Текст книги "The Man Must Marry"

Автор книги: Джанет Чапмен

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Текущая страница: 9 (всего у книги 14 страниц)

“The real question, Willamina, is when are you going to take it back?” she muttered, her words drowned out by the wind and rain.

But it was the expensive-looking bright red SUV parked directly in front of her headlights, sporting temporary plates, that was really keeping Willa from going inside. Granted, she’d been at her factory for more than two hours with Cyrus’s brothers, but surely Sam hadn’t had time to go out and buy a car yet, had he?

Maybe she could sleep at her factory, just to get one night alone with her thoughts.Shelby was going to keep her up pastmidnight , asking her all about Abram’s home, his grandsons, and the funeral. Willa smiled. If that was Sam’s truck, thenShelby had already started the inquisition—after she’d given Sam a piece of her mind for shanghaiing her husband.

The kitchen door opened, and Jennifer stepped onto the porch, pulling on a rain slicker. “Auntie!” the girl called, skipping down the stairs. She ran limping up to the driver’s side of Willa’s truck. “Isn’t it beautiful!” she exclaimed when Willa rolled down her window.

“What? The storm? Get in here before you drown,” she said, motioning her to run around to the other side.

“No, let’s sit in my truck,” Jennifer said, running to the driver’s side of the SUV and climbing in. Willa rolled up her window, opened the door, and made a mad dash for the SUV. “Your truck!” she squealed, climbing into the passenger seat. She immediately slid back out. “It’s a leather interior. We’re going to get it all wet.”

“Get in here, Auntie,” Jen said with a laugh, grabbing Willa’s sleeve and pulling her back inside. She slid the key into the ignition, started it up, and immediately turned down the volume on the radio. “Isn’t this the greatest?” She flipped on the interior lights. “I just took my learner’s permit exam two days ago, but I haven’t tried driving it yet. It’s got satellite radio, navigation, and even a DVD player in the back.” She ran her hands lovingly over the steering wheel. “And it’s all mine,” she finished on a whisper.

“Oh, my God, Jen. It’s beautiful.” Willa turned in her seat to take it all in. “You could put an entire softball team in here.”

Jen shook her head. “When I get my license, I won’t be able to carry anyone who isn’t family for six months. Abram picked it out especially for me, because it was big and safe.” Her expression turned pained. “I’m sorry he died, Auntie. I really liked him, you know? He was a cool old guy.”

“They don’t make them any cooler,” Willa agreed. “And I’m glad you got to know him, Jen.” She chuckled so she wouldn’t tear up. “Whenever he was talking to me about you, he always referred to you as ‘that spitfire niece of yours,’” she said, dropping her voice to sound like Abram.

“He wrote me a letter,” Jen said. “I put it in my jewelry box, and I’m going to keep it forever. Abram told me to grab the world by the tail and give it a good shake every now and then, just to see what happens.”

Willa laughed, wiping her eyes.

“Look,” Jen said, pointing at the floor by her feet. “They put the gas petal on the left side, so I can use my left foot instead of my right, but everything else is the same. And when it comes time for me to trade it in, the pedal can be put back on the right side with hardly any trouble.” She looked over at Willa. “That was Emmett’s idea, Abram said in his letter. The two of them decided I could learn to use my left foot

just as easily as people learn to use their right foot for driving.”

“It’s perfect for you,” Willa agreed. “But I noticed the temporary plate isn’t handicapped. Do you have to wait until you register it to get one?”

Jen gaped at her. “I’m not getting one of those—they’re for handicapped people. I’ve been trying to get Mom to get rid of the one on our van for years.” She shot Willa a mischievous smile. “I’m getting a vanity plate that says CATCH ME. You know, as in ‘Catch me if you can’? Abram suggested it in his letter.”

Feeling about two inches tall, Willa gave her forehead a dramatic slap. “What was I thinking? Of course, you’ll get a vanity plate.”

