Pet Friendly (10 page)

CHAPTER 14

W
hile Todd and Jake were at the hardware store, Emma spent some time visiting with her guests. The ghost hunters were still buzzing about the so-called encounter of the night before, and the more the tale was retold, the more fantastic it became. The brief series of moans was now described as the cry of a banshee, and the number of people claiming they'd heard it had grown from a handful to almost the entire SSSPA.

As a result, some of the “civilian” guests were beginning to look rattled, and Emma was careful to reassure them that whatever might—or might not—have occurred, it posed no danger to them. The ghost hunters might be good customers, after all, but they were by no means her only customers. The last thing she needed was to have a riot on her hands.

At least the spirits' reappearance had improved Viv Van Vandevander's mood. No longer unsure of her powers, she was once again in the thick of things, enjoying the notoriety of being the only true medium of the group, answering questions from the conventioneers, and deferring to Lars when historic details were required. As Emma watched the two of them hold court in the lobby, she smiled. They were good people, she thought, even if she didn't believe a word of what they were saying.

She was just heading back to the office when she heard her name being called. Emma turned in time to see Viv break away from her acolytes and come hurrying in her direction,
suzu
bells jingling, her billowing skirt making it seem as if she was floating on air. Viv clutched Emma's arm and spun her around as the two of them scurried out of earshot.

“Emma, dear,” she purred. “Who was that delicious young man we saw you with?”

It took a moment for Emma to realize that the “delicious young man” Viv was referring to was Todd.

“Oh,” she said. “That's just Todd. He's an old friend.”

Viv's eyes were twinkling.

“Well, he seemed quite taken with you. I believe I saw sparks flying as he watched you talking to your handyman.”

Emma felt her cheeks redden. Was it true? she wondered. She'd certainly felt some sparks of her own when she saw Todd in the lobby, but it hadn't occurred to her that he might feel the same. She tried to keep her imagination under control, but it wasn't easy with Viv practically panting for news.

“We were sweet on each other when we were kids, I guess,” she said. “But I haven't seen him in years. The only reason he's here is because his dog ran away. I offered to let him stay until he found it.”

“And did he?”

“Yes.”

Viv gave her a knowing look.

“Yet he's still here. I wonder why?”

This was ridiculous, Emma told herself. The fact that Todd Dwyer had wandered into the Spirit Inn the day before was an accident. It had had nothing to do with her or what either of them had meant to each other in the past. It was Archie's doing, not hers.

Still, Viv was having none of it.

“He's coming to Lars's lecture tonight—did he tell you that?”

“Yes. He said you'd invited him. That was very nice.”

“It was a calculated move on my part,” Viv said. “He has one of the most glorious auras I've ever seen. Men of great wealth often do, you know.”

Emma could barely keep from smirking. Great wealth? Well, that settled any question she might have had about Viv's so-called abilities. If she thought a guy who couldn't afford a change of clothing and a decent meal had a glorious aura, then the great Vivienne Van Vandevander needed to get her eyes checked.

Still, there was no need to be rude about it.

“That's interesting,” Emma said. “Thanks for the information.”

Viv seemed puzzled.

“Of course, I'm sure you want to make up your own mind about him,” she said. “But to the extent that you might find it helpful, I thought I'd give you my professional opinion. Don't string him along forever, though, my dear. He's definitely a keeper.”

With that, she turned and floated back to the lobby. Emma suppressed a giggle.

Great wealth, indeed. Todd would be laughing out loud.

Of course, just because Viv was wrong about Todd's material circumstances didn't mean she was wrong about the way he felt about Emma. It was a whole lot easier to read someone's face and body language, after all, than it was to read something as insubstantial as an aura. Maybe she wasn't the only one who still remembered their summers fondly, Emma thought. Maybe Todd, too, wished the two of them could rekindle their once-budding romance.

It seemed like another good omen. First Archie, then the sparks. People said good news came in threes, didn't they? Maybe her loan approval would be next.

As Emma headed back to her office, she thought about the work that needed to be done on the roof. She hoped that Todd and Jake were getting along. If so, maybe she'd ask Todd to stay so he and Jake could fix the roof together. He needed a job, after all, and it'd be a big help to have someone on hand who'd work for room and board, at least temporarily.

If Todd agreed, then Emma could give him the sort of leg up that her Gran had given her. He could turn his life around, have another chance to be a success in life. Emma smiled and bit her lip. Now that she thought of it, there were a lot of things around the inn that Todd might be able to fix.

Thinking about things around the inn reminded Emma that she hadn't checked on Archie in a while. If she took a detour through the back, she figured she could make it down to her cottage and back before Todd and Jake returned. With breakfast over, the kitchen would no longer be the hive of activity that it had been since dawn and there'd be no chance of upsetting Jean-Paul by cutting through his domain. She turned and walked back down the hall.

