She took a quick shower to scrub off the paint, wrapped up in a thick cozy robe, and left the door open to air the room out. Eli met her in the hall, and she was absurdly aware of being nearly naked despite how the robe covered every inch of her. Her cheeks heated as he stepped to one side, averting his gaze with color darkening his cheeks.
“Sorry,” he mumbled, rushing past her.
Did I make him blush? Okay, that’s adorable.
No. Stop. You’re not doing this.
As Iris headed up to the attic to get dressed, she wondered how Great-Aunt Gertie had managed here alone. All these stairs will take care of my cardio. She put on random comfy clothes—soft, baggy cotton pants with pockets and a T-shirt that said UNICORN RIDER. Warm, fuzzy socks on her feet completed the ensemble, and Iris went downstairs to see what she could make for dinner. She found a bit of cream cheese, a rind of parmesan, penne, and half a bag of frozen spinach.
“That solved itself,” she said, putting on the salted water to cook the pasta.
Just then, her phone beeped, signaling an incoming video call. Her hands were wet, and she accidentally tapped the accept icon. Silently she swore as Mom, Lily, and Rose appeared on her screen. It looked as if they’d gathered at Rose’s house; Iris would recognize that accent wall anywhere.
“Hey,” she said, picking up her cell so they weren’t staring up her nose.
“You’re crying to Dad again?” Lily demanded. “When are you ever going to grow up? This is absolutely ridiculous.”
“What are you even talking about?”
Oh right. She’d spoken to Dad not long ago and explained her side of the situation. Evidently that counted as whining. “Look, I’ll tell you exactly what I told him. I don’t think dating Dylan is a good look for you, but that had nothing to do with me missing Rose’s party. I wasn’t in town, that’s all.”
“I worked really hard for this,” Rose said. “You didn’t send a gift or a card or anything. I’ve tried so hard to get closer to you, but you act like you don’t care about any of us at all.”
Iris stifled a sigh, wishing things weren’t so fraught with Rose, but Rose was much closer to Lily than Iris, whereas Olive was the only one who ever understood where Iris was coming from. “Okay, that’s fair. I’m sorry I didn’t at least send something. I am proud of you. But…did you send me anything when I opened my store?”
“Why would I?” Rose asked, swapping a puzzled look with Mom and Lily.
“Because it’s important to me.” Honestly, this shit shouldn’t even need to be explained.
“It’s not like you’re earning a living that way,” Lily said.
“So only milestones that mark financial gain are worth celebrating—noted. That means I don’t need to send gifts on normal holidays, right?” She could have said more, so much more, but there was no point. They expected her to give and yield, and always had. Those metrics didn’t seem likely to change.
And…she was done.
Meanwhile, Mom was talking over everyone, a skill she’d perfected. “Stop blabbering nonsense. You’re mad at Lily over nothing—it’s not like you’d have married Dylan—and I think we all remember when you were trash-talking Greg for no reason.”
“We’re all doing our best here,” Rose added.
Are you? Really?
“Why is everything always my fault?” Iris asked.
“You know that’s not true.” Mom immediately went on the defensive and started listing all the problems Iris had caused over the years.
“Did we make you drop out of college?” Lily snarked.
“Probably,” Rose muttered. “You know how she is, blames us every time something doesn’t go her way.”
“Here’s the thing. I’m never going to give Lily my blessing with Dylan. If he becomes my brother-in-law, it’s whatever, I guess. But I’m done pretending things are fine when they’re definitely not. Make of that what you will. Rose, I’ll send you a special necklace for your promotion.” Not that I expect you to wear it. “What are you planning to send me to congratulate me for inheriting a house? That’s a financial gain that should be acknowledged, according to the Collins’ creed.”
Rose sighed. “I can see there’s no talking to you.”
“Okay,” Iris said. Once this conversation would’ve crushed her. “I need to finish dinner. Bye!”
She got the last word and cut the call just in time to plop the penne in the frothing water. The meal came together quickly—penne in creamy spinach sauce with plenty of black pepper and a hint of nutmeg. She dished out three portions and topped each plate with grated parmesan cheese. Eli paused in the kitchen, smiling at the food she was plating.
Last week, we were strangers. Now we live together, eat together, he sees me fresh out of the shower…
“It’s ready. I hope you like it.”
“I’ll go get Henry Dale. I think he’s in the shed.”
“Still?” She shook her head ruefully. “I suspect he’d live out there if I let him.”
Eli laughed. “Don’t give him ideas.”
Though Henry Dale grumbled a bit, he still joined them for dinner. They ate mostly in silence, and the old man seemed to be in a decent mood until Iris asked, “I’m just curious. Have you ever been married?”
At that apparently forbidden question, his mouth tightened. “I never wanted to. Something wrong with that?”
Abruptly he set his fork down and left the table, retreating to his room. She bit her lip, glancing at Eli. “I get the feeling I shouldn’t have asked.”
“With Henry Dale, I think we need to wait until he volunteers the information. We haven’t known each other that long.”
“True,” Iris said.
It was a measure of how upset Henry Dale must have been that he’d just left his plate on the table. As a silent apology, she washed it; Eli helped with the rest, of course. She could get used to this constant camaraderie, feeling like she wasn’t alone anymore.
The whole house smelled lightly of paint, but not in a bad way. Between the professional cleaners and the work they’d already done on the place, the house no longer felt so desolate, redolent of dust and loneliness. If she took it slow and spaced out the paint costs, they might be able to do the whole house. Not soon. But eventually. The hallways needed some TLC too, and the attic… She’d love to brighten all that dark paneling. It wasn’t the quality kind either; this had been done in the seventies, so it was the cheap stuff, and she wouldn’t hesitate over painting or papering it.
“What are you thinking about?” Eli asked suddenly.
“House stuff.”
“There’s a lot to do.” In measured motions, he put away the last plate, then turned to her with a smile that warmed her from the inside out. “By the way, I had a look at your shop. If you have time, I have some suggestions. Should I get my laptop?”
“Already? Wow! It’s like all you do is help me.”
“Luckily, it’s stuff I’m already good at,” he said.
Which made Iris pause because…did that mean he’d learn new skills if she needed him to? The implications puzzled her so much that she didn’t even notice him going upstairs until he returned to the table with his laptop. He drew his chair over so she could see his screen as he clicked through several design options.