Chapter Seven
“Stand back, Missy. No telling what’s gonna come down with that ceiling,” John led Chelsea into the hallway. “Matter of fact, why don’t we go outside. These boys know what they’re doing.”
“Do you really think we could get an extra bedroom upstairs, if we added the sunroom downstairs?” Chelsea was in awe of the progress John’s crew had made in such a short time. The house looked better already, even in the midst of demolition. Better was the wrong word, she thought. It looked hopeful, alive with possibilities.
“Sure we can. The sun room adds another thousand square feet of base, more than enough room for a bed and bath above it.” John stepped onto the newly reinforced front porch, Chelsea right behind him.
“That gives me a total of seven bedrooms to rent.” Chelsea nearly clapped her hands. “I can’t believe this is working out so wonderfully. And it’s all thanks to you, John.” She stood on her tiptoes and gave him a kiss on his weathered cheek. “I can’t tell you how grateful I am for everything you’re doing.”
“It’s my pleasure, Missy.” John blushed and patted her on the shoulder. He had never been comfortable with adulation of any kind.
Neither of them noticed a suddenly scowling Mac appear at the side of the building. He’d seen the kiss, and his dad’s reaction. Everything started to make more sense, now. This woman, whoever she was, had enticed his dad out of retirement with her feminine ways. He should have expected this; since his mom passed, his dad had to be lonely. Mac just never thought that his dad would fall for some young floozy, even if she was drop-dead gorgeous.
Set on stopping this nonsense now, Mac moved farther into the sunlight. Both John and Chelsea turned as they heard him approach.
“Mac!” John exclaimed when he saw him. “When did you get here?” Taking Chelsea’s arm, he helped her down the still-shaky steps.
Mac’s scowl deepened.
“Just now, I was looking for you around back. Who’s this?” He nodded at Chelsea before giving his dad a hug.
“Chelsea Bates, meet my son, Macintyre Mills. Mac, this is Chelsea, our client.” John was so glad to see his son that he ignored the thundercloud brewing on his face, chalking it up to a long road trip.
Chelsea was not as oblivious. She felt the animosity coming off the man in waves, every bit of it directed at her. It was enough to make her wish she were anywhere else but here. What the hell was his problem?
Rather than ask the question, she pasted on her nicest smile and held out her hand.
“Nice to meet you, Mac. Your dad speaks very highly of you.”
Still glowering, Mac shook her hand perfunctorily, ignoring the sudden, intense attraction he felt.
“That’s funny, he hasn’t said a word about you.”
Chelsea dropped his hand like it was hot, narrowing her eyes at his rude response.
John looked at his son sharply, also wondering what had gotten into him. Mac was naturally charming with impeccable manners, but you wouldn’t know it at the moment.
“Yes, well, we haven’t had much time to talk lately.” John tried to diffuse the situation. “Chelsea moved to town a few months ago. She bought this place not long afterward. Come on in, let me show you around.”
“If it’s all the same to you, John, I’ll let you give the tour. I’m meeting Sharon for lunch.” It wasn’t a lie; she was meeting Sharon in an hour. She’d hoped to go over John’s plans for the kitchen this morning, but now all she wanted to do was get away from his surly son.
“That’s fine, Missy. I’ll give you a call later.” John was clearly over the moon that Mac had arrived, no matter what mood his son was in.
As she walked the short distance to her car, Chelsea replayed the meeting in her head. What in heaven’s name could have prompted such venom from someone she’d never met? She couldn’t imagine that John would have said anything negative about her, but something had sparked his son’s reaction.
She worried on it all the way into town. Since she had some time to kill before meeting Sharon, she decided to drop by the library. She wanted to decorate the B&B in the style true to the design when the home was brand new. To pull it off, she needed to do research. Besides, diving headlong into such a fun project was exactly what she needed to get her mind off of Mac Mills.
~~~
Janie greeted Chelsea like an old friend, though they had only met once or twice. Just as Sharon had predicted, the entire town was behind the B&B, now that John had given it his blessing.
