Page 19 of BillionHeir
I don’t know why she needs to be so dramatic.
“It is the red key. I have all the keys to my properties color coded by the color of the door.” I gesture to the front door which is painted a maroon color. “Red door, red key.”
She rolls her eyes at me before selecting the appropriate key and pushing it into the lock. “Shouldn’t an estate like this have staff who can help?”
“I employ a full staff during the summer, but they have just gone home for the season. We will have to make do without.”
She leads me straight to a chair that is positioned in the foyer near the front door. I have never actually sat in it before, but my decorator felt like the open space was too cavernous, whatever that means. I have never been more thankful for a useless piece of furniture in my life.
I collapse into the leather wingback chair and look over at the staircase, wondering how I am going to make it up to my bed. I am a stubborn man who will stop at nothing to get what he wants, but I don’t know if I will be able to do this. I have alwaysconsidered myself strong and resilient, but after the crash, I am just not sure what I am capable of.
My eyes find Chloe, standing in the center of the foyer in her blue nursing scrubs, her eyes wide as she takes the house in. I guess I should have thought to warn her that my home in Maine is a little more than your average house, but it didn’t even occur to me just how hard it would be to navigate around the palatial estate.
As I am contemplating a comfortable spot here on the first floor, my phone rings. I look down and see Tristan’s face on the screen. I consider sending it to voicemail.
“Aren’t you going to answer that?” Chloe asks, eyeing me curiously.
I sigh in resignation as I answer the call and bring the phone to my ear.
“What do you want?”
“Is that any way to greet your best friend?” he asks.
“Hello, Tristan. Now, what do you want?”
“Where the hell are you?”
“I just got to my place in Maine. Why?”
“I came to see you at Sanctuary Springs, but they told me you were gone. I heard some of the staff gossiping as I left. Did you poach one of their best nurses?”
“Would I do that?” I ask, looking over at the nurse in question. I chose her because I had a connection to her, but tohear that she was one of their best employees makes me feel even better about the decision.
“So it is true then.”
“It is, but I am starting to think I might have made a mistake.”
“Why is that?”
“I can’t get up the stairs.”
Tristan lets out a loud laugh at my expense. He has always been the jokester of the group. Don’t get me wrong, he is one of my oldest and most loyal friends, but he is far more likely to roast me than to give me any kind of life advice.
“I told you to add that chair lift when you had the chance.” If I wasn’t so tired, I might laugh with him. He did actually joke that I would need help getting up the large staircase sooner rather than later. Though I am sure neither one of us thought it would be like this.
When he is finally done laughing at me, he adds, “I am on my way.” There is that loyalty I was talking about. He jokes all the time, but I know if I ever need him, he would be there in an instant. Just like right now.
“You do not need to come three hours to help me get up a flight of stairs. We will figure it out,” I say, watching as the look of hope on Chloe’s face vanishes as fast as it appeared.
“I need to meet this nurse of yours anyway. I will call Liam and see if he is up for a drive. I assume we can stay the night?”
“Of course. There are plenty of empty rooms. Upstairs.” I roll my eyes, annoyed that I didn’t anticipate this wrinkle. I would have gone to my penthouse in Boston if I had thought about how hard it would be to get around here, but this place has always felt more like home.
“Okay. Give us a few hours to get up there, and we will help you get settled. Just relax for a while.”
“Easier said than done,” I grumble before hanging up. I glance over at Chloe who looks like she is reconsidering taking this position. I can’t say that I blame her. “My friends will be here in a few hours.”
I may not have many people in my life, but the ones I do have are worth their weight in gold. I am sure I don’t appreciate them enough.
