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18
EVERLEIGH
By the time I dropped Georgia off and returned home, Jensen had yet to show up. It was a little disappointing, but in a way, it was perfect. I didn’t want anything keeping me from rushing into the house.
Racing up the stairs, I unlocked the back door and ran inside. Of course, it felt as if I was moving in slow motion. When I entered my grandmother’s room, I stopped in front of the armoire, holding my breath. It had a unique design; vines were carved in such a way that I could see how they might be hiding some secret compartments.
I reached out and opened the middle door, which had two shelves inside where my grandmother kept her nightgowns. Brenda said there were two holes—one on each side—but I couldn’t see them. My hands trembled with anticipation as I slid my arm inside and felt around for the hole on the left side. I held my breath and pushed my finger into it when I found it. The second I heard the drawer pop out, my heart skipped a beat. I was excited to see what was in it, but I also wanted the moment to last. It had been a long time since I’d felt such intrigue and curiousness.
I inhaled a big breath in anticipation and after letting it out, peeked into the drawer. There I found an unmarked brown envelope. I reached in and pulled it out, but it was sealed. It wasn’t a thick envelope, but I could tell something was inside.
Gently, I slid my finger under the flap to break the seal. There were three sheets of paper inside, and I carefully slid them out, my pulse thumping in my ears when I noticed it was my grandmother’s stationery.
A gasp escaped my lips when I read the contents on the rose-covered paper; it was my grandmother’s perfume recipes. I was so afraid they were lost for good, but I had them right in my hands.
Tears filled my eyes. There were three recipes, the rose-scented one my grandmother always wore, the raspberry for my mother, and the honeysuckle for me. They were sacred . . . and something I would cherish for the rest of my life. I carefully put the recipes back in the envelope and into the hidden drawer. If that was where my grandmother wanted them, I was going to keep them there.
“What other secrets am I going to find, Grammy?” I called out, wishing she could answer me.
If Brenda never told me about the secret compartments, my grandmother’s perfume recipes would never have been found. Disappointment flooded through me. It was unlike my grandmother to keep something like that hidden without tellingsomeone. She never would’ve wanted a stranger to come across her perfume recipes. So there had to be something I was missing. But what?
Reaching into the armoire again, I felt around on the right side until I found the hole for the other hidden compartment. I pushed my finger into it and the drawer popped out. My curiosity was piqued, especially after finding the perfume recipes in the left-hand compartment. When I looked inside, I didn’t see anything at first, and just as I went to close the compartment, I noticed something pushed into the corner; it was a silver-toned heart-shaped locket tarnished from age. I pulled it out and ran my finger over the design; it was similar to the locket my grandmother gave me for my sixteenth birthday. The silver heart was adorned with a black enamel background and silver floral scrollwork around a gold braid and hammered heart in the center. There was a clasp on the side that allowed you to open it.
What was I going to find inside? Was the locket from my grandfather, or was it from my grandmother’s mysterious love?
I unsnapped the clasp and looked inside, only there was no picture. But there was an inscription . . .Yours always.T put that at the end of all his letters; it had to be from him. It was fascinating finding my grandmother’s hidden gems, but what if I never found them all?
The locket needed to be polished, so I put it in my grandmother’s jewelry box for later. Once it was put away, I grabbed my phone out of my back pocket and was about to call my mom to tell her what I’d found, but the sound of a hammer pounding on wood outside caught my attention.
When I looked out the window, Jensen was there replacing wooden boards on the walkway. My heart started to race as I rushed out to the back door, way past ready to talk to him. Of course, he was shirtless and showing off his tanned muscles while he worked.
I opened the door and a warm smile spread across his face when he looked up at me. I felt my stomach flip with excitement. It had been too long since we last talked; three days felt like an eternity.
“Hey,” he called out, setting his hammer down. “I haven’t seen you in a while.”
Laughing, I walked down the stairs. “That’s because my parents put me to work at the clinic.” When I reached him, I smiled and leaned against the railing. “Actually, that’s a lie. I wanted to work. It felt good to be there.”
Jensen ran a hand through his disheveled hair and grinned. “Yeah, I heard you were there.” He nodded toward the walkway. “Did you see what I’ve done?”
I looked at all the new wooden boards he’d replaced. “That’s why I wanted to come out here,” I said, turning back to him. “I wanted to say thank you.”
His lips spread into a devilish smirk. “Is that all? There’s not something else you want to say or do?”
There were plenty of things I wanted to do more than say. With not seeing him the past few days, I had to admit I missed him. Things were getting better between us, and I yearned for more. Although, I didn’t want to admit that to him . . . at least, not yet. So many things were still up in the air. If only I could decide what to do with the house. My heart knew what it wanted, but I didn’t know if it would be feasible.
Before I could say anything, a car door slammed out front. Jensen’s gaze shifted to the driveway, and I let out a shrill of delight as I turned to look. I couldn’t see Nyla, but I was expecting her.
“It’s Nyla,” I exclaimed happily, even though I was a little disappointed we got interrupted. “I’ll be right back,” I said to him.
He nodded and picked up his hammer. As I walked away, I could feel his eyes on me, and I loved it. When I turned the corner of the house, I saw Nyla standing by a blue sedan, fumbling with the handle of her suitcase. The wind blew her auburn hair all over her face and watching her try to move it away was way too much fun.
“Hey!” I shouted, making her jump. Her crystal blue eyes lit up when she saw me, and she pushed her suitcase to the side so she could run to me.
“I made it!” she exclaimed, throwing her arms around me. We both laughed and it felt amazing to have her here. Nyla let me go and when she gazed up at the house, her mouth dropped in awe. “This place is fantastic. Why would you ever leave it?”
I kept my voice low. “It wasn’t easy.”
And it sure wasn’t going to be when I had to leave in August to go back to Boston.
