“Andy, I have to pee,” Gabriel cried out, tugging on his jacket.
“Okay, come on, bud. Let’s see if the bathroom works.” Andy frowned and sighed as he rustled the doorknob. The locked door wouldn’t budge. He shoved his hand in his pocket and pulled out a set of keys. “Well, let’s see if these work.”
He shoved one in the deadbolt and unlocked it, opening the door. The air that wafted out smelled stale and musty. Laura couldn’t help but wrinkle her nose and cough. She must have pulled a face, as Andy said, “Let’s open some windows.” He took Gabriel’s hand and stepped inside.
Laura glanced at the attractive neighbor. As always, around someone she didn’t know, her mind went blank. She didn’t have a clue what to say. That was where Andy excelled: he filled a room, he took over, and he led. He watched, studied, always knew exactly what to say; and he also never worried what people thought. Laura sometimes wished she could be more like him.
The woman rested a booted foot on the bottom step. “Can’t believe someone actually bought this place. It’s been empty for five years now,” she said. She didn’t smile, but her expression softened as she took in Jeremy, now starting to settle in Laura’s arms. “You have your hands full—three kids, and twins. Where did you folks move from?”
Laura really wasn’t comfortable talking to strangers about her business. “North Lakewood,” she said. “Andy wanted a new start for us, so…” She couldn’t for the life of her figure out what to say that wasn’t too private, like the fact that Andy’s mother had tried to steal her babies and had even conspired with the doctor to perform a C-section and take them while Laura was sleeping. They couldn’t prove any of it, even the doctor said it wasn’t true, but Andy had decided to move them as far from his family’s reach as he could. Laura wasn’t about to share any of her secrets with a woman she barely knew, so the uncomfortable silence lingered.
She shivered, and Kim gestured to the door. “You should take that baby inside. It’s still chilly here. I’m not sure what works or if any power is hooked up, though. Didn’t see any utility trucks coming out this way.”
Laura started inside and then stopped. She had to remind herself that she wasn’t a rude person, but that was exactly how she was acting towards their new neighbor. “Kim, come in,” she said. “I’m sorry, just tired from all the driving.”
Laura could hear echoes from inside the empty house. She was in awe as she took in all the wood, the high ceiling, the big, open-concept front room, and the dust and cobwebs that were so thick they would take a cleaning crew a week to get through. There were two hallways, one at each end of the house, as well as a loft with a cathedral window. Laura flicked the light switch and the light flickered on. “There’s power,” she said before turning off the light again in the sun-brightened room.
“This used to be a beautiful house,” Kim said. “The oldest son of the Miller family, who’ve been around these parts for many years, had this built for his wife. Can’t remember her name... Claudia, that was it.” She picked up a pile of papers and wood that had been left sitting by the woodstove and cracked open the glass door, looking in and pulling on the damper. “I’ll get this going for you, warm it up in here.” She loaded it up and pulled a pack of matches from her coat pocket. “Jeff Miller—he would be in his fifties now—came home one day and found his wife in bed with another man, her tennis coach, I think. Anyway, he shot him.”
Kim glanced up at her, and maybe it was the horror showing on Laura’s face that made her add, “Sorry, he didn’t kill him, only wounded him. Jeff got time served for good behavior and put the house on the market. Claudia, I think she ran off with that tennis pro, or maybe it was a golf pro. Don’t know for sure, but they left together as soon as he was out of the hospital, and this house just sat here with no one to look after it.”
Laura watched her neighbor, still feeling the heebie-jeebies of being in the same house as someone who had almost been killed. She wasn’t sure what she believed, but she also wasn’t one to find out. She took in the sight of Kim as she got the fire going, so confident——just stepping in and acting. Laura couldn’t do that. She felt awkward, and still worried about what others thought. Gabriel came running in, Andy behind him.
“Bathroom works,” Andy said, gesturing down the hall. He looked up at the cathedral ceiling and then over at Kim before frowning at Laura, who shrugged. She knew why he was bothered—or she hoped she did, at least. Kim was starting a fire, warming his house, when Andy had two hands to do it himself.
