Free All of My Love by Francis Ray Page A

kitchen. Stella sat on a little folding chair in front of a card table. She wasn’t eating. She didn’t say anything while he washed his hands beneath the faucet. The water landed in a bucket since the sinks were gone. The Corian countertop included the sinks and was one solid piece. He took a seat at the table.
    “I’m sorry,” she murmured.
    He blessed the food and picked up his roast beef sandwich. “No harm done. Eat. We don’t want to get behind schedule.”
    She picked up her sandwich and took a small bite. “How do you think we’re doing?”
    “Better than I thought,” he answered.
    “Us or the remodeling?” she asked, her gaze on him.
    “Both.” He picked up his bottle of tea and unscrewed the top. “It’s a good thing the people who bought the house never moved in, and Brandon snapped it up when it became available again.”
    She placed her sandwich on the plate. “By the time Faith told me it was on the market it was sold.”
    “That’s the way I wanted it.” He took a long swallow, ignoring the plastic cup filled with ice by his plate.
    Stella unscrewed her bottle top and took a sip. “I would have bought it.”
    “Why?” he asked, genuinely puzzled. “You had already turned your back on it and us.”
    “I thought I had, but apparently I hadn’t.” She sat the bottle on the table and glanced around the torn-up kitchen. “I thought of all the things we’d shared here before and after the children were born, and I didn’t want anyone else in our home. Selfish, I know, but I felt that way.” She gave her attention to him. “I’m happy that Faith and Brandon will live here.”
    “Hopefully, their marriage will last,” he said, unsure if he wanted to hurt her or not.
    She flinched, but she didn’t look away. “I know it will. Faith fights for what she wants. If she and Brandon have a problem, they’ll talk through it. They’ll make it.”
    So she hadn’t tucked her head and gotten that shattered look on her face. So maybe she was stronger than when she’d left. At the moment, he wasn’t willing to give her the chance to step on his heart again for her to prove it. “Once lunch is over, I’ll pull the carpet from the living room and you finish sanding the cabinets. Brandon hired a man to pick up daily, so we’ll always have a relatively clean work area.”
    Stella picked up her sandwich. “That was thoughtful of him.”
    “Yes it was, and Faith has sense enough to appreciate him.” This time Paul knew he’d taken a dig at Stella.
    She didn’t back down. “Yes, she does. Could it be because every time they’re together, he shows her how much she means to him?”
    They stared across the small table at each other. Stella had gotten her own dig in, and it burrowed deep. Paul picked up his sandwich. They ate in silence. He was sure they were both thinking about what had been and the frightening but tantalizing possibility of trying again.

CHAPTER SEVEN
     
    By Friday, they had one room left that they hadn’t touched: the master bedroom. Stella pulled up in front of the house shortly before eight. Paul’s truck wasn’t there. She wasn’t surprised.
    She didn’t think either of them was ready to be inside the room where they’d shared so much love and, on the day their divorce was finalized, so much anger.
    Her eyes closed to shut out the image of their last day, but she couldn’t. Although Faith knew her parents were having problems because Stella had moved out of the bedroom, she hadn’t known her mother had filed for divorce. Almost ready to graduate from college, working most of her free time at the hotel, and often staying there overnight, she hadn’t known her parents were living a lie.
    Stella vividly recalled the morning she’d dressed and packed a small suitcase. Trevor had said to just bring herself. He’d buy her anything she needed. She’d declined his offer. To her, it sounded as if she was being bought. The day before she’d packed her other