Edward unlocked the front door and let Alma into the new house. "So this is it? What do you think?"
Alma was speechless as she took in her new surroundings. The rooms were bare and some still in need of finishing touches, but already she could see a finished home taking shape.
"It's all finished," Edward continued. "except for the decorating and that's up to you. Just tell the builders what you want and they'll make it happen or we can hire a designer to help make the decisions. Whatever you want to do. This is your home and I want it to be exactly the way you want it."
Alma stepped cautiously into the front room, taking it all in.
"Oh, there's something I want to show you."
Edward led Alma through a door at the side of the room. "This room will eventually be my study, but for now it's all set up as a nursery. This room is right next to the master bedroom, so I thought it would be a good room for the baby. He or she will be close to us at night and close to the rest of the house in the daytime. When the baby gets a little older, it will have one of the bedrooms upstairs."
Alma blinked a few times as she tried to keep her emotions under control. As it was, she was too overwhelmed to speak. She couldn't believe this house was her home, this room was where her child would sleep and play and grow for its first years. Even after all the planning they'd done on the house and preparing for a baby it had never seemed so real until now.
"What do you think?" Edward asked expectantly. "Is it ok? Do you like it?"
"This . . ." Alma began, struggling to find the words. "This is more than I'd ever imagined. I never even hoped for this much. For the longest time I never thought I'd ever have a home or a family of my own. I can hardly believe this is really happening to me."
Edward put his arms around Alma and held her close. "Me neither. I've waited such a long time for this and it was all worth it."
Eileen parked the car in the driveway, exhilarated after her little shopping trip. None of the bargains in town were very exciting, but after walking past a few shops downtown that were for sale, she started to wonder what it would be like to own her own business, maybe a little boutique. She wondered how hard it would be to manage a small shop and if she would be up to the job. Fortunately, she knew just the person to talk to find out.
Lawrence knew a lot about business. He could tell her what she needed to know and how to get started. By the time she got home and out of the car she had made up her mind to ask for his advice.
Just the thought of Lawrence made her smile. They'd been spending so much time together lately and he'd been over to the house nearly every evening since her parents left, to have dinner with her. It was wonderful, almost like they were a married couple.
As Eileen walked up the steps to the front door, her packages in tow, thinking about the evening ahead, she noticed that the door was slightly ajar. She stopped suddenly in her tracks, her mind racing as she tried to remember for sure if she'd shut the door and locked it before she left.
When she assured herself that she had, she backed away from the house and went straight to the neighbors' to call for help.
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