by B R Snow
Chapter 21
The manager of Jennifer’s building was a woman named Marie who was a very pretty French Canadian in her late twenties, impeccably dressed, and incredibly snooty. More accurately, she’d copped her superior attitude as soon as she got a look at me strolling across the lobby in my parka, jeans, and work boots. She reluctantly accepted my handshake and stared at me. Apparently, I was supposed to speak first.
“I’m Suzy Chandler,” I said, smiling at her. “I called earlier.”
“Yes, you did,” she said, eyeing my outfit with a deep frown. “From your job at the construction site, I would imagine.”
“Good one,” I said, flashing her a quick two thumbs up. “You and Josie would get along great.” I gave her outfit an admiring look. “That’s a beautiful dress,” I said, nodding. “Hermes, right?”
She flinched, stunned that I had the faintest clue about fashion.
“Yes, it is,” Marie said, then whispered in French. “La vache connaît sa mode.”
“Oui,” I said, giving her a tight-lipped smile. “The cow does know her fashion. Et la vache sait comment frapper fort.”
My retort that the cow also knows how to kick hard caught her by surprise, and she glanced down at my boots before resuming eye contact.
“Yes, I’m sure you do,” she said. “I apologize. That was rude of me.”
“Don’t worry about it,” I said, shrugging. “I get that all the time.”
“You said over the phone that you might be interested in purchasing one of our lofts?” she said, again all business.
“Yes, I had dinner in one of them last night and was very impressed,” I said. “But I’ll need to get a good look at the building amenities before I can go any further.”
“Of course. I’ll be happy to give you a tour,” she said, gesturing for me to follow her. “Do you have an idea of how much you’d like to spend? We have three for sale at the moment.”
“Not really,” I said, walking next to her down a long stretch of what looked like polished teak. “I guess I’ll just know it when I see it.”
“We also work closely with several local banks if you’d like some assistance with financing,” she said, nodding at one of the maintenance staff who passed us going the other way.
“No, I’d just you write a check,” I said, glancing around, impressed with both the decor and layout.
“Really?” Marie said, again giving me the once-over.
“Sure,” I said, nodding. “Why pay interest on borrowed money I already have, right?”
“Can I ask you what you do for a living?” she said, confused.
“I run a dog inn,” I said.
“A doginn?” she said, frowning at me. “What the hell is a doginn?”
“No, a dog…inn.”
“I see. And there’s money in running a dog inn?”
“Oh, God, no,” I said, shaking my head.
“How many dogs do you have?”
“Around sixty at the moment,” I said.
“Sixty? I should probably let you know that we have a fairly strict policy on pets,” Marie said. “You wouldn’t be planning on bringing your dogs with you, right?”
“No, they’re really not loft kind of dogs.”
“A dog inn,” she said, apparently having a hard time wrapping her head around the idea.
“And we’ve got a couple of restaurants,” I said. “Oh, and I almost forgot. We’re starting a dog toy business as well.”
She looked over at me like I was from another planet, then stopped in front of a metal door and pulled it open.
“Let’s start with a look at our pool area,” she said, gesturing for me to go first.
I stepped inside the large area that had been designed with a tropical look. A large swimming pool surrounded by lush palms and other flora dominated the space, and I noticed three large hot tubs in different corners of the room. A large wooden sauna occupied the remaining corner. Impressed again, I nodded at my tour guide.
“It’s nice, isn’t it?” Marie said, looking around the space.
“It’s incredible.”
If I actually had been looking to buy a place in Ottawa, this certainly wouldn’t be a bad option.
“That’s our dry sauna,” Marie said. “And we have a wet one just on the other side of that wall near the showers.”
“Very nice,” I said, following her as she walked around the perimeter of the pool.
“Let me show you the gym,” she said. “I imagine you’re interested in seeing what sort of exercise equipment we offer.”
“Sure, sure.”
She opened another door and again gestured for me to go in just as her phone rang. She checked the number and frowned.