“Well hello there, Chelsea. What brings you inside on such a beautiful day?” Janie was also grateful for someone to speak with; the library was not exactly a hub of activity, mid-week.
“Hello, Miss Jones. It is a beautiful day, isn’t it? I’m looking for anything you have on interior design at the turn of the century.”
“Oooh, for your B&B?”
“Yes, ma’am. I’d like it to reflect the style of the era, but I’m not exactly sure what that was. Can you help?”
“I’m sure we’ve got something around here somewhere. If not, we’ll order you something. Let’s take a look over here.” Janie led her to the stacks on the left. “How is it coming along? Has John started work yet?”
“Yes, ma’am. They started demolition yesterday, but they’re nearly done.”
“Demolition? I thought you were going to refurbish it, not tear it down.”
“We are, refurbishing, that is. Some of the ceilings and walls need to come down, and most of the kitchen has to come out. That’s what I meant by demolition.”
“Here’s something that might help,” Janie passed Chelsea a book of antique furniture designs. “I remember the Thompson house from when I was a little girl. I have to say, it was an eyesore even then, nothing like it would have been when it was built.”
Chelsea laughed. “I can only imagine. Just looking at the chipped paint on the outside gives me a headache. Who paints a house fuchsia? And that’s just one of the questionable choices the past owners made,” Chelsea shuddered.
“I have to say that I’m thrilled that you’re bringing the place back to life. Why, it just might be the shot in the arm this town needs. Lila Dean and I were talking the other day about other ways we can perk the place up.”
“Really? Did you come up with anything?” Chelsea was thrilled that her project could spark more growth for Starsdale.
“We were thinking of opening a gift shop, one that showcases local artists. We’ve got our fair share of talent around here, you know.”
“No, I didn’t know that, though the scenery around here is certainly beautiful enough to inspire anyone.”
“We do have several landscape painters, but we also have quilters and other fabric artists, crafters who work with wood and metal, and ceramic artists, just to name a few. Why there’s more than enough talent to fill a gift shop.”
“That’s wonderful, I hope you’re able to work it out. Maybe I could showcase some local works in the B&B. We could even offer the items for sale, give the artists another outlet.” And save on her decorating budget, Chelsea thought with a smile. She loved how this whole thing was coming together.
“What a nice idea,” Janie smiled and passed over another book. “Here’s one that’s more about the architecture during the turn of the century, but you might find it useful.”
“Speaking of architecture, John’s son Mac dropped by this morning.” Chelsea surprised herself by bringing it up.
“Really?” Janie’s eyebrows shot up. “We knew John was hoping he would come, I’m so glad that Mac didn’t disappoint his father.”
“John was very happy to see him.” Chelsea added, deciding to dig a little before letting it go. “I take it he hasn’t been around much lately.”
“No, he hasn’t been home in over two years, not since his mother passed. Before that, he would come home for holidays and an occasional weekend. John says he’s busy keeping the business going, but if you ask me, that’s no excuse. If he can find t
ime to go gallivanting around town with a different woman every night, he can find time to visit his dad.”
“Oh, so he’s one of those,” Chelsea shifted the books in her arms.
“Afraid so, if you can believe the papers. Dorothy over at the Stop-N-Go gets the Chronicle. Says Mac’s picture is in there nearly every week, always with a different lady.” Janie stopped searching and straightened. “Not that there’s anything wrong with that, mind you. The boy is as handsome as sin, it’s no wonder he gets around.”
It was Chelsea’s turn to raise her eyebrows. Janie noticed and grinned.
“I may be old, but I’m not dead.” Chuckling, Janie went back into the stacks. “What that boy needs is a good woman. Someone who can help him appreciate that there’s more to life than parties and work.” She eyed Chelsea speculatively. “What did you think of our Mac?” Suddenly, Mac was a favored son, not a womanizing workaholic.
