Remind Me

by Samantha Chase

  Sagging with relief, Susannah nodded. “Yes. It was something he and I started talking about in the last several months and I wasn’t sure if he was paying attention or if it was something he was okay with.” She paused. “You know how he was–he was a great listener but there were times when he wasn’t very clear with his feelings.”

  “Oh, I don’t know about that. I seem to remember Zeke being very vocal when he was opposed to something. If he didn’t shut you down while you were talking to him about it, I would guess he wasn’t completely against the idea.”

  “Did he ever mention it to you?”

  “Just in passing and I thought it was just him rambling on about what he thought would happen once he was gone. Every once in a while he’d do that sort of thing. He’d talk about what he thought would happen once he wasn’t around to make sure everyone was okay.”

  “So…what do you think? Is this something I should be considering if we move forward with renovations on the house?”

  “That’s completely up to you, Susannah. I don’t want to weigh in on this because…well…”

  “Oh, please,” she said again. “My grandfather was closer to you than anyone–and that’s saying something because he was extremely close to Mallory.” Then she paused and considered him. “You know that’s one of the things that made him happiest, don’t you?”

  He shook his head, unsure of what she was saying.

  “When you and Mallory first started dating, Pops wasn’t so thrilled. He didn’t like thinking that Mallory wasn’t a little girl anymore. But as the summer wore on, he came to really like the idea of the two of you together. I think he was just as upset as the two of you when you broke up.”

  “Yeah, we had talked about it after Mallory left. Zeke was pretty adamant about me going to college and not letting Mallory be a deciding factor. That was part of the conversation she overheard but didn’t understand,” he explained. “He knew how much getting an education meant to me and knew if I could do that–if I could move so far away from my family and everything I had ever known and make that dream possible–then I could do anything.” He paused with a lopsided grin. “Including taking care of his great-granddaughter.”

  Susannah leaned back in the big leather chair and smiled. “I swore I wouldn’t pry and I swear this isn’t why I brought you in here…”

  “I know.” He grinned. “And I want you to know your daughter means everything to me. But I broke her trust once before and I have to work a bit harder this time around to win it back.”

  “She can be stubborn…”

  Jake laughed out loud at that one. “That she is!”

  “Right now…she’s very emotional. Losing Pops hit her so much harder than I ever imagined. So maybe the timing for the two of you…maybe you could give her some time.”

  “I will, Susannah. I promise you. I don’t want to add any pressure to her and I don’t want her making a decision she’ll come to regret.”

  “But…?”

  He chuckled softly. “But I need to do this my way this time. I feel like that summer had a lot of pressure from all kinds of other people and our time wasn’t really our own.”

  “What can I do?”

  “That’s just it. I don’t want you or Sam or her cousins to do anything. Right now, if everyone starts talking to her about moving here or badgering her about our relationship, it will make her skittish–which she already is.”

  Susannah nodded.

  “Just know, I have big hopes for our future.”

  And that seemed to please her immensely. “Okay, then.” She paused and shifted in her chair again. “Now about this bed and breakfast idea…”

  It was lunchtime before Jake had time to even breathe. There were easily twenty crewmen here at the house and with two separate projects going on at the same time, things were mildly chaotic. All the permits were in place, the property was clear, but it just seemed as if everyone and their brother had questions for him. On top of that, he had four other job sites up and running all over town that were calling in with updates as well. All he wanted was an hour to himself and something to eat.

  As if reading his mind, Mallory came out onto the front porch with a large cooler bag in her hand and a sweet smile on her face. She practically skipped down the steps toward where he was standing talking to his foreman, Colton.

  “Hey! What’s in the bag?” he asked.

  Looking at Colton, she said, “Do you mind if I borrow the boss for a lunch break?”

  Colton, who had been with Coleman’s almost as long as Jake had been alive, smiled and nodded. “See you in an hour, boss.” And then he was gone.

  Mallory took Jake’s hand in hers and led him around the side of the house. “Where are we going?”

  “You’ll see,” she said, grinning at him over her shoulder.

  Two minutes later they were walking down the pier toward the boathouse. Mallory opened the door and stepped inside. The small air conditioning unit was on and the bistro table was set for two. It pleased him more than he could say that she had gone through the trouble to do this for him. If they had gone to eat in the main house, he would have been distracted by the work being done. This was the perfect reprieve from the noisy construction zone.

  “I made us some chicken salad sandwiches and a fruit salad,” she said as she put the food on the table. “There are cold drinks in the mini-fridge over there so help yourself, and for dessert, I baked cookies.”

  “A girl after my own heart,” he said, grabbing her and kissing her soundly. And as good as the menu sounded, he wouldn’t mind putting the food on hold so he could have her for lunch–an idea he ran by her before he let her go.

  “A nooner, huh? Hmm…let me think about that.”

  The next thing Jake knew, Mallory was standing beside him and unzipping her sundress that began to pool at her feet.

  He loved when she wore dresses for this exact reason.

  She struck a sassy pose with her hands on her hips and she was a sweet, innocent, and sexy siren all at the same time. “So you’re saying…we should put lunch on hold so we can…hmm…what would you call it?”

