Driftwood Point (28 page)

“You're becoming a regular master chef,” Lis said.

“Someone's got to pick up the slack around here.” He took three plates from the cupboard.

“You're going to have to save me a piece.”

“Oh? Big dinner date?” He took a closer look at his sister. “Ah, probably not dressed like that.”

“These are my traveling clothes, the most comfortable things I own.” She held on to the hem of the faded navy T-shirt, which she'd put on over old khaki shorts.

“Traveling?” Ruby asked. “Where you be traveling off to?”

“I'm going to my apartment. I left a lot of things undone there.” She took a knife from the drawer and sliced off an edge of the meat loaf. “Oh, yum. I can smell the thyme.” She took a bite. “Perfect. You really could get a job making this stuff.”

“I have a job, remember? I start next week.”

“Making meat loaf has to be easier than diving under the water with an oxygen tank on your back.”
Lis sliced off another piece and bit into it. “Really. This is delicious.”

“Maybe easier but not as adventurous.”

“Ah, that's right. Mr. Adventure. I guess things have been too quiet around here for you this past week or so. Nothing to get your heart pumping.” She grinned and lowered her voice. “Except maybe a certain blonde.”

“Lisbeth Jane, you put down that knife and stop hacking away and sit down at the table proper and eat your dinner with us.”

“I really wanted to get on the road early, Gigi.”

“That road still be there in another half hour. Here.” Ruby handed her a bowl of green beans. “You put this on the table and come back in here for the salad.”

“Guess I'm here for dinner,” Lis muttered.

“Better than driving a couple of hours on an empty stomach.” Ruby harrumphed. “Taking off when dinner be ready to be put out. What nonsense be that?”

In the end, it had taken more than a half hour to eat, clean up, and get going. Before she left, Lis called Alec, but he didn't pick up, so she left a voicemail telling him she'd be back probably by tomorrow, maybe the day after. She wasn't sure how long it was going to take to set things in order once she got to New Jersey. But she'd made up her mind that Ted had to step up and take whatever of his things remained in the apartment. She'd clean out her closet, pack up her clothes and the remainder of her painting supplies
and the books she wanted to keep. She'd donate what she didn't want and she'd store, for now, those pieces of furniture she couldn't take with her. Of course, she'd planned to do all these things during her last trip, but in the end hadn't taken any real steps to accomplish any of it. Now she had resolve. She knew where she belonged, and it wasn't in New Jersey. This time around, she was determined to clear her things out of the apartment. She didn't really own all that much, she reminded herself.

How long could it take?

Chapter Seventeen

Y
ou sure you have everyone lined up?” Brian ­Deiter stood on the front porch of Ruby's general store. “Everyone's going to come?”

“I spoke with Mrs. Carter about an hour ago. She contacted everyone who has a property that she believes they might want to sell,” Alec told him.

“What if she's wrong?” Brian grabbed Alec by the arm.

Alec removed the man's hand.

“Ruby Carter is never wrong. But if no one agrees to sell, well, then you know where you stand as far as this project is concerned.”

“Yeah,” Brian grumbled. “Nowhere.”

Alec shrugged and went inside to look for Ruby. There were seven or eight property owners who Ruby had identified to Alec as possibly wanting to sell. Tom Mullan was one of them. He'd already agreed, but he'd allegedly come to offer moral support to Alec, though Alec knew his motives weren't quite that altruistic. If no one else sold, the chances that Deiter
would build anything on the island were practically nonexistent. It was too costly to do all the testing necessary and apply for all the required permits to build two relatively small houses.

Cass came into the store carrying the display she had made earlier that morning. It showed the island as she projected it would look when the new homes had been completed. She wanted to assure the potential sellers that the homes on the drawing board were as island friendly as she could make them, with simple architectural features that would blend into the existing buildings, and with landscaping that would utilize only native trees. And the builders would respect the wildlife on the dunes.

“Where would you like these?” Cass asked Alec.

“Maybe stand them up over on the counter.” He took a quick glance at the poster in her hand. “That looks fabulous, Cass. You captured . . . really, it's just what it should be.”

“I listened, buddy.” She took the posters and the display to the counter and began to set them up. “I wasn't sure I could get this all done on such short notice, but it worked out okay.”

When Ruby came into the room, Cass stopped what she was doing and watched in fascination as the elderly woman approached her.

“You must be Mrs. Carter,” Cass said in a tone that was almost reverent. “I'm Cass Logan, the architect.”