Kim closed up the woodstove, the flames burning the dry wood as it crackled. She wiped her hands on her jeans and smiled brightly. By the tiny lines around her eyes, she was probably closer to Andy’s age. “That should take some of the chill off,” she said.
Andy started toward Laura and tilted his head. “Bathroom?” he said, holding his arms out to take the baby. Laura held tight even though she did have to go. Andy obviously hadn’t picked up on her unease at leaving him with another woman—a smart, confident, good-looking woman. She was being ridiculous, stupid and jealous, but she couldn’t help it. Andy was every woman’s dream man.
“Laura, go,” he said, taking the baby from her arms.
Laura didn’t miss the puzzled expression on Kim’s face before she brushed her slender, capable hands together and said, “Hey, listen, I should get going. I hope you don’t stay here tonight. This place has been closed up a long time and needs a good cleaning.”
“We’ll make do,” Laura said as she slid her hand over Andy’s arm, making his dark leather jacket rustle. His eyes flashed at her and she wondered for a minute what he’d say. “The furniture comes today, doesn’t it?” she asked.
“Sometime, but Kim’s right——this place isn’t ready. We need to get it cleaned first, and I need to have a talk with the realtor. I better be able to get a hold of him. Besides,” Andy added, “I think we’d be better off in town tonight. I’ll get a hotel for you and the kids, and I’ll come back and get Ladystar settled.”
Laura wanted to stay and argue, but she really did need to go to the bathroom; and the last thing she wanted was to have anything she said dismissed by Andy in front of this woman. That was just something she couldn’t tolerate, so she turned and headed down the hall, taking in the open doors, the bedrooms, and the one bathroom with a nice round tub, a separate shower, and a sink that dripped and dripped. She listened with one ear to her husband as he had a conversation with the new lady neighbor, who was pretty, confident and capable—absolutely everything that Laura knew, deep in her bones, she wasn’t.
Chapter 3
Andy stared out the window, watching as Kim drove away. Jeremy was fussing a bit in his arms when he heard the bathroom door open, and Laura stepped out. Gabriel was sitting quietly by the fire, which was unlike him.
“Hey, bud, you okay?” Andy asked. Gabriel shrugged and didn’t say anything.
“What’s going on?” Laura asked, hunkering down behind Gabriel, who was still bundled in a black down coat. She frowned, resting her hand on his forehead. “He’s hot.” She glanced up at Andy, who didn’t miss the worry in her expression.
“Gabriel, are you feeling sick, buddy?” Andy asked.
“I’m tired and I’m cold,” he muttered, whining against Laura.
“He slept most of the way here. Maybe he has the flu,” Laura said. She had been ready to demand they stay here, throwing down a mattress and some blankets on the floor, but maybe that wouldn’t be such a good idea with Gabriel sick.
“Here, take Jeremy,” Andy said. “I’m going to get Ladystar set up in the round pen and then I’ll get us a hotel room in town, just until we can get this cleaned up and I can find out what works and what doesn’t. I need to get a hold of that damn realtor.”
Laura started to stand up, but Gabriel wouldn’t let go of her arm. He just whined and moaned. “Gabriel, here, lie on my coat,” she said, shrugging out of her white down coat and laying it on the floor. Gabriel curled up on his si
de and faced the fire.
“Here, take him.” Andy handed Laura the baby and shrugged out of his coat, slipping it over her shoulders just as Chelsea starting fussing from the carrier against the wall. When Laura tried to lay Jeremy on the floor beside Chelsea’s car seat, he started howling.
“Andy, help me for a minute. Just let me feed Chelsea.”
He wiped his face, glanced out at Ladystar and then unbuckled his baby girl. “It’s okay, Chels. There’s my girl.” He kissed her chubby little cheek just as Gabriel started crying. It was one those moments where Andy had to take a breath and remind himself that the kids came first.
An hour later, Andy was leading Ladystar into the round pen after walking around and checking the soundness of the rails. He had just latched the gate when an older model, green SUV pulled in, and out stepped a slim man in dark glasses and a cowboy hat, wearing a heavy sheepskin coat.
