“Did you want a tour of the house?” I asked.
She stood and took her wine. “Yes! Do you play piano?” She walked over to the baby grand sitting off to the side of the living room next to the windows. The large wall of windows in front of it had an amazing view of the tree orchard and the mountains beyond, but since it was evening it was all dark.
“No, I don’t play,” I said as I led her toward my bedroom, which was on the first floor of the house. “This is my room.”
When we entered the room, Jax glanced up and gasped. “Wow, look at that tray ceiling. I’ve never seen such beautiful detail work on wood like that before.”
I didn’t bother looking up. I stared at that fucking ceiling every night. I knew what was on the wood. Animals. Moose, bear, wolves, every kind of animal you could think of. Abby had drawn them all out and I had carved them into the wood. It took me nearly a year to finish it.
Jax wandered around the space. “Your tub is made out of wood?” She called out from the bathroom.
Laughing, I said, “No, it’s a cast-iron tub with a wood overlay.”
She walked out of the bathroom. “It’s stunning.”
All I could do was nod. I was beginning to think it was a mistake to bring Jax here. It felt wrong having her walk around Abby’s bathroom. Touch the tub Abby had soaked in.
I shook my head. “Let’s head on upstairs.”
Clearly sensing something was off, Jax smiled softly and walked past me out of the bedroom.
We walked through the rest of the house—the three guest bedrooms, my office, the library, the large family room upstairs, the home gym, and finally ended up in the game room.
“Why aren’t we watching the movie in here?” Jax asked, looking around. “You have theater chairs. Ashley would love this.”
“I thought about asking if you wanted to bring her over this weekend. Maybe we could have a Disney movie marathon or something.”
Jax glanced over her shoulder at me as she ran her finger down the pool table. “She’d love that.”
I watched her walk around the large room, then turn and look at the six oversized theater chairs before picking up the remote and pushing a button. A large screen came down from the ceiling, causing Jax to stop and stare. Under the screen sat a fully stocked bar. I walked over, set my beer down, and grabbed a bottle of whiskey to pour myself a drink. I needed something fucking stronger than the beer.
“Drink?” I asked as I held up the bottle.
“My oh my, you have good taste.”
I raised a brow. “You know your whiskey, huh?”
Jax shrugged. “I know a good bourbon—grew up around whiskey.”
I stared at her with a questioning look. “You’re going to have to explain that one a bit more.”
She laughed. “My father was originally from Kentucky, and let’s just say he was in the whiskey business.”
“Okay,” I said with a slight chuckle.
She leaned against one of the two large wooden beams that held up the twenty-foot cathedral ceiling. “He owned a few bars. That’s what brought him to Boston. He followed his older brother there. They opened up a bar, then eventually two. He still shows up every damn day to that bar and works.”
“Is that a bad thing?” I asked, noting the slight bitterness in her voice.
“For my mom, it is. She’s been waiting for him to retire so they can travel. Dad never really took time off, so we didn’t do a whole lot of family trips. That’s something I intend to change with Ashley. I’ve got a trip booked to Yellowstone National Park this May. Hoping to go before it gets too busy.”
“Never been there.”
“Really?” she asked with a tilt of her head. “If you could pick one place you’d love to go, where would it be?”
I turned and focused back on the TV, pulling up the movie that was last played. “I’m not really much of a travel kind of guy. I like being home, here in Boggy Creek.”
Jax sat on one of the chairs. “Are you hiding from something?” Her smile said she was kidding, but I wondered if there was another question hidden in there.
“Not at all. I can get on a plane and go to Paris tomorrow if I want.” I shrugged. “I just don’t want to.”
She exhaled. “Well, traveling alone is no fun. I’d go to Paris with you.”
“Would you now?” I asked as I sat down in the chair next to hers. “I bet Ashley would like it there.”
“I bet she would.”
Glancing away, I hit play and Top Gun started.
Jax laughed.
I held up my hands. “Don’t look at me. Kyle was the last one in this room watching TV.”
She narrowed her eyes. “And what were you doing?”