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I grunted, jamming the phone between my shoulder and ear, while I buttoned up my black shirt. “Barely. How did the meeting go?”
Phil had attended a strategy meeting with my label, something I tended to avoid whenever I could.
“Great. Actually, better than great. Fan-fucking-tastic.” I could feel Phil’s grin over the phone.
“What did they offer?”
“They offered the world, man, and you’ve got to take it. A re-signing bonus big enough to make sure you never have to work again.”
I gripped the phone, staring at my reflection. The end of my initial contract with my label had been a weight on my mind. My music and work were all I had, it was all I’d worked at having, my entire adult life. If my career suddenly nosedived, I’d have nothing to show for a lifetime of hard work.
“And let me guess, enough work to keep me busy for the rest of my days?” I pointed out sarcastically.
Phil chuckled, and I knew I was right. “Well, you love work, you live to work, isn’t that right? Best of all, they want you back in the city before Christmas.”
“Before Christmas? That’s less than a week away,” I pointed out slowly, my eyes stuck to my expression. Behind me, Alfred had put a holly wreath on my bedroom door, and outside, snow gently fell past the window. It had been irritatingly cozy when I first came in, but now, the thought of leaving Ivy House so soon felt jarring. I’d planned to stay and have downtime for a few months at least.
“Yeah man, you have an excuse to leave that hellhole town behind, and your uncle’s festering pile of responsibilities and get back to what you really love. I’ll take care of the house sale, don’t worry. I’ve already got interest from a developer. The land alone could fit an entire neighborhood of new builds.”
Sell Ivy House?
Of course, that had been the plan since I’d found out that Uncle Soren had left it to me. I flash of Charlie’s disappointed eyes ran through my mind, at finding out that Ivy House, the crown jewel of Briar Vale, was to be knocked down and replaced with a shiny, soulless new development.
“What’s with the silent treatment? I thought you’d be cracking open the champagne and celebrating?”
The thought of drinking and celebrating suddenly sounded alien to me, though it was something I was prone to doing. Hell, only a few months ago, the news would have justified a week-long bender. Now, it all rang a little hollow.
“I’m fine. I’m happy, I just have some plans tonight, and I have to run. Let’s talk tomorrow,” I offered, hanging up quickly before Phil could question me further.
My eyes traced my face in the mirror. I’m happy.I’m happy. The words I’d just spoken seemed to echo again and again around my head. If I was so happy, why did I look so miserable?
* * *
Charlie arrived right on time,waiting on the doorstep, wrapped up like a treat I wanted to pull the paper off, in a huge winter coat and scarf.
“Welcome to Ivy House, for the second time,” I intoned, as I let her in, taking her coat, and feasting my eyes on the black velvet wrap dress beneath. My breath caught in my throat, and I had to force my eyes from her curves before she turned, and realized how hungry I was for her.
“I thought it couldn’t get any more beautiful,” Charlie breathed, as she spun around, taking in the foyer. Candles were lit and the lighting was low. All the parts of Ivy House that seemed faded and in need of restoration looked softer, and more intentional in the evening. Yes, I could admit it, it was a beautiful house. A piece of history, and Soren had made me its unwilling guardian. It was incredibly unfair, considering how he had treated my parents in life, that he had stuck me with an anchor around my ankle now when he was dead and gone, and I couldn’t argue with him about it.
“Come on, dinner will get cold,” I told her, leading her through to the sitting room.
“And there I thought we were going to be eating in the formal dining room,” she teased, as she took in the intimate set up of a small table by the fire.
“Well, I didn’t fancy having to shout down twenty place settings to chat, so sitting room it is.”
She simply smiled, sitting opposite me.
Once I’d brought the food out, and poured the wine, we started to eat. Thoughts of the upcoming new contract with my label faded, as Charlie started to talk about Briar Vale and her life. We couldn’t have had more of a different childhood, despite it being the same small town.
“So, after your parents got married, your mother’s family really never spoke to them again?” Charlie asked, her beautiful eyes round with disbelief. We’d eaten and now sat on the couch together. Somehow, she’d managed to pry my painful past out of the locked box of my memories.
“No. I heard nothing from them until I found out that Soren had left Ivy House to me. A final fuck you,” I muttered.
Charlie jerked, surprised by my words. “I’d love a fuck you like that,” she teased and looked around the room. “Maybe it was his way of saying sorry. Sometimes people don’t regret things until it’s too late.”
“He was a miserable old bastard, don’t forget. Briar Vale’s very own Scrooge, who let his own flesh and blood grow up in an orphanage instead of taking him in. I’m sure he’s looking up at me now and enjoying the fact that he’d forced me back here.”
I could feel Charlie’s eyes on my face and resisted meeting them. There was too much in her gaze. She saw inside me like no one else ever had, and I knew better than anyone, that it wasn’t a pretty sight.