They both jumped when somebody pounded on Jen’s window. “Mom said if you two don’t come in for supper, she’s not even saving you the wishbone,” Cody hollered through the window. He spun around and ran back to the house.

Jen shut off the truck. “I wish I could have thanked Abram personally. His letter also said Spencer was setting up an appointment for me inNew York City to be fitted for a special prosthesis so I can do sports and stuff.”

Willa patted her niece’s arm. “You’ll be thanking Abram every time you shake the world by its tail, Jen,”

she said with a laugh, opening her door.

Jen stopped her by grabbing her sleeve. “Um…Mom’s got some news for you, Auntie. She’s been worrying all week about telling you, so…well, try not to overreact, okay?”

The fine hairs on Willa’s neck rose in alarm. “What news?”

Jen opened her own door. “Mom will tell you. Just don’t take it personally, okay?” She scrunched up her pretty young face. “Like you usually do.”

She was out the door and running through the rain before Willa could ask what in hell she’d meant by that. “I’ll show you personal, you little brat,” she muttered, dashing for the house. “Let’s see how long it takes you to notice the ‘Don’t bother honking; I’m blond’ sticker I’m going to put on your fancy new bumper.”

Crammed to the gills with the best stuffing and gravy she’d ever eaten, Willa sat on the floor against her couch, her face bathed in firelight from the hearth, and fought to stay awake. “You fill my wineglass one more time, Shel, and I’m going to fall asleep right here.”

“Fine with me,”Shelby said, setting down the bottle and leaning against the couch next to her. “I wasn’t looking forward to sharing a bed with you, anyway.”

“The storm’s not that bad. Go home; whatever you have to tell me can wait until tomorrow. I haven’t had a decent night’s sleep in more than a week.”

“Um…my bed is in your barn, along with all my other worldly possessions.”

“Oh, my God,” Willa whispered. “You left Richard.”

“The timing was perfect, what with him being…out of the country. And I can’t very well kick Richard out of his family homestead, can I? So I packed up all our belongings, stored everything in your barn, and the three of us have moved in with you,” she finished with a smile.

“When did you decide to leave him?”

“I filed the divorce papers about a month ago.”

“And you’re only telling me now!”

Her sister became very busy swirling the wine in her glass. “I was afraid of how you’d react.”

“How I’d react how? ”

Shelbyleaned her shoulder against the couch to face her. “You have a very bad habit of thinking you’re somehow responsible for everything that happens to anyone you care about.” She shrugged. “You’ve been nagging me to leave him for years now, and I knew once I did, you’d find a way to blame yourself for my marriage breaking up. Then you’d feel guilty, and then you’d start trying to fix me , just like you try to fix everyone.”

“I do not!”

“Who marched over to school and gave Cody’s basketball coach hell last fall?”

“That jerk was only interested in winning. He’s supposed—”

“Without even telling me you were going to see him,”Shelby continued forcefully, cutting Willa off. “And who keeps visiting her ex-mother-in-law because she feels guilty for divorcing her son and his moving toMontana ?”

“I like Jean Sommers.”

“My God, Willy, you even started a business to give a bunch of bored old people something to do.”

“I have to earn a living.”

“Then there’s the diner. You’re banned from ever going in there again, for heaven’s sakes.”

“That wasn’t really my fault. Craig Watson is a—”

“And Uncle Jake’s funeral? AndBeverly andClyde ’s wedding? Oh, and let’s not forget last year’s town meeting debacle. Shall I go on?”

Willa closed her mouth and stared into the fire.

“I’m getting a divorce because Richard and I barely talk to each other anymore,”Shelby said softly. “I stuck it out for the kids, but I simply can’t do it anymore.” She laughed humorlessly. “Jen finally came right out and told me that if I didn’t leave Richard, she was leaving us . She said she couldn’t stand the tension anymore, and she’d take Cody and live with Emmett.”

“Emmett? Not me?” Willa said in surprise.

