by Gina Conroy
Mary came into view and stopped beside him. “Miss Holland, this is my nephew Tim. I’m sorry if he startled you.” She frowned at Tim. He shrugged and walked toward the cab that was pulling into the driveway.
“Is your nephew visiting?” Susan flung the words over her shoulder as she inserted the key.
“He’s staying with me for a while, until he can find a job. I thought I told you about him.” She shook her head. “Goodness, that boy goes through more jobs than anyone I’ve ever known.”
“Has he been with you for long?” He’d made Susan uneasy, even after she knew he was Mary’s nephew.
“About three weeks. He moved in a few days before you inherited the house.” She sighed. “He’s my little sister’s boy. She passed away last year, and I didn’t have the heart to turn him away when he needed a place to stay.”
The boy must have been at least thirty. Susan set the bag on the table. On second thought she turned and locked the bolt on the door.
Mary flashed a grin at Susan. “Something sure smells good.”
With a laugh, Susan motioned to the bag. “I brought your favorite, apple fritters, and a mix of others.”
“You’re spoiling me, Miss Holland, but thank you.”
Susan sighed, waving aside Mary’s thanks. She’d tried to get the older woman to call her Susan, but to no avail. “Did they ever get the water pipes fixed?”
“Yes, ma’am, and the water is turned on.” Her eyes danced. “And this time, I didn’t get soaked.”
Susan laughed. She’d called to have the utilities turned on last week, but when Mary turned on the kitchen faucet, water sprayed everywhere. They called the plumber who found leaking pipes all over the house as well as a few burst ones. Probably due to last winter’s freeze.
“I’m not going to stay very long today. I think we’ve covered most of the house and I have my list of repairs.” She glanced at Mary, who was nibbling on a roll. “I think the third-floor bathroom needs to be looked at again. But for now, I’m concentrating mainly on the first two floors.”
Mary touched a paper napkin from the bag to her lips. “I’ll go up with you.”
“Good. I know it’s silly, but I’m still a little uncomfortable going upstairs alone, even though my fall was more than likely an accident.” Over the last couple of weeks, she’d begun to think she must have imagined the hand on her back. Maybe she had dreamed it as the police officer had suggested.
Mary’s eyes darted away for a moment; then she smiled. “I don’t like going up there alone myself.”
Now, what was that furtive look all about? Did Mary know something she wasn’t telling her?
They reached the top of the stairs and Susan paused to look at the torn section of carpet. Would she have missed that when she was looking around that first day? Uncertainty bit at her. Could Mary’s nephew have pushed her? That might explain why she hadn’t told her about him. Oh stop it, Susan. What possible reason could he have for wanting to hurt her?
She headed down the long hallway, glancing in each room. Once they finished the repairs, perhaps she’d do a little renovating before she put it on the market. She climbed the stairs to the third floor, Mary following behind.
She’d intended to go directly to the bathroom, but the nursery drew her. She’d already removed the covers and done some cleaning in here. Except for some faded wallpaper, it looked the same as it did thirty years ago. The last time she saw JoJo.
Mary gave her a curious look. “Memories?”
“Uh-huh. Some good ones and some very sad. My parents and I came here often when I was a child. My cousin JoAnne and I used to play for hours.” She sighed. How could a memory be so sweet and painful at the same time? “JoJo and her mother died in a car accident when we were ten. Uncle Albert moved out of the house a month later.”
They checked the bathroom, Susan deciding the old linoleum definitely must be replaced.
Susan followed Mary down the stairs, pausing on the second floor to glance at the master suite. It had been her grandparents’ bedroom at one time. She continued down, deep in thought. She hated to sell the house away from the family. If Dad hadn’t sold his half to Uncle Albert years ago, Susan’s family might have lived here once her uncle had moved. But she certainly didn’t want to live here alone. The vastness would swallow her up.
When they reached the first floor, she glanced around the foyer, then strolled through the other rooms again.