“I’m so sorry,” she said. “But I need to take this call.”
“No problem,” I said, glancing around the spacious gym. “I’m fine. Take all the time you need.”
“I’ll meet you inside as soon as I can,” she said, answering the call. “I told you we’d talk about it later,” she snapped, then glanced at me embarrassed by her outburst. She strolled a safe distance away.
I stepped inside, heard the door click shut behind me and flinched at the fresh memory, then looked around. It had been a while since I’d been in a gym, and I didn’t recognize many of the exercise machines. But I did recognize Claudine and Paradis. They were wearing skintight spandex, and both had their hair tied back in a ponytail. They were on stationary bikes and peddling frantically as if trying to escape the stalking paparazzi, but not moving an inch. Sweat was pouring off them, and I got tired just watching them. A few minutes later, they came to a stop, checked some sort of readout on their bikes, then hopped down and began to towel off. They both drank greedily from water bottles, then Paradis noticed me and gave me a small wave.
“Hi,” I said, walking toward them.
“Don’t tell me,” Claudine said, frowning as she tried to remember who I was. “Suzy, right? From the Christmas party.”
“That’s me,” I said, grinning back and forth at them. “That’s quite a workout you guys are doing.”
“How else would we stay so thin?” Paradis said, taking another long swig of water.
“I don’t know,” I mumbled with a shrug. “Cigarettes and amphetamines?”
“What?” Paradis said, frowning.
“Nothing,” I said, beaming at them. “This is a really nice gym.”
“We like it,” Claudine said. “There’s no riff-raff to deal with.”
“Yeah, riff-raff at the gym is the worst,” I said.
“We should get going,” Paradis said, glancing at her watch.
“That’s right,” Claudine said. “Our appointment is at two.” She glanced at me. “We’re getting matching tattoos this afternoon.”
“Nice,” I said, glancing at Paradis. “Are you going to get another butterfly?”
“How do you know I have a butterfly tattoo?” the supermodel said, glaring at me.
I bit my bottom lip. It had been impossible to miss it last night when we were looking at their photos, but I decided it probably wasn’t a good idea to share that bit of news.
“Uh, I think I read about it in Cosmo,” I said, my face flushed red.
“How does Cosmo know that?” Paradis said, glancing at Claudine. “Did you say something?”
“I did not.”
“Then how did it get out?”
“Who knows?” Claudine said, shrugging. “Who cares? It’ll enhance your image as a free spirit. Let’s get going. Nice seeing you, Suzy.”
“Yeah, take care,” I said. “And be careful walking the runway in those heels they make you wear. You could snap an ankle.”
I thought it was a solid safety tip, but they both stared blankly at me then headed off with their towels draped over their shoulders. I glanced around the gym and rocked back and forth on my heels as I silently counted to five.
Since I was here, I might as well get a little workout in.
I noticed a man on a treadmill in the far corner of the gym. From the back, it took me a minute to recognize him, then I realized it was George Theo, the mining magnate and current fiancé of the infamous Black Widow. I walked over to the treadmill and stopped in front of him. He was clad head to toe in a black sweat suit that appeared to be leaking into his running shoes. What was left of his hair was soaked with sweat and plastered like a spider web on top of his head.
“Hi, George,” I said.
“Hey,” he said, uncertain at first who I was. Then he nodded. “Yeah, now I got it. We met at the Christmas party. You’re the Dog Girl. Suzy, right?”
“That’s me,” I said, then noticed he’d turned the treadmill off and coasted to a gentle stop. “You don’t need to stop because of me.”
“Are you kidding?” he said, breathing heavily. “I’ve spent the last ten minutes looking for an excuse to stop.”
“Let me guess,” I said. “You’re trying to get in shape for the wedding.”
“Guess again,” he said with a snort.
“Charlotte’s trying to get you into shape before the wedding.”