Shelbywrapped her arms around Willa and gave her a squeeze. “They love you to death but only in small doses, Willy. They don’t want to be fussed over; they want to fight their own battles.”

“I do not fuss over them.”

“Yes, you do. You fuss over everyone—except yourself. When was the last time you went out on a date?”

“In March.”

Shelbysnorted. “Peter Thomas doesn’t count. He’s old enough to be our father, and that was a sympathy date because his wife had run off with a younger man. Let me rephrase the question: When was the last time you got laid?”

Willa scrambled to her feet and glared down at her sister. “How did this conversation get turned to my love life? We’re supposed to be discussing your divorce.”

Shelbyalso stood up. “There is nothing to discuss, Willa. Well, except for my living arrangements. It’s going to take me a couple of weeks to find a place I can afford to buy, so I had planned to move in here with you. But there are only four bedrooms, and Peg has one of them. That leaves one for Cody, one for Jennifer, and yours.” She grabbed the bottle of wine and refilled her glass. “I suppose I could stay in the cottage.”

“I’ll stay in the cottage. That way, you won’t have to worry about my fussing over your kids.”

“It was an observation, Willa, not a criticism. And I have no intention of kicking you out of your home. I’ll move my things into the cottage tomorrow.” She smiled impishly. “But I’m eating here. I’ve never had roast chicken that tasted so good.”

Willa set her glass on the end table, strode into the kitchen, and grabbed her rain slicker. “You can have the house and the housekeeper. I’ll move my stuff out of my bedroom tomorrow.”

Shelbyfollowed her into the kitchen. “Willa!”

Willa ran out the door and down the steps, holding the rain slicker over her head as she dashed for the cottage, fighting the wind howling off the ocean. A swaying branch snatched the slicker right out of her hands, and she was soaked to the skin when she finally reached the cottage. The door was locked. Who in hell had locked the door? She ran back down the stairs, dug in the mud for the key she kept under the step, then finally stumbled into the darkened cottage and felt around for the light switch. The lights didn’t come on, and she looked out the window at the main house and saw that it was also pitch black.

Feeling her bottom lip beginning to quiver, Willa stripped out of her clothes by the door, felt her way to the bedroom, crawled under the covers, and burst into tears.

“Oh, Auntie, I told you not to take it personally,” Jen said with a sigh, sitting on the bed and brushing

Willa’s hair back off her face. “You cried all night, didn’t you?”

Willa pulled the pillow over her head.

Jen snatched the pillow away and stood up. “Well, crying time is over, because you have to teach me to drive my truck on the way to school. Then you can take it to work and pick me up at three, and we can practice until supper. I can apply for my license by the end of August, which only gives me three months to get the hang of it.”

Willa pulled the blankets up over her head. “You’re a teenager, Jen. You’re not supposed to be bright and cheery in the morning.” She brought the covers down to her chin and glared at her niece. “Besides, your mother should be the one teaching you to drive.”

“Are you nuts? We’d kill each other. Come on,” Jen said, trying to pull the blankets off.

“Hey, I’m naked under here! Go see if the clothes fairy hung my clothes up to dry last night, would you?”

“The power’s still out on your road,” Jen said, heading into the main room. “You’ll have to shower at work. Peg sent down clean clothes for you and milk and cereal.” She walked back into the bedroom carrying a neatly folded bundle of clothes. “And she told me she was going to move into the cottage this morning, so Mom can have her bedroom. I told her I’d rather stay in the cottage.”

“It’s my cottage, and I’m staying in it,” Willa sat up. “Jen,” she said when the girl turned to leave. “I’m sorry your parents are getting divorced.”

Jennifer gave her a sad smile. “I’m more sorry that they don’t love each other. But their separating will be better for all of us. Mom will start laughing again, and Dad will work fewer hours and spend more time with Cody and me.”

“How did you get to be so wise?”