  He was already kicking his shoes off and pulling his shirt over his head. “I’d call it time for me to devour you for making me sleep alone last night.”

  After that, the only sound was Mallory’s squeal of delight as he picked her up and dropped her on the sofa. She had barely settled against the cushions when Jake was sprawled out on top of her, loving the feel of her curves under him.

  “If I promise that you won’t have to sleep alone tonight, does that mean we can’t do this again tomorrow?”

  Smiling against her throat, Jake gently bit her. “You already planning on doing this again tomorrow?”

  Arching her back beneath him, she all but moaned his name. “I’ve got the entire week planned out if you must know.”

  And just that one simple reminder of how all they had was this week was enough to make him pause. One week. He had one week to convince her to stay and give them a chance. One week to prove to her that he’s not the same man he was six years ago.

  One week to convince her to fall in love with him again.

  Because he sure as hell was still in love with her.

  Yeah, part of him had always known it, but he thought he’d get over it–particularly after the cold shoulder she gave him for years. But once they got past that, he knew his feelings weren’t going to change. Mallory Westbrook was it for him.

  She whispered his name as her nails raked their way down his back and it brought him out of his reverie.

  “The whole week, huh?”

  She nodded.

  “You may need to pack a bigger lunch, because I plan on us using every ounce of energy we have. Every. Single. Day.”

  Then he immediately went to work on doing just that on day one.

  8

  “WHAT?!”

  All heads turned as Georgia Coleman-Bishop shrieked at the attorney in a very un-Sout
hern belle-like way. Mallory had to stifle a giggle and beside her, she saw her brother fighting to hold on to his own composure. Even though no one had any idea what Pops had put in his will, she didn’t think anyone could have predicted this kind of reaction to anything.

  Richard McClellan was an older gentleman–easily in his mid-sixties–and was the family attorney for as long as Mallory could remember. His expression at Georgia’s outburst was almost as comical as the outburst itself.

  “There has got to be some mistake,” Aunt Georgia demanded as she stood and fanned herself, towering over Richard’s desk. “This has to be either an old will or my grandfather wasn’t in his right mind when he wrote it!” She looked over her shoulder at Mallory’s mother and fumed. “You! You convinced him to do this, didn’t you? That’s why you came back here! To take my inheritance away from me!”

  “Georgia,” Susannah began calmly, but Mallory knew her mother was holding on to her patience by a thread. “When has anyone ever convinced Pops to do anything he didn’t want to do? Now stop this nonsense and sit down!”

  “I will not…”

  Just then, Beau stood up and guided his wife back to her seat and warned her “That’s enough” before sitting beside her.

  Clearing his throat, Richard looked nervously at the room full of people. They had originally planned to have him come to the house to read the will, but with all the construction going on, it was decided they’d all come to his office. Luckily it was a room large enough to house the fifteen people Pops had named in his will.

  “Okay, if I may continue?” he asked the group as a whole, and everyone nodded. “The house goes to my granddaughter, Susannah Coleman-Westbrook, to turn into the bed and breakfast she has always wanted to own. There is an account already set aside with money for you to do the renovations.” He paused and smiled at her. “I have an envelope with the account information for you, Susannah,” he explained before handing her the envelope.

  “Thank you,” she whispered as she accepted it.

  Looking back down at the papers in his hands, Richard continued. “To my granddaughter, Georgia Coleman-Bishop, and her husband Beau Bishop, I leave my boat and the Magnolia Marina. As you know, I built that as a young man and I know Beau has always enjoyed sailing and Georgia has enjoyed the benefits of the marina’s club.” He paused and–like everyone else in the room–looked over at Georgia to see her reaction.

  She gave a curt nod of approval but still managed a quick glare at Susannah.

  This is going to be interesting, Mallory thought. There was no doubt this was going to cause a rift in the family for a long time to come.

  After another moment, Richard went on. “I am certain that my grandson Cash did not show for the reading of my will. There is a trust set up for him, but he must be present here in Magnolia Sound in order to receive it. However, to his wife Grace–who is far too forgiving–I leave you the money to pay for college for all three boys, plus the mortgage on your home will be paid in full.”

  Grace openly wept and Mallory knew she–just like everyone else in the room–knew how much Pops had done with those two simple gifts. He was giving her aunt the breathing room she so desperately needed. Her uncle had been gone for years–hell, Mallory barely remembered him. He’d left his wife and sons because he wanted something more out of life. Her poor aunt was left to raise three young boys and her uncle only sporadically checked in to make sure they were okay. What kind of person did that?

  “Now, in the order of their births, I would like to address my great-grandchildren,” Richard read, and Mallory forced herself to focus.

  “Sam and Mallory,” he began, looking at her and Sam. “When the two of you were born, I couldn’t have been prouder. With you living so far away, I never thought I’d get to be involved in your lives. Twins didn’t run in our family and whenever I got to see the two of you, you were both an oddity and a complete joy to me.”

