Page 25 of Willowbrooke
“And…she looked like your mom.” I heard my small voice escape me, before I realized the impact of what I’d said.
Leo’s jaw clenched at the mention of his mother. He remained silent.
I felt dread building in the pit of my stomach. I’d overstepped. I felt awful.
“I’m sorry,” I breathed. But it was too late.
“Go back to bed, Penny,” Leo commanded flatly.
“Leo…” I reached out to him, but he flinched away from my touch.
Swallowing the lump in my throat, I relented, leaving him brooding in the dark living room, not daring to look back as I made my way upstairs to my room.
I didn’t sleep.
I knew things would be tepid between Leo and I the next day.
What I didn’t anticipate was that he would avoid meentirely. How was I supposed to clear the air if he couldn’t even stand to be in the same house with me, let alone the same room?
For the first time since starting the project, I wasn’t greeted with Leo and a fresh cup of coffee upon waking. Instead I ran into Danny and his crew, who were starting early, as the kitchen was almost complete—only missing some finishing, but critical touches.
“Where’s…Leo?” I asked, confused.
“Went into town—said to tell you he’ll be gone most of the day,” Danny grumbled, annoyed to be playing messenger. “Lover’s spat?” He waggled his eyebrows, teasing.
I rolled my eyes in response. “Hardly.” I scowled, making my way over to the coffee station, where there was exactly enough for one cup left warming in the glass carafe…he hadn’t forgotten me after all. I felt my cheeks redden at the thought, and then my blush deepened, embarrassed that it pleased me so much.
Does Leo think of me as much as I think of him?
“Are you still on track to finish tomorrow?” I asked Danny, while pouring the steaming coffee into my usual mug.
“As long as you don’t have any more last-minute changes,” he growled.
“It wasonething—it’s not my fault they delivered the wrong tone of hardware.” I shook my head, knowing that Danny was joking, but also knowing that he’d never let me live down the mistake, as if I had packed the wrong parts inthe box myself.
“Someone got crumbs all over the floor. You know anything about that?” Danny glared at me.
I threw my hands up defensively. “It wasn’t me,” I said honestly, leaving out the part where I had seen Leo commit the offense the night before. “I’ll be upstairs moving furniture if you need me.”
“I’ll send a couple guys up in a bit to help you—just need them for a little longer,” Danny offered.
“Thank you.” I smiled, and carefully made my way up the back stairs.
The flooring guys were finally available to start refinishing the hardwoods, after they had rescheduled multiple times due to other jobs running longer, which didn’t bode well for my project timeline. Danny insisted that they ran late because they did quality work and wouldn’t leave a job until it was perfect.
Danny’s endorsement was enough for me to swallow my pride and growing anxiety over the timeline extending well past the holidays. Leo seemed ambivalent about the delay, and frankly, about the holidays in general.
Just before lunch, one of the workmen who had been helping me came back upstairs from a quick break and told me Margot was downstairs with a woman he didn’t recognize.
Confused by Margot’s unexpected appearance with a guest, I trotted down the steps, hoping I wouldn’t be judged too harshly in my workout leggings, an old paint-splatteredshirt, grubby sneakers, and a sweaty disposition from moving all the furniture on the second floor into the round master above the solarium.
“Hi Margot,” I greeted Leo’s aunt. “We weren’t expecting you today; Leo’s out running errands,” I told her, not sure that he was actually doing so.
Margot’s laugh tinkled as she said, “I didn’t know I needed an appointment to come and go from my own home.”
“I’m sorry,” I apologized instinctively. “It’s just a messy day, is all.”
“Don’t worry, dear, we’ll only be a moment,” Margot said. “This is Miss Hawthorne.” She stepped to her right, allowing me to see the beautiful young woman that had been standing behind her.
