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I chuckled. “Doubt it. Shifty’s on a mission to tow as many cars as he can today. It’s sure it’s halfway to the yard, by now.”
“All right, I’ll take care of it. Hey, maybe I’ll bring Aubree. Tell her it was my truck that got towed, and have her drive me there in her momma’s car. Surprise! What do ya think?”
“I think that’d be… memorable,” I said, staring at the ceiling and wishing he would’ve let me have as big of a hand in the surprise as he had in the purchasing and delivery.
The man had gone all out for his sweet wife. Aubree’s new Bentley had a custom paint job in her favorite color—dusty rose—and the interior had matching accents embroidered into the plush leather seating. There were even little roses painted here and there on the inside, and he’d added every bell and whistle available as far as comfort and safety.
Why he’d chosen to do all of that for a woman who’d rather travel by air than any other way was beyond me. But once he learned just how much free labor Everett Wilson had done on Aubree’s fifteen-year-old sedan to keep it running? Off he went, fixing the problem in style.
When I got off the phone with Riley, I headed back to the communications center, noting once again that Hope looked off.
“You gonna tell me what’s up or do I have to drag it out of you?” I asked as I put on my headset and logged back into my phone.
Hope opened her mouth to answer, but then another 911 came through, cutting us off once again.
That was the funny thing about this job. People had an uncanny knack for needing help at the worst times, conversation-wise.
The nerve.
“Paisley?” a familiar voice cried. “Oh good, it’s you. I have a bit of an emergency here at the B&B.”
Instantly on alert—considering I lived there—I pulled up a blank call screen and typed in the address, ready to send it through in a flash.
“What’s goin’ on, Martha?” I asked.
“Well, ya know how you had me reservin’ that room for your brother, so he’d have it when he came to town?”
Confusion had my thoughts running wild. Was there a fire at the inn and it’d started in that room? Had someone broken into the room, and now they’d barricaded themselves inside, meaning we’d need to call in the SWAT team from the next town over?
“Yes, Martha, I remember. What happened?” I pressed.
“Well, turns out the festival this weekend is bringin’ in a whole lot more people than we expected it to, and I’m gonna need that room since no one is stayin’ in it. I’m sorry, sweetheart, I know you’re payin’ for it even though he isn’t here yet...”
I grimaced at the reminder.
Tyler’s absence still stung, and so did the fact that I’d prepaid for his room for an entire month when I’d booked it. I hadn’t wanted him to stress about finding a place to stay while he was getting settled, and it wasn’t a financial burden thanks to Laney and Riley taking care of me in an above-and-beyond kinda way.
But that month was almost up, and Tyler still wasn’t here.
I’d asked Martha to charge me for another month when this one ended, but it made sense she’d rather use the room for an actual guest. She hated turning people away from the inn and charging me for an empty room hadn’t sat right with her from the start.
But then I remembered she’d called in on an emergency line, and I hung my head. “Martha, I’m totally fine with you releasin’ the room. Just do me a favor and don’t call 911 for somethin’ like this, okay? You could’ve texted me or called the non-emergency line if it couldn’t wait until I got home.”
“It is an emergency, darlin’! There’s tons of people lookin’ for rooms for tonight. What am I supposed to do, let ‘em sleep on the streets?”
I bit back a laugh. As ridiculous as it was, the woman was dead serious, and I admired her dedication to her business. “I understand. I’m just sayin’, this line is for life and death emergencies, and there’s only two of us here. Wouldn’t wanna tie up the line if someone was havin’ a heart attack or somethin’ right?”
“Oh, yes. You’re right. Okay, then, I won’t call this one again unless it’s life or death. Thanks for understandin’, Paisley.”
“Of course. I’ll see you later, all right?”
“All right, bye now.”
I started to disconnect but then paused when she called my name. “Yes?”
“I’m makin’ tuna casserole for supper, and?—”
I cleared my throat. “Martha.”
