Page 56 of Stronger Than Blood

Kalinda smiled and nodded. There wasn’t anything to say because she and Rory knew her as well as anyone. You couldn’t live with someone as powerful as Granny Ida for almost a year without getting to know her.

When Jonah, Granny’s attorney, went over the will with me, there were no surprises. She’d given me everything. I already owned the house. She’d had me sign the deed shortly after coming out of the nursing home.

I’d inherited Uncle Eddie’s building and the money we’d made from the sale of his hooch, although most of that was tied up in the now very successful moonshine distillery, and yeah, I know that’s not what it’s called, but it’s what I always thought of it as.

Granny had wanted Joann to have most of my grandmother’s belongings. Of course, I was more than okay with that. I hadn’t really been told, but Joann and my grandmother were raised like twins, being first cousins.

When Joann came over to go through her belongings and carry them away, she’d cried as she shared stories of their childhood, and then we laughed as she told us about the shenanigans the two wild young women had gotten into.

Granny had promised Brenda an old cast-iron skillet, which I hadn’t even known existed until Brenda came over and found it in the back of the cabinet under the stove.

Apparently, it had belonged to my great-grandfather’s grandmother.

I couldn’t even grasp how far back that was.

There was also a rolling pin that had hung on the wall in the dining room, next to the china hutch, which she wanted Brenda to have.

That had belonged to one of the female ancestors far back in our history as well.

I was so glad the two cousins had been given things from Granny’s and their lives.

Once all was said and done, I sat on the front porch swing, watching the traffic, not thinking about anything in particular. I’d taken several days off, and Essie had told me Arden was doing a wonderful job filling my shoes.

Dupris had been right about him. Just as she’d been right about the feather and letting Granny Ida go when I did. Somehow, I knew my willingness to set her free, without trying to hold onto her, was what had given her the power to take that son of a bitch out of my life forever.

Thank God for that. I felt so guilty over the other decision I’d made, though. As much as I loved Granny Ida and the life she’d given me, I no longer wanted to live in her house. Yes, he was gone, but it would always be where my nightmares had started.

As much as I felt Granny Ida there, I also felt the negative. The murderer, my grandmother’s death, and even my mom’s numerous bad choices.

I was pondering that when a fancy Lincoln rolled past the house and pulled into the driveway of the Victorian across the street. A man I didn’t know climbed out of the car, went to his trunk, and pulled a sign out, sticking it into the ground.

It read, For Sale. I laughed as I jumped out of my seat and rushed down the street to the surprised Realtor. “Um, this is for sale?” I asked, and he said it was.

“How much are they asking?”

When he told me the price, I shook my head. “Not worth that much. Sorry.”

“Wait, are you interested?” he asked.

“Not at that price, no. Maybe half that much.”

“Well, um, come inside. Have you seen the place?”

I shook my head. “No, it used to belong to my great-great-grandparents. My Granny Ida lived across the street, I just thought—”

“Well, come in. You might change your mind.”

I knew I wouldn’t. I knew what real estate went for around here because I’d already looked online to get an idea of what Granny Ida’s house would be worth. Still, the moment I walked through the huge, tall wooden doors into the elegant living room, I knew I’d arrived home.

I let the man show me around, and I wanted to squeal at how beautiful the wood-paneled dining room was. It looked like something out of a magazine. Granny had been so sad to know the family who’d bought it from her family had let it run down.

But whoever had purchased it after that had done an amazing job renovating it, though. When I stepped through the door from the dining room into the kitchen, I froze.

“It’s a commercial kitchen?” I asked.

The realtor was frowning as if that wasn’t a good thing. “Yes, the previous owner was a chef in Nashville. He thought he was going to move here full time, but… I know this isn’t what most people want in a family home, but it could be…”

I ignored him and walked around the space.

It was huge. Like you’d expect to see in a commercial kitchen.

Hell, it was as big as Brenda’s kitchen.

