Consequences(142)

Emily and John were given a room down the hall from Claire’s suite. It was a room with one of the doors Claire was surprised to see many months ago. These bedrooms were rarely used by anyone and kept immaculate just in case they may be needed. It was a suite about half the size of Claire’s, with a queen-sized bed, bedroom furniture, a sofa and chair, a small gas fireplace, attached bath, and walk-in closet. There were large windows looking out onto the backyard; however, all that was visible now was the top of a very large tent.

Claire showed Emily her room and told her Carlos would have her luggage there soon. Then she showed Emily to her own suite—just a few doors away, in the same corridor. Emily tried to be polite, but she continually repeated this is beautiful. Once in Claire’s suite, Emily asked, “Is this Anthony’s room, too?”

“No. He has his own room on the first floor”—Claire smiled—“But, he does visit.” She sensed Emily’s surprise. The fact she and Tony didn’t share a bedroom had just earned Tony a few points in Emily’s book.

As they finished eating their dinner in the formal dining room, Tony arrived home. He behaved as polite and gracious as possible—kissing Claire and hugging Emily. He told Emily how happy he was she arrived safely in spite of the weather. Luckily, the snow was scheduled to stop tomorrow and the forecast was clear for the weekend. Then he turned to Claire. “But, you know those weather reports; you can never trust those meteorologists.” She playfully threw her napkin at him and he smiled. When he sat, Catherine brought him his dinner. The ladies sipped coffee while Tony ate.

After dinner Tony offered to take the lead on a house tour. Secretly, Claire was delighted. She’d been concerned about the magnitude of a tour. It was much easier to defer to Tony. As they walked from room to room and level to level, Emily told them how much she loved their home and jokingly asked if maps were available at the guest relations desk. Tony and Claire laughed, saying it wasn’t that big—she’d know her way around in no time.

Tony added, “It did seem to take Claire a few weeks before she found her way around.”

Understandably, his statement caught Claire by surprise; however, he didn’t notice Claire’s response. He was busy watching for Emily’s reaction. Her obvious lack of understanding satisfied his unasked questions.

Her mask secure, Claire said, “Well, I finally learned the secret. Everything is connected to the main house, and if you need anything just ask.”

Her response received a twinkling eyed grin from her fiancé.

Emily retired after the tour and promised to be more fun tomorrow. After a day of work, travel, and the magnitude of her surroundings, she was exhausted.

Claire hugged her sister. “Oh Emily, we’re so happy you’re here.”


It wasn’t long after Claire readied for bed that Tony joined her. Claire couldn’t help but inquire, “Explain that comment, please.”

Tony laughed. “My dear, I was just checking your reflexes.”

“Well, you nearly caused whiplash.”

Grinning he remarked, “Perhaps there are other reflexes we could investigate?”


John’s hearing adjourned at 12:00 PM on Friday. He offered to fly commercial, but the earliest he would make Iowa City would be after 10:00 PM Tony graciously provided a Rawlings Industries jet which allowed him to arrive in Iowa City by 3:30 PM. Although, Emily prepared him for the house and its amenities, he repeatedly expressed his gratitude to Tony and Claire for the flight and told them their home was stunning.

Truly, it was a beehive of activity with people everywhere making last-minute adjustments and preparing for the event. There were even people in the kitchen beginning to prepare the food, and the tent had been transformed into a picturesque banquet hall.