<div style="text-align: justify;">Joseph smiled at Alexis and nodded. “She will be happy to see you”, he replied gently. He was sure she would, indeed. Joseph and Maggie had been in that house for so long they were practically family. <br/><br/>After saying these words, the butler took a step back so the younger generation of the family could go upstairs. Pamela was trying her best to keep her cool and be a good hostess. It was true that this wasn’t her house right now, but it had been for a while, between her father’s death and her wedding to Peter. And for that, Pam still felt at home - both in rights and obligations, as she was fulfilling now. <br/><br/>Peter seemed simply bored right now. He didn’t like this house, and sure as hell didn’t like his wife’s relatives. His only concern right now - and his reason to even be here - was that she didn’t open her mouth and speak too much about what went on in their personal lives. <br/><br/>Stepping away from the family group when Pam stopped by the door of the room Alexis and Travis would use, he stood there, silent, watching the interactions.<br/><br/>At her cousin’s question, Pamela smiled sadly and shook her head on a negative. “No, she tried to keep everything the way it was”, she replied quietly. It was hard to talk about grandma in the past, but she had to force herself to come to terms with it. “I will let you guys get settled. Please, ask for me if you need anything, since everyone else will probably have too much on their plates already”, she requested gently, before stepping away to take Matt and Emily to the room they would share.<br/><br/>Seeing Emily’s reaction to her request to hold the puppy put a smile on Pam’s face. “I like you already”, she commented, sincerely. Not that this was a big surprise - Pam basically liked everyone. If she could like that husband of hers, someone as nice as Emily was definitely an easy job. <br/><br/>Looking at Matt, Pam sighed softly. Her eyes had a kind expression when she approached her cousin and touched his arm gently. “Hey. It’s okay, Matt. A lot happened between your family and grandma, but she didn’t resent anyone. She had… softened a bit in her last days”, she tried to encourage Matt. “Rest a little. And call for me if you need anything at all, please”.<br/><br/>Turning to Emily, Pamela smiled again and indicated the puppy with a gaze. “Would you like to hang on to him for a while more?”, she offered with her usual kindness. “You can always return him to me at any time, if you’d like him to stay”, Pam completed. There were two reasons for her offer. One was that she could use some rest for one or two hours. And the other was her irresistible impulse to please others, that told her that, since Emily seemed to have liked the puppy so much, it might make her happy to have it for a tad longer.<br/><br/>She would wait patiently for the reply, while Peter, at her back, made his way to the bedroom they always used when in the house.</div>