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Ispent most of Saturday in a state of dreamy wakefulness, wandering around the house, thinking about Michael. He was humble and unassuming—things Luke never had been—but there was also an edge of sexy confidence to him that I sensed hadn’t been uncovered in a while. And the more I saw of it, the more I wanted.
As I tidied up the bedroom and made more coffee, preparing to spend another day out in the garden, I thought about my plans. Maybe I didn’t have to go back to New York. Maybe, considering the amount of money this house and the car sitting out in the garage were worth, I could envision a new plan. With that kind of money, I could really do anything I wanted. I couldn’t imagine not doing some kind of work, but I didn’t think finance was really my calling. I knew I didn’t want to bake, like Mom, or teach, like Amberlynn. And it was too late to become a doctor like Paige.
My mind turned over the possibilities, and I felt like a bright new pathway had suddenly been illuminated for me—one that might include Michael. And Singletree.
Just as I was heading out the back door into the yard, my mother trundled up the path, followed by another woman who was gazing around the property with an evaluative look on her face. Mom was the queen of unexpected visits. There went my quiet day.
“There you are!” Lottie called, as if she’d been looking for me for hours.
“Here I am. Good morning, Mom.”
“Addie, this is Sally. I told you I’d be bringing her by.”
Actually, Mom had told me Sally was a pet psychic with good Yelp ratings, but it never paid off to bring up semantics with Mom. “Sally, nice to meet you.”
“You too, dear. I understand you’re having some spirit trouble in the house?” She glanced past me at the house.
“Ah, maybe? We’re just hearing some noises now and then.”
Sally nodded as if she knew exactly what I meant. “Can you describe them for me?”
I told her about the scrabbling and the crashes and the shrieks, as well as the missing items. “My silver bracelet has recently gone missing too, so that’s actually the most concerning ghostly occurrence we’ve been having.”
“Yes, and what do the screams sound like?” Sally’s wrinkled face was offset by very large bright blue eyes, and she looked genuinely concerned, which made me feel a bit less annoyed at my mother for overstepping.
“Well, they’re high pitched and—“
“I was hoping you might demonstrate.”
“Oh. Um, you want me to scream?”
“If you don’t mind, dear.”
“Ah, okay, sure,” I said. Then I cleared my throat and did my best imitation of the otherworldly screaming we’d heard in the house.
My mother looked aghast at this demonstration, and Sally shook her head. I wasn’t sure if she had taken my scream as a very bad sign about the potential haunting at the house, or if both women were just disappointed with my rendition.
“Let’s go inside,” Mom suggested.
“Okay, sure,” I said, putting aside the gardening tools and leading the women up the back steps.
“Oh my lord, Addison,” Mom cried as we moved into the kitchen. “This is absolutely gorgeous.”
“Thank you.” It was crazy how much my mother’s validation meant to me.
Mom ran her hands over the counters and paused for long appreciative moments at the double ovens and gas stove. “It’s amazing,” she breathed.
“There was a lot of space,” I pointed out. “It just needed updating.”
Mom turned to me and smiled. “Filene would love this,” she said, a tear spilling down her cheek. I had almost forgotten that Mom and Filene Easter had been friends. Since Filene hadn’t wanted a service or any kind of gravestone, it was like she’d become just a distant memory. But for Mom, I realized, that was not the case.
“And Filene,” Sally said, stepping forward and regarding us both with those wide blue eyes, “that’s the dog?”
“The dog?” I asked, shaking my head. “What dog?”
“The one you’re having all the trouble with. I’m getting a very strong German Shepherd vibe in here.”
I turned to my mother, narrowing my eyes. She didn’t need actual words to know exactly what I was telling her.This is stupid. There is no dog. This lady is insane. Thanks so much for bringing her over.
