Page 4 of The Pink House

Surprise skittered across Charlie’s face. “Neighbors talk.”

“Neighbors? You don’t live around here.” Hannah struggled to recall just where Charlie lived, then decided the mental gymnastics weren’t worth the effort. That had been high school. Undoubtedly, he’d moved numerous times since then.

“My mom and I live next door.” He jerked his head toward the north. “We moved in last year.”

“You live with your mother?”

Charlie arched a dark brow. “You have a problem with that?”

“Nope.” Hannah wasn’t surprised, not really. Just like she hadn’t been surprised when Brian had told her that Charlie had dropped out of the engineering program at MIT after two years. Brian said it was because Charlie was so smart he was bored. Hannah suspected too much partying. “Listen, you don’t have to help me.”

He grinned. “What box do you want brought in next?”

With Charlie’s help, they emptied the back of her car in short order.

As she watched him carry box after box, Hannah had to admit that Charlie had retained his youthful good looks. His hair was still glossy, thick and dark and his body as muscular and lean as it had been during his football days.

Either he worked out regularly, or his day job involved a lot of lifting, because he had no problem handling any of the boxes, even ones she’d overfilled.

“That’s the last.” He set the box where she’d instructed in the main-floor bedroom. “Anything else I can help with?”

“No, thank you.” This time, Hannah’s smile came easy. “You’ve been very helpful.”

“Brian was my friend. You’re my neighbor.” He cleared his throat. “If you ever need anything—”

He lifted a marker from the table and wrote a phone number on the top of the nearest box. “Call anytime, or stop over. I’m right next door.”

With a wink, he turned and strode out the door.

Hannah glanced at the number, but made no move to add it to her phone. Instead, she began unpacking, determined to put the past behind her and start a new life.

Without Brian.

CHAPTERTWO

“I’m going to bake some cookies for Hannah,” Lisa told her son over dinner. “I think it’d be a nice way to welcome her back to the neighborhood.”

“Your cookies are amazing.” Charlie wasn’t sure that Hannah was the cookie type. She had the look of someone who preferred protein shakes and salads to sweets. Then again, he could be wrong. Despite her having been married to his best friend, he didn’t know Hannah well.

“How did your day go?” His mother inclined her head. She was an attractive woman in her mid-fifties with dark hair and eyes of quiet brown. “Did you unravel the mystery of the design flaw?”

“Not yet.” Charlie finished off the last bite of brisket on his plate. It had been his turn to cook this evening, and he had to admit he made a killer brisket. “I’m getting closer.”

“You’ll figure it out.” His mom offered an encouraging smile. “I have faith.”

She’d always had faith in him. He couldn’t have asked for a better, more supportive mother. There wasn’t anything he wouldn’t do for her.

He remembered well those days shortly before his father had left for good. His mom’s multiple sclerosis had been getting worse.

Up to that point, Tom Rogan had seemed to be of the opinion that ignoring his wife’s difficulties meant they didn’t exist. Until she’d relapsed and ended up in the ICU for five days.

His mother had been barely out of the hospital when his dad moved out. Lisa’s illness had disrupted Tom’s well-ordered lifestyle, and he had made it clear he’d had enough.

Ten years ago, Charlie had returned to GraceTown to be with her. Though his mother had urged Charlie to return to Cambridge for his junior year at MIT, insisting she could manage on her own, he’d not only stayed, he’d moved in with her.

The new drug her specialist had started her on last year had the MS in remission. But she was still unsteady at times, and home maintenance and repair were beyond her abilities.

No worries.That’s what he was here for.

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