"I told you the house was drafty. Here, let me show you where you will sleep."
He led her down a short hallway and opened the first door. Reaching inside the door, he flipped the light switch and the room was flooded with light from a ceiling fan.
"I fixed the door so it locks from the inside." He dug in his pocket and produced two keys still on their original ring. "Here are the keys. That door over there is your personal bathroom." He turned abruptly and left the room.
The sting of his cool hospitality was quickly replaced with awe as she turned back to the room. She gazed at the room in rapt silence. The large room contained some of the most beautiful antique furniture she had ever seen. The wood appeared to be cherry, and although it could use a coat of wax, it still had a deep luster. Instead of a closet, a large wardrobe stood at one end of the room, dwarfing a vanity desk with a large oval mirror. A chest of drawers with copper handles sat beside the bed - and what a bed it was. The carved headboard was beautiful but it was the lace canopy and matching bedspread that caught and held her attention. It was fit for a queen.
"I hope you don't find all this too primitive," Cade spoke behind her.
She swung around and stared at him. "Primitive?"
"The furniture - it was handed down to my mother and she left it to me. It's old, but still in good condition. I recently put a new inner spring mattress on the bed, but the rest of it is exactly as she left it."
"Left it? Did your mother pass away?"
"She died." He answered in a brusque tone as he deposited her things in the middle of the room. "I'll show you around a little before I turn in."
They trekked back down the hallway to the family room and then into a spacious kitchen. The appliances were modern but the cabinets were old and solid. The floor was as clean as the counters. Copper-bottomed cookware hung from hooks on one wall. A small round table and two chairs were placed in a corner near the doorway to the family room, providing a view of the fireplace.
"I eat in here," he said. "I only use the dining room when I have company."
The laundry room was also clean and an old wringer tub still sat in one corner, as though unwilling to completely surrender to modern appliances.
Cade stretched and yawned. "Well, make yourself at home. I'm going to turn in. If you need anything, my room is at the end of the hall. You'll find extra blankets in the entry closet if you need them."