Nerds on Fire (5 page)

Her car lights blinked after she
locked it and then she let herself into the kitchen. And nearly
crashed into Chrissy. Rearing back, Trixi gawked at her. “What are
you doing here?”

Chrissy’s eyebrow rose. “I am engaged
to your father so I have a right to be here.”

“
How did you get in?”
Surely, her father wouldn’t have given this woman a key to their
home.

“
The cleaning lady was
here. I wanted to make certain to direct her in her duties. After
all, once I marry your father I’ll be the mistress of this
house.”

Opening her mouth to refute this
hilarious notion, Trixi paused when Chrissy turned toward Trixi’s
beautiful range. “As soon as the honeymoon is over, that thing is
going. It’s an eyesore.” She sniffed. “It looks like it was built
back in the eighteen hundreds. I want a stainless steel commercial
model.”

“
Can you cook?” Trixi heard
the doubt in her own voice.

“
No. But we can easily hire
a decent chef.”

Hmm, someone has her
entire life mapped out
.

Trixi leaned against the warm range
Chrissy had already discarded in her mind. “Do you have any idea
how much this cost?”

Chrissy cast a disparaging look at it.
“I doubt if it was much.”

Just to see the idiot’s reaction,
Trixi quoted what they paid. It was what a person could expect to
pay for a car.

Her future stepmother’s eyes widened
as her mouth dropped open. The surprised expression didn’t detract
at all from her good looks. “What?”

Trixi stroked the enameled front and
nodded. “Yes. It will set you back the price of a decent car.
They’re handmade in England and are top-of-the-line in ranges. You
can’t buy much better than these.”

Chrissy displayed as much shock as her
face allowed. This expression also didn’t detract from her beauty.
Trixi let out a silent sigh. She bet when the woman cried, she did
that prettily, too.

With a breezy wave, as if none of this
was important, Chrissy moved on. “You can take it with
you.”

“
I’m not going anywhere.”
Trixi stroked one of the gleaming handles. This cooker made the
kitchen in her opinion. It warmed the space and added a cheerful
ambiance she especially liked.

At her reply, Chrissy’s expression
hardened. “Oh, but you are. You understand there can’t be two
mistresses of this house. Once your father and I are wed, you’ll
have to move out.”

Trixi was already shaking her head.
“My father will be moving out, not me. Since you’re marrying him,
you’ll never move in.”

“
That’s not how it works.
He’s going to give you this house?” Chrissy sounded
scandalized.

“
He can’t give me what
isn’t his.”

The rumble of garage door opening
halted the discussion. Chrissy hurtled across the space to await
Rylan. As soon as he entered the kitchen, she flung herself into
his arms to kiss him in a very private manner. Trixi grimaced and
wandered over to the fridge.

She had spotted a frozen pizza in the
freezer this morning. After removing the plastic, she slid the pie
onto the bottom of the roasting oven. By the time she shut the door
and straightened, Chrissy was speaking low and fast to
Rylan.

Trixi wished her well, but the gold
digger wasn’t getting this house. Rylan would explain it all to
her. She hoped.

He said something to Chrissy before
taking a set of keys from the rack hanging behind a framed
portrait. “Hi, sweetheart. I’m taking Chrissy to see our new house.
Do you want to go out for dinner?”

“
Hi, Daddy. No, I just slid
a pizza in the oven. I’ll make a salad to go with it. If you two
have plans, don’t alter them on my account.”

“
We’ll discuss it on the
way.” He gazed at the woman seething at his side. Her eyes kept
darting with belligerence around the spacious kitchen, as though
she couldn’t believe this house didn’t come with the
man.

They exited out the guest wing door
and without a qualm, Trixi hurried into the conservatory where she
cracked a window. She could hear them coming and without a smidgen
of guilt, eavesdropped on their conversation.

“
What do you mean we won’t
be living here? This is your house.” Chrissy sounded
indignant.

“
No, it’s not. It was my
wife’s, and now it belongs to Trixi. This place has passed down
from mother to daughter nearly from the time it was
built.”

“
From mother to daughter?”
Chrissy echoed weakly.

“
Yes. I have lived here
since I married Trixi’s mother. According to the trust I will
always have a home here, but if I remarry, I then shift to the
guesthouse, which is where you and I will live.”

Her father sounded perfectly
reasonable. Trixi didn’t bother to hide her grin. She could
practically smell the smoke Chrissy’s fuming generated.

They were too far away for Trixi to
overhear now. She closed the window, made certain it and its
companions were locked, and then meandered back into the kitchen.
She tugged out the ingredients for her salad and was well on her
way to finishing it when they returned.

Since she didn’t know if they planned
to stay or not, she made plenty. This would provide a nice lunch
for her tomorrow if they didn’t. Especially if she threw in some
fruit, cheese, and leftover chicken.

“
So, you see, Chrissy, the
guesthouse is nice. It has those two bedrooms, a decent kitchen,
and a spacious living room.”

That about summed up the guesthouse,
two bedrooms, two full baths, a tiny laundry room, and the kitchen.
An open concept downstairs while the bedrooms were located in the
loft area, the place was bright and airy and would be great for her
father.

There was no doubt in Trixi’s mind it
wasn’t at all what Chrissy had in mind for her next home. “I’m
sorry, Rylan, I didn’t care for it. It simply won’t do for
us.”

“
Why ever not?” He sounded
genuinely puzzled.

Because it wasn’t huge
with plenty of antiques to impress her friends and awe her
enemies
. Trixi could have clued-in her
oblivious parent.

