That was one thing I will not miss. The kids, much like my late husband, never picked up after themselves. And boy, did that get on my last damn nerve. I spent my entire life caring for others—both at work and at home. I swear being a caretaker was woven in my DNA.
After graduating with my bachelor’s degree in nursing, I worked full-time in the ICU at a local hospital for twenty years then took care of Tim at the end. Perhaps that was what was so inviting about my grandmother’s house. There was no one here for me to take care of.
After washing the toothpaste from the sink, I turned and yelped. “What the fuck?” My mouth got away from me when I noticed the towels back on the ground. Where the hell had they come from? I just picked them up and put them in the laundry basket.
I headed into the other bedrooms and stripped the beds before straightening the covers over the mattresses. When I finished with the room Greyson was staying in, I tripped over the sheets that were no longer in their neat little pile.
Pausing, I thrust my hands on my hips and glanced around. Was someone there messing with me? I didn’t find anything out of the ordinary, so I picked up the pile and added it to the basket, then carried my load downstairs.
When I entered the tiny room at the back of the kitchen where the washer and dryer were, I stopped short when I noticed the soap tipped over on its side. “Alright, grandma, if you’re haunting the place to scare me, there’s no need. I’m not going to make too many changes.”
It felt almost as if the house sighed around me. Shaking my head at my idiocy, I put a load on then entered the kitchen. The sight of the scuffed wooden stool sitting at the butcherblock island reminded me of all the days I used to sit there as a kid and listen to my grandmother tell me stories about Fae and witches.
I envied her creativity. I could never come up with the elaborate ones she did. She wove tales about portals, fairies, dragons, and gnomes. When I became a mom, and my kids started asking for stories, I used my favorites from the ones she told me.
Skylar loved one about a pixie that sought asylum with a witch from a vicious beast that had been hunting her. The pixie barely evaded the beast and barreled through some woods when she came up against a barrier. She pounded her tiny hands on the barrier, begging for help. The witch helped and provided the pixie with some woods to live in and the pixie gave the witch fresh flowers in return.
Emmie’s favorite was about a gnome family that was escaping from some barghests while Greyson preferred stories about dragon shifters that needed to get away from the vile King that created them to ravage and kill.
My mind swimming with memories, I made a sandwich and was turning away from the window when movement caught my eye. I sucked in a breath and immediately started choking on my food. Smashing the food in my hand, I raced for the back door and burst through.
I was still coughing when I dashed down the steps. After a couple more hacks, I managed to clear my throat. “Can I help you?” It still felt like food was stuck down the wrong pipe.
The woman paused with her hand on an herb in the garden and looked up at me. She looked like she was in her late twenties, maybe early thirties and had stunning red hair. My hands smoothed down my pink t-shirt when I took in her crop top and flat stomach.
She lifted one hand and smiled. “Oh, hi. You must be Fiona, Isidora’s granddaughter. I’m Aislinn. I thought you’d be on a plane home by now. I saw the car leave hours ago.”
I crossed my arms over my chest, smearing mayonnaise over my left boob. I was a hot freakin’ mess, but I didn’t care at the moment. I have no idea how my grandmother did things, but I didn’t want people wandering on my property whenever they wanted.
“This is my property and I have decided to stay. Listen, I’m not sure what arrangement you had with my grandmother, but I would like a heads up before you go prowling around stealing my stuff.”
Aislinn’s eye bugged out of her head and her hand dropped to her side. “I apologize. Like I said, I figured you’d be gone. I just needed some thistle for a potion, and Isidora has always allowed me to grab the few ingredients I need in exchange for helping with upkeep in here.”
That brought a smile to my lips. My hands dropped, and pieces of tomato fell from between the bread. “In that case, you are more than welcome. Honestly, I was thinking about getting rid of the garden. I swear I have a black thumb. Besides, I have no idea what all this is, or what it is for.”
Aislinn chuckled and cut a couple sprigs of the plant she’d been holding. “If you’re Isidora’s kin, you’ll be able to keep things alive, but I am happy to help. This has become my therapy since my husband left me a year ago. Is your husband not staying with you?”
I shook my head side to side as a lump formed in my throat. Anytime I talked about Tim, I was close to losing my shit. Enough time had passed that I should be beyond this by now. But I knew better than anyone that there was no such thing as closure. Grief was a roller coaster that would catch you off guard when you least expected it. The loss of someone you love never stopped hurting, no matter how much time passed.
“My husband passed away a couple years ago. Cancer.” I preempted the inevitable questions about what killed him. “My kids went back home to college. They will visit, but they won’t be living with me.”
“I’m so sorry about your husband. You’re starting over. That’s good. It’ll help to create a life that is removed from him. That way, the grief won’t suck you under every time you turn around.”
My jaw dropped open at the young woman’s insight. I never would have expected her to be so wise. “Honestly, I never thought about that. I had the hardest time letting him go. Despite how much it hurt to eat at our favorite restaurant and go to our park, I ignored it because it felt like a betrayal to do anything else. It wasn’t until I got here and felt this sense of belonging that I started giving more thought to my desire to create a new life for myself.”
Aislinn exited through the gate and stopped by my side. She was at least three inches shorter than my five-foot-five frame and skinny as a rail, but she exuded this green aura. I must be thinking that because she enjoys gardening.
“As a Shakleton, you definitely belong here. I need to get home to make this potion, but if you ever need anything, I work at Phoenix Feathers. In fact, you should come in some time for a drink. On me.”
I extended my clean hand and shook hers. “Thank you. I will be in touch, I’m sure.”
I watched her walk away. I missed where she turned off my driveway because standing on the other side of the path was a man. He was muscular and intimidating. I wouldn’t say he was gorgeous. He was too scary for that, although his beauty was undeniable.
I lifted my hand and waved at him. “Hi. I’m Fiona. I just moved into my grandmother’s house.” The guy didn’t say a word as he stood with his feet braced apart, and his arms crossed over his chest while he narrowed his brown eyes at me.
I waited a few minutes before realizing he was not going to introduce himself. Swallowing hard, I turned back to my house. By the time I got inside the kitchen, he was gone. Maybe I would ask Aislinn who the attractive, yet angry man was.
Pymm’s Pondside was turning out to be more than I bargained for when I turned back to the kitchen to see silverware strewn over the island. A familiar determination settled over me. This was going to be great. There was no other choice.