The House

Chapter 1Neil stretched and then bent to touch his toes, working out the kinks from packing up the last of his personal belongings in the office that had been his for the past twenty years. Twenty-two actually. He grinned at the thought, then sighed. Now it and the company belong to someone else. He’d been twenty-six years old when he’d founded Payne Architecture, using money inherited from his grandfather. The company had succeeded beyond his wildest dreams, turning what had been a small, local business into a profitable, nationally known architectural firm. He had also been newly married. His mother’s comment had been the classic marry in haste, repent in leisure. Both he and Alicia had repented as the years passed. Neil suspected they would have divorced long before now if she hadn’t liked the money he made, which she spent with reckless abandon. For his part, he had been so busy running his company, he didn’t have the time or the energy to do something about his personal life—what there was of it. Their final argument happened when he’d told her he was planning on selling the business and retiring. She’d blown the proverbial fuse. “You mean I’ll be stuck with you hanging around the house day and night?” she’d said. “Underfoot, trying to tell me how to run the household?” She’d gone on like that for two hours, pointing out every flaw she could see about his decision, until finally she announced she was filing for divorce. “We never should have married in the first place. You were never around and when you were…” She shook her head in disgust and stalked out of the room saying, “There are plenty of men who will appreciate what I have to offer,” and then she had called her lawyer. Neil had been tempted to reply, “Which is why you don’t want me retiring. Your men friends won’t be able to drop by in the middle of the day for a little afternoon delight.” But he didn’t. He had actually been relieved when, a year before, he’d found out she was carrying on with the mailman, the repairman, and any other male who came by the house—or so it seemed. The sweet, and very nosy, older woman who lived next door to them had let that bit of information drop one Saturday morning while he was helping her out by mowing her lawn, a chore he’d volunteered for after she’d fallen and broken her hip. He’d been less surprised than he thought she’d expected him to be. After all, he and Alicia had had separate bedrooms, at her insistence, for the previous five years and they rarely shared one or the other of them. Their s*x life, as most of the rest of their life together, had slowly but inexorably become a chore rather than a pleasure. Now, as he sealed the last box, he had a vast feeling of relief. “It’s time to start my new life,” he said aloud. “A new life in a new place,” Teri, his perky, blonde personal assistant said from the doorway. She smiled when he gave a start of surprise. “You really are ready to get out of here. You’re so concentrated on packing up you didn’t even hear me open the door.” “Yeah, I guess I am,” Neil replied with a trace of embarrassment. “I’m definitely looking forward to it. I’ll miss everyone…” “But you will keep in touch,” she said sternly. “Of course! The company is my…my child, I guess, and you’re all part of it.” “If you want my honest opinion, I think it’s a good thing it’s the only child you have. That witch would have made a lousy mother.” Neil laughed. Teri had never been one to pull her punches, especially where Alicia was concerned. He’s always suspected one of the reasons she disliked Alicia so intensely was that she had a bit of a crush on him, despite the fact she was ten years his junior. “Yep, my ex-wife would never fall into the motherly category.” “Not in this lifetime,” Teri muttered. She crossed the office to where he stood, looking up at him. “I’m going to miss you.” “I know,” he said softly. “I’ll miss you too. As I said, I’ll miss everyone here.” He knew instantly from the look on her face he shouldn’t have added the last bit. “But more than anyone, I’ll miss you.” He gave her a quick hug then stepped back. “Now I should get all of this—” he swept his arm out to encompass the boxes, “—down to my car.” “Let me get a couple of guys to help.” “Just because I have some gray hairs, do you think I’m too old and weak to haul them down myself?” he asked with a grin. “Not even! The gray at the temples makes you look distinguished, not old.” “Thanks for that.” He picked up one of the boxes, looked at the others, most of them filled with his books, “Okay, maybe one guy?” She laughed. “You got it.” * * * * One month later, Neil was driving a rental moving truck up the driveway to his new home. ‘New’ is definitely a misnomer. He looked at the old house sitting in all its somewhat dilapidated glory in front of him. New for me, but far from new. It was a small Victorian house, two floors in height, pale blue with white trim. A path led up to the front porch, which had gingerbread trim across the top and slatted railings. A round tower to one side of the porch held part of what would be his bedroom on the second floor. A high-peaked roof covered the remainder of the second floor which housed two smaller bedrooms and the bath. The ground floor consisted of an entryway with an arch on the left side opening onto a large living room. To the right of the entry was a small dining room, with a kitchen behind it—one that was so out of date as to be laughable if he’d expected modern appliances. A good-sized pantry was off to its left, partially under the stairs to the second floor. Neil had fallen in love with the place the first time he saw its picture on an Internet realty page. Two days later, which was also two days after the divorce had become final, he’d called the Realtor to tell her he was interested in buying it, despite the fact it was halfway across the