23
Matt was waiting for her in the foyer on Sunday morning as Vienna started down the stairs from the second level of the inn, his sport jacket highlighting broad shoulders that jacked up her pulse and left her a tad breathless.
“Sorry.” She picked up her pace and scanned her watch. “Did I have the departure time wrong? Have you been waiting long?”
“No to both. I was ready a few minutes early and decided to hang out here. The fog rolled in and cut my walk on the beach short.”
She stopped at the bottom of the stairs. “You already took a walk on the beach? You must have gotten up at the crack of dawn.”
“I did. Kay called very early. Cora appears to have an infection in her incision. We had to talk her into letting us contact the doctor.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. Kay didn’t mention anything about complications last night.”
“She wasn’t aware of the situation until a couple of hours ago. Cora’s very independent and doesn’t like anyone to fuss over her.” His features softened. “But she sure fussed over us after she took us under her wing.”
“Sounds like there’s a story there.”
“I’ll tell it to you on the drive to town. Ready to go?”
He followed her out, settled her in his car, and circled around to take his place behind the wheel. “Are you certain you want to hear another tale from my past after everything I dumped on you last night?” He put the car in gear and drove down the gravel drive, his light tone at odds with his serious demeanor.
“I didn’t feel dumped on.” It was important to make that clear. “I was touched by your willingness to confide in me. And for the record, I think you’re being harder on yourself about what happened than anyone else would be. The mistakes you made aren’t the kind that usually lead to tragedy.”
“But these did.”
There was no disputing that.
Yet anyone looking at the situation objectively would realize his guilt was misplaced.
Hopefully he’d be able to accept that one day and put his gut-wrenching remorse to rest—but given the firm set of his jaw, this wasn’t that day.
“I know.” She took a deep breath and moved on. “To answer your question about Cora, yes, I’d like to hear about her. If two unrelated people are willing to disrupt their lives to the extent you and Kay have to help her out, she must be very special.”
“She is. We think of her as our grandmother. I don’t know what we’d have done without her after our parents died.”
For the duration of the short drive through the fog, Matt filled her in on the woman he described as a bit rough-hewn in terms of manners and sophistication but endowed with world-class generosity and compassion.
“How old were you when she came into your life?”
“Nine. Kay was eighteen and at her wit’s end trying to raise me and make ends meet. We were two lost souls in desperate need of nurturing. After we moved into the other side of Cora’s duplex, she plied us with copious amounts of love and advice and chocolate chip cookies.”
“She must be a wonderful woman.”
“She is. I hate to think where we’d have ended up without her.” As Matt concluded his tale, he swung into the lot at Grace Christian. “We weren’t about to let her go through bypass surgery alone.”
“After hearing your story, I can understand that. Do you think this infection is serious?” The caring, compassionate woman Matt had described didn’t deserve a setback, and Matt didn’t need any more loss in his life.
His forehead puckered as he pulled into a parking spot. “I hope not, but surgical site infections can be nasty. We won’t know how serious hers is until she’s evaluated. Sit tight and I’ll get your door.”
Before she could tell him not to bother, he slid out of the car.
Impressive.
Not many men practiced those kinds of basic courtesies anymore.
The display of excellent manners continued as he opened the church door for her, deferred to her on where to sit, and motioned her to precede him into the pew.
His wife had been a lucky woman.
Vienna sneaked a peek at him.
She was lucky too, for however long Matt was destined to be a part of her life.
But how long would that be?
A question that kept disrupting her concentration during the service despite her concerted effort to pay attention.
Hopefully God would understand and give her some guidance about where and how this man might fit into her world.
After the service ended, Matt again let her precede him down the aisle, but as they reached the vestibule, an older woman flagged him down and trekked over at a sprightly pace behind her walker.
She acknowledged both of them with a smile but spoke to Matt. “I’m so glad I caught you. I wanted to see if you’d be home this afternoon. I’d like to drop off a special delivery.”
“Yes, I will. I’ll be painting the rest of the day. Let me introduce you to Bev Price’s daughter, Vienna.”
As he did so, the woman took her hand. “Very nice to meet you, Vienna. Your mother’s bookshop has been a godsend for me. Likewise for the conversation she provides. What a welcoming haven she’s created in Hope Harbor. I expect she’s delighted you came for a visit.”
