Love's Cure

Chapter 8

Cecilia's POV

The laughter bubbling up inside me was difficult to suppress. Alexander Webster had surprised the heck out of me with his response to Charlie, claiming he was my boyfriend. I wasn't sure what game he was playing, but I decided to play along to see what he had up his sleeve. His little swat to my backside made me jump, and strangely, awakened feelings I was now a bit excited to explore.

Charlie's questioning of Alexander was hilarious! He was asking the very same questions my grandfather would ask any man that hoped to claim the position of my boyfriend. I have no doubt that Charlie will be placing a call to Gramps the moment Alexander and I are settled into the flat for the night.

I could rest assured that the moment Gramps hung up from that phone call he would be initiating a video call to me. No doubt that would prove to be a very interesting call, to be sure. I definitely needed to have a chat with Alexander before that call came through.

His turning his head to look at me with wide eyes twinkling was almost my undoing. I had to fake a cough to cover the snort of laughter that managed to escape. He grinned at me and shot me a slow wink, knowing full well that I was struggling not to burst out in gales of laughter. What a goof!

I am certain the next few months are going to be a riot, especially when Gramps gets here. For all his serious demeanor around others, Gramps was a big kid at heart. He was a huge tease who believed life was meant to be fun. He never failed to lighten the mood when the stress of studies and hours of work took their toll. I couldn't wait to talk to him later on this evening.

For now though, I was anxious to get to the flat and get everything situated. Bea had let me know that she had stocked the fridge and pantry with basic food items, enough to see us through a day or so. She had even gone to the trouble of preparing a pot roast in the slow cooker knowing it would be ready to eat by the time we got settled in.

The drive from Heathrow Airport to our home in the Hamstead area of London took a good fifty minutes due to the traffic. I could see a hint of relief on Alexander's face which caused me to snicker to myself. If he thought Charlie's questions were hard to deal with, just wait until Gramps had a go at him. His relief turned to wonder as Charlie pulled into the basement parking area of the huge two and a half storey brick house.

"This is your home in London?" He asked, awe filling his voice. "I never imagined anything this beautiful."

"Do you like it?" I questioned proudly. "This was built by my grandmother's great-great-grandfather over two hundred years ago. The place is massive. Charlie and his contracting company did the renovation to make it into two separate flats. You would never know it hadn't always been like this. The work they did is truly amazing. They even installed a small elevator to make it easier to take things in and out of the upper flat."

Charlie's chest puffed out with pride at my praise of his skill as a builder. And well he should be proud. The man and his crew had maintained the intergrity of this historic house, while at the same time ensuring it would be able to be changed back to the original layout with minimal issues should future generations of our family wish. About four years ago Gramps and Charlie had taken me through the house, showing me how the conversion was carried out and how easy it would be to undo those changes. In my mind, Charlie was brilliant.

"Later on this week I'll give you a walk-through if you'd like." Charlie suggested.

"That's a wonderful idea Charlie! I look forward to it." Alexander eagerly accepted his offer. "This place is stunning. My parents built a large house in Toronto they modeled after Fenton House here in Hamstead. It's a lovely house, but it doesn't have the same feeling of 'home' that this house does."

Oooohh, the house is welcoming him. That's awesome! Gramps laughs at me when I tell him this house is special, that it either welcomes or rejects those who enter. He can laugh, but I've seen it happen and so has Gramps. He once told me that whenever my mother and father visited, the house seemed to reject them. Either by the plumbing in their suite acting up, the lightbulbs burning out, or the heating not working in their bedroom. He would have Charlie check it out, but nothing was ever wrong, and then it would work perfectly as soon as my parents left the house.

On top of that, the summer between me finishing my BSc. and starting med school Gramps and I spent six weeks here. I had reluctantly accepted a date with the son of the next door neighbour, whom I had known for a couple of years. At the end of the evening my date had tried to force a kiss on me, pushing me against the exterior brick wall beside the door. I had to use all my strength to push him off and when I suceeded, he sprang back and slapped me across the face, calling me a b*tch. The next thing I knew, the second story window box let go and fell on his head, knocking him clean out.