Jen shrugged. “You hang around Emmett long enough, I think you get it by osmosis. Hurry up, I want to get to school early, so everyone can see me driving my new truck,” she said, whirling around and shutting the door on the way out.

Willa couldn’t help but smile. Jennifer reminded her so much of herself at that age; she had haunted Emmett’s boatyard every day, too. Willa knew he had always hoped she’d take over his business one day, since he had no children to pass it down to. It looked as if Jennifer was the new heir apparent, which pleased Willa to no end. Jen had a passion for wooden boats, and for Sengatti sloops in particular. Though only sixteen, she had already designed and built a day sailer that Emmett had proudly put into production last year.

“Is the RoseWind really yours, Auntie?” Jen asked through the door, her words sounding garbled.

“Abram left it to me in his will,” Willa called back as she dressed. “Hey, are you eating my cereal?”

“We’ll pick you up something on the way to school. Wow, do you know how much that boat cost new?

It’s in the seven figures! Abram must have been really rich. Was his family upset that you got it?”

Willa stared at the closed door. What was she going to tell Jennifer about Abram’s will? AndShelby ?

Or anyone else, for that matter. She snorted and pulled her sweater over her head. She sure as heck wasn’t telling them she was a multi-multi-millionaire.

Even if it was only for three months.

But she was keeping the RoseWind , no matter what happened. Sam had said none of them cared much about sailing, and she couldn’t leave that beautiful sloop with anyone who couldn’t appreciate what a work of art it was.

“I need a hairbrush,” she said, walking into the main room.

“I think you need a hairdresser more. Emmett said the RoseWind is the fastest sloop he’s ever built. I wish I could have sailed her here with you.”

“I wish you had been with me, too. Sam Sinclair was more trouble than help.” She snickered. “He can swim, though.”

Jen’s eyes widened, her spoonful of cereal stopped halfway to her mouth. “Sam Sinclair was with you?”

she squeaked.

Willa wanted to kick herself. “That is not common knowledge, young lady. Especially don’t tell your mother.”

Jen set her spoon in her bowl, her breakfast forgotten. “Are Abram’s grandsons as cool as Abram? Are they handsome? And single?” She shook her head. “What am I thinking? If they’re rich and handsome, of course they’re already married.”

“They are three confirmed bachelors, and women everywhere can be thankful for that. I came this close”—Willa held her thumb and finger an inch apart—“to tossing Sam overboard.”

“So where is he?”

“With any luck, on his way back toNew York City .”

Jen sighed and stood up. “Too bad. I’d like to meet one of Abram’s grandsons, so I could at least thank him for the truck. We need to get going so I won’t be late. I found your rain slicker caught on the fence. Here—it’s still raining a bit.” She handed it to Willa as she walked out the door.

“We’ll stop at the coffee shop, and you can run in and get me a muffin and coffee,” Willa said, smoothing down her tangled hair as she followed.

Jen giggled, limping toward the main driveway. “I think it’s cool how the coffee shop banned you.”

“Cool.”

“Well, yeah. It shows you’re not afraid to stand up for what you believe in.”

“Um…and at the town meeting last year?” Willa asked, watching her niece out of the corner of her eye.

“Do you think that was cool, or did I act like a ‘confounded female’ who didn’t know what in hell I was talking about?”

“No! Everyone has the right to speak out, especially when their opinion runs contrary to popular sentiment. That’s the whole point of democracy.”

“But did you agree with me?”

“It doesn’t matter. There were a lot of pros and cons to having a big-box store built in town, but nobody was voicing the cons. You should have sued them for removing you from the meeting. They completely disregarded your civil rights.”

Willa merely smiled as she climbed into the passenger seat of the SUV.

“Okay,” Jen said, putting the key in the ignition. “Promise to be patient with me.”

“Willa!”Shelby called.

Willa look out the windshield to see her sister standing on the porch, wearing her bathrobe and slippers.