“Happy to meet you too, Ms. Cooper. And I agree about the bookshop.”
“Make it Eleanor. We don’t stand on formalities in Hope Harbor.” She patted her hand.
“How’s Methuselah doing?” Matt rejoined the conversation.
“Very well, thanks to you. Did you tell Vienna about him?”
“No.”
Eleanor turned to her again. “Methuselah is my cat. He cut his paw on Friday, and Charley drove me out to the inn. Matt fixed him up in a jiffy. A house call in reverse, I suppose.” Her mouth bowed, and a merry glint appeared in her eyes. “If you’re in the neighborhood, he might share the treat I’ll be delivering later. Small compensation for his expertise and kindness, but since he wouldn’t let me pay him, it will have to suffice.”
“I was happy to help,” Matt said. “I don’t want my skills to get rusty.”
“You could keep them plenty sharp in Hope Harbor. I remember when our police chief’s husband had to run his injured dog, Clyde, all the way up to Coos Bay. The poor pup could have died. Shep and Ziggy, the collies out at the cranberry farm, require regular looking after too. Then there’s Toby, the cute beagle at the lavender farm. And Annabelle, Mrs. Schroeder’s cat on Pelican Point Road, who’s forever climbing trees and getting into fights. Not to mention Daisy, the border collie who belongs to our wonderful landscaper, Jon Gray, at Greenscape.”
The corners of Matt’s lips rose. “That’s quite a menagerie.”
“Indeed it is. If ever you want to relocate, you’ll find a grateful market here. Now I must be going. Luis will be waiting out front. Happy to meet you, Vienna. I hope you enjoy your stay in our charming little town. Matt, expect me this afternoon at the inn.”
As the woman trundled off, Vienna arched an eyebrow at her companion. “Not many vets do pro bono work.”
“Nor do hotel consultants.”
Checkmate.
“So what’s the treat she’s bringing?”
“A fudge cake that’s apparently famous in these parts. Are you interested in sampling it later? I can’t eat a whole cake.”
“You could twist my arm. Chocolate is hard to resist. But I’m having dinner with Mom tonight, as usual, after she gets back. With all the stories she’ll have to share, I’m not certain how late I’ll—”
“Excuse me . . . may I interrupt for a moment?”
Vienna turned.
A slender, late thirtyish woman with long blond hair and accompanied by a tall man extended her hand to Matt. “I wanted to introduce myself. I spoke with your sister a few weeks ago about doing repairs at the B&B. I’m BJ Stevens Nash, and this is my husband, Eric.”
“Kay mentioned you.” Matt shook her hand and did likewise with her husband as he introduced Vienna. “She said you were booked for the foreseeable future.”
“Yes, and I suspect I’ll only get busier. Not that I’m complaining, but I wish I could have helped your sister out. I just wasn’t able to meet her aggressive timetable with my present staff and workload. But I understand you found someone to do the job for you.”
“I did. Andrew Thompson. He’s phenomenal.”
“Andrew Thompson.” She shook her head. “I don’t recognize the name.”
“He’s from Portland, but I think he’s planning to relocate to this area.”
“Uh-oh, BJ. Competition.” Eric grinned and gave her a shoulder nudge.
She wrinkled her nose at him and nudged back. “There’s ample work for everyone. I’d love to see how the B&B is shaping up, though. It has solid bones. Would you mind if I swing by sometime?”
“Not at all. In fact, if you’re out and about today, I’ll be there painting, and no one else will be on-site. You could wander around at your leisure.”
“I may do that.”
Eric took her arm. “We should go. Dad’s expecting us for brunch.”
“I know. A pleasure to meet you both.”
As the couple disappeared into the crowd that had gathered in the vestibule, Vienna cocked her head at Matt. “You’ll be having a fair amount of company at the inn this afternoon.”
“Fine by me. I’m used to activity around the place.” He pulled out his cell. Scrolled through his messages.
“Anything from Kay or Andrew?”
“No. Let’s hope the old saying is true, and no news is good news. Ready to go back?”
“Yes.”
They continued toward the door, pausing to say hello to Reverend Baker as they passed.
“Wonderful to see you both. You are together today, correct?”
“Yes.” Vienna smiled at the cleric. “It was more environmentally responsible to take one car.”
