“Yes, that’s me,” Brody said.
“You’ve been served,” the kid said as he handed Brody a brown manila envelope, descended the front steps, and fled to his car like a thief in the night.
“Shit,” Brody said out loud because he knew without opening it what the contents were.
By then, her health tests came out negative, and she thanked her lucky stars for that. Who knew what Dougie was doing out there? She felt sorry for his wife, but still didn’t feel she should be the one to tell her about the situation. She had enough on her plate to deal with.
When Ashley arrived home after 8 p.m. because G & J Renovations had worked late as they often did, Brody had her favorite dinner waiting for her and a bottle of wine open and breathing on the table. She changed her clothes in the laundry area and slipped into a T-shirt and comfortable sweatpants as was her custom.
“I made dinner,” he called to her.
“I’m not hungry. Eat without me.”
“We need to talk.”
“It’s been five days since I left you in Miami; you didn’t need to talk before. Why now?”
“I was served divorce papers today. You can’t be serious,” he said, and she could hear his voice catch on his words.
She left the laundry area then and stared down the hallway toward the kitchen and saw him standing at the end of the kitchen counter, which was set with flowers and candlelight as if it was Valentine’s Day. He was dressed to perfection in a cashmere turtleneck and wool slacks that accented his perfect build. The man hadn’t gained an ounce since their honeymoon. His hair still jet black and his eyes still blue and clear, his nose chiseled to perfection, and his lips just perfect enough to draw her to them even on that first day they met and dickered over the sunflowers. Only for a moment, she felt her resolve falter. It had been a long, grueling day with some difficulty fitting the huge clawed bathtub to fit precisely where the homeowners wanted it. But, she squared her shoulders and marched to where he stood.
“We’ll talk. We must. There is so much to settle.” At which point, she blew out the candle, threw it in the sink, took the vase of flowers and shoved the flowers, vase, water and all into the trash container under the kitchen sink. “What’s for dinner? I’m starving.” And she realized she was because she’d eaten nothing more than bagels and cream cheese from Dunkin Donuts since she left Miami.
“The papers say we’re to sell the house and split the profits. I want to stay,” Brody whined.
“Yes and the realtor said the only thing we needed for this weekend’s open house was to paint your office, so I took care of that.”
“I don’t want to leave this house. I like it.”
“Well, shit bag. I didn’t want to leave my marriage, but sometimes we have to do things we’d rather not. So, unless you have enough to pay for your half of the house, you’re moving as soon as you can pack.”
“You can’t make me leave that soon. It’s half my house.”
“You cheated on me; the judge will rule in my favor. I’ll give you a week to find another place. In the meantime, sleep in the guest room.”
He moved toward her with his hands folded as if in prayer. “Ashley, be reasonable. We’re happy together. You said so yourself. It’s a serene life we have. Don’t let us lose that. We can go on as before.”
For the second time in less than a week, she reached out and slapped his face. But he turned his face away just as she let loose her slap, that time, ready for her rage, and as a result took less of the blow that she leveled.
“Never,” she said and took her plate of lasagna to eat outside on the deck. She was not foregoing her favorite meal for that bastard.
“In that case, I’ll hire my own lawyer tomorrow,” he yelled after her as she exited the house.
The next weeks were busy with several open houses, a bidding war on their property, and Ashley making trips to Nashua, New Hampshire for house hunting of her own. She and Rex decided that G & J Renovations would expand into New Hampshire with her taking the helm in that state. Her brother Jordan and his wife, Barbara, and their kids Michael, Justin, and Serena lived in the area as well as her mom, who moved out of Vermont once the grandchildren started coming along. Ashley felt this was the right move at the necessary time. She needed a complete break, so she wouldn’t accidently run into Brody. Rex understood that. And, they hoped, it would expand their business since they’d had many inquiries about their services in the last two years. If it was going to happen, that was the right time.
Their house sold for $40,000 over their asking price, and they’d made a substantial dent on the mortgage already, so she felt comfortable looking for colonials and Victorians along Concord Street and adjacent streets in Nashua. She did find one that had been on the market for quite some time and needed a lot of renovations. That didn’t frighten her. She did ask Rex to take the two-hour drive to do a walkthrough and help her assess what she’d have to spend and do to bring it back to its original luster.
They decided it would be tight, but she could do it financially. She kept no secrets from Rex, so he knew how much money she had to spend.
“Besides, it’s a big house. Do one area at a time. You don’t have to finish it all at once. Take years. Make it a hobby, not a job,” he encouraged her.
“That’s just what I’m thinking. I need a kitchen, bedroom, and one bath. The rest can wait. I can almost do it as a ‘pay as I go’ project.”
“It will drive you crazy to go too slowly, but that’s the spirit. Don’t make yourself crazy over this. Okay? It’s got a solid foundation, which we both know we can’t say that for all of them. There will be surprises as there always are, but for the price, I think this is a great buy for you—the kind of home you’ve always wanted. I hope it makes you happy.”
“I do too,” she said as she looked around and smiled at the huge expanse of the space.
A week later, she closed on the house at 21 Concord Street, but before she signed on the dotted line, Jack Monson, the realtor said, “By law, I have to warn you that someone was killed in the house.”
“Really?”
“Yes, in 1920. My understanding is a woman killed her husband.”
“That’s fascinating. Do you know what happened to her?”
“She ended up at the New Hampshire State Hospital in Concord, you know, for the mentally ill. Not a great place in 1920.”
“Oh, that’s sad,” Ashley said.
“So, are you still okay going forward with the purchase?” he asked.
“Absolutely. Hell, it may even be why I got such a great deal on the place.”
He laughed. “I think you actually got such a great deal because it really does need a lot of TLC and elbow grease and the estate of the owners just wants to unload it.”
“Whatever the reason, it’s just what I’m looking for,” Ashley insisted.
“Sign here,” Jack said and grinned as he watched her sign each page of many to make the old place hers. “Good luck with everything,” he said as he handed her the keys. “Be sure to invite me back after you finish. I’ve seen the ‘before;’ I’d love to see the ‘after.’”