Unbreak My Heart (Strawberry Inn Book #4)

Chapter 34

ELIZABETH

“I know what you’re thinking.”

Kimberly, the real estate agent showing us this home right in the heart of Strawberry, could not possibly know what we were thinking. I wasn’t sure I could articulate the right words on my own. There was no way she could understand what I was thinking. Dalton’s face looked even more confused than mine did. I had so many questions, the very first being what the hell the real estate office was thinking when they reached out to us this morning. They must have only been thinking we were desperate for a place in the town limits. What are the odds that they didn’t even look at the listing? It was something called a pocket listing, they said. It didn’t officially go on the market until next week, but we had the chance to see it first and put in an offer if we wanted.

Dalton and I met here after work. The timing was perfect, the girls were going to be spending the weekend with Dalton’s parents so they picked them up from school this afternoon. We’ve been looking for a place for almost a month and we were both getting concerned that it wasn’t going to happen. We even started to consider other options. We could move into one of the apartments we were currently renting or look into a house for rent. The rental market wasn’t that great either. People didn’t often move out of Strawberry and those with short-term rentals didn’t want to sign on full-time tenants. 

“It’s…different,” Dalton finally verbalized to Kimberly.

“That is a nice way of putting it.” Kimberly walked in front of us, her heels making a clicking sound on the front pavement. Our reactions didn’t seem to phase her at all.

Dalton squeezed my hand and I glanced up at him, “I guess there is no harm in looking, right?”

“You can’t even call this a fixer-upper, Liz. I’ve lived here my entire life and I don’t remember the last time this place was inhabited. It’s been decades.”

“I guess that just means we get to make it just the way we want it?” My statement came out sounding more like a question. I wasn’t confident in this glorified shed, but what did we have to lose? We were both up to date on our vaccines, so I guess that was a good thing.

Kimberly waits for us holding the door open. She had a smile plastered on her face, but I’m sure it was just part of her normal dress code working in the business that she does. There is no way she was really as excited about this opportunity as she was putting on. Besides the smell, I was surprised that the inside wasn’t as debilitated as one might think. There were no holes in the ceiling or the floors. There was no doubt termite damage hidden behind the drywall covered with peeling wallpaper.

“This is the foyer,” Kimberly stated the obvious to us. “Yes, there are a lot of walls, but they can mostly come down. Keep in mind that they were added to serve a purpose, so they aren’t load bearing.”

The purpose Kimberly was referring to is the old rectory that used to stand here. Many years ago, the Catholic Church sat on the lot right across the street from this house. Soon after the church opened its doors, this home was bought and turned into the rectory where church business took place and the priest who served the church lived. The floor plan was a little funky because of its purpose for many years. As we walked the downstairs, it became apparent that it resembled more a place of business than a home.

“Is this the kitchen?” There was no hiding the grimace in my voice when we walked into the room that looked more like a break room than a kitchen. There were no appliances, but there were cabinets and empty spots where a fridge and stove would go.

“It’s a mess, I know,” Kimberly giggled.

“Mess isn’t even close to the word I’d use to describe it. I hate to be that guy, but that electrical panel is a fire hazard waiting to happen.” Dalton was referencing the uncovered box that was the main hub of electricity for the home.