“He must’ve added onto the back to build this,” I said, mostly to myself, but the Realtor quickly answered that he had, and of course, all the appropriate permits were taken out for the build.

I didn’t even remember them doing it. How could I have missed that? I wondered. The fact that Granny hadn’t mentioned it or, rather, complained about it, was shocking as well.

We wandered through a formal sitting room and library separated by what must’ve been mahogany doors and then up the intensely beautiful staircase to four bedrooms. The fourth, the primary suite, was built on top of the kitchen extension and featured all the modern conveniences, including a walk-in closet and en-suite bathroom.

We walked up another set of stairs, and I paused before going into the attic because on the doorframe, right next to the door, were little notches and a carved name, “IDA.” I laughed, and the Realtor turned toward me and again frowned when he saw the name.

“I told him he should’ve sanded that out, but the owner swears it adds character.”

“Indeed,” I said, and followed him into a large open attic space. I’m not sure how I knew, except for Granny’s carved monogram outside the door, but I was certain this was where she and probably her sister slept as children.

When we walked downstairs and out the front door, I allowed the Realtor to rattle off about the thirty acres that went with the home. The exterior had been painted, and the slate on the roof had been repaired.

I didn’t say much other than to take his card. When he left, I walked across the road and called Jonah. “Um, is there any reason why I can’t sell the house that Granny Ida gave me?”

“No… Why? Are you thinking of selling?”

“Yes, and I think I’d like to purchase my ancestral home across the street.”

“There’s nothing to stop you from selling. In fact, I might know the perfect buyer. Do you know how much you want?”

I sighed. “Well, according to what I saw on the internet, with the acreage…” I told him what I thought it was worth, but that I’d need to talk to someone who knew more than me.

When I hung up, I wandered through the now-sleeping gardens and let the sadness flow over me. I would never plow the fields again. Nor would I pick endless rows of green beans and peas. Not that I minded giving that up.

That’d been Granny Ida’s thing. Of course, the food was amazing, but even if I ate the canned foods she’d left daily, I would have a few years left.

I hoped whoever the new owners were that they’d be willing to grow a small garden, at least. In fact, I would make sure they knew where the most fertile part was, just in case.

Now that I’d been in the Victorian across the street, I couldn’t get it out of my head. I’d called the Realtor and asked him to show it to Kalinda and Rory, and they both agreed it felt like my home. Luckily, they didn’t say that in front of the Realtor.

There had been multiple showings, but cleaning out Granny Ida’s place so I could get the money I wanted would take time.

I didn’t have ready money ’cause my revenue from the shine went back into the business, and I was just about to give up when Jonah showed up one night to pick Kalinda up for their date.

“Do you mind sitting with us a moment? I have a proposal,” Kalinda asked.

“Of course,” I replied, and Rory, who’d been in the kitchen, came and sat next to me. That seemed a bit odd. Usually, when Kalinda asked to speak to someone, Rory disappeared, giving her space.

“So,” she began, reaching over to take Jonah’s hand, “Jonah and I have decided to move in together; none of that marriage stuff. Neither of us is ready for that, but we would like to own a home together.”

My mouth fell open. “Um, like this house?” I asked.

Kalinda chuckled. “Yes, Mick, I know you have difficult memories here, but for the year I’ve lived here with Ida, you, and Rory, it’s been one of the best years of my life. I’d love to make a home here with Jonah.”

Jonah was smiling like the cat who’d just caught the canary, and I guess in a way he had. Kalinda was one of the most beautiful women I knew. Even if the poor man had caught a tiger by the tail, he seemed happy about it.

“Here’s a contract for you to consider. I’ve also asked a buddy of mine to go over it with you since I’m going to be one of your buyers. He can also help you review comps in the area. We don’t want you to feel like we aren’t giving you a fair price.”

I jumped up and rushed over to where they sat and pulled Kalinda into a hug. She was laughing when I turned and hugged Jonah too. I didn’t need to look at the price. I knew it’d be fair. Of course it would—Kalinda was my business partner and friend.

