Chapter Thirty-Three
GEMMA
Though it’s Sunday and I typically sleep in, I get up early.
Once I’m dressed and drink a cup of coffee, I head over to Katie’s house.
We’re going to some open houses, and I’ve been looking forward to it all week.
She wants a fixer-upper, so it’ll be fun to walk through homes with character that have been lived in.
It’ll be a stark difference from the brand-new cookie-cutter mansions Robert stages with pricey furniture.
When I park in her driveway, she opens the front door and waves me inside. But when I walk in, she’s anxious and fidgety.
“Everything okay?”
“Yeah, just nervous about today. Plus, Owen threw a fit when my mother came to get him. He thinks he’s old enough to stay home alone. Boys,” she groans, rolling her eyes. “It’s times like this when I wish I would’ve had a girl.”
“Yeah, but she probably would’ve been worse, especially if she’d been anything like you. Young Katie was a high-maintenance, bratty know-it-all,” I tease.
Katie chuckles, grabbing her purse. “You’re probably right. I should be careful what I wish for and more thankful for what I have. I’d rather deal with a boy because our biggest arguments revolve around showering and video games.”
“Exactly.” I nod as we go to her car.
After we buckle in, Katie hands me a piece of paper with several addresses written down. I notice one’s a block down from my house. “Oh, I recognize this one. I think an older couple used to live there, and after their kids grew up, they moved to Alaska or something.”
“Really? So it’s not haunted. Noted.” She snickers as she drives us across town.
“So how’s the single life?” Last week, I told her all the details of Robert’s and my breakup and how I have zero plans to work it out with him.
I hold back a grin but fail miserably.
“Oh, excuse me,” she says all dramatically. “What I should’ve asked was how are you and Tyler?”
“Good. Actually great, if I’m being honest. We’ve been inseparable, and while we haven’t put a label on it, it feels official. I can’t stop kissing and touching him anytime he’s near. It’s never felt like this with anyone but him.”
Katie glances at me. “Happiness fits you, Gemma. Have y’all…you know?”
“No,” I rush out. “Not yet. We’re taking things one day at a time. I appreciate how patient he is, though I’m ready to jump his bones,” I admit, and Katie chuckles.
“Don’t blame you a bit.” She drives to the end of the cul-de-sac and turns off the car.
The street is packed with vehicles, and other people are taking the sidewalk that leads to the perfectly landscaped yard. The suburban neighborhood is cute, and I could picture Katie living here.
“If you’re already like this and you haven’t banged it out, I can only imagine how you’ll be when you finally do.” She waggles her brows, and I snort.
“If…we do,” I correct, but I know it’s just a matter of time.
“You might be able to pull that on someone else, but it’s more than obvious how you both feel.
Always has been.” We go to the front door and are escorted in by a real estate agent.
While the outside of the house is brick with picture-perfect shutters, the inside is a living time capsule.
Brown shag carpet and flowered wallpaper are in the main rooms. Katie and I give ourselves a tour, and when we enter the bathroom, the Pepto pink fixtures and tile nearly blind us.
She turns to me with her mouth in a firm line. “Okay, this is where I draw the line.”
“But you can remodel and make it however you want,” I remind her with a snicker, but she’s not convinced.
The rooms are large, but the ceilings are low, and it all needs work.
While I think she could handle it, this place would be a huge undertaking.
Before we go, the real estate agent hands her a card.
“Thank you,” Katie says. “How’s the neighborhood? Are there a lot of children?”
The woman contemplates as though searching for the correct answer. “Not really. Lots of older people.” She pauses with a smile. “But it’s very quiet, and the crime rate is low,” she adds.
“Great. Thanks so much,” Katie politely says before we leave. “No, but hell no,” she mumbles when we’re out the door.
“We still have four others to see. That’s just the first,” I remind her.
She nods and laughs. “Hopefully, it gets better. Too bad I don’t have Chip and Joanna with me. They’d be able to help me find a good buy.”
“Who?” I ask as she cranks the car, then takes off.
“The Gaines. Fixer Upper! They had a show on HGTV.” She glares at me as though I’ve committed a crime.
“I don’t watch much cable,” I explain. “Just movies and Hallmark.”
“There are tons of reruns you can watch. They’re amazing and gave me a lot of inspiration for what I want.
I highly recommend it if you have any spare time.
” We make our way into an older neighborhood with trees so large they shade the streets.
