I clutch the letter from my Aunt in my hands, a little afraid to open it. The solicitor whose name I have already forgotten has excused herself so we can read them in private.

She explained that my Aunt wants us to work together on this and expects us to hold onto the property for at least five years but she hoped longer. If we try to sell before then, it will revert to the ownership a local historical society. She doesn't mind what we do to it, as long as we are respectful to it's history. Something I already planned to be.

Now I'm sat here, facing Thomas, with our individual letters from my Aunt in hand. "Would you like some privacy to read yours?" He asks, and I startle a little at how loud his voice is in the silence.

"I...no it's OK. Thank you though." I reassure.

We sit for another moment, and I turn the envelope over and over in my hands. My fingers tracing my neatly written name. I try to imagine the moment she wrote this. Try to picture her in my minds eye. Her neat dark grey pin curls falling to her shoulders. Tongue sticking out between painted red lips in concentration. I miss her more now than ever before. She was my one constant in life and I don't know if I'm ready to read the final words she will ever say to me.

"Do you want to open them at the same time?" He asks and afraid to speak I just nod.

He takes a deep breath, "Well, no time like the present. Three, two, one."

His voice trails off as we both tear open our letters and begin to read.

My darling Astoria

It has been thirty years since you came into the world and changed it forever. I may not have had any children of my own but I hope you know that I always considered you my daughter. From the first moment I held you and you wrapped your tiny fingers around mine I just knew I would do anything for you.

I know that Clemmie would have wanted me to be here for you and I only wish I could stay longer but my body is weakening long before my mind was ready to. I am almost one hundred, that's an obnoxiously long time for anyone to live. I've outlived a lot of the people I cared about and aside from you I have no close family left in the world now. It isn't sad, just simple facts. You'd better not be crying reading this Azzy. This isn't a goodbye letter, it's a good luck letter and a reminder of how proud I am of the woman you have become.

I let out a little half-sob half-laugh as a tear drips off the end of my nose and narrowly avoids falling on her neat cursive. I brush the unshed ones with the back of my hand and force myself to keep reading.

I feel so honoured to have watched your strength and confidence develop as you find yourself. I hope you know how proud your Mother was of you and I am sure your Father would be as well.

If there is one regret I have is that my death means that I won't get to continue to watch your personal and professional successes and cheer you on in person. I hope you know that wherever I go, I will always be watching and I am so proud of everything I know you will achieve.

I have a couple of hopes for you.

I hope you will find love. I know you haven't had much time for love in your life but I hope, more than anything, that you will find it one day. I truly believe that everyone out there has that one person who is made for them. I loved and lost my one great love, long before you were born but the memories of my time with him kept me going through the days and I am at peace knowing I will join him one day soon.

I pause as I take this in and wonder why she never mentioned him before. I would love to have known more but now their story is forever lost. A memory comes to mind of catching her looking through papers once with tears in her eyes. They were in a little ornate wooden box and as soon as she spotted me she tucked them away.

The box hadn't been in the belongings I had sorted through at the house. Nor were they in the small crate from the hospice. I wondered if I had imagined it but perhaps they were images or things from him. I just wish I knew where they had gone.

Love isn't just the pain and loss you know from your parents experience. Or even from mine. It is beautiful, magical and life changing. It is worth every heart ache because being with them is like finding your other half. The piece of your soul you didn't know was missing.

So what does this have to do with me leaving you the Astoria? Nothing and perhaps everything. The Astoria gave me my great love and I hope it will help you find yours.

I never had the heart to have work done on it so it is perhaps more of a project than you might imagine but I know that, like every challenge in your life, you will rise to it.

I hope you will look after it and treasure it for the memories it contains within the walls will be there for generations to come.

You may also be wondering why you will be doing this alongside Tommy. He is a wonderful young man and helped me on more than one occasion. Angela talked about him often before she died and I know he has known loss in his life. You are perhaps more similar than you might thing. I hope that you and he will give each other the push you need to be your true selves. If that sounds mysterious and confusing then good, it was meant to.

I smile and glance up through my damp lashes at Tommy who is frowning at his letter. I wonder what she is telling him about me, about the Astoria. How well did she know him.

He glances up as if sensing my eyes on him and my eyes snap back to my own letter.

I know that together you and he will achieve great things.

All my love
Aunt Adaline

I wonder how she could know anything about how we would work together when I don't believe we ever met properly, but I trust my Aunt and that she wouldn't lead me astray.

My eyes scan the contents of the letter again. Drinking in every word that she left me.

She's right. I do work hard, maybe too hard. I don't socialise or really have any friends aside from the people I hired to work for me and I'm not entirely sure that counts.

"Wow." Tommy's voice pulls my attention back to him.

His eyes look a little glassy and his expression oddly serious in comparison to how he has been up until now. "I know." I can't think of anything else to say as I process that I've read the last thing she left me in this world.

Part of me want to ask to read his, greedy to consume any piece she left behind. The other part of me reminds me that there is no way I'd let him read my letter so I shouldn't pry into his.

He clears his throat and forces a smile, "Do you wanna get going to The Astoria? There's only a couple of hours of daylight left and I'm not sure if it even has any power right now."

My mouth opens in an 'o' shape as that sinks in and I tuck my letter into my bag and stand, "I didn't even think of that. You're right, we should probably get going."

"If you're going to always tell me I'm right then this partnership is going to be easy." He teases.

I let out a very undignified snort, "Don't count on it. I'm a woman used to getting her own way and I know when I'm right."

"So you're saying you're stubborn as hell? Well honey, that sounds like fun to me." He winks and leads the way to the car park.

I turn my head away from him to hide the flush staining my cheeks and wish I had left my hair down to make it less obvious. I'm not used to feeling flustered and I decide to put it down to the fact it has been an emotional day.

Most of my relatives are gone but I can still hear one or two raised voices in the foyer and roll my eyes.

This is not the will reading I expected it to be and it is certainly not the inheritance I expected either. I was expecting a portion of her savings if anything. I think many of the attendees were under that impression too.

"This way." Tommy herds me into a lift almost completely concealed by a large pot plant and I'm grateful we don't have to pass anyone.

As we exit into the car park Tommy stride quickly to a battered red car. Mud splatters the side, reminding me of his job.

"Meet you there?" Tommy says, "I'm going to park in the church car park."

I nod, "Sounds good." And give him a small wave before heading over to my little silver mini.

I throw my bag onto the passenger seat where it joins the remains of my breakfast muffin and my ballet pumps.

In the time it takes for me to switch my shoes, he is already gone and I take a deep breath before starting my car to follow.