Something About Alice Murphy: BOOK 2

P A R T - E I G H T

Chapter Eight: Arrivals
_________________________________________
Tuesday, 26th March
9:45am

Alice exhaled heavily as she tied her hair up in a ponytail, pausing her cleaning routine to make sure her hair was now out of the way before carrying on vacuuming the bottom floor of the guest house...

She fluffed cushions, opened windows to air the place, changed the bed sheets to fresh ones from the cupboard and bleach-cleaned the bathroom... She'd been cleaning since eight thirty that morning to make sure everything was sparkling and fresh for when Magnus arrived that afternoon.

She was excited, nervous and impatient for his arrival all at once, going over her mental list of activities they could do so that he wouldn't get bored in her company. She was nervous about entertaining him for a week, since she would be playing host and this time it wouldn't be like the ski trip at Panorama which was mutual territory or his occasional sleepovers back in Summerland where he'd stay for the night and be gone by morning. This time they'd go to sleep together, wake up together, spend all day together without a clear path of entertainment like skiing... this time there was no schedule or purpose to his visit apart from spending time together as an exclusive couple. And the thought made Alice anxious and thrilled.

There was a brief knock on the front door to the guest house that Alice didn't hear, but as she saw the door opening out of the corner of her eye and looked up, she saw Adam walking in with a plate of fresh, steaming pastries. "I heard you were up so I brought over some breakfast," he said, speaking up and over the droaning sound of the vacuum before Alice turned it off. "How long have you been up?" He asked, seeing his step-granddaughter pink-cheeked, wide eyed, and her hair a little messy.

"Since seven, but I only started cleaning at eight thirty," Alice replied, leaving the vacuum where it was then walking over to the kitchen area to nibble on one of the almond croissants.

"Nervous?" Adam asked with a light chuckle, knowing today was the day her boyfriend was arriving from France. In a way, he was a little on edge to meet Alice's boyfriend too... the sheer presence he held even photos was enough to make Henry and himself a little wary.

"I don't know why," Alice sighed, covering her mouth since she'd just taken a bite from the croissant. "Like, I feel all jumpy and I haven't even had coffee yet," she breathed after she swallowed her small mouthful.

"You're excited, it's normal," Adam reassured her, having memories flashing back to the day before when Alice dragged both her grandparents to the mall in town to collect some gifts for Magnus. He saw them all neatly placed in a basket on the coffee table and chuckled again, thinking her gestures were sweet. "So I never asked how long you two had been dating?"

"Oh, um, like two weeks?" Alice replied casually before she took another bite of the croissant. "But we've been unofficial since January, on and off." She continued making enthusiastic gestures with her hands as she saw Adam's eyebrows raise and glance at the present basket again. "I know, I know, I went a little crazy but when you meet him you'll get it," she laughed softly before glancing down at her watch. Two more hours to go.

"I'm sure I will," Adam chuckled,

"Do you think Henry will like him?" She asked, unsure of if he would, since her biological grandfather had been slightly M.I.A the whole week. She'd seen him at dinner times, or when she'd briefly worked at the stable to help him, but even then he barely stayed in one place or made an effort to try to get to know Alice better by having lengthy conversations like she'd had with Adam.