Chapter 27

Abby

Although Abby had done a fairly good job of putting her impending financial disaster out of mind, now that it was the final day of the cruise, she felt that in the same way this ship was sailing to its final port, she could be sailing into what would surely be a hurricane.

“Are you okay?” Janie asked her as they sat beside the pool, sipping their happy-hour drinks. Marley and Caroline had surprised everyone by signing up for skeet shooting. Really, who knew?

“What?” Abby gazed blankly at Janie. “I’m sorry, did I miss something?”

“Yes, but it was unimportant.” Janie peered curiously at her. “Really, are you okay? You’re not getting a late batch of that norovirus, are you?”

“No, I’m healthy as a horse.” Abby patted her solid midsection. “And it’s plain to see I’ve been eating like one too.”

“Everyone overeats on cruises.” Janie set her drink down. “I’ve been thinking a lot about your financial situation. And I’ve wanted to say something, except I hated to drag you back into it. Especially since we were trying to make our last days of the cruise the best.”

“Yes.” Abby nodded. “I was actually just sitting here thinking I should be crowned the Queen of Denial. Because that’s what I’m trying to do—deny that it’s really happening. I’m wishing I didn’t have to go home. Maybe I should jump ship.”

“Do you want to talk?”

Abby shrugged. “Yes … and no.”

“Okay, I’m going with the yes.” Janie took in a deep breath. “And the reason I’m going with the yes is because I think I have a right to know what’s going on.”

Abby blinked as realization set in. “Oh, my!” She put her hand over her mouth. “I nearly forgot. You’re a partner with me in the bed-and-breakfast.”

Janie nodded. “And for that reason, I think you need to hear my thoughts on the subject.”

Abby nodded. “Yes, of course.”

“Well, I don’t know exactly what Paul’s decided to do, whether he’s already filed bankruptcy or chapter seven or eleven or what. But I have a feeling we can keep the inn.”

“Really?” Abby leaned forward. “I mean I understand that you can’t possibly lose your half, although I’m not even sure how to sort that all out. But you think I can keep my part too?” Of course, even as Abby said this, she realized it was kind of ridiculous. Janie was the one who’d made most of the financial investment.

Janie started talking, but most of what she said went right over Abby’s head. “You know,” Abby said, “you need to talk to Paul about this. I mean before it’s too late.”

“Do you want me to call him?” Janie offered.

“Oh, would you?”

“Sure.” Janie pulled out her phone and handed it to Abby.

“I think you’ll have the most luck on his cell phone.” Abby dialed his number then waited for him to answer. “No, this isn’t Janie,” she quickly explained when he recognized the caller ID. “I’m on her phone, and I asked her to speak to you. She might have some legal advice.”

“Legal advice?”

“For our, uh, our financial situation.”

“Oh, Abby, I’ve got it under control. You just need to—”

“Look, Paul, I am half of our marriage, and it’s my financial boat that you’re floating, or sinking, and I am appointing Janie to represent my legal rights. So you better listen to her. Okay?”

“Well, okay.”

“Okay then.” She handed the phone back to Janie. “Give him what for,” she said quietly.

Janie glanced around. Others were nearby enjoying their drinks. “Mind if I go somewhere more private?” she asked Abby.

Abby waved her hand. “Not at all.” In truth, Abby was relieved. It wasn’t that she wanted to stick her head in the sand—well, maybe she did—but it was also very frustrating to hear about all this money business. It was one thing to lose everything she had, everything she’d worked for, but to keep rehashing it over and over … well, that just seemed like cruel and unusual punishment.

Janie didn’t return for quite a while, and Abby started to feel guilty. First of all, how was she going to pay Janie for her time? Plus she was forcing Janie to work when she should be on vacation—and the last day of the cruise, too. Not only that, Janie was using her own phone, and Paul had said that international calls were very expensive. The ship was nearly to the California border, though, so maybe that wouldn’t be an issue. Weren’t phone calls tax deductible anyway?

Finally, and to Abby’s relief, Janie came back. But it was impossible to read her expression. “Well?” Abby demanded. “Did he listen to you?”

Janie smiled. “I’m not sure that he did at first, but after a while, I think he realized I was making some sense. Obviously, I can’t help him too much with the loss of his construction business or even your new house, but I feel fairly certain we can keep the inn out of it.”

“Are you sure that Paul understood this? He seems to think the inn is considered communal property and that we’ll lose it too. At least my half.”

“I told Paul what he should do to keep the inn separate, and he promised to do it.”

Abby was afraid to get her hopes up. “If your idea works, Janie, do you think that it would be okay if Paul and I lived at the inn?”

Janie shrugged. “I don’t see why not. The key here is that you and I own the inn, Abby. Paul’s name isn’t on any of the papers. At the time I wasn’t so sure that was a good idea. Now, I’m very, very thankful. You should be too.”

Clasping her hands, Abby closed her eyes and let out a deep breath. She wasn’t sure if it was a silent prayer or a desperate plea or what, but she meant it. She really meant it. She looked at Janie. “Thank you, Janie.”

“It’s too soon to know for sure that my plan will help, but I feel confident.”

“Well, it helped me.”

Marley and Caroline came back. “Man, you should see that girl shoot.” Marley pointed at Caroline. “If you’re ever in a dangerous situation, you better hope she’s packing heat.”

Caroline laughed. “Yes, you’ll see me toting a shotgun around Clifden any day.”

“You could take up hunting,” Abby said. “Paul and his buddies might let you join them.” She grimaced. “At the rate we’re going, Paul might have to take to hunting again just to bring us home something to eat. And fishing too.” She smiled. “Maybe I’ll have to start gardening again. You know I actually have missed it. But it’s impossible to get much to grow at the beach. Too windy.”

“You could grow things at the inn,” Caroline suggested. “Chuck and I will be out of your hair before long. And I’ve been very careful about cleaning up his messes. It looks like things really grow well back there.”

Abby nodded. “I used to have a lovely garden back when the girls were growing up. I’d love to have one again.”

“So maybe it’s true that every cloud has a silver lining,” Caroline told her. “For all of us.”

Abby told them about how Janie had just spoken to Paul. “So keep your fingers crossed,” she said. “Or pray, whichever comes most naturally.”

That night, when Abby was in bed, she did pray. Not that it came naturally, but she did believe in prayer, and she did believe that it would take someone as mighty as God to turn things around for her and Paul. She wasn’t thinking of only material things either. She was thinking about their marriage, their values, their futures. She remembered when they’d been younger—how they’d gone to church regularly, taken the girls to Sunday school, taken their faith seriously. Then the girls got older and went their own ways, and time and busyness had distracted them. But lately—what with Paul’s heart attack, their marriage troubles, and now this financial situation—well, Abby wondered if God hadn’t just been trying to get their attention all along. Maybe it was about time they sat up and listened. Maybe it was time to go back to church, too.