“I know who you be.” Ruby appeared to study Cass for a moment. “You be welcome here, Cass Logan.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Carter.”

“Alec said you be doing some pictures of the houses your daddy wants to build.”

“They're right here.” Cass scrambled to put the posters in order. “Here's what we're looking at for the Mullan property.”

Ruby studied the poster, then moved on to the next, nodding slowly. “And this one—this be the whole island?”

“Yes. With the houses we'd like to build on the lots Alec thought might be available.”

“There be nothing built on the point,” Ruby noted with satisfaction.

“Alec said you had no interest in selling the point.”

“Alec be right.”

“You should know that my father hasn't given up on getting you to sell it to him.”

“He be wasting his time.”

“I know. He wanted me to sketch in a couple of houses out here toward the pier . . .”

“No point wasting time on something that never going to happen.”

“That's exactly what I thought.” Cass smiled. “But I did have to humor him with a mock-up of how the point would look with houses on it. He
is
my father. . . .”

“Get along just fine, you and me, Cass Logan.” Ruby patted the woman's arm.

Alec had eavesdropped on the conversation and was relieved that his overall assessment of Cass as being someone he could trust was holding true. Brian
Deiter might be disappointed at the end of the night, but Cass had won over Ruby, and that was more important than feeding the developer's ego.

Alec wished he'd been able to get in touch with Lis, but when he called yesterday, and then again today, she hadn't picked up the call. The night before last she'd phoned him from her car to let him know she was going to her apartment to pick up some things she needed, but he hadn't heard from her since. The request from Deiter to bring everyone together had been made the afternoon following what Alec had begun to think of as prom night. Yesterday Alec sat with Ruby and they'd gone over the names of people she knew had been thinking about selling, those who had moved away and had property to sell, and those who might be interested if the price was right. He'd spent yesterday and today tracking down the people on the list, and by five that evening had made personal contact with every single person. They weren't all able to attend, but some had sent family members and others had said straight out that they'd be happy to sell for the right number. To make sure that the amounts offered were fair to everyone—especially the property owners—Alec had invited Hamilton—Ham—Forbes, a local Realtor, to be part of the conversation that evening. Forbes for Homes had been in business in St. Dennis for over sixty years with good reason. Everyone knew Ham's father, and they knew him and his reputation for being fair and honest.

The past two days had kept Alec crazy busy, and he figured that was a good thing, with Lis out of town. He was having a really hard time focusing on
anything but her. He'd never really believed a time would come when she would be in his arms, even though she'd been in the back of his mind for as long as he could remember. Lis was everything he'd ever wanted in his life, and he spent the past few days pinching himself every time he thought about the night they spent together.

He tried everything he could think of to find a way to make the cottage come alive for Lis—had even asked his friend Cam O'Connor to take a look at the place and see if maybe he saw something Alec hadn't seen. While Cam's assessment pretty much echoed Alec's, he had agreed that it might be possible to salvage the place by removing the floorboards on the first floor section by section, and replacing the foundation piece by piece. Both men agreed it was a gamble, but for Alec, it was a gamble worth taking.

But just in case the old cottage couldn't be saved, Alec had turned to Cass and asked her if she'd be interested in designing a house that replicated the cottage with maybe a few concessions for modern living, like air-conditioning and central heat. Cass had been intrigued and hadn't wasted a moment. The drawing she showed Alec was perfect in every way. He had to admit that Cass really had a feel for the island. He hated knowing that Lis would be disappointed if Ruby's cottage couldn't be made whole, but he hoped that Cass's plans might take out some of the sting.

People began to drift into the store, hesitantly at first. Alec greeted them, as did Ruby, and one by one, they gravitated to the counter to look over Cass's
plans. Soon there was a comfortable buzz of chatter in the room, and Alec began to relax.

Until Owen came in and looked around. He went straight to Ruby, who talked to him for a moment, after which Owen began to rub his chin, then nod his head. Then he made his way through the small crowd to the counter, and walked up behind Cass. He touched her shoulder, and she turned around with a smile on her lips.

Oh boy
, Alec thought.

Owen Parker had always had a love-'em-and-leave-'em reputation. When it came to girls, he'd made it clear that he didn't like to work hard at it, and back in the day, he'd never had to. Girls had always flocked to him like lemmings to a high cliff. He was a natural-born player.

