explains why nothing looked familiar.” A faraway expression glazed her eyes, but she quickly shuttered it into a smile. “Want a cup of coffee before we jump in for the next round? I put a pot brewing right before I went outside.”
He answered with a nod then followed her inside, navigating a maze of boxes. More of them than he’d expected were empty. “You’ve been busy.”
“I couldn’t sleep last night. At midnight, I gave up trying and unpacked the kitchen cartons.”
A night similar to his in terms of rest. “Did you decide when to tell Josh?”
“Tomorrow night.” The coffee pot gurgled, and she lifted the carafe, poured a cup. “Mark’s parents already planned to keep him until then, and I thought we could benefit from the extra time together.” Her hand froze on the cup handle. “To prepare the house and all.”
For a second, he’d thought she meant something else. He wouldn’t mind time alone with her, just to have more conversation. They’d talked for hours in the preceding weeks, while packing her house, but that was prior to their engagement. Since they’d decided to embark on a life together, he desired to know her at a deeper level.
Along with discovering answers to the question that should have been easy, such as did she have pierced ears?
He sat on a barstool at the counter after pouring a cup for himself.
Lyndsey sat beside him, not taking a drink. “I’m scared to tell Mark’s parents.”
The frankness of her admission surprised him. “Why?”
“They’ve never cared much for me. Mark was their late-in-life baby and ridiculously spoiled by them.” An unpolished nail tapped against the granite countertop. “Marrying an orphan raised in foster care wasn’t an ideal life plan for their son.”
“You were raised in foster care?” His mouth gaped open, and he willed his jaw to lift.
“Yes, from the time I turned eight.”
“In all our years of friendship, how come you never mentioned it?”
“I thought I had. Miranda knew.” Her eyes sought his with a peculiar expression. “Does it matter?”
Yes, yes it does because it explains so much about you . “No, but it caught me off guard. A husband should know these things.”
“Those years were hard, and I try not to think about them.” Sadness flickered in her eyes.
“I’m sorry.” His hand found hers.
“It could have been worse, so I can’t complain, but I prefer to remember the happy times of my life.”
“Understandable.” The urge to probe further into her childhood pressed into his heart, but he set it aside, sensing her unwillingness to travel that road. “Would it help if I go with you tomorrow night?”
“Hard to say.” Above her diffident stare, eyelashes kissed her brow line. “But I’d appreciate your support if you wanted to come.”
“I’ll be there.” He liked this side of Lyndsey, the one who lowered defenses and allowed herself to show vulnerability. It complemented her independent streak, which he also admired.
After they finished their coffee, they waded through the boxes crowding the house. Continuing where they left off yesterday in the upstairs rooms, they decided what furniture would stay and what would be relegated to the garage for later disposal. The queen size bed in his room was moved to the new office, where it would serve as a guest bed. He dismantled the rails from the headboard and carried them down the hall, maneuvering them into the third bedroom. There wasn’t room for the mismatched dresser, so Lyndsey helped him guide it from the second floor to first.
They manipulated her king size bed up the stairwell, turning at odd angles to make it fit through space restricted areas. Even more difficult was the chest of drawers and dresser. A sheen of sweat had broken out on his forehead by the time they finished.
“Thank goodness that’s it for the upstairs furniture.” Lyndsey swiped perspiration from her eyes. “I’m starting to regret telling you not to
He answered with a nod then followed her inside, navigating a maze of boxes. More of them than he’d expected were empty. “You’ve been busy.”
“I couldn’t sleep last night. At midnight, I gave up trying and unpacked the kitchen cartons.”
A night similar to his in terms of rest. “Did you decide when to tell Josh?”
“Tomorrow night.” The coffee pot gurgled, and she lifted the carafe, poured a cup. “Mark’s parents already planned to keep him until then, and I thought we could benefit from the extra time together.” Her hand froze on the cup handle. “To prepare the house and all.”
For a second, he’d thought she meant something else. He wouldn’t mind time alone with her, just to have more conversation. They’d talked for hours in the preceding weeks, while packing her house, but that was prior to their engagement. Since they’d decided to embark on a life together, he desired to know her at a deeper level.
Along with discovering answers to the question that should have been easy, such as did she have pierced ears?
He sat on a barstool at the counter after pouring a cup for himself.
Lyndsey sat beside him, not taking a drink. “I’m scared to tell Mark’s parents.”
The frankness of her admission surprised him. “Why?”
“They’ve never cared much for me. Mark was their late-in-life baby and ridiculously spoiled by them.” An unpolished nail tapped against the granite countertop. “Marrying an orphan raised in foster care wasn’t an ideal life plan for their son.”
“You were raised in foster care?” His mouth gaped open, and he willed his jaw to lift.
“Yes, from the time I turned eight.”
“In all our years of friendship, how come you never mentioned it?”
“I thought I had. Miranda knew.” Her eyes sought his with a peculiar expression. “Does it matter?”
Yes, yes it does because it explains so much about you . “No, but it caught me off guard. A husband should know these things.”
“Those years were hard, and I try not to think about them.” Sadness flickered in her eyes.
“I’m sorry.” His hand found hers.
“It could have been worse, so I can’t complain, but I prefer to remember the happy times of my life.”
“Understandable.” The urge to probe further into her childhood pressed into his heart, but he set it aside, sensing her unwillingness to travel that road. “Would it help if I go with you tomorrow night?”
“Hard to say.” Above her diffident stare, eyelashes kissed her brow line. “But I’d appreciate your support if you wanted to come.”
“I’ll be there.” He liked this side of Lyndsey, the one who lowered defenses and allowed herself to show vulnerability. It complemented her independent streak, which he also admired.
After they finished their coffee, they waded through the boxes crowding the house. Continuing where they left off yesterday in the upstairs rooms, they decided what furniture would stay and what would be relegated to the garage for later disposal. The queen size bed in his room was moved to the new office, where it would serve as a guest bed. He dismantled the rails from the headboard and carried them down the hall, maneuvering them into the third bedroom. There wasn’t room for the mismatched dresser, so Lyndsey helped him guide it from the second floor to first.
They manipulated her king size bed up the stairwell, turning at odd angles to make it fit through space restricted areas. Even more difficult was the chest of drawers and dresser. A sheen of sweat had broken out on his forehead by the time they finished.
“Thank goodness that’s it for the upstairs furniture.” Lyndsey swiped perspiration from her eyes. “I’m starting to regret telling you not to
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