Forever Valentine

I was happy to change the subject, now that I knew who he was, and how his grandmother had treated he and his mother.

"Although, I've got to say your grandmother was always quite nice to me," I told him. "Her driver would bring her by at least once a week, and she always said that she especially liked my soups. Every time she came, she'd ask why I was single. And I'd just tell her that I hadn't met the right man yet."

Tanner looked over at me and smiled when I said that.

As I watched him punch in the code on the keypad, I thought the big double doors, just looked so imposing. But my first step inside, literally took my breath away. I just stopped and stared wide-eyed, wondering how it was possible to live in something so palatial. While he was busy turning off the alarm system, pressing his hand to a screen.

"Wow. How lucky for you to have been able to buy this beautiful house."

"Actually, my grandmother left it to me, along with her entire estate."

I turned and looked at him, wondering if I'd heard him right. "She left everything to you? But I thought you just said that she never really acknowledged you."

Instead of answering, he gestured for me follow, and led me into a huge formal dining room with a long pristine mahogany table, large enough to seat at least a dozen people.

When he went to put the bags down, I made him laugh at how fast I whipped off my leather jacket and threw on the table, afraid the food would leave heat marks that would mar the wooden surface.

He chuckled. "Hang on. I'll put some cardboard down, so you can pick up your coat." Carting the food out with him, when he came back, he put down a few of layers of cardboard, both big bags, and then put down two plates. Now that the table was safely covered, we opened up the bags and spread out the food.

"Wine or beer?" he asked, heading back toward the kitchen, once we had everything open.

"Either works for me," I called out as he disappeared around the corner.

He came back smiling, carrying a bottle of white wine, a couple of glasses and two beers. "Just in case, thought I'd give you a choice."

As he poured us both a beer, I stared up at the high coffered ceilings with the intricate crown molding, in awe. "This is such a grand old house. I know if it were mine and my family left it to me, I think I'd have a hard time handing the keys over to someone else."

He glanced around then, too, and nodded his head with a sigh. "I never thought it would, but the place has kind of grown on me. When the lawyer called and asked me to come and see him, I didn't have a clue what he wanted. When he told me that my grandmother had died and left her entire estate to me, I didn't want any part of it. I got up and started to leave, and told him I wasn't interested. But he convinced me to sit back down and hear him out."

"What did he say?" I asked, as I passed him some chopsticks.

"Apparently, my great-grandfather had this house built for his new bride, I guess intending to fill it with their offspring. But it looks like it didn't work out that way, since they only had my grandfather. With my mother also being an only child, and having already passed on, that made me the heir to the family fortune. The lawyer also said that my grandmother had insisted that everything be left to her only grandchild. Considering it was my birth right, he felt it would be a shame if I refused to accept what she'd left me, because my inheritance would then go into the government coffers."

"Obviously, she must have felt something for you Tanner, or she would never have left everything to you." When he went quiet, wondering if I'd hit a nerve, I changed the subject, and dug into the food. "The beef and broccoli's good though, huh?"

He chuckled as he reached for his beer. "Yeah, it's all good."

After we'd eaten as much as we could, and put down our chopsticks, kind of chuckling at how much we'd managed to tuck away, Tanner suggested, "Why don't I show you around?"

First, I thought we'd better bundle up the leftovers and put them away.

"Wow, now this is what I call a kitchen," I remarked, my eyes going everywhere at once, as soon as I'd stepped inside. I was impressed that he'd managed to keep the feel of the old place, though it had all been updated with state-of-the-art, stainless-steel appliances, antiqued white cupboards and soft gray granite countertops.

"The lawyer mentioned that my grandmother's eyesight was getting pretty bad near the end. And as she got older, she started to get a little paranoid about letting anyone in the house, even to fix things. So, she probably didn't realize that the house was getting a little tired looking and needed some work done. He also mentioned that her live-in maid died a few years before she did, and she only had a lady come in to help out once a week after that."

"I think it still looks pretty good," I said, glancing around.

"I'm hoping once we're finished, that I'll have it restored to what it was like when my great-grandfather first had it built."

