Once past the foyer, the sitting room spread before us, filled with more antiques and graceful velvet couches, the floor covered by a thick, deep red carpet. A study was off one side of the room, the walls paneled with the same dark oak as the rest of the house. Beside it was an entertainment room with a massive television on the wall and an enormous leather sofa big enough for two adults to stretch out side by side. I never thought I’d see a couch bigger than my velvet monstrosity, but here it was. I still liked mine better.
On the other side of the sitting room, double doors led to the master bedroom. Griffen shoved them open and I stood in the doorway, jaw dropped. Not to my taste. That was the most polite thing I could think. Yuck was a lot closer.
The bed was massive, covered in a gold spread, with a gold-framed mirror on the ceiling. Ugh, I did not need to imagine Prentice Sawyer and that huge, tacky mirror over that even bigger, tackier bed. Double yuck. Savannah choked on a laugh as Griffen stood motionless, taking in the room.
Finally, he said, “Can you organize movers to clean this shit out? Take that mirror down and repair the ceiling?”
“I’ll get it done over the weekend,” Savannah muttered, scribbling furiously on her notepad. “What about the sitting room and the rest of it?”
Griffen turned to me. I thought I saw a hint of a plea in his eyes when he said, “Can we move your furniture in here? Your couch in the sitting room and the rest of it in the bedroom?”
Relief spilled through me. I loved my things. If I had one space in this huge house that was all my own, I could relax. I’d still have a nest. A haven. A place that was mine.
In a rush, I said, “Yes, absolutely,” never thinking that I was fundamentally wrong about one thing.
No space in this house could be mine. Not while I was married to Griffen. I could hide from the rest of them, but never from him.
The rest of the master suite had me alternating between glee and head shakes of disbelief. At one point as we cruised through the closet, Savannah said, “Now I know how Prentice caught all those wives. I’d marry the devil himself for this closet.”
I had to agree. The dressing rooms were massive, with built-ins for everything from shoes to scarves to jewelry. Griffen’s section had a whole wall rack just for ties. And the bathroom… decadent didn’t cover it. There were two separate spaces for the sink and vanity, each with its own small room with a toilet. That’s right, two master baths, joined by the huge bathing room.
I guess the master and lady of the house didn’t floss their teeth together. Though they must have taken baths together considering the size of the claw-footed tub. I couldn’t even look at the square, glassed-in shower without blushing. No single person needed a shower that size.
“Isn’t this all a little big?” I had to ask, trying to pretend I wasn’t suddenly obsessed with thoughts of Griffen’s sleek, soapy skin in the huge, tiled shower. “I’ve toured the Biltmore and a few other gilded age mansions. They were all luxurious for the time, but none of them had bathrooms like this.”
Savannah answered as I’d suspected, knowing more about the house than Griffen did. “Prentice completely re-did this whole section of the house five years ago. What’s now the dressing rooms and bathrooms used to be a guest suite. Or two. My mom would know. She never said exactly, but I had the feeling Prentice was getting it ready for a new Mrs. Sawyer.”
Griffen suddenly came alert. “Any idea who?”
“No. And I don’t think Mom knew either because she thought it was weird he’d spend so much money renovating for a woman he’d never even brought back to the house. She thought—” Savannah shut her mouth so fast her teeth clicked.
“What?” Griffen pressed.
“He, um— Well, Mom thought she was married. But I don’t know if she had a reason to think that or if she was just guessing.”
Griffen only said, “Wouldn’t be the first time.” That was true enough. Griffen looked at his watch. “I have to get to Harvey’s to sign some papers and then we need to get on the road to Atlanta. We’ll be back by Tuesday. Maybe sooner. Do you have everything you need?”
Savannah consulted her list. “I’ll need a key to Hope’s place as well as a list of anything she doesn’t want moved.” She looked to me for confirmation.
“I’ll drop it by Miss Martha’s on our way out. I’ll pay for movers for anything that needs to be packed up.”
Beside me, Griffen shook his head. “She pays for nothing. Bill it all to the house. And if Hope is good with it, bring everything. Anything of Hope’s that doesn’t fit, store in my old room until she can decide how she wants it all arranged.”