“We need to talk.”Shelby lowered her voice to normal when Jennifer rolled down her window. “And you don’t have to take Jen to school. I’ll take her when I take Cody in, and she can practice driving with me this afternoon.”

“I don’t mind,” Willa said, leaning over to talk out of Jen’s window. “She asked for my help, so she must want me fussing over her.”

“Oh, for the love of—Willa, Richard called last night. He’s arriving home today.”

Willa glanced briefly at Jen, then looked back at her sister. “And?”

“And…he doesn’t know we’ve moved out,”Shelby said, also darting a glance at her daughter. “I just thought you might want to hang around here today.”

Willa patted Jen’s arm. “I’ll be right back, kiddo. Go ahead and start her up, and get familiar with all the dials and buttons. I need to talk to your mom for a minute.”

Willa scrambled out of the truck and ran onto the porch. “I’m not sure you want me here when Richard shows up,” she said, keeping her back to Jennifer and her voice low. She glanced toward the door to make sure Cody wasn’t within earshot, either. “When Richard brought Abram’s body down toNew York , he…well, he was really mad.”

“About what?”Shelby asked.

“He claimed I talked you into asking for a divorce.” Willa felt her face heat up. “And then Sam Sinclair showed up, and they got into a fight. Then the other two grandsons lugged Richard off and put him on that cargo ship headed toItaly .” She shook her head. “Richard blames me, Shel. But if you want me to be here when you confront him, I’ll come back after dropping Jen off.”

Shelbyfrowned at her.

“I guess he’s right to blame me. But I’ve missed hearing you laugh like you used to, Shel. I know you haven’t been happy for a long time now. Richard’s always putting you down, and you…you never defend yourself.”

“That’s because I no longer care what Richard thinks of me. But I didn’t realize how it was affecting my children. Then one day last month, Cody said something to me, and I heard Richard’s words coming out of his mouth. It wasn’t so much what Cody said, it was the tone he used. That’s when I knew staying for the sake of the children was actually hurting them.” She reached out and touched Willa’s sleeve. “I’m sorry he accused you, Willy. I told him the divorce was my idea and that you had nothing to do with it.”

Willa shook her head. “Sam showed up just as I slipped and fell, trying to walk away from Richard, and he thought Richard had attacked me. You should have seen them, Shel; they were like two mad dogs going at each other.”

“I’m going to be late!” Jen shouted.

Willa patted her sister’s arm. “I’ll check in at the factory, then come back here for the day. You can help me move my stuff into the cottage.” She ran down the stairs beforeShelby could respond.

“Okay, kiddo,” she said, climbing into the truck and fastening her seat belt. “Let’s see if we can get to school without breaking any speed records.”

Chapter Fifteen

Willa searched the cupboardsof her office bathroom for her hair dryer and finally found it in a box she’d brought in when she had first opened Kent Caskets. She plugged in the dryer. In four years, she’d never once showered at work.

There had been such a fuss over her having an executive bathroom when they renovated the old factory she’d bought. Her chief of operations, Silas Payne, had insisted that Willa have an entire office suite, saying she needed to present herself as a successful businesswoman. Maureen, head of casket interiors, had told Willa that Silas was so insistent because he couldn’t very well have his own private bathroom if his boss didn’t. Apparently, in big business, bathrooms were status symbols. Willa hadn’t envisioned Kent Caskets as a big business, but if her staff wanted to pretend it was, who was she to burst their bubble?

She frowned at herself in the mirror. So, okay, maybe there was a grain of truth in whatShelby had said last night. Maybe she had started up Kent Caskets to give the bored residents of Grand Point Bluff something to do. But she had to earn a living, so it was a win-win situation for everyone. Willa turned on the blow dryer and started brushing her hair, smiling as she remembered her hair-raising ride to work that morning.

