What the Heart Wants: A Clean Romance

CHAPTER ONE

KYLE MITCHELL DESPERATELY wanted to distract the woman in front of him. He could see the way her lips parted softly, the way her eyes grew wide as they drank in every detail. No, this would not do.

He tugged at Cecilia Simpson’s arm—politely, respectfully, but still a tug. And as you can see on the street on your left, across the road, we have a late Queen Anne style, recently restored—

"But Dr. Mitchell, I want to know about this house. This perfectly gorgeous house."

Kyle heaved a sigh and gave up any pretense of ignoring Cecilia’s fixation. He faced the house in question: three stories, peeling paint, lawn a little patchy, front walkway showing some weeds poking out of its hexagonal paving stones.

Who was he kidding? Nobody could ignore Belle Paix. It was the house that had hooked him but good when he’d first toured Lombard five years ago.

Back then, Kyle had hoped to see the inside of the house, convince the owners to renovate it and bring it back to life. Five years later, he’d yet to get more than halfway up the front walk.

Today, on his walking tour with the Southern Homes folks, he’d just hoped he could distract Cecilia, not to mention her accompanying photographer. Cecilia was doing a tourism piece on Lombard for Southern Homes Magazine. A two-page spread of Lombard’s historic section would give an extra-big boost to this year’s high season.

No such luck. He might as well get it over and done with.

Of course you recognize it as a Second Empire—and there’s the rare sweeping S curve of the Mansard roof. Plus, you see that the wrought-iron cresting is still intact—that’s really rare, because people tended to remove it rather than repair or replace it. Originally, the house would have been a much brighter color than its current pale yellow—newspaper reports of the day said it was a deep canary yellow with four different trim colors.

Cecilia clapped her hands in delight. Oh, it’s so beautiful! It could be such a showstopper! You hardly ever see Second Empire examples in the South. But why hasn’t it been restored? It’s the only home on this street that isn’t.

Kyle decided it wouldn’t do to be perfectly, bluntly honest and reveal that the home owner had never responded to a single, solitary invitation to attend so much as one historical society meeting. Or that, when she found out how much it would cost to paint the house in historically accurate colors—five different shades including all the trim paints—she’d harrumphed and said, Why, thank you, sonny. That’s a little more than I wanted to spend.

To his dismay, Kyle heard the electronic click of the photographer’s digital camera, after which the man scurried off to the street corner to get a better angle. Right. Just what Kyle wanted Southern Homes readers to see, a house in need of a makeover.

He swatted at a bevy of gnats that were swarming around his face. It was late spring in south Georgia, and hot and muggy to boot. But Cecilia had her feet planted firmly on the carefully restored sidewalk just his side of Belle Paix’s wrought-iron fence, and she was apparently waiting for him to answer.

Well? Why not? she prompted.

The home owner is elderly, the house has been in the same family since it was built, and she’s...well, I’ll leave it to your imagination. Kyle looked past Cecilia to see a striking redhead about his age striding down the sidewalk.

The woman, tall and long-legged, in running shorts and a tank top, with an iPod draped around her neck, looked as though she’d just finished a morning walk. As she skirted around the photographer, who was still kneeling as he fired away with his camera, she lifted her dark auburn hair off her neck, apparently as bothered by the steaming temps as Kyle was. He knew all the home owners along this street, but he didn’t recognize her.

And he would have if he’d ever seen her before. One look, and he would always remember that face.

Beside him, Cecilia was still nearly swooning over the house, despite its disheveled appearance. In the same family! All this time? It looks like something off one of those fantastic animated films! When was it built?

Kyle yanked his attention back to the house and Cecilia. In 1888—well, that was when it was finished. It was built by a wealthy timber-and-railroad baron as a present for his wife—

The other woman must have heard him, because she threw back her head and laughed. A timber baron? A present for his wife? Yeah, right. That’s exactly how it went.

Cecilia turned to her. So it wasn’t like that?

The redhead shrugged as she closed the gap between them. Ambrose Shepherd was a carpetbagger born to a shopkeeper in New Jersey, and he was determined to get rich. He came south at the right time and made pots of money by getting timber down the Altamaha River, but he was no baron. He married a country girl from Darian, Georgia, during his timber days, and then moved her up here when the railroads started expanding. He always had his eye on making money, Ambrose did, and when he saw that the railroads would make the river obsolete, he invested in the Central Railroad. But when he got to Lombard to make sure the railroad expansion was going like he wanted it to, nobody would receive his country-girl wife. So he decided he’d build the biggest, showiest house Lombard had ever seen.

