Total pages in book: 35
Estimated words: 33216 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 166(@200wpm)___ 133(@250wpm)___ 111(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 33216 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 166(@200wpm)___ 133(@250wpm)___ 111(@300wpm)
Hector’s cell phone went off. “I’ve got to go, but can you at least think about what I’ve said, and maybe take it a little seriously? I’m not joking with you.”
He promised Hector he’d think about it, with the intention of forgetting all about it when the time was right. Hector left, and then Buttercup was at the back door whimpering. Dylan went to the door, and Buttercup ran out. The pool was carefully sealed up so there was no risk of her getting out.
His gaze was drawn to the fence. Stepping out of the house, he made his way to the fence that kept his and Robin’s house apart. Sliding his hand down, he tried to find a loose slat, anything that could explain his dog slipping through one of the cracks or getting into his neighbor’s garden. He checked for a good thirty minutes, and there was nothing.
It couldn’t be. Houses were not beings. They didn’t have special powers. There was nothing making them do this.
And then, he turned away to find that Buttercup had managed to escape. Dylan knew exactly where she was, but he also knew it wasn’t possible for her to get to Robin.
“Hell, no,” he said.
He needed to do some research.
****
It had been one week since Robin last saw Dylan—one very long, confusing week, as she had to admit that she had fallen in love with him, which was just insane. She’d been married for several years and not once did she develop these kind of feelings for her ex.
Running fingers through her hair, she tried not to think about the emptiness in her heart, or the fact that this was the first time in her life that she’d skipped her period. She was usually regular, like clockwork, something she could time to the day, but not today. Nope. She was late, by forty-eight hours.
She could put it down to stress. Even though she and Dylan weren’t currently on talking terms, Buttercup still kept finding routes into her home, and of course, she’d attempted to locate the builder. She still wanted to fix the problem in Dylan’s house. The builder wasn’t picking up and she had also discovered the firm she used had somehow declared bankruptcy, and was no longer operating.
Everything that could have gone wrong with this work, had gone wrong. She felt cursed. There was no other word for it. She was cursed.
Running fingers through her hair, she paced her living room, aware of the pregnancy test kit that waited for her upstairs. She was tempted to take it, but it would be so stupid to do so.
Stress could stop a woman’s cycle. Stress could check off a lot of boxes, but she had been in far more stressful circumstances, that it shouldn’t be able to stop it, could it? Then she couldn’t forget that she was also older, so her body might be responding in a completely different way. There was a possibility.
Also, she didn’t want to take the test.
She’d been wanting a baby for the longest time, and it would just be her luck to finally have a child, only for her to end up heartbroken and alone. Not that she needed a man to have a child, of course not. She could raise it alone. The very thought of that filled her with loneliness, especially as she had fallen in love with Dylan.
This was why she had sworn off men. Tears filled her eyes, and she quickly swatted them away. She didn’t want to cry.
Then, the doorbell rang, and she didn’t want to answer that either. The very last thing she wanted to do was have to deal with some salesman or even some rep. She wanted to be left alone.
She slowly made her way toward the door and frowned when she saw Dylan, holding Buttercup, and a card in his hand that said, I’m sorry.
Swiping at her eyes, she grabbed the door handle and pulled it open.
“You’re sorry.”
“Yes, I wanted you to know right away that I’m sorry, and that I was wrong, and … yeah, I think you and I need to talk.”
“You brought Buttercup with you.”
“Yeah, I know she’s been missing you. Like me.”
She reached for Buttercup, but then hesitated when he admitted he’d been missing her as well.
“You’ve missed me?”
“Yes, Robin, I’ve missed you, and trust me, I’ve got so much to tell you.” Dylan stepped inside the house, and Robin closed the door.
She had Buttercup in her arms, and she kissed the top of her head. Buttercup settled into her arms, as if she had no intention of ever leaving again. She loved this dog so much. It had been an instant falling in love.
“Hector, one of the previous owners, came to see me, and they’re right, Robin.”
“You’re talking about the houses?”
“Yes. I think I must have gone back a hundred years. What I couldn’t find in deeds and documents, I was able to locate at the library. Old papers, engagement announcements, that kind of thing. These houses bring people together in some strange way.”