“Mary?” she said with sudden resolve. “How would you like to help me run a bed-and-breakfast?”
Vince walked through the door of Coffee, Tea, and Sweets and headed for his usual stool at the counter. The tantalizing aromas of vanilla, cinnamon, and coffee welcomed him, and he was glad he’d broken his three-week avoidance of the place. As he’d told himself this morning when he was shaving, why should he deprive himself of the best rolls and donuts in town? What was he afraid of? Did he think Susan Holland would hog-tie him and drag him to the preacher?
“Hi, what would you like this morning?” The waitress with the purple streak in her hair wasn’t who he was expecting. The disappointment in his gut surprised him a little.
“Hi yourself. How about a couple of glazed donuts and a cup of black coffee?” While she went to get his order, he looked around; then, realizing he was craning his neck, he turned and focused on the menu board.
“Here you go. Enjoy.” The young woman placed the donuts and coffee in front of him and grinned. “If you were looking for Susan, she’s not here.”
Disappointment tugged at him. Guess it wasn’t just the coffee and donuts he missed. “I only came in for the best coffee in town.”
“Okay, then you won’t be interested in the fact that she just pulled into her parking spot.” She grinned and walked away as he jerked around. He watched through the window as Susan walked toward the door carrying a large box.
Vince shoved up from his seat and opened the door for her. He tried to take the box, but she held on.
“Vince.” She pushed past him and stepped through the door, her face beaming. “Just the man I wanted to see.”
He caught his breath. “Oh yeah? Then I guess it’s my lucky day. Can I buy you a cup of coffee?”
“Sure. Stick around for a sec. I’ll be right back.” She grinned and took the box through to the kitchen. Vince went back to the counter and stared into his cup. A moment later she stood behind the counter in front of him.
“So why are you looking for me?” Vince asked.
“I’m looking for a contractor. Do you do remodeling?”
Not sure whether to be relieved or disappointed, Vince nodded. “Depends on what needs remodeling.”
“A really old three-story home in Falls Church. I’d like to turn it into a bed-and-breakfast, but it might take a lot of work.”
Those beautiful brown eyes he’d tried so hard not to think about gazed straight into his.
He blinked and exhaled slowly. “I’ll have to check my appointment calendar and see when I can look at it. Or we could go after work tonight.” Now why the blazes had he said that?
Surprise crossed her face; then she smiled. “I have a movie date with friends tonight, but I’m free tomorrow if you are.”
“Sounds good. What time?”
“How about ten o’clock? Do you want directions, or would you rather follow me?” she asked.
“Why don’t we ride over there together?”
She hesitated and he hastened to add, “I have a car. You won’t have to ride in the truck.”
“Riding in a truck doesn’t bother me.” Her lips tilted slightly. “But that’s fine. I’ll meet you here at ten.” She picked up the coffeepot and refilled his cup.
“Did you know you have the best coffee in town?” He saluted with his mug.
“So they tell me, but you really should try some of the flavors.” She smiled and waved her hand toward the syrups.
Vince wrinkled his nose. “No offense, but I’ll keep mine straight. I like my coffee to taste
like coffee.”
She laughed. “To each his own.” She lowered her voice. “To be honest, first thing in the morning, I like black coffee, too.”
Halfway home, Vince realized he was still grinning. He pressed his lips together. What was that woman doing to him? He’d dated casually a number of times over the years, but he hadn’t felt this way about a woman since—He groaned and turned into his parking space.
He went inside and his gaze fell on Elena’s waiting photograph. He paused, waiting for guilt to hit him. To his surprise, it was only a faint nudge. He breathed a sigh of relief. Not that he planned on any deep relationship with Susan. But she was mighty pretty. Maybe they could become good friends.
Susan crawled between smooth, cool sheets. The evening with the girls had been fun. It was nice to have them all together. Tara wouldn’t be with them much longer. Susan chuckled. Who’d want to spend an evening watching movies with a bunch of females when she could stay at home with a great, handsome guy like Jack? Ciara and Samantha would probably follow suit before long.