  Susannah took Mallory’s hand in hers and smiled before leaning forward to smile at Sam too.

  “There are some personal letters I’ve written to the two of you that Richard will give you after we get through everything,” Richard read, “but I want you both to know I always treasured our time together.” He paused. “To my great-grandson Sam, I leave you Coleman Landscaping. You’re the only one in this family with a green thumb and I hope you choose to run the company yourself.”

  Richard then looked over at Mallory and her heart began to beat like mad. What would Pops possibly leave her? She’d give anything to have him here with her instead of some inheritance.

  “Mallory, I know you pride yourself on being some sort of fancy technology girl and I’m so proud of all you’ve accomplished even though I never understood any of it. But I remember watching the joy on your face when you paint and how happy you always looked when you were decorating or being creative. I never want you to lose that joy. I’m leaving you something I don’t think you were even aware I owned–Barb’s Beach Buys.”

  Gasping, Mallory squeezed her mother’s hand. She really had no idea Pops owned the place and it was her favorite store in all of Magnolia Sound. She hadn’t been there since last summer and had heard Barb wanted to retire. Could Pops have known that back then and planned for her to take over all this time?

  “On top of that,” Richard continued, “Mallory is in charge of the decorating and renovating of the house, alongside Susannah. I want the two of them to do this together and make the bed and breakfast a place that honors everything Magnolia Sound represents.”

  Everything became a blur after that. Mallory couldn’t focus on what Richard was reading and what Pops had left to her cousins. Her mind was reeling, and all she wanted to do was step outside and get some air. She looked over her shoulder and saw Jake sitting behind her smiling. God…she wanted to talk to him too. So many questions and so many things to consider and she had no idea what she was going to do about any of it.

  Clearly the business was still up and running and could continue to do so even if she didn’t live here. If Barb retired, there would still be a staff employed who could run the place in Mallory’s absence. It wasn’t necessarily a necessity for her to move here to run the shop. Plus, could she really make a living from owning the shop, doing decorating consultations and nothing else?

  That had her thinking about looking for a business advisor–someone who could look over the finances for the business so Mallory could make informed decisions. Did she know anyone who did that? Maybe her mother did? Or maybe her cousins? Maybe she should talk to Richard about it.

  Her head was starting to hurt just trying to organize her thoughts. When she turned to look at her brother, she saw he looked equally dazed. No doubt taking over a local landscaping business wasn’t on his agenda either–especially since he went to business school and currently had a job doing…wait, what was Sam doing these days? He did tend to change jobs a lot and seemed to get bored easily. Was it a bank he was at now or a doctor’s office where he was doing data entry? She shook her head because she couldn’t remember and it was too much to think of on top of all her own stuff.

  Doing her best to clear her head, Mallory turned her attention back to Richard and whoever he was addressing next.

  “And lastly, Jake Summerford.”

  She wanted to turn around so badly and watch him and silently cursed herself for not sitting with him. He had arrived a little late and by the time he walked in, Mallory was already situated between her mother and brother.

  Casually, she slid her hand back between her and Sam’s chair and hoped Jake would see it. His hand immediately clasped hers and she knew he was just as nervous as she’d been a few minutes ago.

  “Jake, you’ve always been like family to me and watching you learn the construction business always made me feel proud. I can’t think of anyone I’d trust more than you to take the business over and make it grow. Coleman Construction is yours.”

  It was hard to hold in the gasp as Jake squeezed her hand ri
diculously hard. Turning, she looked at him and smiled. She saw tears in his eyes and wanted to climb over the chairs to comfort him. Luckily, Richard was wrapping things up and within minutes, she was out of her seat and in Jake’s arms.

  “I never…” he began, his voice soft and trembling. “I never thought he’d do something like that. I knew someone was going to take over and…and I thought he’d have someone lined up to buy the company. So many times I wanted to ask him about buying it because…well…I just always knew it was where I wanted to work. And to know it’s mine?” He stopped talking and buried his face in her neck and Mallory felt his tears. She held him tightly for several long moments and when they broke apart, she saw he looked a little more composed.

  “You okay?” she asked.

  Nodding, he gave her a soft kiss. “Sorry about that. I just…he did so much for me already that I never expected anything like this. It’s more than I deserve.”

  “No, it’s not. You have been the one handling things for so long, I think you were the natural choice. Pops believed in you,” she said. Her voice caught and she took a minute to compose herself before she began to cry. “Now you need to believe in yourself.”

  After that it seemed like everyone wanted to talk. Richard walked around and answered questions even as he handed out envelopes that held letters Pops wrote to everyone. Mallory had to hand it to him–he knew how to make an impact on his family even after he was gone.

  “Oh, my gosh,” Parker said as she walked over with a big smile on her face. “Can you believe all of this? I mean…who knew Pops paid attention to so much!”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Come on–leaving you the decorating place? That was awesome! And Jake and the construction company? Perfect!”

  “I hate to say this, but…I sort of zoned out there for a while. What did Pops leave you?”

  “That’s the beautiful thing–he didn’t leave me a business or anything here in Magnolia!” she explained excitedly.