Simon had gotten up early. He had gotten a stack of moving boxes yesterday and had gone straight to his house this morning to start packing. The sooner he had everything in order, the better. On Wednesday the rebuilding would start, and before then he wanted to have basically everything in Annerieke's house that he wanted to keep.

He had decided about his furniture that he only wanted to take his office furniture with him. He liked Annerieke's furniture, he already felt completely at home in it. His own furniture did not fit in at all. Somewhere he expected that he would look for other furniture for his office as well, or maybe ask Huib... While he was thinking this, he knew that that was exactly what he wanted, that Huib would make some furniture for his office.

He immediately called Huib, to tell him, that he would like it if he would make some new furniture for his study. Huib reacted enthusiastically: "Gladly Simon, very nice of you to ask me that! Then your study will fit in the atmosphere of Annerieke's furniture. When you have brought your furniture here, I will measure it and discuss with you how you want the new one."

Simon was happy, he was looking forward to living with Annerieke and then later also to have new furniture, made by his son. Yes, he thought by himself, I refuse to call him my stepson, that sounds so second-hand. To me he is my son, the son of my heart!

These wonderful thoughts gave him the courage and energy to continue packing. By 10 o'clock he loaded what he had packed into his pickup and drove to his new home. First a cup of coffee in his lover's kitchen, and then bring the boxes into the house, he promised himself!

He parked the pickup at the house and walked back to the guest house. At the front door, it was a crowded place. Except for Samuel and Rebecca, who had already said goodbye because they wanted to go for a long walk, all the guests and staff members were standing there chatting with each other. He joined them, went to Annerieke and put his arm around her waist. For a moment she laid her head on his shoulder as a greeting and asked, "Is it going well with packing?"

"Yeah, I've got the pickup pretty full already. After the coffee I'll unload. Most of the stuff is for the study. What little kitchen stuff I have, I'll pack up later and bring it here, but more so that we can go over together what we want to keep and what we want to get rid of. In the living room, I didn't have a lot of little things, and my furniture...we don't need that, seems to me. I think I'll take pictures of them and put them up for sale on the Internet. Or do you want to see them first?"

"I do want to see them in the pictures, but if they are not things you would like to take with you, then I think they can indeed go. Our house has everything we need, but if you don't want to part with something, take it with you okay, we'll find a place for it."

When Simon nodded at her reassuringly, she continued, "Your house, it’s your own house, isn’t it?"

"Yes, I'm going to clean it right after I move, take pictures of the house and put it up for sale myself. I'm not hiring a realtor, I've handled something like that before myself. I still have the papers of the house, from when I bought it myself. There are all the practical details in there, pretty handy."

Annerieke and Simon were interrupted by Cees and Sita, who came to thank them for the wonderful weeks.

"And we wish you good luck together, we are really happy for you!" Sita hugged Annerieke and Simon. Cees followed her example. It moved Simon, so much warmth, he was not used to that. Cees noticed it, patted him on the shoulder to let him know he felt him, and that it was okay. Then they went to greet the others, packed their bags and waved exuberantly as they drove away.

Rosanne and Angelique clearly had more trouble getting away. They were still standing talking to Margreet and Lisa, about the bridal suite they had made for them. The other guests and staff gathered around them, hearing both women tell how good this week had been for them. When they had finally hugged everyone and left, the remaining guests went their separate ways, and the "family Bloemenhof" as they had recently called themselves, walked to the kitchen. "It’s time for a cup of coffee!"

.

While Simon and Annerieke went home to bring in the moving boxes, Lisa and Margreet went to work in the two guest rooms that had become empty. In Cees and Sita's room, they finished quickly. Lisa brought the bedding downstairs and put it in the washing machine. Together they began to strip the bridal suite of all decorations. They brought the stand that Huib had made to turn the bed into a four-poster bed to the attic, and made sure the other stuff was in boxes ready to bring back to Annerieke and Elly. After the room was ready for the new guests, they walked together to Annerieke's house.

.

After coffee Annerieke had been ready at the guesthouse: the cake had been baked and what she would need for dinner was ready in the refrigerator. She had immediately walked with Simon to help him with the moving boxes. He had protested, not wanting her to lug.

"Why not?" she had asked. She had suspected it would be because she was a woman, but it had nothing to do with that. He just wasn't used to being helped, he always did everything himself, and... he found it hard to accept that now there was someone who did want to help him.

Before he left again, he had pulled her against him and whispered in her ear, "At first I felt uncomfortable with your help, but it was a wonderfully pleasant experience, to be able to do something so dull together. I love you Anne!" She had answered him with a deep kiss and a squeeze of his cheek. "See you later darling, I love you too!"

Annerieke decided to go outside and rummage around in her own garden. Here and there she pulled some unwanted blades from the earth and enjoyed all the beauty that was still there even now, in November.

She saw Lisa and Margreet arrive with two boxes. Lisa handed her an open box, "We've got down the bridal suite and are here to bring back your canopy bed curtains. It all still looked clean and tidy. The comforter cover and pillowcases will go in the washing machine in a moment."

"Oh yes, thank you. I'll keep them well, who knows for whom we can use them again." Annerieke looked at Margreet questioningly, but Margreet shook her head, "Sorry mom, it doesn't look like Huib and I are going to get married. We want to put some things on paper at the notary, but leave it at that. The marriage feels for us actually a bit like a system thing. Without that official commitment, we know deep down that we belong together."

Annerieke smiled, "Doesn't matter, dear daughter, I know in my heart that you are right and that it is good."

"But if you do want to get married, you should just do that," Margreet hastened to say to both Annerieke and Lisa. "Please don't think that I would find that wrong."

"No way, no right or wrong thing, remember?" Lisa grinned at her and told Annerieke that they had talked about that with Samuel and Rebecca this morning.

"Totally agree," Annerieke said, "everyone gets to decide for themselves or together what feels right. I haven't talked to Simon about it yet, I have no idea what he would want."

"That will come up on its own," Margreet thought. "Will you walk with me to our house? This box needs to go back to Elly, and then we can check on the mural right away."

"Oh yes, I'd love to see that!" Lisa was immediately excited.

"And so would I!" came Annerieke after them.

To chapter 159. The business side

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