Susan loved the way they could all laugh and cry together while they lost themselves in their movies. Tonight had been mostly tears as they watched An Affair to Remember again.
Samantha teased her a little when she found out about Susan and Vince’s plans for the next day.
“You know, Susan, the Martinelli men are all extremely romantic. You could do worse.”
Susan gave a choked laugh. “Samantha. It’s strictly business.”
“Okay. Sure.” Samantha nodded and grinned.
It was all in fun, but Susan’s stomach quivered now as she thought of the handsome man. Those eyes that crinkled when he laughed. Where did he get those deep blue eyes? And his short black curls that made her want to run her fingers through them just to see if they were as soft and springy as they looked.
She gave herself an inward reality check. All she needed was to make a fool of herself over a man who’d made it plain he wasn’t available. Of course, he’d seemed interested today. But that was more than likely her wishful thinking. She had to get these silly ideas out of her head before she ended up acting like a lovesick girl. No sense scaring the man off before she even got an estimate on the remodel.
Chapter 4
Even in disrepair, the interior of the mansion brought a whistle to Vince’s lips. He’d known Susan’s coffee shop did well, but he had no idea she was in this class.
Susan flashed a grin in his direction. “I know. It’s pretty daunting, isn’t it?” She sailed across to the french doors on the right and slid them open, revealing an enormous dining room.
He followed her and glanced inside, running a practiced eye over the ornate room. “It is, and I’ve worked on a lot of houses.”
“My uncle left it to me. At first, I planned to put it on the market. But the more I think about a B and B, the more I like the idea.” She gestured toward the room. “I thought my shop could go here. There’s a short hallway leading to the kitchen, so it should be perfect.”
After touring the rooms on the first floor, they went upstairs. The master suite took one end of the hallway to the right of the stairs, with two other bedrooms directly across and a bath on the end. On the left side of the stairs, they looked into a sitting room and three bedrooms with another bath on that end. Vince refrained from whistling again as they came to a set of carpeted stairs going up to the third floor.
He followed Susan up. They paused in the doorway of a charming children’s apartment. The main room was a sitting room on one end and a playroom on the other. An enormous teddy bear overlooked a conglomeration of stuffed animals. Some kid was really lucky.
Vince chuckled. “They had their own zoo.”
“Pretty much.” Susan glanced around, a nostalgic smile on her face. “My cousin and I had a lot of fun here on holidays, and I spent a couple of summers here, too.”
She motioned to a closed door. “The bedroom is through there with a connecting door to a bathroom, then the nanny’s room. Two rooms across the hall and one bathroom. I’d like to convert this for my own private apartment. The rooms across the hall would be for live-in employees.” She stepped into the hallway.
He nodded as he followed her down the stairs. “Sounds like you’ve thought things through pretty well.”
“I suppose I’ve had the idea simmering in the back of my mind since I inherited the house.” She paused as they reached the stairway leading to the first floor. She bit her lip and glanced at him. “Vince, before you decide to take on the job, there’s something I need to tell you….”
Her voice trembled, and something almost like fear crossed her face. He frowned. “Is something wrong?”
“I’m not sure.” She took a deep breath. A tap on the front door interrupted her, and a gray-haired woman walked into the foyer.
“Oh, there’s Mary, the caretaker. Let me introduce her.” She hurried down the stairs, a welcoming smile for the little woman on her face. Vince followed and stood beside her.
“Mary, this is Vince Martinelli. I’m hoping he’ll undertake the renovations for us. Vince, this is Mary Turner. She lives in the caretaker’s cottage behind the house. She has a key to the house and all the rooms and can let you in when I’m not here.”
With a few instructions from Susan to the caretaker, they left and headed back to Shirlington.