The stainless steel counters had been scrubbed clean and the pots and pans returned to their places on the shelves. When Emma opened the door, the only staff in sight was the prep cook, a middle-aged man with more tattoos than hair, who was laying out the salad greens for lunch. As she stepped into the room, though, all hell broke loose.

“Hey, what happened to my lunch?”

She heard rapid footsteps and saw her dishwasher emerge from the pantry, his face red with indignation. The sandy-haired teenager stormed over to the back door and yanked it open, admitting a blast of cold air that ruffled the aprons hanging on the wall. One of the busboys was on the landing outside, slouched against the handrail, smoking a cigarette.

“Give it back!” the dishwasher said.

The busboy blew out a lungful of smoke.

“Give what back?”

“My BLT.”

“Don't look at me,” the young man said, tossing his cigarette aside. “I didn't take it.”

The dishwasher stepped forward, put his hands against the busboy's chest, and shoved. The young man gave a shout of surprise and toppled over backward.

Emma ran for the door, followed closely by the prep cook, but before either one could stop him, the dishwasher had launched himself over the railing.

The young men were grappling on the ground, ice and mud flying in all directions. The prep cook charged past Emma, swearing at the young men, then pulled them to their feet and held them by their shirt collars. When they saw her standing there, the two of them looked shamefaced.

“What was that all about?” she demanded.

The dishwasher pointed an accusatory finger.

“He took my sandwich. I left it in the pantry and now it's gone.”

“I did not,” the busboy said. “Why would I take your stupid sandwich, anyway? I don't take my lunch break until two.”

“He told me it looked good,” the youth pleaded. “He's always doing stuff like that.”

Emma stood there, arms akimbo, and gave the busboy a severe look.

“Did you take his sandwich?”

“No,” he said firmly.

She looked at the prep cook.

“Did you see him take the sandwich?”

The older man shook his head.

“I wasn't watching, but I'm pretty sure I'd have heard him if he did.”

Emma looked back at the dishwasher.

“And you're sure you left it in the pantry?”

He nodded, his chin trembling.

She stood glaring at the two young men, both of them mud-covered, both aggrieved, and considered her options.

“Sandwiches don't just disappear,” she said. “If nobody took it, then what happened to it?”

As the three of them exchanged a worried glance, the intercom squawked. There was a call for Emma on line one. She shook her head in frustration.

“I'll figure out what to do about this later,” she said. “In the meantime, the two of you get cleaned up. And if I hear about anyone fighting again, I won't hesitate to fire them. Understood?”

 

When Emma saw the bank's phone number on her caller ID, she felt breathless. She hadn't realized how keyed up she'd been about the loan until then, and it made her laugh out loud that the suspense was finally over. As she hit the button for the speakerphone, she felt grateful that the loan committee hadn't made her wait through the weekend. She'd have to be sure to thank Harold Grader for agreeing to resubmit her request.

“Emma speaking.”

“Hi, Emma, it's Harold Grader. Sorry to bother you on a weekend, but I wanted to call as soon as the loan committee made their decision.”

A bother?
she thought. With a leaking roof to fix, delayed maintenance to catch up on, and improvements she hoped would increase the inn's cash flow, this call was literally the answer to her prayers.

“I'll make this short,” he said. “The loan committee's turned you down.”

She felt her body begin to shake.
No,
she thought. This had to be a mistake. It couldn't be right.

“I see.” Her voice was thick with emotion. “Well, I'm sure you tried your best. Thank you for letting me know.”

“I'm afraid it's worse than that,” he said.

Worse? Wasn't turning her down bad enough? How much worse could it get?

“The committee members are concerned about the loan you have presently. You've—well, we discussed this already—you've only been paying the minimum each month, and not always on time.”

Emma's heart was pounding. “What are you saying?”

The banker sighed and for just a moment she imagined how difficult this call had been for him to make. Then a surge of anger wiped out any sympathy she might have felt.
This is my whole life,
she thought.
To him, it's just business as usual.

“We're calling in your loan,” he said. “The bank will expect full repayment by the end of this month.”

The effect of his words on Emma was like a blow to the head. Her ears rang; she felt dizzy and disoriented; the ground beneath her felt as if it were crumbling to dust. She fought to keep her voice steady.

“Thank you for letting me know.”

Emma hung up and buried her head in her hands. This was the end of everything. Without that loan, the roof wouldn't make it through the holidays; she'd have to close the banquet and conference rooms at the height of ski season. Half their bookings—maybe more—would be canceled overnight, and the income she'd counted on to get her through the leaner months would disappear. Everything she had, everything she'd hoped for, would be gone.