country. The next day he’d flown into Denver International, rented a car, and headed to the small mountain town with the promise the Realtor would meet him at her office. She did, and as they drove to the edge of town, she explained that the house had been vacant since the death of the previous owner three years ago. “As I told you when you called, it’s not in the best of condition now. Habitable, but it will take a great deal of work to bring it up to its former beauty.” As she took him through it, he’d agreed with her estimation. It wasn’t dirty, she had seen to that at least, but the wallpaper in the living room and dining room was peeling, the upstairs was in definite need of repainting, and the hardwood floors downstairs would need sanding and re-varnishing. “It will give me something to keep me occupied,” he told her, once they were back at their cars. They returned to her office and set into motion his purchasing the house. Now, as he got out of the van, he took a deep breath, savoring the cool, fresh air tinged with the scent of the pine trees surrounding his property. Through them, he could just barely see the home of his nearest neighbor, a quarter of a mile to the south. Between the two houses was nothing but trees and a small, bubbling creek. The sound of it soothed him. After the drive across country and last night in a motel perched along the busy highway east of Denver, his nerves definitely needed calming. Running a business hadn’t been half as stressful as the last few days. First there had been the confrontation with his ex over the few items of furniture he planned on taking from what had, until the divorce, been their home. Now it was her house, as she so bitchily pointed out, and she wanted to argue about each and every item. By the time he left, he was heartily glad he’d removed all his clothes and books while the divorce was still pending. Once he’d escaped with what he wanted, there had been the truck to pack up, the last small details regarding the sale of his business to deal with, and his goodbyes to his few friends and his now ex-employees. Finally, he had taken off on the thirteen hundred mile drive to his new home. * * * * Neil walked up the steps to his front porch, feeling a pride in ownership he hadn’t had since he’d bought his first home soon after his marriage. Taking out his keys, he unlocked the door, took a deep breath, and stepped inside. The mid-afternoon sun filled the living room with light, showing off how much work needed to be done, which didn’t daunt him in the least. In his mind’s eye, he could picture how it would look when he was finished and the furniture was in place. It was the same with the dining room. The kitchen was another matter. The appliances had to be from the fifties or sixties, he was certain. He would have to upgrade them, but that was a project for the future—way in the future. He took the stairs to the second floor two at a time, realizing as he did that just being here had rejuvenated him after the long drive. The master bedroom—his bedroom—spanned one side of the house from front to rear. The other two smaller bedrooms took up the rest of the floor with a decently-sized bathroom between them. He checked out the bathroom. It was exactly as he remembered, with a marvelously huge claw-footed bathtub along one wall, the old-fashioned sink, and a reasonably modern toilet across from it. Finished with his walk-through, Neil returned to the truck, opened the rear door, and sighed at the immensity of the unloading task he faced. Especially since the Realtor had called him to say the man she’d found to help him had another job he had to take care of first that would take at least a day, if not more. “Looks like you could use a hand,” someone said from behind him. He swung around to see a man wearing old jeans and a plaid shirt standing there, hands behind his back as he surveyed the house and Neil. He was tall, well-built, and rather good looking. Neil guessed that he was probably close to his own age of forty-eight. “Marshall Travis,” the man said with a slight tilt of his head. “Marshall, as in the name, not the job,” he added with a small grin. “Neil Payne,” Neil responded, holding out his hand. “Good to meet you, Neil. Heard a lot about you from Lotte down at the Realtor’s office.” “Oh boy,” Neil muttered as they shook hands. Marshall laughed. “All good, honest. She says you used to be an architect, so she expects this place will be a showcase once you’re done with it.” “Ouch.” Neil shook his head, somewhat amused, somewhat appalled. “Maybe when I’m old and gray.” Marshall eyed him and smiled. “Then that should be in a year or so, at least as far as the gray half goes. Of course I’ve got nothing to talk about in that department.” He ran his fingers through his salt-and-pepper hair. “And as far as I’m concerned, I’m never going to get old. Well-aged, yeah. Old, not even. So how about us two young codgers get your truck unloaded before it gets dark.” With Marshall’s help, they managed to get the major pieces of furniture into the house with time to spare. They didn’t put together the bed or the bookcases, but at least those were stacked in the dining room to be dealt with later since Neil didn’t have a dining room table and chairs, just ones for the kitchen. The sofa, an antique piece he’d picked up at a flea market ten years ago, much to Alicia’s disgust, now sat along one wall in the living room. “Let’s haul the mattress upstairs so you’ve got something to sleep on,” Marshall suggested. “After that, I’d better get a move on.” “Before your wife wonders if you’ve fallen off the face of the earth?” Marshall snorted. “No wife, never had one—” he paused a beat, “—and my partner, well he ran off with a younger man about a year ago.” “Looks like we both have problems with straying spouses,” Neil replied without blinking an