Vince waited for Susan to get back to their former conversation. Instead she began to point out the changing colors of the trees. A little impatient, he gave her a sideways glance. Her hands were clenched around her handbag, and worry lines furrowed her brow. Something besides autumn scenery was on her mind to create this much tension, but apparently she’d decided not to talk about it.
Should he bring it up? If something would cause problems during the renovations, he needed to know before he brought in his crew.
She continued to make small talk until they pulled up next to her car. “Thanks, Vince. We’ll talk tomorrow?” She reached for the door handle.
Vince wasn’t about to let her go without at least trying to find out what was wrong. The expression on her face as she stood by the staircase had been almost frightened.
“Before you go, how about telling me about the mystery that might prevent me from taking on such an interesting renovation project?”
She shrugged. “It’s probably nothing, but—” She took a deep breath. “All right, let’s go inside and I’ll make coffee. I think there might be a couple of those bear claws you like so well.”
Vince grinned. “I’m flattered you remember what I like.”
Her cheeks darkened into a pretty blush. “Hazard of the trade. I tend to remember people by the pastries they like.”
Feeling slightly deflated, he followed her inside and sat at the counter while she went to get their coffee.
When she set the mugs on the counter, his was strong and black, and hers had a hint of cinnamon wafting up from the cup. The bear claw was warm and buttered, just as he liked it. He suppressed the grin this time, unwilling to get shot down.
“Now,” he said. “What’s bugging you about that house?”
“You’ll probably think it’s much ado about nothing.”
“How about letting me be the judge of that?”
She sipped her coffee and lifted a slender shoulder. “The day I went to the mansion, I fell down the stairs. All the way from the second floor to the foyer. My head hit the stair rail and the hard foyer floor. I blacked out for a sec.”
His heart thudded in his ears. “That could have killed you.” That was an understatement, but he couldn’t think of anything else that might be more appropriate. The thought of her bleeding at the bottom of those long stairs made him shudder.
“I was definitely in divine hands that day.” She stirred her coffee. “When I came to enough to think, I told Mary to call the police.”
“What for?” He imagined her calling an ambulance, but the police?
“I felt a hand on my back right bef
ore I fell.”
Vince started. “What? Someone pushed you?”
“The police didn’t think so. They think I imagined or dreamed it while I was unconscious.”
“But they investigated. Right?”
She sighed. “Well, that’s the thing. They found a portion of ripped carpet at the top of the stairs and assumed I tripped over that.”
“Is it possible you did?”
“No.” Frustration filled her voice. “If it was simply my memory of the hand on my back, I might wonder. But I had examined the floors and there was no tear in that location.”
Vince frowned. “Then you think someone tore the carpet to make it look like an accident.”
“Yes, that’s exactly what I think. Although I have no idea why anyone would try to hurt me.” She paused. “There is one possibility. Mary’s nephew, Tim Weiss, lives with her, apparently freeloading. It occurred to me, he may have been in the process of looking for something he could sell, and thought I saw him.”
“But you didn’t?”
“No,” she sighed. “I didn’t see anything. There was only that pressure on my back before I went careening down the stairs.”
Susan reduced the speed of her treadmill and took a swig of water, thoughts of Vince rambling through her mind. Had he really believed her? He seemed sincere, but he could have just been humoring her. She stepped off the treadmill. The short jog had calmed her nerves and burned off a few calories. She kicked her running shoes off and dug her feet into her thick bedroom carpet as she headed to the bathroom. Halfway there, the phone rang. She hurried to answer, intending to get rid of whoever it was so she could shower.
“Susan?” A familiar, jovial voice rang out from the receiver.
“Uncle Ollie? Is that you?” Lionel Oliver, an old friend of Uncle Albert’s, had always been a favorite of Susan’s, and it was good to hear a voice that reminded her of her uncle.
“It’s me, honey. I’m near your neighborhood and thought if it’s not inconvenient, I’d drop in for a few minutes. I haven’t seen you since Albert’s funeral.”