“Bingo,” he said, reaching for his towel. “You’d think after five marriages, that would be the least of her worries.”
“I hate working out,” I said.
“You and me both.”
“But you’re going to be working out all the time on your honeymoon in the Caribbean, right?”
“That’s kind of a personal question, wouldn’t you say?” he said, grinning at me.
“No, I didn’t mean that,” I said, embarrassed. “I meant working out snorkeling, swimming, and stuff like that.”
“I’ll be doing the least amount of those things I can get away with,” he said.
“Really?”
“Yeah, I hate the water,” he said. “I’m more of a dirt guy.”
“Then why did you agree to spend your honeymoon on a boat?” I said.
“I have my reasons,” he said, grinning.
“Got it,” I said, nodding. “She is a beautiful woman.”
“Yes, she is,” George said. “And she certainly keeps me on my toes.”
“For your sake, I certainly hope so,” I whispered.
“What?” he said, staring at me.
“Nothing,” I said, shaking my head. But I found it impossible to ignore the look he was giving me. “I’m sorry. It’s really none of my business.”
“No, it’s not,” he said, grabbing his bag and removing a metal flask. “But go ahead. What’s on your mind?”
“I really shouldn’t say anything,” I said.
He glanced around, slowly raised his arm and took a long, elaborate swig from the flask. He offered it to me. “Want a hit? Johnny Walker Blue.”
“Thanks, but I’ll pass,” I said, shaking my head.
He repeated the strange arm movement and took another long drink, caught his breath as his eyes watered, then took a third.
“Whew. Okay, that’s my set of arm curls,” he said, tossing the flask back in his bag. “So, what’s on your mind, Suzy?”
“It’s just that I’ve heard a few things about Charlotte’s past.”
“You mean her five dead ex-husbands?”
“Yeah,” I said. “That did sort of grab my attention.”
“And you’re wondering why I’d be willing to sign up to be number six?” he said, raising an eyebrow.
“Nothing gets past you,” I said, laughing.
“Yeah, a lot of people are wondering about that,” he said, nodding. “But like I said, I have my reasons. So, what are you doing here?”
“I’m getting a tour of the place,” I said.
“You thinking about buying a loft?”
“Maybe. I’m just looking at the moment.”
“Well, if you hold off for a while, maybe one of them will suddenly come on the market, right?”
“Oh, let’s hope not, George,” I said. “But I must say that you don’t seem very worried.”
“I’ve spent most of my life blowing the tops off mountains and digging enormous holes in the ground,” he said, turning serious. “Not to mention dealing with armies of tree huggers. Don’t worry, I can take care of myself.”
“I believe you.”
“Suzy, I’m so sorry to keep you waiting,” Marie called out as she entered and walked briskly across the gym.
“Don’t worry about it,” I said. “I’m having a great time talking with Mr. Theo.”
“Hello, George,” Maria said. “How are you doing today?”
“I’m great,” he said. “I just finished my power walk and a set of arm curls.” He winked at me. “I have a couple more sets of curls to do, but I think I’ll do them upstairs in the loft.”
“Don’t overdo it, George,” I said, grinning at him.
“I won’t,” he said. “But I should probably call my buddy Johnny Blue and have him help me out.”
“Good plan.”
“Ladies, have a wonderful day,” he said, giving us a small salute and heading off.
“He’s a nice man,” I said, watching him depart.
“Yes, he is,” Marie said, also staring after him. “And that’s what has us all very worried.”
“I think I’ve seen all I need to,” I said.
“What do you think?”
“The place is amazing,” I said. “But I have a few others to check out before I make a decision. Can I get back to you?”
“Of course,” Marie said. “You know where to find me.”
I followed her out a different door that led back to the teak hallway we’d used on our way in. Halfway down the hall, I saw Wilma heading toward us. She was wearing her workout clothes and had a towel draped over her shoulders.
“Suzy,” she said, coming to a stop. “What are you doing here?”
