The Summer Getaway: A Novel(111)

Gregory walked into the conference room and nodded at everyone. He settled at the head of the table and opened the folder in front of him. After explaining they were here for the reading of Lillian Holton’s last will and testament, he told them he would start with the charitable bequests first, then excuse those representatives so the rest of the will was reserved for the family.

Mason told himself not to react to whatever he heard, then nearly fell off his chair when Gregory explained about a charitable trust, worth eight million dollars, that was to be divided equally among the eleven charities represented at the reading. There was a generous bequest for each of the gardeners and all the maids, and Lillian had made arrangements to pay off Salvia’s mortgage as well as leaving her a pension. All the staff were to be kept on for a year and paid their full salary.

That part completed, Gregory had the recipients escorted from the room. When the door had closed, he said, “I doubt any of this will be a surprise, but I’m going to read it anyway.”

Robyn nodded.

Gregory read through the rest of the will. As expected, Mason received the house with the understanding that he wouldn’t sell for a year. He was given funds for upkeep and was required to give Robyn and her agents access. Lillian requested he sell to the historical society on the condition that they pay him at least twelve-point-seven million dollars. If they offered less, he was free to sell to anyone else. He was also left Uncle Leo’s papers and any books he wanted from the library.

He did his best not to react to the information—it wasn’t new, and he shouldn’t be surprised. Yet he was, because now it was real. Lillian was gone, and he owned her crazy, wonderful house.

Gregory moved on to the next section of the will. Lillian left Robyn the contents of the house, including her personal belongings, the cats and one million dollars.

“I’m sorry, what?” she asked.

Gregory paused. “Would you like me to read that part again?”

Robyn stared at him. “I, no. It’s fine. I wasn’t expecting any money.”

Mason knew she’d been worried about her financial future. She blamed herself for not making smarter decisions after her divorce. She’d worked hard to come up with a sensible plan. Now she would be financially independent and wouldn’t need anything from him.

Gregory explained that each of Robyn’s children had already received their bequests, but she left several of Leo’s watches to Austin and some jewelry to Harlow. A few minutes later, Gregory was done.

Back at the house, Robyn excused herself to go to her room. Mason watched her climb the stairs, wondering what she was thinking. There had been so much change in such a short period. While he had no reason to worry, he felt a hint of unease low in his gut. He was about to follow her, to ask what was going on, but Austin stopped him.

“You have a second?” the teen asked.

Mason nodded. “Sure. What’s up?”

“I’d like to rent a room here, if that’s all right. For the year. I won’t be around much. Between my two jobs and working out, I’ll be gone a lot. If you’d rather not, I’ll get a place somewhere else, but I’d prefer to stay here.”

“Still going to UC San Diego?”

Austin nodded. “I’ll submit my application as soon as possible. I’m starting an online SAT review course so I can better my scores. I’ll be applying to naval ROTC, too.”

“You have a plan.” Mason patted him on the shoulder. “You don’t need to rent a room, kid. You can stay here until my year is up.” He smiled. “Plenty of space.”

Austin’s face brightened. “You sure?”

“Absolutely. You’re welcome to have friends over, but no loud parties. As for the rest of it, we’ll figure it out as we go.”

“Thanks, Mason.”

Austin headed for the stairs, while Harlow hovered in the background. Mason turned to her.

“You want to stay here, too?”

She grinned. “No. I’m heading back home tomorrow.” The smile faded. “I’m a little worried about what Kip is going to do with my stuff. My friend Enid is going to stop by the apartment and make sure it’s not out in the parking lot.”

“He didn’t put up much of a fight when I told him to leave yesterday.” Kip had folded in less than five seconds.

“He might be more emboldened at home.” She shrugged. “I’ll deal. What about you and Mom?”

“What are you asking?”

“Are you in love with her?”

“I appreciate the direct question.”

She watched him without speaking.

Mason figured she was expecting an actual answer. “Yes,” he said bluntly. “I haven’t told her.”

Harlow relaxed. “I won’t say anything. That’s between the two of you. I just wanted to make sure you weren’t using her for sex.”

“I’m not.”

She turned away, then looked back at him. “You might have to fight for her, because of my dad and maybe Jase. I’m not sure she’s going to trust so easily. I mean herself. I don’t think she’s worried about you.”

“Giving me advice?”

She smiled. “Someone has to. Besides, I think it would be nice to have you in the family.”