accept this offer. Her father’s garage was worth much more. When she got home, she’d call Carolina back and have her send the potential buyers a counteroffer. Hopefully the buyers understood the process too and didn’t expect her to accept the first offer they sent.

  Kelsey unlocked the door leading from the garage into the house. Despite Drew’s insistence she treat the house like her own, she’d been uncomfortable simply letting herself inside in the beginning. Regardless of how welcoming Drew was, this wasn’t her home. The unease had passed. In fact, she no longer felt like a visitor in the house. Instead she considered it home. She already knew it was going to be hard to move out, and not because she hated living alone, or the fact Drew’s home had every amenity imaginable. No, the difficulty would stem from not having Drew there every morning when she woke up and each night when she went to sleep.

  Before she managed to drop her bags, the door behind her opened again. “Good, you’re home.” Drew walked in carrying several grocery bags. “I thought I’d beat you back. Steve and Dakota are coming tonight too, so I picked up some more food.”

  Even with two more guys coming, she thought they had plenty of food for tonight’s poker game and knew the others would bring stuff too. Everyone always contributed.

  He set the bags down and pulled her close. “How was your day?” he asked, kissing her before she could answer—a habit she’d noticed he had. “I missed you.”

  One great thing about teaching middle school, her students kept her so busy she didn’t have much time to think about anything or miss anyone. Not even Drew. After first her brother’s death and then her parents’, working with her students had saved her. Without them, her thoughts would’ve constantly lingered on her grief and the huge void left behind in her life.

  “Typical.” Kelsey reached into her bag and pulled out the purchase offer. “Got some good news. Someone made an offer on the garage.” It wasn’t any of his business, but she handed him the papers anyway. “It’s too low to accept, but I’m going to have Carolina send them a counteroffer.”

  Drew frowned and ran a hand through his hair. “Already? It went on the market the twentieth.”

  “It surprised me too.”

  “And you’re okay with this? They might agree to whatever figure you send back. Are you prepared for that?”

  In this case, the word okay was a relative term. Intellectually she knew she could no longer let her emotions control her financial decisions. “I put a lot of thought into this decision. It might not be what I want, but it’s what I need to do. It is what’s best for me.”

  “You do have another option.” He put his hands on her waist. “Let me help you.”

  Prepared to protest, she parted her lips. Before she got a word out, he pressed a finger against her mouth. “Hear me out before you say no.” He waited for her nod of agreement. “You won’t accept a loan from me, and I doubt you’ll change your mind.”

  If he didn’t plan to offer her a loan, what did he have in mind? “No mind-changing going on here. I don’t want any money from you.”

  “What if I buy the garage?”

  She’s going to say no. He hadn’t suggested it before because he knew she’d never go for it. With a possible buyer lined up, he had to give it a try. Once they married, her financial problems would be resolved. He didn’t want her doing something today she’d later regret. And they would be married soon. He’d picked out the ring earlier in the week and planned to propose when they went on vacation.

  “Wouldn’t you rather have me own it instead of a stranger?”

  Kelsey’s expression said she’d already prepared an argument, and he wasn’t going to like it. Before she launched it at him, he continued. “Don’t say no without considering the possibility.”

  “Drew, I know you’re trying to help. But you don’t want to own a business. If anyone else owned Bancroft Automotive, you wouldn’t be considering this. This is your way of getting around my refusal to take your money.”

  She’s not wrong. Whether she was right or wrong was irrelevant. Only helping her keep what belonged to her mattered.

  “Please at least think about it,” Drew said as a completely absurd idea formed. He’d rather not involve anyone else, but if left with no other choice he would.

  Looking over his shoulder, she took in a deep breath. When she met his eyes again, he had his answer before she spoke. “I love you and appreciate what you’re trying to do. But my answer is no to this idea too.” She brushed her lips against his. “Be right back. I need to call Carolina. After, I’ll help you finish getting ready for tonight’s game.”

  She slipped out of his arms.

  “When you’re done, I have a surprise.”

  “A surprise?” she asked, sounding suspicious. “What kind of surprise?”

  “You’ll have to wait. Go call Carolina. I want your full attention when I give it to you.” It wasn’t the only reason he wanted some time without her. He needed to consider the crazy idea he’d come up with. “I’ll meet you in the bedroom when you’re done.”

  He didn’t doubt Jack would help him out. He’d roomed with Jackson Newton for three years at LSU. Later Jack became his agent. Drew trusted him, and knew he’d be willing to go along with his nutty idea.

  There wasn’t a doubt in his mind, Kelsey would be furious if she ever found out. They had a great thing going. Did he want to risk it? It’s for her own good, he reminded himself. If the truth came out, which he didn’t think would happen, she’d be mad, but she loved him. How many times had she told him? She’d forgive him.

  Assuming the potential buyers didn’t accept Kelsey’s counteroffer, he’d call Jack the first chance he got and set his plan into action. Until then he’d work on achieving his first goal: getting an engagement ring on Kelsey’s finger. Taking the stairs two at a time, Drew sent Jack a text message letting him know he needed his help and would be contacting him soon.

  “Keep your fingers crossed. Carolina’s sending the counteroffer over to the other agent.” Kelsey walked into their bedroom.

  He’d stopped thinking of it as his bedroom around the same time he’d decided having her by his side every night was his future.

  “And Jessie just texted me. She and Mack aren’t going to make it tonight. Grace came home from school with a fever.” She sat and crossed her legs on the bed. “I remember you saying something about a surprise,” she said eagerly.

  He’d left the gift-wrapped box on the nightstand. “I don’t know, maybe I should give it to you later.” Drew picked it up and examined the box as if really not sure if he should give it to her now or later. �
�We need to finish getting ready for the game. After everyone leaves might be a better time.”

  She narrowed her eyes at him. “Are you serious? You’re going to make me wait that long?”

  Kelsey looked ready to bounce up and take the gift by force.

  Drew spun the box between his fingers. “Nah.” Leaning over, he kissed her forehead. “Hope you like it, sweetheart.”

  She examined the box, then gave it a shake. “You wrapped this yourself?”

  Okay, it didn’t resemble the perfect boxes pictured under Christmas trees at the holidays. He didn’t have much practice wrapping presents, but he’d tried. “Hey, if you don’t want it.” He pretended to reach for the box, but she swatted his hand away.

  “It looks great.” She tore the paper off. “Promise me this isn’t another coffee mug or plaque that says world’s best teacher on it.”

  “No coffee mugs.”

  Opening the cover, she pulled out first the new sunglasses inside. Next, she took out the flip-flops. The extra-large beach towel came last. “Uh, Drew. You do realize it’s March. There’s still snow on the ground.”

  “There’s something else.” He retrieved the envelope still in the box and handed it to her.

  Kelsey’s jaw dropped open when she took out the contents. “First-class tickets to Hawaii?”

  “Yup. I already booked us a suite at the Sherbrooke Hawaiian Village Resort. We’ll be overlooking Waikiki Beach and sipping tropical drinks.”

  “But these tickets are for this month.”

  He’d checked the school district calendar before booking the trip. “During your March school vacation.”

  “I know, but I still have work at the restaurant, and the house stuff to deal with.”

  “A week isn’t going to make a difference with the house. And if you ask, I’m sure you can find someone to cover your two shifts at the restaurant. You help everyone else out all the time.” He took the sunglasses she’d set aside and slipped them on her face. “Hawaii is one of my favorite places in the world. I want to share it with you.” He hung the beach towel over her shoulders. “If anyone deserves a vacation, it’s you. Come and have fun. Just relax and leave your worries at home for a week, sweetheart.”