“Hey, Wilma,” I said, giving her a quick hug. “Marie was just giving me a tour.”
“Suzy is thinking about buying in,” Marie said.
“Oh, that would be great,” Wilma said. “Are Claudine and Paradis still in there? I was supposed to work out with them, but I’m running very late.”
“No, they were there, spandex blazing,” I said. “But they said they had to get to an appointment. Apparently, they’re getting matching tattoos.”
“Really?” Wilma said, tugging at the baggy sweatshirt she was wearing. “What a stupid thing to do.”
“I take it you’re not a tattoo fan?” I said.
“I think it’s the dumbest decision anyone could ever make,” Wilma said.
“I have a tattoo,” Marie said softly. “I like it.”
My neurons flared, and I stared at her. I decided to do a little fishing.
“I’ve always wondered if it hurts? It has to hurt, right?” I said.
“Absolutely,” Wilma said, nodding. “There’s no way around it, right?”
“Well, having a needle going in and out of my back certainly wasn’t the most enjoyable experience I’ve ever had,” Marie said. “But in the end, it was worth it.”
“Your back?” I said to Marie. “Ouch, right?”
“That would be the word for it,” Wilma said, shaking her head. “I’ll see you guys later. Say hi to everyone for me.”
We watched her head inside the gym then continued toward the front door.
“My boyfriend loves the tattoo,” Marie said. “And he wants me to get another one. I’m thinking about getting a butterfly, but I can’t decide where to put it.”
I flashed back to the photos of Paradis and grimaced. I glanced back at her.
“Choose wisely.”
Chapter 22
I leaned forward to refill everyone’s wine glass then sat back down in my chair. Then I leaned to my right and gave Max a kiss on the cheek before focusing on my dinner, a crockpot stew Chef Claire had put together that morning before she and Max and the dogs had gone cross-country skiing. It was the third day in a row for her, and she looked worn out. But not as worn out as th
e dogs who had stretched out in front of the fire as soon as they’d gotten home and hadn’t moved since. Chef Claire reached for a piece of garlic bread and winced.
“Sore?” Josie deadpanned.
“You know I’m sore,” Chef Claire said.
“Yeah, but I like hearing it from you,” she said, grinning.
“Shut it.”
“I can’t believe you went out there three days in a row,” I said, shaking my head. I took a sip of wine. “People are going to start questioning your sanity.” I glanced at Max. “And I’m getting a little worried about yours, too.”
“It’s great exercise,” Max said, squeezing my thigh.
“Yes, it is,” Chef Claire said. “You should try it.”
Josie laughed way too long and hard.
“Hey, for the record, I was at the gym earlier today,” I said.
All three of them paused mid-bite to stare at me.
“You were at the gym?” Chef Claire said.
“Yes.”
“Doing what?” Josie said.
“Well, let’s see. I was at the stationary bike and the treadmill.”
“Really?” Josie said, confused.
“Yes,” I said. “And I was also thinking about doing some arm curls, but I decided it was too early in the day.”
“I’m impressed,” Max said, leaning close and giving my thigh another gentle squeeze. “You should sleep well tonight.”
“I’m sure I will,” I said, nuzzling his neck.
“Hey, I’m trying to eat here,” Josie deadpanned. “Oh, I almost forgot. John Naylor called earlier and said he had a cancellation. He can reshoot the dogs the day after tomorrow.”
“We need to spend two more days here?” I said, making a face. “Not the briar patch.”
“Yeah, I thought that would break your heart,” Josie said. “Since we’re here, we might as well get it done, right?”
“Have you talked with Sammy and Jill?”
“I did,” Josie said. “Everything’s fine at the Inn.”
“And things are very quiet at the restaurant,” Chef Claire said. “So, I’m good.”
“You don’t mind?” I said to Max.
“I’m sure I’ll be able to deal with it,” he said, laughing. “But you might have to go skiing on your own, Chef Claire. I don’t think I can handle another day out there.”