“Already done,” Kevin replied.
She sighed. “How did you do this so … fast?”
“Pigheadedness,” Kevin said. “I got that from knowing Rex.” Now that his name had been said out loud, Maddie felt calmer.
It was true that Rex could be a pigheaded stickler about his work. So she laughed. It was the first time she’d laughed in weeks.
“But what do you think?” her father asked. “Do you like what we’ve done with the place?”
“It’s incredible,” she said, her voice now sounding almost real again. “I can’t believe you did all this while I was …”
“While you were getting organized,” her father said, and rested a hand on her shoulder.
She closed her eyes.
“Hey,” Kevin said, “let’s go back down, and I’ll show you something else.”
They moved toward the steps; Kevin kept talking while they made their descent.
“There was only room for one restroom,” he said, “but we found a way to make it private by putting it at the end of the hall past the showroom, the lift, and a small storage closet for miscellaneous things.”
“No offense, but I’m amazed that a man would havethought about privacy,” Maddie said. “I’m also surprised that both of you plowed ahead with all this. Did it ever occur to either of you that I might want to forget about doing this and leave the Vineyard?” She tried to sound cheerful, not that it worked.
They were back on the main floor by then. Her dad looked at Kevin. Kevin looked at him.
“No,” Stephen said, “it did not occur to me that you’d change your mind.” He shook his head. “Not once.”
Which Maddie knew was his way of saying he’d be okay if she stayed there. Then it occurred to her that maybe the fallout from Rex’s accident wasn’t the only reason her brain and body had been rocking—maybe it was also a kind of menopausal mania. Or a combination of both.
“So,” Kevin said, his mischievous eyes dancing, “shall we talk about paint? Powder blue and pale green? Like the shades of sea glass we did in the new bedroom at the cottage?”
As their conversation continued, the haze slowly lifted, and Maddie felt herself begin to resurface at last.
Chapter 17
Valentine’s Day would fall on a Saturday that year, which would be fun for many people, but not Maddie. Though she almost felt like herself again, the valentine she wanted remained in California, continuing to recuperate. Taylor had returned to the island; updates were less frequent and still didn’t suggest when Rex might be able to head east. Maddie felt bad that, despite all she had to do, she hadn’t even offered to take a day or two to help refresh the Lord James.
Now, however, it was Thursday, the day before the restaurant reopening, and Maddie decided it was time to “get over” herself, as her former students would have phrased it. So she called Francine.
“Don’t you have a bookstore opening soon?” the young woman asked when Maddie offered to volunteer.
“My dad and Kevin have everything under control. And my dad probably would love to kick me out for a bit. Now that I’m functioning fairly well again, he knows I could easily micromanage every move they’re making. I’ve never worked in a restaurant,” she added, “but I’d love to do something. Anything. Please?”
“Truthfully, I could use your help,” Francine replied. “Ican handle the kitchen—I think—but I don’t know beans about waiting tables. Except how to use an iPad and take orders. But I think the rest is harder than it looks.”
“Well, I’ve never waited tables, either, but I cleaned up the potluck tables on Cranberry Day, and my son once had a girlfriend whose family owned a luncheonette.”
Francine hooted. “Then you’re hired! We’re going to do Friday dinner, Saturday lunch, Saturday dinner, and Sunday brunch and dinner. Too much for you?”
“Nope. I’ll be there. What about clothes? Is there a uniform? Or a staff dress code?”
“Do you have anything black? Shirt? Pants? Skirt? Something washable?”
“I have a black dress.” She didn’t mention she’d bought it for her grandmother’s funeral, which happily hadn’t happened. Or that it was a summer dress, but she’d make it work.
“Perfect. The first reservations are for tomorrow night at six o’clock. Can you be here around three thirty, so we can go over the basics?”
“Sounds fine.”
