Page 32 of The Sound of Harmony

ChapterNine

Kendrick loved talking on the phone, mostly because you only needed one ear to do it. There were some people who insisted on Zoom-with-headphones, or blasting their FaceTime calls on speaker, but to him, there was nothing better than a basic phone call.

He’d called Emma on a minor pretext, something about the upcoming estate sale, perhaps? He didn’t even remember anymore. He was lost in the sound of her voice, the rhythm of her breathing, and his sheer delight on those rare occasions when he made her laugh.

“I met cousin Mitch yesterday,” Emma said.

“I’m sorry.”

“I said, I met your cousin,” she repeated more slowly.

“I didn’t mean ‘I’m sorry’ as in ‘I didn’t hear you.’ I was apologizing in advance for anything he might have said.”

“He seemed peeved about you inheriting your grandma’s house.”

“That’s a funny word to use. I wouldn’t say he’s peeved.” Kendrick waited for the conversational backpedal, but then remembered who he was talking to. Emma didn’t retreat when she was challenged. She didn’t deflect or redirect. She clammed up.

“I think Mitch—both of us—are a bit…” Kendrick paused, searching for the word, “flummoxed by the house situation.”

“Flummoxed?” Emma asked. “Are we just opening the thesaurus now?”

“It’s sconcertato in Italian.”

“Showoff.”

You’re in America, he reminded himself. Nobody cared how many languages he spoke, as long as he spoke English well.

Kendrick opened his closet and threw a bunch of winter clothing into a box, hangers and all. Emma would be horrified at his half-assed packing methods, but he’d have time and space to sort it out in Cannondale.

“What’s the story with the house?” Emma asked.

“My parents are going to be stationed overseas until they retire,” he told her. “The last thing my dad needs is a house. Mitch’s dad got divorced and then married a woman that Grandmother didn’t approve of. So she skipped her sons and split the inheritance between her two grandsons. I got the house. Mitch got a stack of cash. He immediately quit the real estate firm he was working for and started his own company.”

“Hmm,” Emma said. “Why give Mitch cash and you the house? Wouldn’t it make more sense the other way around? He lives here in Cannondale, he’s a realtor, he can handle a house.”

Kendrick held the phone with his shoulder so he could label the box. “The family discussions have been playing on infinite loop for the last year. I don’t understand it. And I don’t understand Mitch. He alternates between wanting me to sell the house and saying he’s glad it’s still in the family.”

“Well, you know what they say. Where there’s a will, there’s a family fight over it.”

“True. But Grandmother is getting the last laugh, because now I’m moving in.”

“It will be nice to live near family, won’t it?”

“I’m already thinking of excuses to get out of Thanksgiving dinner.”

“That’s a joke, yes?”

“Let’s save time and assume it’s always a joke.” Kendrick set the box aside and reached for the next one. “And I’ll assume my jokes are always landing, because I can’t actually tell.”

“Big assumption,” Emma said, but he could hear the smile in her voice. “So, I know you can’t wait to start mowing the lawn…”

“Like a true man. Go on.”

“I was wondering if you’d given any thought to the rest of the landscaping.”

“Mitch hired some people for that. They maintain things. I think they…mulch? Is that a word?”

“That’s a word,” Emma assured him. “These people. Do they also improve?”