“I'm sorry, Gran,” she whispered as tears spilled down her cheeks. “I guess I really let you down.”

There was a knock on the door. Emma sat up and quickly wiped her eyes.

“Come in.”

Clifton stepped into the room and closed the door behind him.

“That was the bank?”

Emma nodded, afraid that if she said anything she'd start crying again.

“I take it they rejected your application.”

She cleared her throat. Clifton had been working there since her grandmother bought the place. He deserved to know the truth.

“They called my loan in, too,” she said. “I've got until the end of the month to pay it off.”

“I'm sorry to hear that,” he said.

“Don't tell the staff yet, okay? I'd rather they heard it from me.”

He nodded. “Of course.”

“And I don't want the conventioneers to get wind of this, either. We've got two more bookings from their affiliates coming up. I'd rather not lose those if we don't have to.”

“I won't say a word.”

When Clifton had gone, Emma stood. She had to get out of there. She needed to think, but most important, she needed to be somewhere where her tears wouldn't be seen by the staff or the guests. She'd have to come up with a plan, of course, but first Emma would have to give vent to her pain and sadness. If only there was someone she could unburden herself to without worrying they'd panic or leave, she thought. A confidant who would listen patiently without jumping in with a solution before she'd had a chance to come up with one of her own.

In spite of her situation, the realization almost made her smile. She closed up her office and hurried down to the cottage.

CHAPTER 15

T
odd's success at the hardware store had gone far beyond merely lifting Jake's spirits; as they drove back to the inn, the man was practically giddy about their improved fortunes. For Todd, however, the solution to one problem had just created two more.

Sooner or later, he'd have to give the uncashed check back to Emma and the bitter truth that her handyman had been reluctant to share would be his to deliver. Todd didn't know how bad the inn's financial situation was, but the fact that he knew there was a problem would be an embarrassment to Emma. It also made it hard to tell her about his own circumstances.

Unlike a lot of guys who'd made it big, Todd hadn't forgotten what it was like to come from modest means, and he knew that sometimes the friends who'd cheered you on as you struggled found it hard to be supportive once you'd made it. Todd didn't want the knowledge of his newly acquired wealth to affect their relationship.

Still, he wasn't sorry for what he'd done. Not only because it had brightened Jake's gloomy mood, but also because it meant that the two of them had the materials needed to fix Emma's fence. It was the least he could do to pay her back for all she'd done for him.

As they turned off the main road and headed toward the inn, Jake cleared his throat.

“You have a lot of experience with construction?”

“Some,” Todd said. “My dad died when I was a kid, and maintaining the house pretty much fell to me. I'd helped him enough on the weekends that I knew the basics, and when I had a big project a neighbor let me use his power tools. Most of what I learned was through trial and error.”

Jake considered that awhile.

“Ever done any roofing?”

“Sure,” Todd said. “I reroofed our entire house the summer between my sophomore and junior years in college.”

As the grade grew steeper, the weight of the materials in back made the truck's engine labor. Jake downshifted and glanced at Todd thoughtfully.

“The inn's roof needs shoring up,” he said. “If you're looking for a job, I could use an experienced hand.”

The offer had come out of left field, and Todd wasn't sure how to answer.

“It's flattering to think you could use me,” he said. “But I doubt I'm the person you need.”

The handyman shrugged.

“Well, think about it. Miss Emma doesn't pay much, but she's a good employer. You might just find you'd like it around here.”

The comment was puzzling. Up until then, Jake's attitude toward him had been standoffish in general and almost hostile where the subject of Emma was concerned. The older man had seemed more like her protective older brother than merely an employee. Why the change of heart? Once again, Todd had the feeling that he'd passed some sort of unspoken test.

They pulled into the parking lot and began unloading the truck, carrying the lumber and materials around to the side yard where Jake had his workshop. When everything had been put away, the handyman stood and stretched.

“Thought I'd head over to the kitchen before we get started. Can't do much on an empty stomach. You coming?”

Todd shook his head. The fact was, he hadn't done all that much since getting up that morning and he was still full from breakfast.

“Maybe later,” he said. “I gotta go check on my dog.”

When he reached the cottage, Todd hesitated. There was someone inside. As he stood there listening, he felt a growing concern. It sounded like whoever was in there was crying, and unless he missed his guess, it was Emma. He lifted his hand and gently knocked on the door.

Todd heard scuffling and a few words too quiet for him to make out. A few seconds later, the door swung open.

Emma's face was dry, but her eyes were puffy and her nose red. She'd kicked off her shoes and the front of her jacket was covered in dog fur. Archie stood beside her, looking up anxiously.

