My jaw dropped, my mouth gaping open in awe as I took in my surroundings. The house was unlike anything I’d ever seen before. Pushing open the heavy oak door with all its ornate carvings and stepping across the threshold was like entering a whole new world. It was a world along the periphery, one I’d always known existed, but until that very moment, I’d been standing firmly on the outside, never privy to what lay beyond those tall, menacing iron gates that kept us lowly, blue-collar types out.
The hardwood floors were so rich and dark they were almost black. The silk wallpaper shimmered in the light from the enormous crystal chandelier that hung above our heads, making the streaks of gold and silver intricately woven into the elaborate patterns dance through the air.
“Okay, sweetie. Now remember, gentle hands. If we break anything in here Mr. Rose’ll have a conniption.”
My aunt’s voice penetrated my wonderment and caused a clammy sweat to break out across my palms. Those words served to remind me just how out of place Aunt Caroline and I were. We didn’t belong here. Dogwood Estates was a sprawling master-planned community that sat on lush, green golf courses with its own country club, three community pools, and a miniature waterpark. It was where all the wealthy people in Redemption lived, and the thousands of acres near the edge of town were surrounded on all sides by a tall, imposing fence designed to keep the rest of us out. The only reason we were even here was because my Aunt Caroline worked as a housekeeper, cleaning the houses of these stuck-up snobs.
I’d agreed to tag along with her today to help lighten her workload, and I’ll admit, there was a bit of excitement on my part when she first asked. Sure, I went to school with a lot of the kids who lived here, but I’d never stepped foot past those gates, and my curiosity had gotten the best of me. However, now that I was here, I was almost too afraid to touch anything for fear of tarnishing all the elegance around me.
“Earth to Shane. You with me, honey pie?”
I looked to my aunt and offered a half-hearted grin. “Sorry, Aunt Caro. This place is just . . .”
“Over the top?” she supplied. “Obnoxious? Hoity-toity?”
“All of the above.” Even though I whispered, my words still rang out in the cavernous entryway, bouncing off the floor and walls.
Her chest rose and fell on a heaving sigh as she looked up and around. “Yeah, well, just remember, these folks are no different than the rest of us. Just ’cause they got money, don’t mean they’re any better. They might think their shit smells like roses, but we know the truth.” She looked over at me and winked. “It stinks just as bad as ours.”
I let out a little girly giggle, shaking off some of my nerves. “Sure does.”
Her ability to put me at ease was one of the many reasons I adored my aunt. My father had taken off when I was a toddler, not wanting the responsibility of being a dad. Mom had bailed on me and my older half-brother when I was only six, and Aunt Caroline and Uncle Scooter hadn’t blinked at the thought of taking us in. That was ten years ago. My brother, Stone, had been nineteen at the time and had only hung around our small town for another couple years before taking off on his own. I was still close to him—or as close as I could be with the occasional phone call and even less occasional visit during the holidays—but with my mom and dad in the wind and Stone living on the other side of the country, my aunt and uncle were the only constants in my life.
I couldn’t imagine my life without the two of them in it. There wasn’t anything I wouldn’t have done for them. Which was why, when my aunt asked for my help today, saying no or whining about having to spend my Saturday cleaning rich peoples’ houses—especially when it was one of the only Saturdays I had off from my own job—hadn’t even crossed my mind.
She bumped her shoulder into mine. “All right, darlin’, let’s get this done. You start upstairs and I’ll tackle down here. We’ll meet in the middle.”
With a quick kiss to my temple, Aunt Caroline headed for the kitchen, and I started up the grand curved staircase to the second