She was also family.

“Here’s my friend’s card. Give him a call, and let him go over the contract with you. He said he’ll charge the minimum since he owes me a bunch of favors,” Jonah said, then he and Kalinda darted out the front door like their pants were on fire.

Rory sat next to me, smiling. “So, what do you think?” he asked.

“Oh, wow, it’s a lot to take in. Um, hold on,” I said, and when I opened the folder and pulled the contract out, my eyes bugged at how much they were offering.

“Wow, is it worth this much?” I asked.

“Apparently, Kalinda is a savvy businesswoman. She wouldn’t offer that if she didn’t think it was.”

The sales price was a few thousand more than I’d guessed from my online searches, still significantly less than what they wanted for the Victorian, but maybe I’d be able to manage the payments on it.

“Mick,” Rory said as I was about to get up.

“We.. we haven’t really talked much about you and me. I haven’t brought it up because you had so much on your plate, but—”

I sat back on the seat and faced him. Was he about to break up with me?

“What’s on your mind, Rory?” I asked, trying to hide the panic in my voice. I hadn’t thought about what was next for us. I just assumed things would stay as they were, but that was stupid of me. Now Granny was gone, and Kalinda was going to move in with Jonah—

“I want you… like I want to be with you, officially.”

Relief flowed out of me before I leaned over and took his face in my hand, then kissed him soundly on the mouth.

“I was afraid you were breaking up with me.” I said when I pulled back.

“Why would you think that?” Rory asked.

I shrugged, “I guess it’s still hard for me to hope for things… Rory,” I said then paused. “You know I love you, right? I guess I haven’t said that, even though I think it every day. I want you, too. But you already have me. I’m yours if you want me.”

“So, you’ll marry me?” he asked.

My mouth fell open. “Um… marry?”

Rory nodded. “Yeah, like promise to be mine forever, till death do us part, and all that?”

“Aren’t you supposed to be on your knee or something?” I asked, making him laugh and tickle me.

“How about we go upstairs, and I’ll get on my knees just for you.”

My cock took notice, and we quickly dashed up the stairs to what’d become our oasis. We made love over and over again before we collapsed into each other’s arms.

The next morning, I rolled over to discover Rory wasn’t in bed. That was strange. I always woke up before him. I threw on some clothes and went downstairs to check on him, but his truck wasn’t in the driveway.

Oh well, Rory was usually pretty predictable.

If he’d dashed out that early in the morning, I suspected he had something up his sleeve.

Probably related to his proposal last night.

Proposal, what the hell? Did he really mean it?

We hadn’t even spoken much about our relationship, and now he was proposing marriage?

I poured myself a cup of coffee, thankful that Kalinda had set the machine before leaving on her date with Jonah last night. I had just sat down at the kitchen table when I heard Rory’s truck pull into the driveway.

I smiled, thinking of my sweet man and how I wanted to spend the morning saying yes to his proposal, provided he’d really meant to ask me.

When he came in through the back door, I looked up into his handsome face and felt all my nerve endings fire in happiness. Was it really possible that man could be my husband? That amazing, kind, and downright gorgeous man?

Rory put a box on the table, and when I looked inside, I couldn’t help but laugh out loud. “You went to the restaurant and bought my Danishes?”

“Arden’s, but yeah. Seemed like the occasion called for it.” I stood up and kissed him before I sat back down and opened the box. A three-toned band was sitting on a glass triangular holder in the middle of the Danish. “So, now I’ve brought the ring, have you decided if you’ll marry me?”

I jumped up again, this time rounding the table and kissing Rory for real. His arms wound around me and held me tight as I struggled not to weep with all the emotions swirling through me.

“Yeah,” I finally said and laid my head in the crook of his neck. “Of course, I’ll marry you.”

“Then,” he whispered, “put the ring on.”