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“Anything I can help with?”
I took a deep breath. “No. But I may need the twins’ help, if that’s okay.”
Chapter Thirty-Five
CHARLOTTE
“Can we be done now?” I whined. “My feet feel like they’re going to fall off.”
Daphne looked at her watch. “But there’s a couple more estate sales down the road.”
“Nope. I am done. You’ve dragged me all over, and I really should be at the house today to clean the last few rooms.”
“You still leaving the furniture in storage?” she asked, eyes locked on the rearview mirror.
I nodded. “Yes.”
Daphne shook her head. “It’s a damn shame. That place staying empty after all this.”
“I can’t,” I whispered. “I can’t take this step for him when he’s not willing to take it for himself. Moving it all back in, making it look like a home.” I curled my hand into a fist because every time I thought about it, I had the urge to press my palm over my chest, make sure my heart was still where it was supposed to be. “I don’t know what he’s so scared of, but this is not a decision I’m making for him.”
“I get it.” Daphne patted my leg. “We all do.”
“Does this mean I can go back now and take a nap?”
She smiled. “I still think we should hit one more. You never know what you’ll find.”
“Couches from the ’80s and another porcelain bell collection and absolutely nothing that will work at this job or my next one,” I told her. “I don’t even know why I’m still looking for stuff anyway. It’s just gonna sit in storage with everything else.”
She nudged me gently with her elbow. “Because you still want it to be perfect.”
It felt just a bit too incriminating to admit it out loud, because the truth was, when it came to the Campbell House, I’d moved past all my own reasons a while ago. They were still there. They were still important.
But Burke, damn him, was now at the forefront.
He was all I thought about lately, as the silence stretched into another week.
The house was done. William had officially handed me his key the day before.
But since I’d technically been contracted to see the historical certification process through, it wasn’t quite time for me to pack my bags yet. Which was why every night I sat on the couch and tried not to cry when I thought about the moment when I’d have no other choice.
I’d loved it before. Before I ever saw him. Met him.
And now, because he was so imprinted in every square inch, it felt like I was leaving a massive piece of myself behind in all the empty rooms.
Daphne turned the car down the road toward the house, and I closed my eyes. Each dip in the road was familiar. The way the trees curved over the long stretch of pavement—I practically had each branch memorized at this point.
I’d driven it so many times. Had seen it during each turn of the season. Now the canopy was full and lush, every branch layered with glossy leaves—fiery reds and burnt oranges. It had rained overnight, and the bark of the trees was still damp enough that it looked black.
I was still studying the foliage when the house came into view.
William’s truck wasn’t in its usual spot, and my brows furrowed when I saw an unfamiliar car.
“Who’s that?” I asked. “No one else is supposed to be out here today.”
Daphne didn’t say anything.
My eyes cut over to her. “Do you know who that is?”
