Page 59 of Sea Breezes at The Beach House Hotel

We sat in the car outside Liz’s house, comparing notes and ideas to share with Nell.

“Furniture is something else Nell is going to have to deal with,” said Liz. “The family buying their house wanted all the furniture in the dining room, living room, and guest rooms, and whatever else Nell and Clint are willing to sell.”

“I’m satisfied that we’ve done what we could to help with her decisions,” I told Liz. “But if you need anything else from me, you know how eager I am to help. Having you two sisters living close together is thrilling for me. Right now, I’m going inside to see my adorable grandchildren.”

Liz laughed. “You wouldn’t think they were adorable if you had to wake them up for school.”

“You were a sleepyhead, too,” I said, patting her back. In truth, she was an easy child, as if to make up for the loss of other babies.

Inside, I went to the playroom and made myself comfortable on the soft carpet. The Ts got out the Candyland game, and with Gabe on my lap, I settled down to play with them.

###

As I drove home, I hoped Bailey and Ned would agree to play a different game from Candyland tonight. Still, knowing they were at the house to greet me filled me with joy.

I’d just pulled into my driveway when Rhonda called me. “Hi, Annie. You’ll never guess what’s happened. I got a call from a friend at the Chamber of Commerce who wanted me to know they received an email complaining about service at The Beach House Hotel.”

“Really? From whom?” I asked.

“Claudine Everett. She claimed she was treated poorly, that you and I personally interfered with a business deal signed at the hotel. Can you believe that?” said Rhonda. “What a bitch.”

“She has a lot of nerve,” I said. “I guess she’s fighting for her job, striking out at anyone she can. One thing is for certain. We have proof of what actually happened, courtesy of a state trooper and the body camera footage. There’s no disputing that.”

“Yeah, I hadn’t thought of that. Still, it burns my butt that she’s trying to harass us,” said Rhonda.

“As Bernie would say, we’ll simply carry on,” I said, but I was as mad as Rhonda. We ran our hotel impeccably and took pride in doing so. We didn’t need Claudine making twisted accusations about us or The Beach House Hotel. “Our best response is no response.”

“Right. I told Will about it, and he said the same thing.” Rhonda let out a long breath. “You should’ve seen Sally Kate in the school play. She was adorable and had memorized her two lines perfectly.”

“Excellent,” I said. “When I see her, I’ll be sure to congratulate her, if I get a chance while all the kids are playing together.”

Rhonda laughed. “Thanks. She’ll love that anytime.”

Rhonda and I ended our call, and I tried to put myself in a lighter mood before going in and facing my family. But I knew Claudine’s action wasn’t the only one Rhonda and I might have to deal with regarding Everett, Shuster, and Donnelly. Aware of how they were treating Clint, I was beginning to understand what kind of company it was.

###

Later, Nell phoned the children to say goodnight and then asked to speak to me.

“Hi, Ann. I want to thank you for helping Liz take measurements and make notes for our new house. It’ll help me a lot to plan what we need to do for the move.”

“When are you coming back to Sabal?” I asked her.

“I’m going to fly out tomorrow afternoon. Clint will have to stay here in D.C. to meet with his lawyer. He says he’ll be fine, but he’s still finding it awkward to do simple tasks. He wants me to send him copies of the agreements with the company, but wants to retain the originals in case this issue goes to court.”

“Oh, but I thought it would be a simple matter of resigning,” I said, alarmed.

“They’re going to fight it, telling him he can’t resign until the project is complete and saying that he can’t get back his equity investment in the company. It’s a disaster,” said Nell.

“How’s Clint handling it?” I asked.

“Not well. He’s furious with them and himself,” said Nell. “I told him the best revenge is to move forward. That’s why I’m pushing to get that house, even though I know in its present condition, it’s not what we hoped for.”

“It’s going to be a lovely home,” I said.

“I know it, but Clint sees it as another of his mistakes in leaving his old job to take a chance on this newer one. I’m trying to convince him otherwise, but in truth, we wouldn’t be in this trouble if he’d listened to me. But I can’t say that without causing a fight I don’t want.”

“Agreed,” I said. “Clint has had a lot to deal with, and he needs our support right now.”