“He’s very nice, I’m sure.” Chelsea hedged. She wasn’t about to tell Janie what she really thought. “We only met briefly. I left so he and his dad could spend time together.” Suddenly uncomfortable, Chelsea looked at her watch and changed the subject. “Oh, look at the time. I’ll take these for now, Miss Jones. I’ll stop back in later and search for more.”
“Call me Janie, Chelsea. Something tells me that we’re going to be great friends.” The older woman led the way back to the desk. “I’ll see what I can find for you in the meantime; you stop back by whenever you can.”
“I will, thanks, Miss, um, Janie.” Chelsea handed over her library card. “You’ll let me know what happens with the gift shop idea?”
“Of course, of course.” Janie passed the card and the books across the worn wooden desktop. “It was lovely seeing you, dear.”
“And you, Janie. Thanks.” Chelsea left the library feeling like she had a possible answer for Mac’s animosity towards her. Perhaps he blamed her for John pulling him away from his glamorous life in the city.
“What a jerk,” she mumbled on the way to her car. “If that’s his problem, he can jolly well go back to where he came from.”
Chapter Eight
“This is the site for the kitchen and event room.” John indicated the flat parcel of ground at the edge of the cliff. “We’ll need as much room for parking as we can get, extending the restaurant from the rock face frees up more level ground.”
Mac walked to the edge and leaned over, taking in the nearly fifty foot drop to the next ledge.
“We’ll have to get this rock tested, make sure it’s thick enough to handle the steel beams. Does the client realize the cost of sticking a building on the rock face? Can she handle it?”
John wondered briefly why Mac insisted on referring to Chelsea as ‘the client’. His mood had improved since she left, but he still looked surly whenever he referred to her.
“She knows,” John lied. “Don’t worry about the money, Son, I’ve got that under control.” John quickly changed the subject. “How big of a building do you think will fit there?”
“Hard to say, Dad. If the rock’s sound, we could potentially build a structure that’s up to two-thousand square feet. Is she using one kitchen for both the restaurant and the event room?”
“Yes, but we need to come up with a way to simplify transportation from the kitchen down to the restaurant.”
“That’s easy. We can build a service elevator on the left of the restaurant.” Walking back towards his father, Mac assessed the landscape. “If we put the kitchen over there and the event room here,” he motioned with his hands, “we can make the most of the view. I assume that she wants glass walls for the event room and the restaurant.”
“Of course.” John stated, even though he and Chelsea had not discussed any such particulars.
“If we’re going to build a service elevator, we may as well build one for the patrons. It can also be glass, at least on one side.” Mac pulled a notebook from his back pocket. “Fire regulations will dictate a separate exit as well. We can run a staircase behind the elevator.” Mac began to get excited, in spite of his feelings about the woman who was trying to take advantage of his dad.
“Sounds like a plan,” John agreed, happy to see the spark finally ignite in Mac’s eyes. “Can we still set up everything to run on solar power, even if the structures are mostly glass?”
“Sure,” Mac answered while stepping off measurements. “We’ll position French doors on each wall of the event room to take advantage of the breeze whenever possible. Too bad that the restaurant can’t have windows that open.”
“We’d never get open windows past the safety inspector.” John agreed. “But what about vents in the top of the walls? She could at least channel some fresh air into the place.”
“Or we could add transom windows that open along the length of the three sides. That would keep in sync with the Craftsman style, which is something else she wants, I assume.”
“Yes, she does.” John hoped he was right. It only made sense after all, to keep the styles of the B&B and the restaurant the same. “I like that idea, she could open the windows and create a cross breeze.”
“Exactly. Transoms are high enough not to cause a safety issue.” Mac stopped and turned towards the B&B. “This site is far enough away from the house so that the guests won’t be disturbed. It’s large enough for ample parking, but the drop-off makes a fence around the ridge unavoidable. She’ll probably want to go with rock, it works better with the landscape.”
