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After Decker left, she looked back at the bid he'd given her, but her thoughts weren't really on the itemized list of repairs. She was still wondering about his connection to Eleanor Johnson.
"What are you thinking so hard about?" Marian asked, giving her a sharp, curious look. "It wouldn't be the very attractive man who was sitting at the counter a few minutes ago, would it?"
"More like the bid he gave me to fix my parents' rental house," she said, holding up the paper in her hand.
"Well, that's not as much fun."
"No, it's not. And I wouldn't have been thinking about Decker. I'm going out with his friend, remember?"
"Right," Marian said.
She didn't like the gleam in Marian's eyes. "I need to call my mom." She moved down the hall and into the small office, shutting the door behind her. She sat down at the desk and took out her phone. She took a photo of the bid and texted it to her mom and then called her.
Her mother answered immediately. "Hi, Chloe."
"Hi, Mom. I just texted you the bid for the house."
"I see that," her mother murmured. She fell silent for a moment. "It's a lot of money. Does he really have to repair the flooring upstairs?"
"Yes, I stepped right through it. The wood was completely rotted from a leak in the bathroom. The house is in poor condition, Mom. Eleanor was a hoarder. I had no idea what kind of clutter and disrepair she was living in."
"Really? A hoarder?" her mother echoed. "I can't believe that. She always looked so impeccably neat when she used to visit your grandmother."
"She did dress well. I never would have imagined she was living in such a mess. No wonder she didn't complain or ask for repairs. She didn't want anyone in the house. But all that money you saved over the years is now coming due."
"Do you think we should get a second bid?"
"There are no contractors available for at least six months. If you want to wait until next year, we can get another bid. But Joel vouches for Decker, and he seems very fair in his pricing to me. He's even giving us a discount because of his friendship with Joel."
"I saw that. It's just so much money," her mother said with a sigh. "I was hoping we could make more of a profit."
"Maybe the investment will pay off when we sell."
"Let's hope so."
"Do you want to talk it over with Dad?"
"No. He told me to decide. He went on a fishing trip with friends. He won't be back until Monday."
"So, you're spending Easter alone? You could always come here, Mom."
"I won't be alone. I'm going to Aimee's house," she said, referring to one of her friends. "She's having an Easter brunch, and I can't get away right now. I have a lot of work starting on Monday."
"Well, Leo and I would like to see you sometime."
"We'll get out there soon," her mom promised. "How's Leo?"
"Getting bigger every day. He's really at a sweet age, loving and happy, easy to please."
"Enjoy that while you can."
"Hey, I was pretty easy," she protested.
"You were a very good child, thank goodness," her mom said with a laugh. "I was lucky, and you're lucky, too. Have you spoken to Kevin lately? Has he seen Leo?"
"Not since Christmas. He was supposed to come last month, but there was some kind of problem. Kevin never has any details."
"That's for sure," her mother said tartly. "I'm really disappointed in that man."
