were tins of corn and beans, boxes of cereals, bags of sugar. Brandy tried to take a mental inventory of everything that was on display. She was so consumed by the task that she failed to hear Aiden’s car pulling up on the driveway or the subsequent opening of the front door. She was still standing gazing around the kitchen intently when Aiden came up behind her and looped an arm around her waist before gently grazing her cheek with a warm kiss.
Brandy jumped at his touch. He’d surprised her. But what was more surprising was the realization that she’d spent the better part of an hour staring into the cupboards.
“What time is it?” she asked with a start.
“Quarter past five,” Aiden explained as he moved past her to drop his briefcase on to the table. He glanced around at the open cupboards and noticed Brandy’s pained expression.
“Is everything alright?”
Brandy nodded stiffly but her lips pulled into a sharp line.
“Are you sure?” Aiden took a step towards her and placed his hands on her slight shoulders.
“How come all the cupboards are open?”
Brandy’s lower lip started to tremble.
“I…,” She cleared her throat nervously. “I was just trying to get to know my way around your kitchen. Trying to learn where everything was but…” her entire body crumpled and she raised a hand to her temple and sighed.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” Aiden asked tenderly.
“It’s everything!” Brandy shook herself loose of his grip and stepped back from him. “It’s this kitchen, this house, this place!”
She gestured around the room as she spoke.
“I wanted to cook you dinner, to make this place feel homely but I can’t because this isn’t my home, it’s hers. Everywhere I go she’s there. I feel like an … intruder!”
Brandy thought of the apartment she had left back in Chicago. A space which had firmly been hers. Now she was a stranger in a home living in another woman’s shadow and it was taking its toll on her.
“Don’t be ridiculous!”
“I’m not being ridiculous!” Brandy cried defensively. “This was her home, Aiden. Where she lived with you, with your daughter. She chose the drapes, the carpets. She made this place a home and now I’m here like some imposter! I hate myself sometimes!”
Frustrated tears glistened in Brandy’s dark eyes.
“First of all, she didn’t choose the drapes, or the carpets. Nothing has been done to the house since I moved here. Second, you are not an imposter! Don’t ever hate yourself!”
“Then why keep me locked inside like some secret shame?” Brandy shot at him, her pooled tears now burning against the heat of the accusation. “I’ve not been out once, Aiden! And this was my home town once!”
“I didn’t think you’d want to go out!” Aiden defended himself. “I thought you wanted to remain here, away from the judgement of Avalon.”
“I did, I do!” Brandy threw her hands in to the air in frustration. “I was building a life for myself in Chicago…” The anger in her eyes thawed into sorrow. Slowly she lowered herself in to a nearby dining chair.
“I had my piano and the salon. I had purpose. I was discovering who I was. Here, it’s like I’m Brandy White again instead of being Brandy Cotton. I just sit in a house all day and wait for my man to return.”
She dropped her head in o her hands. Aiden placed a comforting hand on her back and pulled another chair up beside her.
“I didn’t know you felt like that.”
“I want to feel proud to be here.” Brandy lifted her head and wiped some stray tears from her cheeks.
“I want to walk the streets of Avalon and hold my head up high. I want to keep playing my piano and I want your house to feel like home.”
“And it will,” Aiden insisted, reaching forward and tucking a stray lock of bright-blonde hair behind her ear.
“It takes time to adjust,” he sympathized. “And you’re right, this house should feel like home to you. Tomorrow, let’s go to Home Depot and you can pick out everything you like. Hell, you can even order a piano online if you like!”
“Really?” Brandy’s face brightened, revealing her magnetic smile which instantly lit up the room.
But her smile quickly died on her lips as she furrowed her brow and looked at Aiden with concern pinching at the edge of her eyes.
“I can’t just take your money, Aiden. I have some of my own to pay for things but not much. I need to pay my own way. I can’t be a kept woman like I was with Brandon.”
A chill shot down her spine upon saying her deceased husband’s name. Brandy did her best to banish the sensation and focus on Aiden’s loving, attentive gaze.
“We’ll figure it all out,” Aiden promised her. “You most certainly will not be a kept woman. You’re a gifted piano player and I’ve no doubt you could earn money from that.”
Brandy nodded hesitantly.
“I just want you to be happy.” Aiden edged closer to her so that their noses were almost touching. “We’ve both suffered in unhappy marriages which means we’ll work harder to make this relationship work.”
“So we’ll go pick some stuff out at Home Depot?” Brandy clearly couldn’t hide her excitement at the prospect as her eyes glistened and a faint smile tugged on her ruby lips.
“We’ll get whatever you want,” Aiden grinned. He was so close Brandy could smell his cologne which was still strong even after a day in the office. He smelled so good. Brandy wanted to reach out and pinch his cheek to make sure he was real. She’d wanted this for so long; for their life together. But she was quickly learning that even happy endings aren’t perfect.
“I love you,” she whispered into the small space between them. Her heart swelled as she released the sentiment. Chicago offered her everything she’d ever wanted; except Aiden. She’d moved her entire life for him but she didn’t regret it. Love was so rare and precious she knew it was worth fighting for, worth moving for.
“I love you too,” Aiden echoed. Then he reached for the back of her head and drew her lips against his. At first the kiss was soft and delicate, but it quickly deepened. Brandy lost herself in Aiden’s embrace, managing to forget all about her anxieties over living in Avalon.
*
“Mommy, who that man?” Meegan asked, her eyes rounded with curiosity. She was holding her third doll, the one which had come via the stranger.
“I’ve told you,” Isla rolled her eyes at her daughter’s reflection as she sat at her vanity unit and applied her make-up in the mirror.
From the bed Meegan watched her mother get ready for a night out and bunched her face