Once she parks, Katie turns to me. “Is this the right address?”
“Yep, this is it.” I look at the paper and confirm.
“This house looks creepy, doesn’t it?” She stares at the two-story mansion that hasn’t been touched in decades, the paint chipping and flaking on all the boards. It seems like the kind of house where a villain in Scooby Doo would hide, and I’m kinda scared to go inside.
“Welp, let’s go find the skeletons in the closet,” I suggest, trying to lighten the mood. I love Halloween, but I’m actually a wuss when it comes to things like this.
“I’m good.” She nervously laughs. “Totally not that desperate. I’ve watched way too many horror films.”
I shrug and snort. “Just know, I would’ve walked in and gotten possessed for you.”
“You’re a true friend.” She snorts. “But I’m too chicken.
” Katie sighs, and we continue down the list. The next is on the outskirts of town, so it takes us fifteen minutes to get there.
It’s cute and needs a lot of love, but it has potential.
An older lady’s selling it, and she walks around with us, nearly explaining her life story and why she’s moving.
Apparently, her husband passed away and she wants to move closer to her sister in Texas.
“Not in the house, right?” Katie asks, and my eyeballs nearly bug out of my head.
“No, but that would’ve been something.” The woman smiles, keeping the conversation lighthearted. “Gonna be real honest with you, honey. This house is adorable, but it’s a damn money pit.”
“I appreciate the honesty. I’m trying to find a forever home for my son and me. I’m a single mom and want to give him the best life I can,” Katie admits.
The older woman’s demeanor softens, and I wonder if she’s aware of Katie’s story. Lawton Ridge is small, and news travels fast, but it happened so long ago that many people have forgotten.
“You’re gonna need to install new plumbing and have gas lines run again.
There’s an electrical issue in one of the bedrooms that I’ve never been able to have sorted out.
I’m sure it will eventually cause a house fire, or at least that’s what my late husband always said, bless his soul.
If you’re willing to spend a lot of money, you could really fix it up nice, but I wouldn’t feel right not telling you everything that’s wrong.
My conscience would kill me, and I still have a few good years left in me,” she says, placing her hand on Katie’s shoulder.
“Thank you,” Katie tells her. “But you’re never gonna sell this house if you keep explaining to people why they shouldn’t buy it.”
“Oh, I know. Eventually, someone will offer me a price I can’t refuse, then bulldoze it down and rebuild on the lot.” The old woman frowns. “But that’s not here nor there.”
I give her a sad smile.
“If you want the house, I’m sure it will still be here,” the woman assures her.
Katie and I thank her again on our way out.
“She was really nice.” Katie smiles.
“She was. And honest.”
“No kidding. Cross that one off. I’m okay with spending money to fix whatever I can, but big issues like that scare me.
Electrical. Plumbing. Gas. Those are all huge things.
Plus, it needs to be leveled too. She’s right, it’s a money pit, and I appreciate her telling me because I thought it was cute.
So you’ve seen Tyler every night this week? ” She quickly changes the subject.
Just hearing his name gives me heart palpitations.
“Yep, since last week. He’s been so helpful and actually listens when I talk.
Prepares the most delicious dinners ever.
I swear I’ll finally be able to gain that twenty pounds I’ve always wanted if he keeps this up.
We talk about everything and don’t hold back on anything.
Last weekend, we went to visit Noah, and it was like a dream. ”
Katie snaps her eyes to mine, and I swallow hard. “Wait, he saw Noah?”
I hate that I slipped and mentioned him. “Yeah, we did. I only asked Tyler to join me because Robert always refused. I wanted Tyler to talk to him about life after prison, so Noah could have some idea what to expect,” I explain, and the mood turns sour. “I’m sorry, Katie.”
“It’s okay. I’d go with you, but your brother is such an asshole, he refuses to let me visit.
It’s ridiculous. Fuck him.” She grabs the steering wheel tighter and exhales.
“But I’m glad Tyler went with you. That’s really nice of him.
We talked about Noah at the bar that night after the double date.
I explained everything, how Noah refused to see me, and the way it all made me feel.
Tyler actually made me understand the situation from Noah’s perspective a little more, but I’m still pissed.
If your brother knows what’s good for him, he better never ever, ever reach out to me.
Not after how he cut me off when I needed him the most.”
“I’m not sure if I should warn him or just allow him to get his ass kicked by you if he gets brave. And I completely understand.”