“Sorry,” Todd said. “I just came by to see how Archie's doing.”

“Thanks,” she said. Her chin began to quiver.

Todd reached out. “Emma, what's wrong?”

She swiped angrily at a wayward tear that ran down her cheek.

“Nothing.”

He gave her a knowing smile.

“You know, you used to tell me that nothing made you cry. Guess I should have believed you.”

Emma spluttered, laughter bubbling up in spite of her tears.

Todd looked around. “Mind if I come in?”

She shook her head and stepped away from the door. Todd took a minute to dust off his clothes and remove his dirty boots. When he stepped inside, he found Emma and Archie on the couch, the little dog's head resting comfortingly on her lap. He pulled up a chair and sat down.

“You want to tell me what's going on?”

Emma said nothing as she wiped away a tear and began stroking Archie's head. In Todd's experience, people didn't change much as they got older, and Emma had been a stubborn kid. She would talk to him or she wouldn't; trying to pry it out of her would be a waste of time.

After a few minutes of hesitant silence, she sighed.

“I'm going to lose this place.”

He nodded and said nothing. After what Jake had told him, the news didn't come as a big surprise.

“It's been slowly going under ever since Gran died. I've done everything I could think of to bring in more business, but we're still bleeding money. I thought a loan might buy me some more time, but the bank just called . . .”

“I take it they turned you down.”

“Not just that. They called in my other loan, too. I've got 'til the end of the month to pay it off.” Emma smiled ruefully. “Sucks to be me, huh?”

Her lips began to tremble. She put her head down and great gulping sobs wracked her body.

“Oh, Emma. I'm so sorry.”

This would be a bad situation for anyone, Todd thought, but it had to be especially difficult for her. Emma's Gran had been the one steady thing in her life; losing something they'd loved and worked on together had to be devastating.

Unless he missed his guess, the Spirit Inn was all she had in the world, too. By the time Emma sold it and settled up with the bank, she might not have enough to start over. With no family and a bad credit history, she'd have a hard time getting back on her feet.

His first impulse was to give her the money and let her pay him back when she could. Todd could afford to be generous, after all, and it would be a simple solution to her problem. But the more he thought about it, the less he liked the idea. Emma's problems weren't the result of a single catastrophic event. According to Jake, the Spirit Inn had been struggling ever since her grandmother died. If Emma didn't change the way she was running the place, it wouldn't matter that Todd had paid her loans off. Sooner or later, she'd find herself in the exact same position. If he was truly going to help her, he'd have to do more than just offer her money.

“If you don't mind my asking, what did you need the loans for?” he said.

Emma sniffed and sat back.

“Originally, I'd planned to use it all for upgrades like putting in a coffee bar, but we're behind on some of the maintenance around here and Jake just told me the roof needs to be repaired, so I guess most of it would have gone to that.”

“Don't you have a rainy-day fund?” he said. “A place like this shouldn't have to borrow to cover its maintenance costs.”

She frowned slightly but said nothing. Taking her silence as encouragement, Todd continued.

“Maybe instead of upgrading the inn, you should try to make it less expensive to run,” he said. “The Victorian stuff is nice, but families aren't going to want to bring their kids here, and you said yourself that you don't like the haunted theme. Why risk scaring away potential customers when you could easily change the theme to something less expensive to maintain?”

Emma's face began to cloud over. She lifted Archie from her lap and set him aside.

“I'm sorry. I don't think that's any of your business.”

Todd was surprised. He'd thought he was helping. Now it seemed as if he'd upset her.

“No, I suppose it isn't,” he said. “But you seem to have gotten yourself into a bind and I thought you could use some advice.”

“From
you?
”

He felt his lips tighten. Todd and his partners had spent the last five years building their company from nothing into a billion-dollar enterprise. He wasn't used to having people question his business savvy. But of course, Emma didn't know that, and this wasn't the time to tell her, either.

“Look, I'm sorry if I upset you,” he said. “I'll admit I don't have a lot of experience with hotels, but I do know something about how a business should be run. If you don't like the way things are going, you've got to be open to change.”

Emma got to her feet. Archie scrambled down and stood beside her.

“I am open to change,” she said. “That's why I bought into the whole Victorian haunted-house thing in the first place. I told you, I can't compete with the chains up here. The Spirit Inn has to be a destination. Someplace people are willing to go out of their way for. Besides,” she added, “it's too late to change anything now.”

“But you're not happy the way things are. Why stay in a relationship that you know isn't working?”

He paused, frowning.
Why did I say that?

“Look, I know you're just trying to help,” Emma said, “but I think I have a little more business experience than you do, and I'd really rather work this out on my own.”

“You're right,” he said. “Forget I said anything.”

He stood and headed for the door.