“The house feels empty without her.” I take off his jacket and hand it back to him. It’s warmer inside, and while I’d happily stay wrapped in his forest scent for hours, I’d rather have him here.
“It’s been hard, going through her memories and her files. I wish I knew why she left it all to me.”
He touches the photo of mom and Richard. “She didn’t trust them.”
Something in his voice makes me wonder. “Did you see her before she passed?”
He nods.
“When? What did she say?”
“A couple weeks before. She was at peace.” Dorian looks at me. “She knew you’d care.”
And my mom wouldn’t. He doesn’t have to say it. Even Grandmama knew it was true. “Mom’s pressuring me to sell everything.”
“Is that what you want?”
“I don’t know. I have a life in Denver, but…” Now that I’ve found Dorian again, I’m not ready to return to that life. I clear my throat. “What about you? You live here?”
“Have a cabin in the mountains. And an offer in Montana.”
“That man in the café. Sol?”
“I worked with his boss in the Army.”
“Why Montana?”
“They’re helping vets and want me to join.”
My heart drops to my toes. “Will you?”
Something shifts in his gaze. “Don’t know.”
I hate the turn this conversation has taken. I can’t think about losing him when I’ve just found him again. “Let me put away these papers from my meeting with the lawyer. Then, maybe we can have some coffee and talk?”
Dorian nods and hangs his coat on the antique coat rack.
Grabbing the folders I brought in, I take them to the small office next to the kitchen, stumbling to a stop in the doorway.
I feel more than hear Dorian come up behind me.
The window is open, letting in the chilly air, and all the filing cabinet drawers are pulled out. Some of the papers are scattered on the floor.
“I didn’t leave those open,” I whisper, shivering as ice slides through my veins.
He nudges me aside and strides into the office, checking the window. “Looks like it was forced.”
Someone broke in? But why?
“Anything missing?”
Right. I glance at the window again, then go through the files, trying to put them back in order. “I don’t have a list of what she had, but it doesn’t look like anything is missing. It’s just a mess.”
He snaps the window closed, the sound loud in the quiet space. “You’re coming with me.”
“What?”
“Or I can stay.”
