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If Paul kept digging into her background, could he jeopardize that? Would a story about the granddaughter of a swindler interest anyone three decades after he went to jail? Doubtful. But to be sure, she’d better avoid any public attention for the next two weeks.
After a brief stop at her rental to pack up her limited wardrobe, Paul drove straight back to the estate. Constance must’ve been on the lookout for them because she was on hand in the first-floor hallway to lead the way upstairs to the bedrooms, narrating as she went.
“The Birch-Watts House has six bedrooms and seven bathrooms,” Constance said. “It was built in 1804 by Jacob Birch and his descendants lived here until 1898 when Theodore Watts bought it. The home’s been in the Watts family ever since.”
“Wow, that’s a long time.” Lia had been present when they’d brought Grady home from the hospital and had been too focused on getting him settled to take in much more than a cursory impression of the grand mansion. “And only Ethan’s grandfather lives here?”
It seemed like a lot of empty space for just one person to rattle around in. A house with nearly ten thousand square feet and so many bedrooms should be full of people. And in its heyday, it probably was. But families were smaller now and not so likely to have several generations living under one roof.
“Grady’s been alone since he lost Grandma back in the late 1960s,” Paul added, “but the Shaw twins live in the caretaker’s house on the back corner of the estate. And I spend the night in the carriage house here and there. More often since his stroke.”
“He must like having you all close by,” Lia murmured, realizing she might be inundated with family members over the next week.
“Both girls are so busy with their careers and social lives.” Constance sighed. “Which is why it’s wonderful that you’ve come to spend time with Grady. Did you bring a swimsuit? The pool was recently refurbished and switched to salt water.”
“No, I didn’t think it was going to be that sort of a visit.” Seeing Paul’s lips tighten, Lia suppressed a twinge of regret. No matter what he thought, she had no intention of treating her time with his family like a vacation. She intended to do her best to get Grady as healthy as possible in the next two weeks.
“This was your mother’s room.” Constance led the way into the room on the opposite side of the hall from Grady’s master suite. “It’s the best guest room in the house.”
“Wow!”
The enormous, bright bedroom overlooked the gardens and side lawn with floral curtains framing the four tall windows set into the muted green walls. Lia’s gaze darted from the view to the big bed with its matching comforter and the yellow fainting couch at its foot. A giant mirrored armoire dominated one wall and Lia knew without even opening the doors that even with the two bulky costumes she’d brought along, her clothes wouldn’t take up half the space.
“You sound like you approve,” Constance declared with a delighted smile.
“I’ve never stayed anywhere so nice. Or so big,” Lia said. “It’s more space than I’m used to.”
Lia was a minimalist by necessity as well as desire. The friends she’d made during her travels marveled at how little she needed, but Lia had never known any other way to be. Traveling around the country in a nineteen-foot camper meant owning a bare minimum of essentials. The only deviation from that rule was her ever expanding collection of princess costumes.
Yet the moment she’d entered the bedroom, Lia had been blown away by the beautiful antiques, the intricate plasterwork around the ceiling and fireplace, the ridiculously comfortable-looking bed and the bathroom that was bigger than her entire camper. For several long seconds she imagined herself spending long hours soaking in the tub. Then reality intruded. She wasn’t on vacation. A couple weeks from now she and Misty would be back on the road.
“Get used to it,” Constance advised. “You’re going to be with us for a long time.”
“Um...”
Turbulent emotions rose up in Lia, tightening her throat and making it impossible to speak. Being thrust into the tight-knit Watts family highlighted the isolation in her lifestyle and brought her into direct conflict with her mother’s attitude that just because someone was family didn’t mean they gave a damn about you.
“Paul, can you go let Cory know he needs to bring up the rest of Lia’s things?”
“This is all there is,” Paul answered, setting the boxes containing her costumes on the bed.
“What do you mean?” Constance looked from the boxes to the small duffel that held most of Lia’s wardrobe. “How is that possible?”
“Not everyone requires an entire room to hold every outfit they own,” Paul remarked dryly.
His mother looked mystified. “But...”
“I don’t have much room in my camper,” Lia explained. “And I don’t really need much.”
“That was your life before. You are a Watts now and should dress the part.” Constance cast a dubious eye over Lia’s yoga pants and T-shirt. “We need to get you some new clothes. The twins can show you all their favorite boutiques.”
“There’s no need,” Lia said, shooting a wary glance in Paul’s direction. He would hate that his mother wanted to spend money on her. But his impassive expression tossed her no lifeline. “I’m sure Poppy and Dallas are too busy to take me shopping. Besides, I’m only going to be here a couple weeks.”
“Nonsense. You simply have to stay longer than that. Because of you, Grady is getting better every day. No need for you to stay cooped up in the house all the time. The twins and Ethan can take you out so you can meet their friends. I have several events in the next two weeks that all of us will be attending. When word gets around all of Charleston will be dying to meet you.”
As Constance spoke, Lia’s anxiety ratcheted upward. Chest tightening, on the verge of a mild panic attack, she made another silent appeal to Paul. Why hadn’t he spoken up? Surely he’d rather she stay out of sight between now and the time they broke the news that she wasn’t a Watts after all. Once again, he remained utterly silent and aloof. Her eyebrows dipped as she realized his refusal to step in was deliberate. He was withholding aid in order to demonstrate the folly of Ethan’s plan. As if she needed that pointed out to her.
“I’m feeling really overwhelmed at the moment,” Lia protested. “I’m not used to so much attention. If you don’t mind, I’d like to focus on helping Grady get better.”