“Hey,” Andy called out as he latched the gate, setting the halter and lead rope over the railing.
The man started walking towards Andy and raised his hand up. “You Andy Friessen?” the man asked, digging into each step.
“Yeah, and who’re you?” he asked as the man approached and extended his hand.
“Bill Mansfield, with Sommerhill Realty. I got a call from Kim, your neighbor. She said you folks were using Clayton and bought this place.”
Andy shook his hand. The younger man looked as if he’d just started shaving yesterday. “So tell me, Bill, where is Clayton?”
“Took off. Cleaned out the petty cash, too. Left quite a mess, really, on some of his deals, yours included. We came across your file yesterday and tried to call you, but your phone was disconnected.”
“My home phone was. My cell phone works just fine,” Andy snapped. “So what are you saying? I can assure you I bought this place, got the legal papers and everything to prove it.”
The man backed up. “No, that’s not what I meant. You do own it. That much is done. It’s just that, well, what we found is that Clayton may have fudged some of the details.”
Andy shoved his hands in his coat pockets and glanced around. The photos of the place had boasted a post-and-beam barn, fenced pastures, a sprawling rancher, everything new. “‘Fudging’ sounds to me like a fancy word people use for lying, scamming, and cheating. So what did he lie about, exactly, other than the fact that the house isn’t new? The place seems to need repair, and that’s just from what I’ve seen in the first ten minutes of being here.”
“Yeah, well, there is that,” Bill said. “The photos were taken when the house was first listed five years ago, but no one has been living here to take care of the place. The owner is gone——and there was the scandal with his wife, but you don’t need to hear about that.”
“Then tell me what I do need to know, other than the fact that someone owes me some money,” Andy barked. He was ready to take a strip off this realtor.
“Now, hang on a second. I’m here merely as a courtesy—and because Kim called. I’m just trying to be a good neighbor and help out. Clayton was an independent realtor. He didn’t work for anyone, and he’s responsible for his own clients.”
“Nice,” Andy muttered. He looked away, unable to believe how he’d been duped. He was the shrewdest business man there was, and he sure as hell wasn’t about to admit that he hadn’t done his homework. He knew he should have hired an independent guy to come and inspect the property, but he had been in a hurry to get his family——his kids, as far away from his mother as he could. He’d been distracted, sloppy, and he’d kick his own ass if he could. “So tell me, how much did I overpay for this? It is seventy-two acres, right? That’s what the deed says.”
“Yes, seventy-two and a half, to be exact, but the assessment value was fudged to the tune of three hundred thousand, we believe,” Bill said.
“The spec sheet I received on all the features, was that fudged, too?”
“From what we can tell, we think so, but you should go through it and double check. You’ve got in-floor heating…here, let me see.” Bill reached into his inside pocket and pulled out a couple sheets of paper. “As you can see, we marked off everything we know is correct from the seller. The Miller family are good people, and this is a class-A dwelling. Most of what you see is just from the lack of upkeep. It shouldn’t take much to straighten the place out.”
“Really?” Andy said with a hint of sarcasm, looking around and wondering what this kid was talking about. “I have a wife, twin babies, and a sick little boy, inside a dirty house that will take an army to clean. I’ve got pastures here with downed fences almost everywhere, the barn door is falling off, and I haven’t even checked―”
“That’s why I’m here,” Bill interrupted. “I’ll get someone out here to clean the place up for you. I felt bad when Kim called and told me how bad it was. We’re neighborly folks around here, and I’m doing this to help out.”
Andy didn’t have a chance to say a word before he heard the moving truck pull in, carrying all the furniture he hadn’t sold off. “Well, you better call that cleaning crew now,” he muttered, starting back to the house to deal with yet another mess.
Chapter 4
“Look, this is just for the night.” Andy closed their hotel room door, setting the baby bassinets on the bed. This had been the only room available, with two queen beds and a pullout sofa. Laura had tucked Gabriel into one of the beds and he’d fallen asleep as soon as she took off his shoes, but Andy was worried as he glanced over at their son. Laura was nursing Chelsea, and Jeremy was lying on the bed beside her, kicking up his legs.
