Page 69 of Rosabel and the Billionaire Beast

Forget it. I was here about the house. Nothing else.

From the expression on Rosabel’s face, she was drinking in every aspect of the house that she could. She gaped at the thick, carpeted, sweeping staircase that created a swirl in the ceiling in the entryway’s corner, the paneled walls, the chandeliers, and especially the stained-glass mosaics at the top of the entrance into the living room.

“Exquisite,” Rosabel said, turning in place. “I can’t imagine cleaning a place like this.”

“Imagine the cobwebs all those decorative crannies can collect,” Eudora said, indicating the adornments that I suspected had been recently painted white since darker wood was the style of these homes when they’d been built.

“That would take some serious, meticulous cleaning,” Rosabel said.

“That’s why I have someone who does it for me.” Eudora chuckled.

“Since when?” I couldn’t help asking.

If she’d recently ditched out on her friends in Westville, how long had she lived here? Especially since she’d grown up in Hyde Park, Illinois, before turning her home into a fraternity. How did she end up here in Eureka Springs, and with a house like this? A house I was fairly certain my grandpa had sold to the state?

“How long ago did you move here?”

“Only about a year ago. I lived in Hyde Park so I could keep an eye on the fraternity. After you boys graduated, I decided to sell and let someone else deal with the hassle of that pact you all made.”

I wasn’t ready to go there. I had the sudden urge to leave, but short of scooping Rosabel into my arms and carrying her out, I wasn’t sure how to do that.

“What are you talking about?” Rosabel asked. Her face was lifted with sweet curiosity as if this was some kind of happy reunion.

I ignored Rosabel and asked a question of my own. “When did you sell the frat?”

“Just about two years ago now,” she said, settling into the chair in the large, wood-paneled living room she’d led us into.

Two years. Shortly after that, Will had gotten out of jail. He’d targeted Goldie because Adrian had broken The Pact and fallenin love with her. Had Will taken things to such extremes because he thought he could since the frat was dissolved?

“I hear it’s been giving you boys some trouble,” Eudora said.

She gestured to the chairs across from her, inviting us to sit. Rosabel moved to take the invitation, but I grabbed her arm, holding her back.

Rosie frowned at me, but I shook my head at her and directed my response to Eudora.

“I’m not here to talk about that. I’m interested in purchasing this property. I’ve had my eye on the house for years now since my grandfather sold it to the state. This was my family home; I’d like such a legacy to return to the family.”

Eudora didn’t respond, and neither did Rosabel. Her dainty hand was visible in my periphery. I had the strongest urge to reach for it, to thread my fingers through hers.

Shaking it off, I kept my attention on the older woman. If she didn’t accept my topic change, then we were out of here.

“I see,” she said, angling her body to face us instead of the empty chairs across from her. “Do you intend on turning it into a tourist attraction—a bed and breakfast—like so many other homes around here?”

Now, she was talking my language. My shoulders relaxing, I placed a hand on Rosabel’s lower back, getting her attention and gesturing to the chairs across from Eudora. A line appeared between Rosabel’s brows. I read the questions gleaming in her eyes and slightly shook my head, hoping she would read my mind.

Not here. Not now.

Reluctantly, she pursed her lips and followed my invitation, taking the seat. I settled into the one right next to it.

“I don’t,” I said, adjusting to this more comfortable shift in conversation. “My grandfather passed away, but his wife isturning ninety-five. I thought this would be an appropriate gift for her.”

Eudora picked a non-existent piece of fluff from off of her sleeve, placed her hands on either of the armrests, and stared me down.

“What are you really doing here?” she asked.

Rosabel and I exchanged glances. A more adorable line creased between her brows.

“I’m here to purchase this home. You had it listed?—”

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