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Chris nodded. “Fifty percent ownership each,” he clarified.
Carmen’s heartbeat faltered. She’d had no idea. She was expecting it to go entirely to Rex and that she would have to buy the property from him. When she looked at Rex, she saw that he looked surprised by the arrangement, as well. Then he met her stare and his expression changed. His eyes lit.
Chris continued. “‘This is in recognition of it being as much Carmen’s home as it was Rex’s. I also wish to celebrate the work that my wife, Sylvia, did to retrieve the place from long-term neglect, making it an exceptional home for us all, a place I can truly hand on with pride.’”
Carmen’s chest grew tight. The remarks about her mother unbuckled her emotions.
“Carmen?” Chris had paused and was looking at her with concern.
She realized she’d covered her mouth with her hand. They probably thought she was about to burst out crying. “Please, go on. I’m just so surprised.”
That was an understatement. Burlington Manor. Half of it was already hers. The fact that her stepfather had considered her in his arrangements touched her deeply. When Chris looked at her she nodded his way, showing that she understood.
What did Rex think? He’d indicated that he wasn’t expecting anything. In fact, he’d been surprised at the Jersey property. She thought he might be annoyed that his father had made things rather complicated by sharing it between them, but when she glanced his way he gave her a reassuring smile. She was sure he had no interest in the house, and she was ready to buy him out. Her checkbook was in her bag and her bank manager had the funds ready for a fast transfer.
Chris was reading on. “‘In the unlikely event that both Carmen Shelby and Rex Carruthers are deceased at the time of the reading of this will, I have named a charity that I wish to benefit, Wilmington’s Cancer Care.’”
“Charles thought of everything,” Carmen commented.
“He did indeed,” Chris agreed.
“He had a lot of time on his own in the end,” Rex commented wryly, “to think on it.”
Carmen sighed. “Rex, do you have to?”
He shrugged and smiled at her, as if pleased to gain her attention, even if it was disapproving. He was even more provocative than before, Carmen decided.
Chris continued. “‘Should either Rex or Carmen decide to sell their share, it is my hope that one of them will be able to keep the place going. It has been our family home for centuries.’” He paused and looked up, taking off his glasses for a moment. “Your father did not make this a condition of the will, however. It was a wish, not an instruction.”
Rex nodded and then shifted in his seat, draping one arm across the back of it as he faced Carmen, observing her thoughtfully. “I’m sure Carmen and I can come to a mutually satisfying arrangement.”
Carmen nodded. “I’m ready to buy you out.”
She meshed her fingers together as she stated her intention.
Rex tensed momentarily. He stared down at her hands pointedly before he responded. “We can share the playground, can’t we?”
Playground? That remark was typical of him. “Stop wasting our time. We’re both aware that you’ve got no interest in the house. You haven’t even been back there in years—”
“True,” Rex interrupted. “There’s been nothing to draw me back there, not for a long time.”
Carmen faltered. The way he looked at her was so intimate and suggestive. She cleared her throat. Luckily she’d been over her proposal and his potential responses several times. “You’ve got your new life, why would you want to be in Burlington Manor now?”
He lifted his eyebrows.
Damn him, he wanted to tease and annoy her, just as he had done when she was a teenager. Flirting with women was a game to him. He always did like to see her in a state, but then he’d go off with some other girl, leaving her squirming. How was it that he could still do that to her? She was a grown woman now and she’d quelled all her foolish desires for this man long ago.
“We have to share. Would it be so hard?”
“Not at all,” she retorted. “It’s a big house. But we both know you don’t really want it, you’re just looking for a decent settlement for your share.”
Rex gave a faux pained gesture, putting his fist to his heart and tapping it there. “It hurts that you think so poorly of me.”
Her cheeks flamed. “That’s not what I meant and you know it.”
She found herself s
ilently begging for him to be reasonable and to move on, but he kept looking at her as if she was on the menu for dinner and he was considering how to cook and serve her up. Unable to stop herself she glanced down at her clothing and adjusted the shirt so that the line of the buttons was straight.