“Very civic minded of you.” He gave a solemn nod, but his eyes were twinkling. “I’ll have to let Father Murphy know I saw you today. I may have jumped the gun on your first visit, but it appears my instincts were sound.”
His inference was obvious, and Vienna sent Matt a sidelong glance as her cheeks warmed. But her companion seemed to be taking the pastor’s comment in stride.
When several congregants joined them, Matt took her arm, bid the man a pleasant day, and guided her toward the door.
As they returned to his car, and during the drive back, he kept the conversation focused on inn-related topics. Fine by her. They’d had enough heavy conversation in the past fifteen hours.
Unfortunately, he didn’t mention the looming breakfast issue—and given Cora’s new health problem, menus and recipe testing weren’t going to be top of mind for Kay in the near term. A major concern with the soft opening less than two weeks away.
Vienna played with her seat belt.
She had to discuss the situation with Matt, develop a backup plan.
But adding another worry to his already overloaded plate felt almost cruel. Heck, as it was, the man was going to spend his whole Sunday painting to pick up some of the slack left by the Thompsons’ crisis.
Painting.
Hmm.
An idea began to percolate in her mind that could give her the opportunity to broach the breakfast subject. And as she half listened while Matt talked about the new sign featuring the logo Marci had designed for the inn, which would be installed at the entrance as soon as the driveway was repaired, it solidified.
Maybe her approach wouldn’t provide an immediate solution to the breakfast dilemma, but it might reassure him he wasn’t alone and that she’d do whatever she could to help him see this mammoth project through to the end.
As Matt changed out of his church clothes and donned his spattered painting attire, his cell pinged.
Pulling his sweatshirt over his head, he strode across the room and picked it up from the dresser in the innkeeper’s quarters.
Sorry we had to cut out last night. Hopefully Vienna passed on the news. Paige’s mom is doing okay. TIA, not a stroke. We plan to come back tomorrow after she has a surgical procedure. Should be in Hope Harbor by six and back on the job Tuesday. Will still finish up on schedule.
Matt put his thumbs to work.
I’m glad it wasn’t more serious. Continuing to paint, so we should be ahead of the curve on that. Thanks for the update.
At least he wouldn’t have to worry about missing the completion deadline. With the tight timetable they were on, even a day or two lost would have caused a major glitch. Especially since the three rooms they were using for the soft opening were already booked.
He finished dressing, tied his sport shoes, and picked up the phone again.
As he began to slide it into his pocket, it rang.
Kay.
Pulse accelerating, he put it to his ear. “What’s the news?”
“Not great. Her doctor wanted her to go to the ER. We’re there now. Her temperature’s up to 102. They’re going to admit her and put her on IV antibiotics.”
That wasn’t what he wanted to hear.
He forked his fingers through his hair and began to pace. “Has her doctor seen her?”
“Are you kidding? It’s Sunday.” Kay made no attempt to hide her aggravation. “He said he’d come by early tomorrow.”
“What have they told you so far?”
“Hang on a sec. Let me pull out my notes.” A muffled noise sounded in the background, like paper being unfolded. “They’re thinking it’s superficial at this point. They also sent a sample from the infected area to the lab for testing. They seem concerned it may be something called MRSA. What’s that?”
“A type of staph infection that’s resistant to commonly used antibiotics.”
“Then how do they get rid of it?”
“Certain drugs will work. That’s why they took a sample. They want to identify the exact type of bacteria they have to tackle.”
“So once they figure that out, she’ll be okay?”
Not always. MRSA was tricky, especially in a patient already recovering from major surgery whose resistance was down.
But it would serve no purpose to further worry Kay.
“MRSA is treatable.” Whether it would respond, or cause other problems before it did, was another concern.
“Do you think she’ll be in the hospital long?”
“Depends on how fast they get the infection under control. If all goes well, maybe a day or two.” But much longer if complications arose.
“I’m worried about leaving her alone. I’m supposed to come back to Oregon in less than a week.”
And he was supposed to return to San Francisco.
Matt began to pace. “A brief stay at a rehab facility may be an option after you leave, if necessary.”
“She’d hate that.”
Yeah, she would—and truth be told, he’d hate it for her. Even the plushest places were institutional. There would be no family coming in and out to keep tabs on her and make certain everything was being done that was supposed to be done.