This house was far more to Chrissy’s
liking because it was well-kept, set in gorgeous grounds, abounded
with impressive antiques, and boasted plenty of rooms. It would
certainly influence the people Chrissy wanted to
impress.

It was also a money drain.

There was always something to fix,
something to replace, not to mention the utility bills.

When Katy mentioned at lunch today how
it was important for Trixi to save every penny possible, her
roommate had been referring to this house. She needed a healthy
bank account to maintain her inheritance. At that time, she had
needed to move in soon to satisfy the trust conditions, and would
then take over the financial responsibilities. Katy had been right
even though Trixi fought her for a few days. It took some thinking
time before Trixi came around.

Katy also pointed out how she had
accepted Trixi’s support for over a year, and now it was Trixi’s
turn to accept hers. The situation had worked out well. With them
staying in the efficiency apartment, they kept their costs low.
They could have taught classes on how to live frugally.

By the time they gave up the apartment
so Katy could start her rotations, Trixi had a little nest egg her
father helped her invest so she could begin to maintain this house
in the future.

He wouldn’t allow her to contribute
anything now while he was here, but she knew he wouldn’t stay with
her forever. Despite being blindsided by his hope to marry, she had
known she needed to take up the reins.

She had saved up to buy her range. It
was the one thing she really wanted, so her dad, Gran, Katy, as
well as Miriam and Johnny, each contributed to the range fund as
birthday and Christmas presents for her.

While she was in college, her dad had
updated the plumbing and electric. She and Katy came home for a
school break and found it all finished. He explained a convenient
extended business trip, so having it done then hadn’t put him out
in any way. When she protested, he sat her down and demonstrated,
with unarguable numbers, how much an average person pays for a
mortgage. Then he showed how he had never done so, not since he
moved into this house after he married her mother.

“
I got off really easy.
What I spent updating those systems and paying the taxes is nothing
compared to what a mortgage for a house half this size costs. It’s
been my home for over thirty years, Trixi.”

Later, while she was working and
continuing her schooling, he had consulted her about a new roof,
and then upgraded it while he was away on business again. He used
the same argument about being away for over a week, so the work was
done by the time he got home.

Now she didn’t have to worry about
updating any of those expensive items. They had replaced the
furnace her last year in high school, so it and the air
conditioning unit should be okay.

“
I don’t particularly care
for the layout and I believe it’s far too small for us.” Chrissy’s
voice snapped Trixi back into the ongoing disagreement between
Chrissy and Rylan.

Eyebrows bouncing, Rylan said, “There
will only be the two of us.”

“
Of course, but what if we
entertain? It’s awfully small to entertain.”

“
We’ve entertained there
before.” Trixi took her father’s side.

“
Yes, we have. Particularly
in warm weather, it’s an excellent entertainment setup. You just
open the back wall and use all that deck space. The grill is right
there. It’s perfect,” he said.

“
What about during the cold
months?” Chrissy’s question emerged through clenched
teeth.

Rylan didn’t appear to notice. “I’m
sure we can rent a place to entertain if the numbers become
overwhelming.”

His lack of concern must have tried
Chrissy’s patience. “I don’t understand why we can’t simply stay
here. Trixi can move into the guesthouse. She’s single and far more
suited to the space.” She sent a sugary smile toward
Trixi.

Chrissy hadn’t even finished speaking
before both she and her father were shaking their heads. “I have to
live here,” Trixi stated. “In this house.”

“
Why? You’re just being
difficult.”

“
No, she’s not. The trust
states the heir must begin living permanently in this house by the
time she’s thirty or she forfeits her right to live here.” Trixi’s
dad explained this as he peeked into the fridge.

“
What happens to the house
then?”

“
It goes to the next female
relative.”

“
Who is that?”

“
At this point, there might
be a cousin, but it would likely go to my brother and his wife’s
daughter.”

“
Your brother has a
daughter?” Chrissy looked askance at Trixi.

“
No, not yet. But if I
don’t live here, then I lose the house and it would pass to my
mother’s other direct descendant, in this case, the first daughter
my brother produces.”

Chrissy turned to Rylan. “But you
would remain at the house in such an event.”

“
Of course.” His quick
response made Chrissy’s eyes gleam with a light Trixi didn’t care
for.

“
I’m here and have been for
well over a year so the house is officially mine,” Trixi
added.

The light faded, but Chrissy’s
expression remained hard. What did her dad see in this woman? There
was nothing there other than the incredible looks. And those
wouldn’t last. Then he’d be stuck with the ugliness
underneath.

Staring at the greedy woman set on
shoving her out of her own home, Trixi suppressed a shiver of
apprehension. There was something nasty brewing beneath the
surface.

Since she couldn’t put a finger on it,
she instead finished the salad, then checked the pizza.

“
Baby, we’re going out for
dinner. Chrissy isn’t fond of pizza.” He gazed longingly at the
perfectly baked example she removed from the oven.

The cheese bubbled and the crust was
evenly browned. Italian spices and the yummy scent of melted cheese
permeated the air with stomach growling aromas.

Trixi waved them on as she sliced her
supper. In moments she was eating, but wondered if this meal would
be the precursor to her days now. Eating a yummy dinner, all
alone.

Because she couldn’t bear to think
about it, she shoved the thoughts away and instead tried to enjoy
her pizza.

It was much harder than she
imagined.

Chapter 6

She ran into Leo as
soon as she entered the hospital the next morning.

“
Today is your first day
back on neonatal?” He slanted a glance at her as they caught an
empty elevator.

“
Oh yes. This is a dream
come true.” It didn’t take the car long before it stopped at his
floor.