“How’s he doing?” Andy slid his coat off and dumped it over their luggage.
“He just wants to sleep, Andy. I tried to get him to drink some water,” Laura said.
Andy nodded. “Let him sleep. Hopefully, he’ll be better in the morning and these two won’t pick up whatever bug he’s got.”
The last thing Laura wanted was two babies sick along with Gabriel. Flu bugs and colds generally went through the entire house, taking them all down one by one. The fact was that Laura was so damn tired that her bones ached. Getting up twice a night to feed the twins was starting to take its toll on her. On the bed beside her, as if reading her thoughts, Jeremy started fussing, cramming his fist into his mouth.
“Andy, I don’t know how much longer I can nurse these two,” Laura said. “When I feed one, the other needs feeding, and then they both need to be changed and…” She glanced up at him and felt bad immediately. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it. I’m just tired.”
“I know you’re tired,” he said, picking up Jeremy. “Hey there, what are you doing, giving your mama a hard time?”
Every time Andy held one of the babies, it tugged on a spot in Laura’s heart. He loved them so deeply, and he was an amazing father. He’d never allow anything to happen to them. At times, Andy could be over the top; so strong and so unbending. She may have once doubted his love for her, but never for the babies——not even for Gabriel, who wasn’t his biological son.
“I’ll get Chelsea and Jeremy bathed. You get some rest,” Andy said.
“I’d love to have a hot bath,” she said, putting it out there for him.
Maybe Andy took that to mean something else, as he sat beside her on the bed, sliding his arm around her. “Maybe after I get these two down, I’ll join you,” he said.
After all, it had been a while since they’d made love——before the twins, and Andy was not a man to wait. He was hot blooded and so male, but he’d been patient. Whatever opportunity there had been, well, she’d fallen asleep. They’d had nothing more than a chaste kiss here and there; a touch, a caress, right before one of the twins cried out or Gabriel raced in. They needed privacy and time, after she was rested. Right now, she had a choice between loving her husband and letting him do all those wonderful things that had her screaming out his name as he filled her over and over, or wrapping her arms around her pillow and falling into a deep sleep. Well, it was the
pillow that won right now, hands down. She wondered if other women felt the same way she did. She heard that marriages often went through a rough patch after kids——and now she understood why.
Chelsea slipped off her breast, and Andy’s eyes went right there. They exchanged babies, and when Jeremy latched on to her other breast and started suckling, she leaned back against the pillow and closed her eyes for just a minute. The next thing she knew, Andy was taking Jeremy from her and tucking her in bed.
Chapter 5
“Everything’s loaded up,” Andy said as he strode into the hotel room. Laura was bundling up the babies and buckling them into the carrier. Gabriel was still lying on the bed, bundled in his coat, his pajamas on underneath. He still hadn’t shaken off the flu bug, but hopefully he’d start to feel better once they were settled in the house. “You ready yet?” Andy said. “I want to get there while it’s still early enough to do something.”
He realized it had come out a little sharp, as Laura flinched and hesitated before setting the buckle in place over the twins. Andy ran his hand over his face a couple times to try to ground himself.
“Why are you so irritated this morning? Did I do something?” Laura asked, sounding genuinely hurt.
Andy groaned. He really didn’t want to get into this right now. “You’ve been really tired lately,” he said.
“Yes, of course I have. I feel like a damn dairy cow. How many times am I up at night, feeding the babies——and during the day? If they woke up at the same time, I would be getting more sleep. But right now, I get one down and the other one wakes up. I’m sorry, Andy. I’m doing the best I can,” she said.
Well, now he felt like crap. Laura was all but falling over with exhaustion, and it didn’t help that he wanted to paw at her like some randy teenager. If he didn’t do something about this soon, the tension between them would ramp up and the distance between them would grow. The fact was that he needed her. “Okay,” he said, holding up his hand as if letting her know he’d decided what they needed to do. “First things first, we get settled in the house. Then, I’m going to hire help for the kids.”
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