After I hit End, Arabella nearly tackled me in a hug. “Oh my gosh! He invited you to spend Thanksgiving with him!” She pulled back and looked at me. “How do you feel about that?”
I looked down at the phone in my hand and then back to her. “I feel…surprised, but happy.”
Arabella let out a little squeal.
The agent cleared her throat, and I focused my attention on her. “I’ll take it,” I said.
“Wait, what?” Arabella took me by the arm and pulled me farther away from the agent. “Why would you rent this place, Abby? He said he should have kissed you! He invited you to spend Thanksgiving with him.”
“That doesn’t mean he’s going to open up his heart and ask me to move right in, Arabella. Besides, I think we need to do this slowly…if there’s going to be a this at all.”
Her shoulders slumped. “Ugh. I guess you’re right. I was getting ahead of myself there.”
Smiling, I pulled her to me for another quick hug. “Thank you for coming with me today and being such an amazing friend.”
“I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.”
I drew in a deep breath as I juggled fresh flowers, cranberry sauce, and a dish of sweet potato soufflé while standing in front of Bishop’s door. I was trying to hit the doorbell with my hip when the door opened.
Bishop stood there with a crooked smile on his face, and butterflies danced wildly in my stomach.
“You always did try to make it in the least number of trips,” he said, reaching out to take something.
I let out a nervous laugh and handed him the sweet potatoes. “I’ve also got green bean casserole in the car and some homemade rolls my mom made for you. She knows how much you like them.”
His eyes darted to my car while he took the flowers from me as well. I followed him through the house and into the large gourmet kitchen. I was still so surprised that Bishop hadn’t changed a single thing since I’d left. The same furniture and rustic décor was in the house. I had almost forgotten how much I loved this place. The exposed wood and all of the river rock that had been built into the house made it feel so warm and inviting.
Once we were in the kitchen, I took it all in. It had always been one of my favorite rooms. The stove was against the wall and surrounded by rustic brick. Dark wood cabinets covered one side of the kitchen, with an oversized white island that broke up all the dark features. Large wood beams stood on either side of the island, holding up the loft that overlooked the great room. The open space itself looked over the great room on one side and the breakfast room on the other.
“You put these in water,” Bishop said. “I’ll go grab the rest of the stuff. Front seat or back?”
“Back. Where are the vases?”
As he headed back out, he said, “Same place you left them.”
His tone wasn’t angry, just matter of fact. I took off my coat and turned to head into the butler’s pantry off the kitchen. I veered and hung up my coat in the mudroom, then went back to the pantry. I opened the cabinet where I used to keep vases and, sure enough, they were all there.
Same place you left them.
An overwhelming sense of melancholy came over me, and I found myself fighting to hold back tears. Again. After a few deep breaths, I walked back into the kitchen and over to the sink in the middle of the island to fill up a vase.
“These rolls smell like heaven,” Bishop said when he appeared back in the kitchen. He set both dishes down, then walked over to the stove and stirred something.
I arranged the bouquet of flowers I had handpicked this morning in the greenhouse and turned to Bishop. “Where would you like these?”
He glanced at the flowers, then at me. “Do you want to eat in here or the formal dining room?”
I chewed on my lip. I’d never enjoyed sitting in the formal dining room. The breakfast nook off the kitchen was at the back of the house and had a wall of windows with a beautiful view. I’d always loved eating there. “How about in here?”
The corner of Bishop’s mouth twitched with a hidden smile. “Then we’ll eat in here.”
As I made my way to the table, I glanced to my right—and paused. I nearly dropped the vase of flowers when I saw what was outside the sliding doors that led to the back porch.
For years, I had begged Bishop to make me one of those wide sofa swings for the porch. The view of the trees and the mountains from the back of the house was one of the most beautiful spots on the farm, and the back porch had always been one of my favorite places to relax.