Jennifer had to be operating the forklifts and equipment at Emmett’s yard; she’d driven the eight miles to school like a seasoned pro. However, Willa couldn’t get the hang of driving with her left foot if her life depended on it. She must have looked like a giant jackrabbit, spastically jerking the accelerator, then slamming on the brakes.

When she’d peered into her rearview mirror after dropping Jennifer off, Willa had seen a horrified look on her niece’s face. She didn’t know if she was embarrassing Jen beyond redemption or if the teenager had feared her beautiful new truck would return minus some paint. Once she’d managed to get on the road—after squealing the tires leaving the school driveway—she’d

had to keep pulling over so the accumulating rush-hour traffic could pass. It was a miracle she hadn’t been stopped for driving drunk, which is exactly what she must have looked like. Nevertheless, she was writing an editorial letter to the newspaper first thing tomorrow, explaining horn-honking etiquette to all the idiots who thought they owned the road.

She shut off the dryer, only to hear a knock on her office bathroom door, quickly followed by the familiar tap-tap-tap of Maureen’s cane.

“Everyone’s in the break room waiting for you, boss,” Maureen said, taking the brush out of Willa’s hand. She hung her cane on her arm, then started brushing the back of Willa’s hair. “We want to hear all about your trip toNew York . I especially want to hear about the board meeting. I hope you knocked the stuffing out of those suits.”

Willa sighed to herself. Anyone who wore a tie to work was a suit to Maureen, who still held a few grudges from when she had worked inBoston four decades ago. She’d been passed over for more than one promotion, the positions going to men who were often less qualified than she was. Which was why Maureen had moved to Keelstone Cove and opened a fabric shop twenty-five years ago, having realized there were no glass ceilings for business owners . She had eventually sold the Quilted Lobster for a tidy sum, moved into Grand Point Bluff, and agreed to become Willa’s director of casket interiors only because she would finally have a boss who wasn’t a man. That didn’t, however, stop Maureen from butting heads with Silas on a regular bases. There were days when Willa felt more like a referee than a business owner.

“I knocked out my own stuffing, Maureen,” Willa said with a laugh. “I was so nervous I nearly killed myself getting off the elevator. Um…about those beautiful suits you lent me? The brown one is okay because I was wearing it, but the green one has a tear in the skirt. The elevator ate it—along with the slacks Joan lent me.”

Maureen blinked at her in the mirror. “Can it be repaired?”

Willa turned to face her. “I don’t think so. The elevator chewed it up pretty badly.” She turned back to the mirror and started braiding her hair. “We’ll get on the Internet tomorrow, and you can pick out a new suit that you like.”

“It was a Pendleton, Willa. It cost me a week’s wages.”

Which was somewhere around a hundred and fifty bucks forty years ago, Willa figured. “You can also pick out a matching blouse and even a purse if you want.” She tied off the end of her thick braid and tossed it over her shoulder. “And just between you and me,” she said in a conspirator’s whisper, “I had those stuffed suits shaking in their shoes by the end of the meeting. I told them I wasn’t voting Abram’s shares until I was good and ready. Then I told the three grandsons that they were taking me to dinner that night, and we wouldn’t resume the board meeting until I was ready to vote.”

Maureen’s eyes widened. “I bet they didn’t like that.” She tapped her cane on the floor. “You did good, boss. Didn’t I tell you to walk in there as if you owned the place? God, I wish I’d been there to see it. Which one of the boys did you vote for?”

“I didn’t get to vote. Abram died the next morning, and my proxy died with him.”

Maureen’s excitement instantly vanished. “The old poop.” She turned to leave. “This place isn’t the same without him running around sticking his nose into everything.” She stopped at the door and looked

back. “Are you coming to the break room? You can at least tell us about the funeral.” She smiled.

“Abram looked right good in his casket, didn’t he?”

“You saw him in it?” Willa asked in surprise.