Cecilia’s attention was rapt. Kyle started to interrupt, to say that wasn’t exactly historically accurate, and that he’d never heard this version of the story before, when she burbled, And did they receive her then?

The redhead’s eyebrows lifted. It got the society ladies in the door, all right—but then they went away and snickered over the idea of anybody spending ten thousand dollars on a house. Not to mention having two indoor bathrooms, or the scandalous idea of a billiard table in one’s very own home, and, well...it turned out about how you’d expect.

Cecilia seemed a little crushed that this wasn’t the happy ending she was primed for. Oh. How sad.

No, it wasn’t. The redhead’s mouth curved in a wide, satisfied smile. It lit up her face and made her seem friendly and approachable, despite her earlier crankiness. Davinia Shepherd had no use for the society ladies, and she was pleased as punch that they weren’t bothering her.

Now Kyle cleared his throat. I’m Dr. Kyle Mitchell, a history professor at the college and president of Lombard’s historical society. And you are...

Allison, she said, offering her hand.

Kyle took it, liking the way her handshake was firm and professional. That’s, ahem, an interesting retelling, Allison, he said. I’ve never heard that version before. How do you know so much about Belle Paix?

She shrugged her shoulders. Family stories.

Oh, gossip, then. I thought you had access to some primary sources that I wasn’t familiar with—

Not gossip. Now the smile retreated, and Allison’s chin lifted. I guess you historical types would call it oral history. They’re the same tales my grandmother told me, the ones her mother told her—passed down. Plus there’s a set of journals.

Journals? Kyle’s brain buzzed as the possibility of a new, undiscovered set of turn-of-the-century documents brought up all sorts of ideas. You have journals?

But Allison pushed past him and opened Belle Paix’s wrought-iron gate. Sure, Davinia had to do something with her time once she married money and became a lady of leisure. She’d grown up dirt poor, with ten brothers and sisters, so she was used to hard work. But Gran’s made it clear that the journals are private, for family only. And as for how I know about the house, I grew up here.

The gate clanged shut, and Allison strode up the walk away from them. Halfway up, she paused and turned around.

I don’t mean to be standoffish, and it wouldn’t bother me at all, but Gran doesn’t much care for trespassers. You can take all the pictures you want from the street, but she’d be mad if you put so much a pinky toe this side of the fence, okay?

Allison didn’t wait for their reply. Instead, she continued up the walkway, bounced up the steps, paused at the dark mahogany double doors with their arched glass inserts, and swung one open. It soon thudded shut behind her, leaving Kyle tantalized and frustrated. He’d not gotten so much as a peek inside the house, and it didn’t seem as if that would change anytime soon.

* * *

ALLISON PEEKED OUT the door’s beveled glass pane and saw to her satisfaction that Kyle Mitchell and his historical house fans were staying put on the street side of the fence. Good. She wouldn’t have to confess to Gran that she’d let an interloper in, although he’d seemed respectful enough.

He’d surprised her when he’d said was a professor. Obviously, professors could come in all shapes and sizes, but Kyle Mitchell landed closer to the more outdoorsy and overtly masculine end of the spectrum than the tweed-jacket stereotype. Dark blond hair cut short, tanned, with a big wide smile...

She squinted to spy some more. He was tall—a good head taller than her, so that meant he had to be well over six feet, since she was five foot seven. And yeah, he was wearing a jacket, but it was a navy one that fit him well.

A flying fur bullet zoomed from behind her, probably from the formal front stairs, and landed at her feet, yowling. Allison jumped, still not entirely used to Cleo’s ninja ways. The Siamese wound around Allison’s bare legs, then must have realized those legs didn’t belong to Gran. She backed up, sat down and glared at Allison.

Allison let her heart settle into a more predictable rhythm before attempting to pet the cat, which skulked backward.

Cleo... She knelt down and crooned, the way Gran always did with the stubborn feline. It’s been a month and a half. You have to trust me. I’ll get Gran back home as soon as I can.

But the cat, from all appearances, remained unconvinced. She turned and stalked off toward the dining room, her seal point tail hiked high with disdain. She would accept food and water from Allison, and sometimes, when she got desperate, would snuggle up at the foot of Allison’s bed. But that was only after she’d kept her awake half the night, yowling piteously for Gran.

Hey! I miss her, too! Allison called after the cat.

Good grief. I’m getting more and more like Gran every day. This house will send me to the loony bin.

No point in wasting time wondering when insanity would make its appearance. Allison had planned to rip out the carpet in the dining room this morning, and she still had time to get it done before her afternoon visit with Gran.

The carpet was the reason Gran was in rehab to begin with. The seam at the dining room and library had raveled, and Gran had caught her shoe in it.

