Chapter Four
A warm breeze blew over the high desert, rustling the curtains of Joel’s house. The salmon-pink window treatments came with the house, and he hadn’t cared enough to change them. Now, the matching sofa with traces of baby blue woven throughout and had dips in two of the three cushions—as soon as he regained control of his finances, he’d make a trip to the furniture store.
His eyes glazed over from staring at the spreadsheet taunting him on the computer screen. With all loan income options exhausted, his only alternative was to open the motel and pray for income. The little he had left would cover the necessities to open, but how much could he make with only eight rooms available?
At that rate, he could renovate one room a year, and have the entire motel open by the time he reached retirement age. Maybe a bit of an exaggeration. He was only thirty.Still not an encouraging thought. But he’d keep the place that way. Maybe.
Tired of focusing on his own problems, he allowed his thoughts to drift to the women he’d helped tonight. They intrigued him. From the little information he’d gleaned, they’d taken a road trip instead of attending their ten-year high school reunion. They’d started out in North Carolina, where they had all grown up and had driven across interstate forty. This afternoon they’d left the Grand Canyon and then ended up here.
That’s all he knew, except Cassidy fought inner battles. A few stray comments here and there told him something had happened to her which caused her to have a low opinion of herself. It wasn’t his business, but he felt drawn to her and couldn’t explain why. Maybe he was drawn to things that were broken and in need of repair. Look at the motel for crying out loud.
Don’t lose faith.God called me to this, he’ll see me through.
He stretched his arms, relieving the tension from his muscles. Not used to sitting for long periods, he stood and paced. The pool called his name, but he didn’t want to intrude on his guests if they’d taken advantage of the one amenity he could offer. He glanced at his watch. Two hours had passed since he’d dropped the girls off at the motel, and they’d all seemed tired. He figured he could safely assume they were all asleep by now or at least settled in their rooms.
Changing into swim trunks, he forced the worries from his mind—not so easy when his livelihood depended on the motel’s success. Not only that, but he didn’t want to waste the inheritance from his grandfather. Failing meant letting down Gran, who was still alive to see the dream come true. Failure wasn’t an option, but there wasn’t anything more he could do tonight.
He plodded to the pool, glad he hadn’t neglected its upkeep. The previous owner—for all his other extreme flaws—had recently upgraded the pool and filter, so maintaining it didn’t take much effort on Joel’s part. The little energy and money required paled in comparison to the enjoyment he received from it on a hot summer day.
A splash in the water startled him, and he spun to see the cause. He’d acted too quickly and slipped on wet cement, that he should have noticed but had been lost in thought. Waving his arms, he worked to regain his balance to no avail and fell on his bottom.
“Oh my goodness, are you okay?”
Looking up, his gaze met Cassidy’s.Of all the women to be out here tonight. Embarrassed, he ignored the pain and rushed to his feet. “I’m fine.”
“Are you sure? I heard the thump, and it sounded painful.” Her soulful brown eyes searched his.
The temptation to get lost in them pulled at him, and he snapped his brain to reality. “Positive. I should have paid more attention, but I thought you and your friends would be asleep by now.”
“All the others are, but I couldn’t sleep.” Dripping wet, she tilted her chin to the pool. “A good swim always helps clear my mind.”
He let out a sound, a combination of a snort and laugh. “That’s why I’m out here.”
“Rough night rescuing five women?” When she grinned, he didn’t see a trace of the sadness from earlier.
“If only that were my biggest problem.”
“Need an ear to listen?”
“Thanks, but I won’t bore you with the details.” He tossed the towel in his hand over his shoulder. “I’ll let you finish your swim and come back later.”
“There’s no reason for you to leave.” She waved a hand over the pool. “It’s a big area.”
Leaving would be the smart option, but he selfishly wanted to stay. He looked forward to the laps, and maybe conversation depending on how long she stayed.
Stop that train of thought. Even if she wasn’t only here for the night, you have no business taking your focus off the motel.
“If you’re sure.” He dropped the towel and jumped off the deep end.
When he came out of the water, he wiped the droplets from his eyes and pushed back his wet hair. He swam to the shallow end and back again. From the corner of his eyes, he searched out Cassidy. She stayed on the opposite side and held out her arms, floating on the water.
What he wouldn’t give to find that peacefulness. Except, even as he thought it, he knew hers wasn’t complete. He’d seen the signs earlier.
Everybody had struggles in life. Seasons came and seasons left. Was it wrong to hope and pray this current season of stress ended soon, but only by getting the motel up and going? He didn’t want it to end by folding and having to find another career path.
Man, what was wrong with him? Even the swim couldn’t clear his mind. He passed it off to exhaustion, although physically, he wasn’t tired at all. Maybe a few more laps would help. He put everything he had into pushing his arms through the water and kicking but gave up after the tenth trip to the shallow end.
He climbed out and walked carefully to the chair with his towel. It wouldn’t do to embarrass himself with another fall. She must think him completely clumsy. Maybe he should tell her he hadn’t fallen since third grade, but, no, that would only bring more attention to it. Best to let it go and let her think what she would.
