Page 94 of You Found Me
“Yes. I do.”
Della instinctively shook her head. She hadn’t been here long, but she already loved that house. It was basically a living scrapbook. That was something to cherish, not toss aside. “That’s not…I can’t…”
“I know it’s a tough subject.” Rachel huffed out an almost wry laugh. “Believe me, I know. But that house is worth a lot of money, and he could use the cash for his business. He’s just being stubborn.”
“This sounds like something you should askhim.”
“Oh, I have. Believe me I have. But as you can imagine, our history makes it…difficult.” Rachel clasped her hands together in front of her.
“I don’t think the house or the history is really the issue here. If Donovan said no, then that’s your answer. Let it go.”
Rachel started to turn away, then stopped. “He doesn’t appreciate how hard it’s going to be to build a life with you in that house when he keeps holding on to the past.”
“Don’t worry about us. We’ll be just fine in that house. Though Idoappreciate your concern for our well-being.” Della put a double load of sarcasm in her tone.
Rachel made a little sound of protest. “It makes no sense to let it sit empty.”
“It’s not empty. Not anymore.” Della felt her temper rising. “Is that why you rushed over with brownies? You thought you’d, what, offer him a little sugar? Maybe a little something on the side to sweeten the deal? Must have really stabbed you in the ass to findmethere.”
Rachel’s eyes flashed. “You don’t want to live in that house any more than Ward does. Let’s be honest, you might be enjoying your little side trip to the sticks, but you’re not a Wires Crossing girl, and Donovan obviously hates being here. You two will head back to the big city or wherever life takes you, and that house will sit vacant until it falls down from neglect. What a waste.”
It felt like she’d been punched.
Rachel was right, though not in the way she’d intended.
Della wouldn’t be in Wires Crossing forever, and Ward’s beautiful house wasn’t her home. Soon, they’d figure out who her stalker was, and this game of pretend would end.
Why did that thought twist her stomach into knots?
Rachel’s eyes gleamed as she sensed victory. “Just think about it. Talk it out withDonny. He’ll follow you back to the big city if you ask. You obviously belong there, and he’s nothing if not loyal. Think about what the money could do for both of you.”
Rachel sashayed away like she’d just scored the winning point.
Della stared after her. “Bitch.”
“She’s been asking him to sell for years,” Mason said in her ear.
Della almost jumped out of her skin. She spun to face him. “Oh. So it wasn’t just because of me, then.”
“Nah. From what Mom says, Rachel’s acted like that house is hers ever since they were kids.” Mason set down the tub of dishes he was carrying. “You going to do it? You going to push my brother to sell his house? To her?”
Della glared at the space where Rachel had been. “I’d burn it down first.”
Mason nodded approvingly. “Nice. You’re all right, Lucy.”
Della stewed in the juices of her talk with Rachel while she focused on the people who’d come in for company and a meal. She normally loved the energy that came with being in a crowd, but Rachel’s words had wrapped around her mood and squeezed.
This wasn’t her job. She wasn’t going to stay, and she wouldn’t really get to know any of the people in this town, and that house wasn’t hers to lose.
Longing pinged at her heart.
It was silly. She didn’t need Wires Crossing. She had a family who loved her. Maybe she didn’t have her own house yet, but shewould, and in the meantime, she’d stay with Lizzie. They’d start on a new album after Mattie’s wedding or after Lizzie’s baby was born.
She had a life. A good one.
Do you, really?a voice that sounded suspiciously like Piper’s whispered in her ear.Or are you just part of other people’s lives?
She watched Ward and Mason work together to put all the chairs up on the tables so they could mop the floors. There was a lot of love there.