“I hadn’t thought of that,” John frowned. “But it’s a valid point. We should talk to Missy about it.”
“You talk to her, I’m just a consultant. She’s your client.” Mac gave his dad a look that said he knew the woman was more. As much as he wanted his father to have a companion, it was time after all and he knew that his mother would feel the same, he couldn’t get his mind around the fact that he’d fallen for someone so much younger. What would a woman like that want with a man more than twice her age? Mac knew. She wanted whatever she could get. He had enough experience with women like her to last a lifetime; he could surely recognize a scheming gold digger when he met one.
John heard what he’d been waiting to hear, that Mac would consult in the project, totally missing the underlying message.
“So you’ll agree to help me with this?”
“Sure, Dad, I’ll hang for a while, help you get it off the ground.” And be here to watch your back, he thought, but did not say.
“That’s good, Son. It’ll be nice to have you around.” John felt a familiar stab of pain, indicating that it was time for his meds, but he ignored it. His plan was coming together, he refused to let cancer intrude. Not yet, at least.
“Why don’t you show me the plans for the B&B?” With one last glance at the view, Mac turned and followed his father through the trees.
~~~
“And then he said, real snarky like, ‘well that’s funny, he hasn’t said a word about you’. I wish you could’ve been there, Sharon. The look on his face was worse than his tone. Has he always been like that?”
“No, not at all. The Mac I knew was always a charmer. I can’t imagine what would make him be so rude.” Sharon added pickles to their lunch plates, then handed one to Chelsea.
“It was like he decided to hate me at first sight.” Chelsea led the way to the kitchen table.
“What did John say?”
“Nothing, I don’t know that he even noticed. You should have seen his face light up when Mac appeared. It was really sweet.”
“I’m sure. They were always a close-knit family, even though John commuted to the city every week when Mac was growing up. Mother used to say she didn’t know how Martha, John’s wife, put up with it. But it worked for them.”
“That’s odd, but to each his own. I spoke with Janie at the library, and she said something that made me think Mac resented coming back here. Maybe he blames me for missing his life in Sacramento. Whatever the reason, if he doesn’t lighten up, I don’t want
him around.”
“Can’t blame you for that. Maybe he just had a rough trip and things will be different next time you see him. Don’t let one grumpy Gus spoil your excitement over this project. I know it would take a lot more than that to turn me off of it,” Sharon forked a bit of chicken salad.
“Don’t worry, it won’t. His attitude just threw me, is all. By the way, Janie told me that she and Lila were considering opening a gift shop featuring local artists. How great would that be?” Chelsea picked up a pickle.
“That’s awesome, see what you’ve started? One little B&B has already inspired a restaurant, an event venue and a gift shop. Wonder what’s next?”
“Let’s hope we have a restaurant and a venue. We still need a quote from John. I have a feeling that hanging a building off the side of a cliff won’t be cheap.” Chelsea laughed.
“Probably not, but I’ve got some money put back, and you still have some left from your mom’s estate, right? I just know we can do this.” Sharon closed her eyes as she tasted the salad. “Um, it needs more grapes, don’t you think?”
“I think it’s perfect. I love the nut mixture. Most people put either almonds or pecans. I like that you added both.”
“Thanks. We’ll definitely offer this on the lunch menu, most of the ingredients are local.” Sharon reached for a legal pad and scribbled a notation. “I’ve started making a list of local farmers who may be interested in selling to the restaurant. Why ship something in, when it’s available right here?”
“I like that idea a lot. It’s another way of helping the community, too.” Chelsea glanced over the list. “I wonder what Lila will think of the competition.”
“Our place won’t really be her competition. We’ll be more upscale than the diner, plus we’re not anywhere close to her place. I see the restaurant in the same light as the event room; it’s a destination. For lunch or for dinner, our customers will come for the experience as well as the food.”
“If you say so,” Chelsea grinned. “I love your enthusiasm. Have you given any thoughts to a name for the place?”
Killer Romances Page 42