And to ensure a patient got optimal care in today’s world, an advocate was essential while navigating the health care system.
“Matt . . .”
He knew what was coming, so he finished the sentence for her. “You want to stay longer.”
“Yes. I could never repay her for everything she did for us. And leaving her alone feels all wrong. If you could extend your stay for one more week, it should get Cora over the hump. Could you ask Steve if he could spare you for five more days?”
“You won’t be here for the inn opening.”
“I know, but Vienna will. She told me she’s staying for the bloggers’ visit and until reservations begin coming in. She said she wants to be able to have a successful relaunch on her resume. To be honest, with her physical proximity to everything that’s been happening out there, she’s more in tune with the day-to-day details of all this than I am.”
That was true.
And having an extra week in Vienna’s company would be no hardship on his end.
“I can’t make any promises, but I’ll call Steve after we hang up and run this by Vienna. If she’s not comfortable handling the opening without you present, we’ll have to regroup.”
“I understand. But if you can swing this, I think it would be in Cora’s best interest.”
“Did you tell her about the potential change in your schedule yet?”
“No. I want it to be set when I broach the topic. Otherwise, she’ll tell me not to bother you with this and insist I go back to Oregon as planned. If it’s a done deal, she can’t refuse.”
“Smart strategy. I’ll touch base with Steve and Vienna today and give you an answer as soon as I have one. Until then, hang in and call with any news.”
“Will do. I have to run. The ER doctor’s coming out of Cora’s room, and I want to flag him down. Talk to you later.”
As the line went dead, Matt exhaled and checked his watch.
If Steve was following his usual pattern, he and his wife would be having a leisurely breakfast before leaving for the late service at their church.
It was either call him now and interrupt his meal or wait until this afternoon and intrude on another activity. Unfortunately, he couldn’t defer this matter until their usual Tuesday check-in call. It required a faster resolution.
He dropped into a chair next to the window and tapped in Steve’s number.
His partner didn’t answer until the fourth ring, just as the call was poised to roll to voicemail. “Hey, Matt. Sorry for the delay. Vanessa’s taking a bath, and my hands were immersed in bubbles.”
Matt’s lips quirked. “Did I want to hear that?”
A beat ticked by.
“I was washing the breakfast dishes. What did you think I was doing? Wait. Don’t answer that. The more important question is, why would you think I was doing what you thought I was doing? Your mind hasn’t tracked that direction for two years.”
Steve had a point.
And the answer was simple.
He’d met Vienna.
But he wasn’t introducing her into this conversation.
“Can’t a guy make a joke?”
“Sure. But you haven’t done that in two years, either. This trip has been good for you.”
An ideal segue to the topic he wanted to discuss.
“Speaking of that . . . I may need an extension.” He brought Steve up to speed on Cora’s situation. “Kay and I are thinking another week should cover us. Can you manage that long without me if necessary?”
“No worries. Zoe’s stepped up to the plate and picked up a huge amount of work. We should be fine.”
It was reassuring to hear their part-time staffer was working out well, even if it made him feel a bit superfluous.
“Thanks. I’ll let you know how this plays out. If all goes according to plan, I’ll be back in the office August 1.”
“No worries. We’ve got you covered. Just keep me in the loop. Now it’s back to the bubbles for me.”
Steve ended the call, and Matt slid the phone into the pocket of his jeans. The two of them were a great team, and he’d always expected their partnership to last until one or both of them decided to retire many years down the road.
But as Eleanor’s comment from this morning about the large nonhuman population of Hope Harbor replayed in his mind, a different future than the one he’d envisioned suddenly tantalized.
From all indications, Steve and Zoe were doing fine without him. She was an excellent vet, despite her limited experience. If he ever decided to leave the practice, she could take his place.
Of course, a life-changing decision like that required serious deliberation. Look what had happened to Kay when she’d jumped too fast. Unless he was misreading her, she was having major second thoughts about being an innkeeper.
So he wouldn’t make a mistake by moving in haste.
Besides, much as he liked Hope Harbor and felt at home here, the town itself wasn’t the only draw. The people mattered too.
One in particular.
Problem was, once the inn was up and running, Vienna would be off to whatever glitzy job enticed her away.
Unless he could tempt her to stay by sharing another idea that was beginning to take shape in his mind.