eye. “Mine would lie down and spread her legs for any man who was ready, willing, and able.” “Except you?” Marshall added quickly, “Sorry, that’s none of my business.” “Even me, when she was desperate and I was around. I spent most of my time the last few years either working, traveling for work, or sleeping. Partially because I loved my company and what I’d made of it. Partially because—” Neil shrugged, “—because I’d long ago fallen out of love with her.” “Happens,” Marshall commented a bit morosely. “But enough of that. I do have to get going before my dogs think I’ve, as you put it, fallen off the face of the earth.” “Dogs? Plural?” “Yep. I have two labs, Rufus and Riley. You’ll have to stop by sometime and meet them. They love human company.” Neil had the feeling Marshall might like that too, though he had no reason to base that on other than the slightly hopeful look on the man’s face. So he replied, “Sure, I’d love to, once I get settled a bit and take the truck back down to the city and turn it in. The last thing I want is for the rental company to think I’ve absconded with it.” “How are you going to get back up here then?” “I towed my car behind the truck ‘til I got to Denver. I wasn’t about to risk doing that in the mountains though, so I left it in a long-term parking garage.” “Smart move. Okay, I’m off, but if you want, I can come by tomorrow to help you put things together.” He snapped his fingers. “Hell, we forgot about the mattress.” Neil chuckled. “I can sleep on it downstairs as well as up, at this point. And sure, if you have the time, I’d love some help, as long as it’s not too early.” “I don’t usually do early,” Marshall admitted with a laugh. “Around noon?” “Sounds fine to me—and thanks.” “You bet. See you noonish tomorrow then.” With that, Marshall strolled into the trees, heading home. “Nice man,” Neil murmured, as he lugged the large cooler into the kitchen that he’d filled with food at the small grocery store on his way to the house. Probably should have done this first thing. He unloaded most of the contents into the refrigerator. The rest of it, mainly bread and condiments, he put on the counter or into the cupboards. When he finished, he returned to the truck to get the two larger suitcases holding most of his clothes and his personal items, dropping them at the bottom of the staircase. Then he emptied the truck of the many boxes that were still in it, glad that a handcart had come as part of the rental. Finally finished and beyond exhausted by then, he went to the kitchen, snagged the ready-made sandwich he’d bought, as well as a can of beer, and returned to the living room. As he ate, he sighed contentedly. Yeah, I think I’m going to like it here. * * * * “Hey, Rufus, Riley,” Marshall said when his dogs came racing across the yard to greet him. Rufus was a chocolate lab, unlike Riley who was black. The three of them had been together since the dogs were pups, which was nine years ago. Longer than I was with Tim, which says something. Marshall often had that thought since his partner had decided he wanted someone younger in his life. At first he’d been devastated at Tim’s betrayal but after a while, he realized it was probably for the best. They were from different worlds. Tim was city, born and bred, and until he’d met Marshall he’d thought mountains were for skiing and nothing more. Marshall, on the other hand, had grown up not far from where he now lived. For him the mountains meant peace and adventure in equal parts. He’d bought his house soon after college with the intention of remaining in it for the rest of his life, setting up his studio in what had been the garage, and hoping to perhaps find someone to share his future with. He’d thought Tim might be that person. Tim, it turned out, wasn’t nearly as certain. At the end, he’d spent more time going down to the city than he had at home. When Tim met the twink, as Marshall mentally referred to the much younger man, he’d had no problem dropping everything to be with him. Now Marshall was alone again, but not really lonely. He had a few friends in town and the dogs. And what more could a man ask for? He scratched behind Rufus’s ears, rubbed Riley’s head, and then opened the front door. The dogs bounded inside, paused until he joined them, then walked sedately with him into the kitchen. Half an hour later, he and the dogs were sitting on the front porch eating their suppers. As they did, his thoughts went to Neil and he smiled. “Just might add another friend to the list,” he told the labs. “He seems like good people, at least from what little I’ve seen of him. Straight, but then so is most everyone else I know. At least he didn’t bristle up when I let him know I’m not.” He shrugged, rubbing Rufus’s head when he looked up at him. “Yeah, I know. I’m not looking. Too old and tired to go through that again. But it’d be nice to have a friend close by, if only to shoot the breeze with if I felt like it. Talking to the two of you lacks a certain something—like you talking back.” He chuckled when Riley woofed softly. “Okay, amend that to talking back in English.” After supper was over and the dishes washed, Marshall went out to his studio to continue with the sculpture he’d begun the day before. When it was finished, it would be a surrealistic combination of interwoven wood and stone. Right now, however, it was only the pieces in various states of completion. Picking up one of the wood sections, he studied it and the alabaster shape it had to mesh with and set to work to make that happen. Well after midnight, satisfied with the results, he headed to the house. Rufus and Riley were already settled down on their beds in one corner of the living room. As he passed them, Riley raised his head and woofed. “And good night to you as well,” Marshall replied with a smile. “Sleep well, both of you. I know I’m going to.”