Alec smiled. Yup. Owen Parker just might have met his match.

He glanced at his watch. He'd told everyone Ruby thought should be included to come to the store by seven thirty. He knew there would be questions, and if they weren't asked, he'd bring up certain points himself. He wanted to make sure that everyone understood what was going to happen if they decided to sell, all the pros and all the cons. Once this door was opened, it could not be closed, and he wanted everyone to understand, as Ruby had, that change can be good if things are done the right way. He never forgot who had hired him, but at the same time, he knew that in the end the best interests of the island and those of his client would be the same. Cut corners led to costly problems—it was
better to do the right thing from the start. He'd been pounding this into Brian Deiter's head for the last few weeks, and it had been a godsend that the architect was the boss's daughter and she agreed with Alec's philosophy.

The last of the islanders wandered in and went straight to the displays on the counter, which everyone crowded around. It was time to get their show on the road.

Alec cleared his throat and said, “Folks, we'd like to get started, so please take a seat, and we can begin. I know you all have questions, so now is the time to ask them . . .”

LIS STOPPED AT
the red light on Charles Street and craned her neck to get a better look at a bathing suit in Bling's window. The light turned and the car behind her blew its horn, so she stepped on the gas. She could pop into Bling tomorrow, she thought as she drove toward the island. Or the day after. She'd found the green paint she'd been looking for, and the tube, along with the rest of all her supplies, were piled amid her clothes in the backseat. She'd sort it all out when she got back to Ruby's. She'd been looking for her phone for the past two days, and she suspected it might be somewhere in that pile of dresses, sweaters, shoes, pants, and art supplies.

Everything had gone surprising well. Ted had been cooperative, renting a truck, and having bribed a few friends with promises of pizzas and beer, had moved all his belongings from the apartment. He'd even offered to move Lis's table and chairs and a few
other pieces to the storage unit she'd rented. At first she declined: The sooner he was gone, the better. But when he'd repeated his offer, noting there was still room in the truck, she'd thanked him and supervised the carrying of her furniture to the truck. What the hell, she'd thought as she drove to the storage facility. It was the least he could do for her. Besides, her only other option was to hire a truck and movers of her own, which would require her to stay a few more days in the near-empty apartment. She'd already checked with several reputable movers, and the earliest she could get a crew, even a small one, would have been the beginning of the following week. It wasn't the cost that had changed her mind. She just didn't want to spend that much more time away from the ­island—from Alec and Ruby and Owen—and the new life she was building there.

And Ted had been cordial, making the most of the awkward situation. Thankfully, Pam had not tagged along. Lis wasn't sure she could have been as pleasant to her former friend—the friend she'd cried to when she and Ted first broke up, the friend who'd patted her hand and told her it was all for the best and she deserved someone better than Ted. All in all, Lis had been grateful for Ted's help. Clearing out the apartment meant she could load up her car, give her key to the landlord, collect her security deposit, and say good-bye to the past.

“Close one door, open another,”
Ruby would say. Lis smiled as she did, literally, close the door behind her and headed home.

Home to Cannonball Island and her cottage on the point. Home to Ruby. Home to Alec and her future.

SHE DROVE OVER
the bridge, and as she approached the store, she noted that cars were parked along the road where normally there were none. When she pulled into the driveway and saw not only Alec's car but the white Cadillac as well, she felt a sense of panic. Why were there so many cars there? Had something happened to Ruby? Had Alec or Owen tried to call on her phone, which she'd been unable to locate?

She hopped out of her car and all but ran up the steps and pushed open the front door, then stopped short and stared in confusion at the gathering inside.

“What's going on?” she asked.

“Lis.” Alec put down whatever he'd had in his hand and went to her. “I've been trying to call you, but—”

“What is going on here?” she said a little louder. “Where's Ruby? Is she all right?”

“I'm right here, where I always be, and I be fine,” Ruby said from her chair at the round table. “Why wouldn't I be?”

“Why are all these people here?” Lis turned to Alec. “What the hell, Alec?”

“There's a meeting here, with a developer who wants . . . that is, he's thinking about buying a few lots here on the island and . . .”

Deep frown lines creased her forehead, and she
pushed past him and went directly to the counter. Her eyes scanned the displays.

“Gigi, did you know about this? Before tonight?” Lis asked.

Ruby nodded. “Known from the start.”

“You didn't think to mention it?”

“At the time, it were just talk. And not my place to tell.”