“Spencer arranged a viewing for us before Abram was shipped out. We all wanted to say our good-byes. That Spencer is a really nice fellow, for a lawyer.” She frowned. “Except he invited the coffee clubbers to come say good-bye, too. The mood sort of disintegrated when they walked in.” She lifted her chin. “Those people are really annoying. They were acting as if Abram was their best friend.”

“He had breakfast with them every morning, Maureen.”

“Still. That Doris Ambrose tucked an angel figurine in Abram’s casket, bawling like a baby. After she left, Silas shoved it down to Abram’s feet so his grandsons wouldn’t think we’re all wacko up here. So, are you coming to the break room?”

Willa sighed. “I’ll be there in a minute, and I’ll tell you all about Rosebriar, the grandsons, and the funeral.”

Maureen rushed off to inform the others, and Willa took her time straightening her bathroom. Before she’d left, she’d endured three days of being told how to act in a big-business board meeting, and her mentors were expecting to hear the details.

Willa stared into the mirror. She owed these sincere people so much for supporting her these past five years, and they deserved nothing but honesty from her. Besides, the majority of them were retired executives with cumulative decades of experience; surely they could help her figure a way out of the bequest.

Willa walked out of her office and down the hall, inhaling the familiar, comforting scent of hardwood resin. What had made her think that she could ever sail off into the sunset? She belonged here , in Keelstone Cove, in her factory, taking care of her adopted family. And Emmett. And Shelby and Jennifer and Cody. There might be times when she felt damned if she stayed, but she would surely die inside if she left.

She had just started to push open the door to the break room when she heard a familiar male voice say,

“And this is where the mainsail winch took the first chunk out of me. They really should put safety guards on those things.”

What was he doing here? Willa inched open the door and peeked inside, then immediately let it close, putting her back to the wall, her hand covering her heart. Holy hell, she’d forgotten how handsome he was. The last time she’d seen Sam, he’d had a five-day beard and more bruises than a prize fighter and had been stuffing his face like a caveman.

Damn, he cleaned up good.

He obviously had no intention of going back toNew York . Did he think to pick up where Abram had left off, hoping to rally her workers to his cause? By God, she’d fire them all if they even hinted that Sam would make her a wonderful husband.

The door suddenly opened, and Maureen walked out, giving a surprised yelp. “Land gracious, Willa, you startled me! I was coming after you again. You’ll never guess who’s here.” Then she frowned.

“Wait, you knew Sam Sinclair was in town, because he said he sailed in on the RoseWind with you. How come you didn’t tell me about him when I came to get you?”

“I forgot,” Willa said, walking past her into the suddenly silent break room. “Carl, I sold that custom rock maple casket last night and put the sales slip on your desk.” She went to the coffee pot and poured herself a cup, then turned and smiled at her crew. “I see you’ve all been very busy while I was away,”

she drawled. “Last night, when I stopped in to get Cyrus a casket for Gramps, I had to go back outside and look at the building to make sure I was in the right place. It amazes me how you can suddenly decide to remodel the reception area and get it completely done in less than ten days—all without the owner of the business knowing she even wanted to remodel.”

Nobody said anything.

Willa kicked her smile up a notch. “And I see you’ve all met Abram’s grandson Sam.” She looked directly at him. “Thank you for stopping by on your way back toNew York , to thank everyone personally for their condolences.”

Sam brushed the front of his shirt, sprinkling the floor with tiny wood shavings. “Actually, I stopped by this morning looking for a job.” He nodded toward Silas. “Mr. Payne was nice enough to give me a position in the planing room. I had no idea how precise woodworking is, but I hope I can get the hang of it in a few days.” He glanced toward Levi, the master carpenter, and smiled. “Assuming Levi doesn’t run me through the planer for ruining another bird’s-eye maple board.”

He was working here?

Willa’s hormones started doing their little happy dance, and she firmly tamped them down. “Wonderful.”

She looked at Silas Payne. “Though I just got back, I have to leave for the day, I’m afraid.Shelby ’s moved in with me, and we have to do some house rearranging.”