“Honey, I’m home,” I called as I walked in the open front door, like I was on a TV show. The smell of paint hit me as I entered the living room, which flowed into the dining room, the kitchen behind it. The living room and dining room were done in a deep green, one wall had floral deep green and blue wallpaper, and there were cream accents. The floors were dark hardwood. It had come that way.
But now there wasbeautifulformal furniture, in navy fabric and dark wood, in the living room. An expensive-looking rug lay on the floor. Lush curtains hung in the window. A picture of all five of us, taken at Christmas dinner at the lodge, had been blown up, framed, and hung over the mantel. There was agrandfather clock?Next to it sat a fancy enamel pot filled with a plant that just looked expensive.
The dining room held more of the same beautiful furniture, the cushions of the chairs matching the wallpaper almost perfectly. A fucking candelabra sat in the center, on some lacy runner, the candles dark blue. An empty hutch and a fancy wheeled cart sat against the wall.
Footsteps thudded down the beautiful wooden staircase. The main thing that had attracted me to this place was all the beautiful woodwork and details, which had been freshly refinished when theother pack had been preparing for sale.
“Carlos.” Fiona hugged me. “This place is beautiful. I love the fireplaces and the outdoor spaces. I want to make a container garden when it gets warm.”
While it didn’t have a little backyard, like Dimitri’s and Clark’s places, it did have two terraces, an atrium, and a balcony. It also had a garage.
“I think we also need a grill and a pizza oven. You work fast. This is beautiful. I love the photo over the fireplace.” I kissed her.
“I got started last night, that’s why I wanted the pictures of us.”
I sniffed the air. “Painting your nest already?”
“Just redoing a few rooms that had dullsell mepaint jobs. I’m impressed. The kitchen isnice.Though I’m upgrading a few things.” She tossed her hair.
“That is great, but can we afford it?” I frowned. We should probably figure out a decorating and furniture budget.
She laughed in the way that means trouble. “So… the dads haven’t cut off my cards yet. The papers they sent saidnothingabout the family cards. I plan on buying lots of things until the cards stop working.”
“As long as you don’t get in trouble.” That worried me a little, but she probably knew what she could get away with.
“Oh, I won’t. Also, we haven’t signed anything.” She gave an evil little giggle. “They told me I couldn’t take the sedan, because it’s a family car. Only my motorcycle. So, Saoirse and I bought a car on one of the cards, in my name, big enough for the five of us. It’s in the garage. It’s not a very big garage. It’ll fit that car, mine and Saoirse’s motorcycles, and maybe some bicycles. Does anyone else have a car?”
“It’s New York. We should be grateful to have a garage. Dimitri’s doesn’t,” I replied. “I think Hale has a truck? I don’t have a car and neither does Dusty.”
She’d bought acaron her dads’ cards? That waswild.What wasthe limit on it? Of course it might not have one.
We went up the stairs, the sun streaming in from the skylight.
The pack bedroom took up the entire second floor. It had a big bedroom with a fireplace. The room also had a nest, giant closets, a large bathroom, a balcony, and a tiny hidden laundry room.
I peeked in the room. It looked like it had been paintedandgotten carpet. Wow. Speedy.
“World’s fastest bathroom remodel for the pack bedroom, too,” she told me. “Gotta spend it before they find out. You said you wanted the room on the top floor with the skylight, by the little staircase that leads to the roof. I like the room next to it, because it has that adorable alcove, the fireplace, and the moldings,” she explained. “I’d like to take that one.”
“As I thought you would.” The same moldings were also in the pack bedroom, as well as the dining and living rooms. There was a room with a fireplace on each floor, but only one had the alcove.
“Let me know what color you want your room and if you need any bathroom remodeling. I’m putting a better bathtub in mine tomorrow,” she told me.
“A power shower?” I had no idea. “Also, something relaxing? I have furniture I can bring if we need it, though I’m not attached to any of it, especially my bed. My apartment will be rented out furnished, anyway.”
“Can I do it?” Her eyes twinkled.
“Sure, but I want to choose my bed. I’d really like to get the adjustable kind,” I replied.
“Perfect. The two floors in between we can figure out–the guys can pick. We can add whatever they want done to the list,” she explained. “We won’t get everything done before the dads cut me off. But it’s a start. Then we can sit down and figure out what else we need and what the priorities are.”
“That sounds like a good plan to me,” I replied. Giving her another kiss, we went back down to the first floor.
We went into the kitchen, which was going to need plates and everything.
An electric kettle, a coffee machine that looked like you needed a degree to operate, and a cute rack of mugs already filled the counter, along with a half-unpacked grocery sack from the food hall at Hardwick's department store.
She started making me tea. “Hale will probably want an office so he can study. The street level floor iscute.I feel like we’ll spend a lot of time there.”