I smiled, thinking it was sweet that he cared so much about how it turned out. "Well, from what I've seen, I think you're doing a wonderful job."

He shrugged, glancing around. "I'm sure my crew thinks I'm crazy, paying them to put it back to what it was. When they've all said that I could just do the bare minimum to make it look presentable, and probably still be able to sell it for a decent price."

"Well, my father always said, 'Anything worth doing is worth doing right.' So, I can understand you wanting to have everything done just the way you imagined it once looked."

He reached for my hand, and flashed me an appreciative smile, I think, glad that I understood. "No matter what anyone else thinks, I'm pleased with how it's turning out, and I'm just hoping the new owners will be happy with it, too."

"I'm sure they'll love it." I couldn't imagine anyone not falling in love with the place, since I thought it was an absolute dream come true.

He pointed out a doorway at the back of the kitchen. "We can take the servant's staircase from here, to see upstairs."

"The ceilings are a nice height, even up here, aren't they?" I remarked, impressed that they hadn't skimped on anything when they built it, by doing things like dropping the height of the ceilings upstairs. All the finishings just looked so opulent, nothing like the humble digs where I grew up over the cafe.

"Yeah, it really is beautiful. And I'm sure my great grandmother was tickled pink to move into a house like this after their wedding."

"I bet she was. I know I would be, if I were in her shoes."

He pointed down at the floors. "As you can see, we're still repairing and refinishing the old oak floors up here. And hopefully they'll look good as new, once they're done."

"They just don't make solid wooden floors like these anymore, so I can see why you'd want to restore them."

"And this was my grandmother's room," he said, leading me into a large formal bedroom with two big windows that overlooked the town, with a glimpse of the lake beyond the trees.

I was so blown away by the view, I was almost startled when I turned my head as he pointed out the bed. "Oh, my goodness, what a gorgeous four-poster bed. It's like a work art, with all those intricate carvings. That detail work is amazing, scattered with flowers and hearts, it's like a forever Valentine. I wonder if your great-grandfather had it built to show his love for his new bride, as a wedding present."

He smiled, looking it over. "I wondered the same thing. I know it became a labor of love for me. I don't know how many hours I worked on it, cleaning out all the nooks and crannies to get the dust off of it before I polished it, to bring it back to life."

"Well, I think you did a wonderful job. But please tell me you're not planning to sell everything with the house. I just can't imagine giving away such a treasured family heirloom."

He sighed, looking it over. "Actually, there are a few things I would love to keep, but my condo's not that big. And as you can see, everything in here is designed for a fairly substantial house."

I walked over and ran my hand over one of the hand-carved posts, and I swear I almost felt it come to life, as I ran my fingertips over the intricate little carvings that looked like vine, leaf and flower motifs, trailing up to the canopy on top. "I just think it's a little sad that something that meant so much to your family is going to be left for strangers, who probably wouldn't care about its history."

"Considering I was never really in the family until all them were gone, I don't have much of an attachment to anything. I can appreciate the craftsmanship that went into a piece like this, and the sentiment expressed in the carving, but once I walk away, I don't think it'll bother me to leave it all behind."

Eyeing him as he looked it over, I wasn't sure if I believed him, considering how hard he'd been working on restoring everything. But if he was planning to give everything away with the house, I wondered if he'd even taken a moment to get a few pictures. Especially of the utterly gorgeous bed. "I hope you took a few pictures. Even just to see how much everything has changed since you started working on it."

He shook his head. "No. We've been so busy trying to get everything done, I never even thought to pull out my phone."

"Well, would you mind if I took a few? I would love to have a picture to remember this uber romantic bed, because I'm sure I'll never see another one like it."

He smirked, giving me a flash of his dimples. "Sure. Go ahead, take as many as you want."

I noticed he got his phone out to take a few himself, once I'd crawled onto the bed to get a close-up of the intricately carved head board with a recessed heart in the middle with adorable little winged cherubs on either side.

"Why don't you pose for me, Olivia? And I'll take one with you."

I laughed. "As long as you promise not to show anyone else. I don't want people to think that you invited me over for dinner and an hour later, I wound up in your bed."