Allison crossed the length of the long hall, the formal stairs rising above her in a graceful curve. She stood in the dining room doorway, surveying what had to be done.

Before she could rip out the carpet—a Mamie Eisenhower pink design, which Gran had laid in the dining room and library in the early 1950s, after she’d married Pops—Allison had to move a few things.

Starting with Cleo, who’d taken a seat on the dining table and was grooming one long, slender hind leg. The feline paused, gave Allison a mild hiss with no bite to it and succumbed to the inevitable—she knew she wasn’t supposed to be on the table. That taken care of, Allison went upstairs to change into jeans and a T-shirt, determined to get the carpet ripped out before she visited Gran.

CHAPTER TWO

AN HOUR LATER, however, Allison was completely stymied. She’d been able to move the heavy, ornate dining chairs, original to the house, and even the table. She’d managed to move the marble-topped sideboard with no disasters, save for scaring one of Cleo’s remaining lives out of her when the handcart fell over with a bang.

But the china cabinet, even with all the dishware removed and put on the kitchen table, even with the little Teflon slides she’d bought for the purpose, was not cooperating.

Allison rubbed her eyes and glowered at the hulking piece of mahogany that remained the last obstacle between her and an empty dining room. Who could she call in the middle of the day to help her move the thing?

The phone rang in the kitchen. She worked her way around the dining room chairs and sideboard she’d temporarily shoved into the kitchen, then stretched across stacks of her great-grandmother’s 1920s formal china and plucked the phone off its hook on the fourth ring.

Thomas residence, Allison said, as she managed to rescue a wobbling soup bowl. Oh!

Pardon? a male voice on the other end asked.

Sorry, just a disaster averted. I almost broke a J & G Meakin 1920s bowl. Last time I did that I was ten, and in trouble for a week.

A warm, rich chuckle came over the line. That’s good. That you didn’t break it, I mean. I’m Kyle Mitchell. We met earlier, I think, if you’re Allison.

His voice, still brimming with amusement, made her temporarily forget her bone-deep weariness. She pulled a chair out from the kitchen table and collapsed in it. Yes. I hope I didn’t come across as rude this morning. Some years ago, my grandmother made the mistake of allowing the house to be photographed for a field guide of old homes, and after it came out, she had a flurry of people knocking on her door, thinking the house was open to the public.

Perfectly understandable. Listen, I just wanted to extend an invitation to you. Our historical preservation society meets once a month, and I thought you might be interested in joining us this Thursday evening.

That voice... Over the phone, with nothing to distract her from its smooth baritone, Allison soaked in its resonance, its hint of good-natured humor. For a moment, she was tempted—not just by his voice, but her memory of him on the sidewalk. Kyle Mitchell had looked friendly enough earlier, and totally unlike her memories of the typical historical society members who’d visited with Gran during Allison’s teen years. Maybe it would be nice to meet some folks in Lombard who weren’t ten years past retirement age.

The stacks of china and the glut of furniture in the kitchen reminded her of her priorities. I don’t know. I’m a little busy now—Gran’s in a rehab facility and I’m trying to get the place in shape for her to come home.

Oh, well, of course. His voice dimmed with just enough disappointment to be flattering. It made her wish she’d said yes. If you need some help or advice, just let me know. I love working on old houses.

Allison snorted, startling Cleo, who’d curled up atop the fridge. You must be a masochist, that’s all I can say. Right now I’m trying to rip up old carpet, and really struggling to move a china cabinet. You don’t know of any moving companies that would send out someone, do you?

Not a moving company...but I’ll help. I don’t have to teach classes today, so I’d be glad to. I know how heavy those things can be.

Oh—I wasn’t hinting—

No, no. Give me ten minutes. That okay?

Thanks! I won’t say no.

Ten minutes later, she opened the door to see Kyle. He’d ditched the jacket and button-down for a T-shirt that, unlike hers, was clean and dust free. Automatically, she realized what a fright she must look like.

I’ve been—

Working. No problem. Anybody who does anything on an old house knows it’s a dirty job. Lead me to this china cabinet.

But Kyle stopped short in the front hall. He stared up at the ornate cornices and moldings, at the staircase, then craned his neck to see in the front parlor. Allison tried to view the home as he must, but she was at a disadvantage, having grown up here.

He grinned. This blows me away. A perfect example of a side-hall Second Empire. So often these old houses have been wrecked inside—too many ‘modern’ improvements. He shook his head.

Right. Luckily, our family’s motto has always been ‘If it was good enough for Ambrose, it’s good enough for us,’ Allison told him. Hardly anything has changed.

