“Great. Thanks for coming.” Jane started walking toward the driveway, but Bob paused and turned. “How many guests did you say this wedding was going to have?”
Jane’s hopes sank. “About forty to fifty.”
Bob turned toward the inn. “And how many public bathrooms do you have in there?”
“Well, there are ten bathrooms, but those are with the rooms. The common area has one because every room has its own private bathroom.”
Bob rifled through a battered codebook. “That doesn’t matter. Even if the rooms are booked. Page fifty-six, section seventy-three, subsection A of the beach-gathering code says you have to have one toilet for every thirty guests at a gathering.” He looked up from the book, apologetic. “So that means you’re going to need another toilet. Of course, you can get Clean Day to bring some porta potties.”
Shoot! Porta potties wouldn’t do. “Maybe I could add a real bathroom…” She glanced around over at the inn. Where could she carve out some space for another bathroom? Off the living room? Maybe close off part of the porch? “How long would it take to add a bathroom?”
Bob shook his head. “I don’t think you can add one. That takes a special meeting with the town sewer-and-water committee. Because the property is on the beach, there are special considerations, and they don’t meet until next month. No exceptions there. Sorry, but you’re only allowed as many bathrooms as the house originally had or were added before 1953.”
Jane wanted to cry. She’d been getting her hopes up, thinking this wedding could solve all her financial problems, but now it looked like she might have to refund the deposit money that she’d already spent.
“I’m very sorry,” Bob said.
“It’s not your fault.” Jane walked him up to the driveway, her hopes sinking even further. As if sensing her mood, Cooper pressed himself against her for comfort.
“Morning!” Jane turned to see Mike coming up the beach toward them. Cooper ran to him and did his tail-wagging routine.
Mike petted the dog, then his eyes filled with concern as he looked at Jane. “What’s wrong?”
She told him about Bob’s visit and the distressing news about the bathrooms.
He put his hand on her arm. It was warm and comforting. “That can’t be right. There’s got to be something you can do.”
Jane sighed. “I don’t know. It seemed pretty cut-and-dried. He made it pretty clear that the committee doesn’t meet until next month, and the wedding is supposed to be in almost four weeks. Even if the meeting is the week before, it’s not enough time. I can’t keep the client hanging on, as they’d need to find another venue as soon as possible. It’s almost impossible to get something last minute.”
Mike pressed his lips together. “Let’s not give up. There’s got be a way. We just need time to think about it.”
“Maybe.” Mike’s words gave Jane a little encouragement. Maybe he was right and there was a way to work this out.
But what was this “we” stuff? He didn’t need to make this his problem. Determined to think positive, she brightened. “Either way, I’m going to need a website, so let’s go inside and see what this thing looks like.”
Chapter 21
Andie’s grip tightened on the phone as she listened to Susie fill her in on everything that had been happening at work.
“And Elise has been spending a lot of time in Doug’s office,” Susie whispered into the phone after verifying that Elise had gotten the lead-appraiser position on the Richhaven job.
Andie used to spend a lot of time in Doug’s office, too, but surprisingly the fact that she’d been cast aside for Elise didn’t bother her at all. Her feelings for Doug had evaporated with his shoddy treatment. “Is there anything else going on? Any rumors of new jobs coming in?”
“Nope. Dull as a doornail here… whoops, I gotta go. Marcy is looking for me.”
They hung up, and Andie glanced at the airline app on her phone, where she’d made a reservation for a flight for the next day.
It was time she headed back to New York City. If she didn’t do anything to protect her job, she might end up as the low person on the totem pole. But unlike her previous visits to Lobster Bay, this time she was in no rush to get back. Maybe after all these years, the excitement of antiques appraisal had worn off. If she hadn’t made that exciting find yet, what were the odds it would come along now? It wasn’t like her career had been unsatisfying. There had been plenty of exciting small finds over the years.
Outside her window, the sunlight sparkled on the tops of the waves. Her visit to Lobster Bay had been a great change of pace from the city. It was slower here, less hectic. There were no interoffice politics, no married bosses. If only there was more to do in this town—something she could sink her teeth into. Something that gave her a purpose.
She’d enjoyed working in the garden more than she’d thought possible. Speaking of which, she didn’t want to leave it half finished. She’d have to get a move on if she wanted to complete the garden and visit her mother at Tall Pines before her flight tomorrow.
Standing, she stretched and made her way downstairs, creeping down the stairs slowly and peeking over the railing to make sure she didn’t run into Shane Flannery. One good thing about leaving tomorrow was that it would ensure that she wouldn’t have to see him again.
Jane was in the living room, staring at the wall of paintings that Chandler Vanbeck had said were so valuable. “Hey, sis, I…”
Jane turned, and Andie could sense that something was wrong. “Is something the matter?”