We chuckled at the thought of us hopping in bed together, though he said, "I promise, this is just for me. So, I'll have something to look back on, once I'm gone."

I don't know why, because I didn't really know him that well, but I felt a little sad knowing that he'd be gone soon, especially since I had a pretty strong feeling that I'd probably never see him again.

Still, I made him laugh when I got on my side, rested my head on my hand, and puckered up striking a provocative pose for him, like a Playboy bunny.

After he took a couple of shots, he suggested, "Livy, why don't you lay back, let your hair out of the ponytail, and spread it across the pillow." I knew guys loved to see a woman's hair spread out in bed, so I was happy to oblige, and let him have some fun with his fantasy.

Once I was on my back, posed the way he asked, he lowered his phone and for a moment, he just stared. "You know you look like a fairy-tale princess in that bed with your long blonde hair spread around you like that. You just look so beautiful." I didn't even know what to say, but I didn't think he meant anything by it, because he'd already started taking a few more pictures.

When he went to tuck his phone away in his pocket, I stopped him. "Hey, you should get in here with me, and we can get a selfie together."

He obliged and crawled in beside me, and we both smiled, posing like lovers, cheek-to-cheek, with the heart-shaped carving over our heads. Then we took a few more of us cuddled up nice and close, his arms wrapped around me and our lips almost touching.

We were both laughing by the time we pulled apart and flopped onto our backs, staring up at the brocade canopy. Though I noticed Tanner still reached over and slipped his hand over mine.

"This is such a gorgeous bed," I said, running my hands over the ornate silk brocade bedspread. It was probably the most beautiful thing I would ever have the privilege to enjoy, even if it was only for a moment or two.

"Too bad it's built into the room, because if I could figure out a way to get it over to your place without destroying it, I'd let you have it."

I laughed, looking over at him. "Are you kidding? My bedroom is so tiny, it's probably not much bigger than the size of this mattress."

He tugged on my hand. "Hey, I should show what's in the closet. From what I can tell, it looks like everything has just been left the way it was."

We got up and walked to the end of the room and I stood back as he opened a set of double doors. When he flipped on the light in the walk-in closet, I couldn't believe the clothes that were hanging inside. I was even more surprised to see that most of them were still in style, as I slid my hand over a gorgeous red silk evening gown that probably cost a small fortune.

"If you think anything would fit you, feel free to help yourself."

I backed up, shaking my head. "Oh, I couldn't take your grandmother's things."

"I already let Kate have a look, but she's barely five foot tall, and she said nothing in here would fit her. I could donate it all somewhere, but if you could wear any of it, I'd rather see you enjoy it. So go ahead and take anything you want."

I noticed a lot of things still had the price tags on them, and Tanner noticed, too.

"Looks like my grandmother was a bit of shopaholic, judging by how many of these things have never been worn. Even if she had nowhere to wear them, I guess she just kept buying things to amuse herself, probably on the shopping channel," he said, leafing through a few of the dresses.

"If you're planning on giving them all away, I might try on one or two, just to see what they'd look like."

I felt like a kid in a candy store, as I turned and looked around and realized just how packed the closet really was. I noticed that one side looked like clothes that would be more suited for an older woman, and the rack with the new clothes were all pretty stylish and obviously meant for someone younger.

And she just had so many pairs of shoes, shelves and shelves of fine leather in all different styles, nearly all with matching bags. Probably more than anyone could ever wear in a lifetime. And when I took a look inside one pair of black patent leather pumps, I noticed the shoes were my size, too.

When Tanner realized that I'd only chosen two things to try on, shaking his head, he checked the size, went through the racks, and loaded up my arms, and pointed me at her bathroom. "You can try them on in there to see how they fit."

I laughed when he went over to the bed, got on his back, with his hands behind head, waiting for the fashion show to start, once I came back out.

First, I just had to try on the gorgeous red silk gown. Though I was a little shocked at how revealing it was, considering his grandmother wasn't exactly a young woman. But like he said, she seemed to really enjoy shopping, no matter if she planned to wear the things or not.

The instant I stepped out of the bathroom, Tanner's took one look at me, his eyes wide, he sat straight up in bed, raking me over from head to toe. "Wow. That is one sexy dress. And it fits you like a glove."