Just then, Cleo zipped past Kyle with a yowl, and Allison warned, You’d better watch out. She always makes a return trip.

Wow. That’s—

Ninja cat. Allison moved on to the dining room and swept a hand around. As you can see, one of the few things that Gran did change was to put carpet in the downstairs.

Get a load of that pink. Now that is pure, bona fide original, Mamie Eisenhower pink.

Yeah. I don’t quite think that shade was what Pops had in mind when he told her to order it—

I don’t see why not. That was every woman’s dream color in 1954. Kyle stepped into the dining room, gawked at the floor-to-ceiling bay window with its intricate cornices, and turned around to take in the space. His eyes lit on the chore before them: the hulking, huge china cabinet.

Oookay. He shook his head. That cabinet took a small forest of mahogany to build. He crossed the room and slid his palm against its smooth dark wood. This is late Victorian? Is it original to the house?

Yep. Bought brand-spanking-new in 1888 and shipped all the way from Philadelphia. Like I said, what was good enough for Ambrose...

Kyle caressed the mahogany, then trailed a finger down the intricately carved panels alongside the breakfront. She couldn’t help but notice his large, strong hands, with neatly trimmed nails. They seemed more suited to handling an ax than a professor’s red pen.

He glanced up at her, the amusement in his voice now crinkling the corners of his eyes. They did believe if one carved flower or cherub was good, two would be better, didn’t they? When I offered to help, I was thinking of a china cabinet built in the thirties or forties, a colonial reproduction. Maybe I was a bit ambitious and rash in my offer. I mean, I do work out a little, but...

Ah, yes, the evidence of that was right before her eyes. Kyle’s T-shirt couldn’t hide nicely defined biceps and a well-constructed chest. Whatever he was doing in the way of weightlifting was working well. Allison grinned, glad for his muscles to assist her with this job. If you can help me move this, I think you can skip working out for a week. Or three.

So what was your plan? Originally, I mean? he asked her, his eyes back on the heavy Victorian china cabinet, which was a good eight feet tall.

She walked over to stand beside him. Her hands, too, traced the smooth dark finish. Maybe it wasn’t to her taste, but she could admire the craftsmanship that some gifted cabinetmaker had poured into his labors, and she liked how Kyle could appreciate it, as well. I didn’t think I had a prayer of moving it very far, but hoped that I could shift it enough to take the carpet off the nail strip behind it, cut the piece out, then move the cabinet back. Most things I can at least wiggle and wobble. But that critter? Uh-uh.

It’s not fastened to the wall, is it? For support? Kyle bent to examine the rear panel.

No. I know Gran has had it moved before—you know, for carpet cleaning. It was a bear then.

He turned around, studied the room again and nodded slowly. I think your plan is the best one. So how about this? Why don’t we start ripping up the carpet, get it all torn out except for under the cabinet, and then use a piece of the discard upside down to protect the floor? That will make the cabinet easier to shift into place, too.

Ahh. Allison smiled in appreciation. That’s a brilliant tweak to my plan. I was worried about scarring the floor. I have no idea what sort of shape it’s in, but I didn’t want to add work. However...

You see a problem?

I’m all for free labor, but you didn’t sign on to help me rip out carpet.

Hey, I’m curious. I want to see what that atrocious carpet is hiding. Unless...are you too tired? You’ve been moving all this furniture this morning. Maybe you want a break?

Allison chuckled. We Shepherd women never tire. We have Davinia’s blood in us. If you’re game, I’m game. It’s not often I get a sucker to help me out.

Soon after cutting, yanking and tugging, they both oohed and ahhed as Allison rolled back a swath of the Mamie pink to reveal the heart pine floor.

A good cleaning and a coat of wax, and this will be good as new, Kyle said, clearly admiring the dusty but still intact planks.

And nothing for Gran to trip over. Allison knelt beside him and skimmed the satin smooth surface of the wood with her index finger. It’s definitely pretty. The upstairs floors aren’t nearly in this good a shape.

This is the original? From when the house was built? After her nod, he said in a low voice, Almost a crime to have covered this up in the first place.

She frowned and sat back. I don’t think it’s so bad to make a house your own. I mean, like you said, in 1954 it was every woman’s dream color. Gran didn’t have her own house, and this was her way of making it hers and new and modern.

If you’d seen some of the hideous updates I’ve witnessed, you’d understand what I meant, Kyle said. "At least this was carpet and not permanent. The worst I saw was when someone decided they didn’t like their oak because it wasn’t ‘uniform’ in color, so they poured concrete over it to transform it into a really bad do-it-yourself terrazzo.