The noise alerted both Gramps and Charlie, who upon hearing what happened wanted to dump the young fellow in the Thames. Clearer heads prevailed, thank heavens. Gramps and Charlie took him to the local hospital as he had been knocked out. When the young fellow finally woke up he had a severe concussion and a resulting loss of memory for the few hours leading up to it. Rather than risk a law suit, Gramps had told him he tripped on the sidewalk curb, fell and hit his head. I chuckle to this day when I think of how easily he had accepted that story.

To this day, I am convinced the house protected me. I tease Gramps that the place is being protected by our ancestors. He just gives me a side-eyed look and a chuckle. That's okay. Some of us are more sensitive to certain energies. Grammy had been like that and always said I took after her.

We placed all the suitcases in the foyer outside the elevator doors, and I took a deep breath, inhaling the delicious aroma of pot roast. My tummy growled in hunger causing the two men to grin at me.

My offer of a beverage was declined by Charlie. "I think you two young ones need to get settled," he continued. "I also need to make a phone call to your grandfather to let him know you made it here safe and sound."

I giggled, and decided to say what I was thinking. "And no doubt tell him all about Alexander, eh?" He winked at me just as the elevator door closed on him, taking him back to the main floor and Bea.

Turning to Alexander I smiled and suggested I show him where his room would be. I had considered putting him at the other end of the flat from me, but knowing Gramps liked his privacy when he was here, I led Alexander to my side of the flat.

"My room is here, and yours is this one," I indicated the room beside mine. "If Gramps weren't planning on joining us soon I would have put you in the spare bedroom beside his. But since he likes his privacy when he's here, I hope you don't mind this one." For some reason I could feel my face flushing with heat, a clear indication that I was blushing. I admit, the thought of him being this close kind of set my heart, and my mind racing.

Alexander's slow grin didn't help to calm my racing thoughts. "I would be very happy to have my girlfriend's room this close to mine. Makes sense don't you think? Makes it much easier to sneak into your room at night."

Holy smokes! The way he said that almost melted my bones, leaving me weak in the knees. How is this possible? I hardly know this man, and yet all I can do is picture him in my arms, and in my bed. I am in trouble. Deep, deep trouble.

"Yes, well, about that." I stuttered. Before I could say anything more, he placed a finger on my lips, effectively shushing me.

"I have an idea I want to talk to you about. Let's put our luggage in our rooms, then go eat. That food smells wonderful, and I have a feeling what I am about to suggest would go better on a full tummy and a glass or two of wine." Alexander in this take charge mode was incredibly sexy.

I could do nothing but nod in agreement as I opened the door to his room and ushered him in. "I'll make up the bed for you after we eat, if that's okay with you." Then I scurried out of his room, going into mine, pushing my suitcases ahead of me. Entering my ensuite bathroom, I closed the door and quickly relieved myself, then washed my hands and face. Patting my face dry with the towel, I looked at my reflection in the mirror.

"What am I doing," I whispered to the room. "I must be crazy to feel this much for him after only a few hours."

The thought 'trust your instincts, Cecilia. Fate brought you two together for a reason. Trust fate. Trust him.' floated through my mind as though someone was speaking to me. This only ever happened to me in this house, making my belief about benevolet spirits occupying the same space more firmly ingrained in my soul.

Maybe I was being foolish. Maybe I was gulible. But I wasn't stupid. When my gut tells me that a person deserved my trust, I would give it. Right now my gut was telling me that Alexander was someone I could trust and rely on. He, like me, didn't bend to the will of his parents just for the sake of a business deal. That alone spoke highly of his values.

Fate had brought us together and far be it for me to defy fate. If life had taught me anything so far, it was that some seeming 'coincidences' were not coincidences at all, but the working of fate.

Let's see what fate has in store for me.