She gave him that look again—the one she had been giving him all afternoon. If he didn’t know better, he would swear she suspected him of something. But he didn’t have a clue what he could have done to deserve it.
“That might be a good idea,” she finally said. “I think I’d like to get your opinion on what I should do with the place.”
As he guided her into the bistro, Daniel grinned. “If you want to know how to pack it, ship it or liquidate it, I’m your guy. Decorating? Not so much.”
After a scrumptious dinner, Daniel drove along South Battery Street toward the Beauchamp mansion, and Lily couldn’t help but feel a bit apprehensive about touring the house with him. She purposely hadn’t told him that the home she inherited was once owned by his mother—the very house that was supposed to one day be his. She wasn’t sure why she had omitted the information, other than she had a feeling his immediate reaction when he saw the place would tell her if he was interested in getting it back or really didn’t care about it.
“That’s it,” she said, pointing to the stately home up ahead.
“You inherited Colonel Sam’s old place?” Daniel asked, clearly astounded. “Up until fifteen years ago, this used to belong to my mother.”
His surprise was genuine and Lily was almost certain that Daniel was unaware her father had bought the home. “I’ve always thought it was one of the most beautiful mansions in the Battery,” she said, smiling.
He shrugged as he turned the car into the driveway. “I guess it’s all right.”
“Don’t you like historic homes?” she asked, wondering how anyone could resist the charm and beauty of antebellum architecture.
“I think they’re great when someone takes the time to keep them up,” he answered, getting out of the car. When he came around to open her door for her, he added, “It’s when they’re allowed to fall into a state of disrepair that they look like any other old house that’s been let go.”
“The outside looks as if someone has been taking good care of this one,” she said, crossing her fingers that the inside looked just as nice.
“I hope for your sake they have,” he said, guiding her up the steps onto the piazza. “The last time I was in this place it was in need of some serious renovations and looked to me like it could turn into a bottomless money pit.”
Reaching into her handbag, Lily removed the set of keys Mr. Parsons had tagged as belonging to the house. “I hope the electricity is on. Otherwise, I’ll have to come back tomorrow in the daylight to see what needs to be done.”
Daniel took the keys from her and, unlocking the door, stepped inside ahead of her. “Let me find the switch and we’ll see if the lights work.”
When the foyer’s crystal chandelier sparkled to life, Lily crossed the threshold and felt as if she had indeed entered the princess’s castle. Apparently her father had seen to it that the mansion had been completely restored to its original grandeur.
“This is everything I thought it would be and more,” Lily said, in awe of her surroundings.
The walls, wainscoting and ornate dentiled ceiling cornice had been painted a rich cream that glowed warmly in the chandelier’s light and contrasted perfectly with the highly polished heart-pine floor. A graceful sweeping staircase with a black cypress banister and steps ascended to the upper floors and Lily could only imagine how beautiful the rest of the house had to be.
“Wow,” Daniel said, looking around. “I’m impressed. Your dad spent a small fortune to bring this old place back to life. I’ve never seen it look this good.”
“I can’t believe it’s mine,” Lily said, falling in love with the house all over again.
“Let’s check out the rest of it,” he said, taking her by the hand.
As he led her through the mansion, Lily marveled at the attention that had been paid to detail. Every room was fully furnished and although the furniture was new, it had been chosen to complement the antebellum style, while still projecting a comfortable homey atmosphere.
Whoever designed the master suite had pulled out all the stops to make it the most luxurious room in the house. From the balcony off the sitting room overlooking the courtyard below, to the his-and-her bathrooms, the interior designer had outdone himself.
By the time she and Daniel had toured all the rooms and walked out onto the lighted terrace, Lily had to ask, “How could your mother part with such a beautiful place?”
“It didn’t look anything like this when she owned it and besides, she really didn’t have a choice.” Putting his arm around her shoulders, he led her across the yard toward the carriage house. “Right after I graduated from college, my dad died and I had to take over Addison Industries. That’s when we discovered that he wasn’t the best of managers. The business was in such bad shape financially, it took her selling off the summer home on Hilton Head Island, as well as parting with this place, just for her to survive until I could get the business back in the black and out of the danger of bankruptcy.”
“I’m so sorry, Daniel.” Lily couldn’t begin to imagine how stressful the situation had to have been for him. “You’ve done an amazing job of bringing it back. I’ve heard RJ and my father talk about Addison Industries being TKG’s toughest competitor.”
He shrugged. “It wasn’t easy, but I think it was harder on my mom than anyone else. For the first time in her life, she had to adhere to a strict budget and she was scared to death that some of her snooty friends would find out that she was on the verge of being destitute.”
Lily couldn’t help but wonder how Charlotte Addison’s pride had survived such a devastating blow. “Did you know she had sold the home to my father?”
“I had my hands full with getting Addison Industries back on its feet,” he said, shaking his head. “I didn’t have time, nor did I care what she did with this place, just as long as I didn’t have to deal with it.” His adamant tone convinced Lily that Daniel truly had no idea who had bought the mansion or that he had any interest in getting it back.
As he started to unlock the door to the carriage house, she turned and, rising on tiptoe, impulsively kissed his cheek.
“What was that for?” he asked, chuckling as he turned and wrapped her in his arms.
“I’m just happy,” she said, not wanting to explain about her unfounded suspicions. “Do you mind?”
“You’re not going to get any complaints out of me,” he said, using his index finger to trace her jawline.
His gentle touch reminded her of how tender he could be, how much care he took when he made love to her. “Daniel, I’m not certain—”
“I’ll be sure for both of us,” he said, lowering his head to brush her lips with his.
When his mouth settled over hers, Lily brought her hands up to his chest to push away from him, to put distance between herself and the temptation he posed. The issue of how much he knew about her father buying the house had been settled, but she had yet to tell him the news that would no doubt put a permanent end to his attraction to her.
But as his arms tightened around her and he traced her lips with his tongue, she abandoned all thought and allowed him to kiss her the way she had wanted him to do the night before. There would be plenty of time within the next few days to tell him about the baby and face the future without Daniel in her life.
As he explored her with a thoroughness that threatened to turn her insides to warm pudding, a tingling sensation began to spread throughout her body and she welcomed his deepening of the kiss. It had been the better part of three weeks since he had held her like this, made her feel as if she was the most cherished creature