Feeling a little exposed, I tugged at the low neckline to try and make it look a little more modest, so he wasn't getting an eyeful of cleavage. "You don't think it's too low-cut?"

He shook his head, flashing me a devilish smile. "No, I don't think so. It looks like it was made for you, the way it hugs your curves."

"Well, I'm not in the habit of showing off the girls. And I'm not even sure if I've got the kind of curves to pull off a dress like this."

He looked up into my eyes, and I got a little rush when he said, "Well, I think you're perfect, just the way you are. And you look absolutely gorgeous in that dress."

I never thought of myself as curvy, so if the dress could do that, I decided I'd keep it.

Tanner seemed pretty happy with everything I tried on, if the heat in his eyes was any indication, as I tried on one sexy dress after another, and even a few more casual ones, that amazingly all seemed to fit me.

"Only problem, the cupboard in my room is so tiny, I don't think I have enough room to take more than a few things."

"Don't worry, we'll work something out. I'm sure my grandmother would be thrilled to know that someone was enjoying what she picked, even if she never got a chance to wear any of it, herself."

He put a few pairs of high heels out for me, and took my hand, to help me balance when I slipped then on. "Might as well try on some shoes, while you're at it."

I tried on about a half-dozen different styles, amazed at how comfortable they all felt, but of course they were probably all hand-crafted leather. "Wow, they all fit perfectly, like they were made for me."

"Then they're yours. I mean it, Olivia, take anything you want. Because I doubt the new owners would appreciate finding the closets already packed with clothes when they move in."

I was putting back a pair of black shoes, and I noticed that the shelf they were on had a little brass catch at one end. Curious, I undid the tiny latch, the shelf swung open, and I gasped when I noticed there was a safe on the wall, in behind.

I waved him over. "Tanner, come and see this. It looks like there's a wall-safe hidden in here."

I stepped aside so he could see, but I noticed he didn't look too surprised. "The lawyer gave me a file folder with all kinds of stuff in it. I haven't even had a chance to go through everything yet. And I think he said that one of the sheets had a combination to a safe, but I didn't know where it was." He looked at me and grinned. "Guess we should probably check it out and see what's inside."

While he went looking for the folder, I went back in and changed into my own clothes, amazed that even his grandmother's bathroom felt so much more luxurious than anything I'd ever seen. All done in marble and glass, with a big roomy shower and a huge jacuzzi tub. I noticed it even had a little private room for the toilet.

When I came out, Tanner was holding up a paper and pointing at the safe. "Come on, let's check this out."

"Actually, I think you should probably do that on your own, in case there's anything personal inside."

He surprised me when he said, "Olivia, there's nothing in this whole house that I wouldn't want you to see."

It took him a few tries, but when he pulled open the heavy steel door, we both looked at each other and blinked. Holy smokes, it was like a mini-Fort Knox. There were stacks of leather and velvet jewelry cases, tall wads of cash and another little stack of gold bars, and a bunch of legal documents, all packed in together.

"What a treasure trove. I think you hit the jackpot, Tanner."

He stood back, shaking his head, like he couldn't quite believe what he was seeing. "Can you believe this? I knew they had money, but this is crazy."

From the top of the pile, he pulled out a red leather and gold embossed jewel case and both our eyes popped when he undid the catch as we stared wide-eyed at the sparkling diamond and ruby necklace and earring set, sitting inside on a bed of red velvet.

I couldn't believe it when he turned and handed it to me. "This would look great with that sexy red dress. You should take it."

I pushed it back at him, shocked that he'd even offer. "Are you crazy? I can't take your grandmother's jewelry. If you get in touch with a high-end jeweller, I'm sure you could sell everything for a small fortune."

He stepped around me, brushed my hair out of the way and slipped it around my neck.

Then he nodded at the full-length mirror on the door. "Just look how stunning that looks on you."

When I turned and saw my reflection, touching a hand to the sparkling jewels draped around my neck, I could hardly believe that I was wearing something so incredibly beautiful. "It really is gorgeous, isn't it?"