Chapter One
The day was not turning out at all as Jules Whittier had envisioned. The motel that she’d inherited from her grandmother was supposed to be her chance to make up for the complete failure of the last hotel Gram had entrusted her with. But the dilapidated building that stood before her… was it even safe to occupy?
And that wasn’t even the worst of it.
Never mind that the Beachcomber Motel, the run-down building that symbolized her second chance at success, looked like it might fall into the ocean at any moment. She’d also just learned that she wouldn’t be running the motel alone. Nope, Gram had left equal shares to Jules and her two cousins, Maddie and Gina—the very cousins who had caused her to fail and need that second chance in the first place.
The ocean breeze blew strands of curls around Jules’s face, and she pulled them into a clip, trying to keep them in place so they wouldn’t frizz as she studied the motel. It was an unusual building. The main portion looked more like an old Victorian with a wide front porch facing the ocean. The porch extended along the back section, where the motel rooms ran in a row. The porch gave the motel an air of interest, and the colorfully painted doors and carved posts set it apart from your regular run-of-the-mill motor inn. Jules tried to see past the chipped paint, missing spindles, and dead plants to envision what it must have looked like in its heyday.
“When was the last time anyone was in that place?” Gina’s green eyes narrowed as she gazed across the parking lot, empty except for the three cousins’ cars and that of Gram’s lawyer.
The girl hadn’t stopped scowling since she’d arrived. Jules did not know what she had to scowl about. Last she’d heard, Gina was getting a divorce from her wealthy real estate developer husband, and if the silk blouse she was wearing and candy-apple-red sports car she’d arrived in were any indication, she wasn’t hurting for money. She was probably so loaded that she couldn’t be bothered with a run-down motel. Jules hoped that was the case. Then she would only have Maddie to get rid of before she could have the place to herself.
“I don’t think it’s that bad,” Maddie said in a chipper voice, tucking a strand of blond hair behind her ear and smiling. Jules had forgotten how annoyingly upbeat Maddie could be. “A bit of elbow grease and some paint will have it looking good in no time.”
Gina snorted. “I think you might be overly optimistic there, cuz. And what about the town? It looks abandoned. Who books a motel in an abandoned town?”
Jules pivoted to look out toward Ocean Street and the town of Shell Cove. From the vantage point of the motel parking lot, they could only see a portion of Main Street, but Gina had a point. There were a few shops open, but several had boarded-up windows and ripped awnings. Window boxes were lined up under the dirty plate-glass windows of some shops, but no flowers could be seen.
“The town has been on a bit of a downswing since they put the new highway in to the west,” Steve Rollens, Gram’s lawyer, said matter-of-factly.
“Right. So no tourists means no business for the motel.” Gina folded her arms over her chest and looked at Jules and Maddie. “I think we should sell.”
Jules’s heart sank. It was her one chance to make up for what a failure she’d been at running a motel before. She’d even quit her job and sold everything she owned to move there. And, yes, she wanted to do it on her own, without her cousins, but she couldn’t afford to buy them out. Not to mention, she’d promised Gram only days before she died that she would bring the motel back to its former glory. Funny thing, Gram had mentioned nothing about including Maddie and Gina in those plans, but Jules couldn’t go back on her promise, even if there were a few snags in the plan.
Steve cleared his throat. “Sorry, you can’t sell.”
Gina swiveled toward him. “What? Why?”
“Rena’s will stipulates that you make an earnest attempt to bring the motel back to profit. You need to spend at least a year trying. If you abandon the project, the property will be donated to charity.”
“Of course we’re not going to abandon the project, Gina,” Maddie said. “I mean, look at this gorgeous view! The beach, the ocean.”
It was a gorgeous view. The old motel was set atop a cliff with just a few steps down a cement stairway to the sandy beach below. It had a panoramic view of the ocean, and the lapping of the waves on the shore was soothing even from where they stood.
“So you accept the conditions?” Steve asked.
“Of course!” Maddie practically jumped up and down with glee.
“Sure.” Jules’s stomach roiled with excitement and trepidation.
“I guess.” Gina sighed and looked disappointed.
“Good, then I’m to give you these.” Steve fished three old brass keys, each hanging from a big blue plastic tag with a faded white Beachcomber Motel stamp, out of his pocket and handed them over. “Good luck, ladies. You’re free to go inside anytime.”
Maddie glanced from Jules to Gina, her blue eyes sparkling. She linked arms with each of them and dragged them toward the front door. “Come on, you guys. I have a good feeling about this.”
Jules exchanged a doubtful look with Gina behind Maddie’s back as she let herself be propelled toward the chipped-paint door.
Chapter Two
The interior of the motel wasn’t as bad as Maddie had expected. It had obviously been cleaned, the furniture draped in sheets, and everything put away long ago when it had been sealed up. A thin layer of dust had settled on the surfaces, but other than that, it was like stepping back thirty years in time.
The main room was a lobby with a fireplace and a large gathering area. A row of windows on the east side gave a breathtaking view of the ocean. A check-in desk with a white-and-gold-flecked Formica counter sat at one end. A clunky, old computer was on a table behind the desk. A landline phone sat next to the computer, the cord that tethered the receiver curling over the edge.
Beside Maddie, Gina took a deep breath. “At least it doesn’t smell moldy, but jeepers this stuff is so outdated.”
“Some might consider it charming.” Maddie glanced at Jules.
