Page 24 of Cherished Lands
"I suppose that's fair. He's definitely my most... spirited child."
I snorted, remembering the various stunts Chase had pulled over the years. "That's one way to put it."
"Elliot still lives here too. He built himself a home right on this very land."
My stomach fluttered at the mention of his name. "Oh, I know. He made me dinner the other night."
"Did he now?" Emma's face lit up with interest.
"Not by choice. I ambushed him. It was delicious, though." Heat crept up my neck as I recalled how I'd practically forced myself into his kitchen.
"He's a good cook. Gets that from me." She smiled broadly, radiating maternal pride.
The cozy warmth of the room suddenly felt stifling. I picked at a loose thread on my dress. "That's not the same, though. He has his own place. My parents forbid any other dwellings be built on the property. Said it's all for business use."
Emma's well-timed sip of cocoa didn't quite hide her eye roll. She was ten times warmer and kinder than my mother, and it was clear she loved hard when it came to her children. I couldn't picture Emma Everton ever kicking one of her children out of their home, no matter how much they disagreed. Hell, even beingallowedto disagree would have been a welcome change of pace in my home.
"I understand what it's like to not have a home you can return to," Emma said. I wanted to ask what she meant, but she continued talking. "This home"—she circled a finger in the air—"is always open to anyone who needs a warm bed or someone to talk to. But in this house, we do not lie"—she beganticking the rules off on her fingers—"cheat, or steal. And everyone works to earn their keep. Understood?"
I stared blankly for a few moments before her meaning sunk in.
She's offering me a place to stay.
Given my preference for living close to work, it would be convenient while we got the cidery up and running. I could start looking for a house when spring rolled around and the real estate market was more favorable.
And her terms? I could agree to those.
Working to earn my keep was nothing new; I'd been working at the vineyard most of my life. Lying, cheating, and stealing? Those were my parents' favorite pastimes, not mine.
"Yes, ma'am," I finally said.
"Good. Now, let's get you settled upstairs. You can have Elliot's room. He hasn't slept here in years. I'd give you Chase's since he's in the basement now, but the baseboard heating in there still isn't fixed."
Elliot's room?Not sure I wanted to be surrounded by him twenty-four-seven. "What about Charlie's? Or Jasper's?"
"Well, Charlie will be home in a couple weeks for winter break. And sometimes Jasper likes to crash here after a long day instead of heading to his apartment in town, though that's happening less and less these days with Natalie back. But I suppose?—"
"No, no." I wouldn't put either of them out. "Elliot's room is fine."
Emma looked at me with an enigmatic smile then led the way upstairs to the bedroom. She pulled some sweats and a t-shirt from the drawers and placed them neatly on the bed.
"Need anything else?"
I winced, hating to impose further. "Do you happen to have a spare phone charger?"
"Oh, of course." She walked back into the hallway and shouted over the banister. "Jay! Bring up a phone charger."
"Now?" he called back.
"Yes, now!" She threw me a conspiratorial wink.
A few moments later, Jay climbed the stairs and handed his wife the phone charger. "What was the big rush? I was in the middle of a—" He cut himself off when he caught sight of me standing in Elliot's doorway. "Ah," he said simply.
"Tessa is going to be staying with us for a bit," Emma stated.
"Oh? Why's that."
"It's not important. Go back to your game."
