“Can’t be helped.”
“You’ll let me know if you change your mind?”
“Of course.”
“Do you want to hear the latest regarding the Vicenza clan?”
“Definitely not.”
“You’re still co-executor, so you’ll need to come in and attend the hearing of Dino’s will. He left specific instructions regarding several issues which must be completed prior to that. But in the meantime I have a number of documents which require your signature.” The sound of pages being flipped, then, “Wednesday afternoon at three?”
She made a note. “See you then.”
“Jenna, wait.” When she did not respond, he asked, “Are you still there?”
She felt a rising dread over what was coming next. “Sol . . .”
“The boat didn’t go to salvagers as I feared. Do you know Amos Prior?”
“The name . . .”
“Local sheriff. Good man, by all accounts. His half brother bought it. His name is . . . hang on . . .”
“Sol, I don’t need to be hearing—”
“Noah Hearst. And yes, I need to tell you because he’s going to contact you.”
“Me? Why?”
“Because he wants to buy the mooring.”
“Wait. You told me the boat was a wreck.”
Sol went quiet. “It was. Yes, a total loss.”
“You’re not making sense.”
“Here’s what I know. Noah Hearst was a Hollywood set designer. Built everything from interiors to mock cities for film projects. One of the best, by all accounts. I’ve checked. The man apparently got sideswiped by his former partners. Lost his company in the process. So yes, the boat is a total write-off. But apparently Hearst intends to try to put it back together. It’s a massive project. A couple of local salvage specialists I’ve spoken with think the guy is nuts.” Sol gave that a moment, then added, “I can handle this if you want.”
She was tempted. But something tugged her forward. A crazy desire to meet the man who was going to try to rebuild what was left of shattered dreams. “No, go ahead and give him my number.”
CHAPTER5
Jenna lasted another week.
She spent seven days trying to convince herself how crazy it seemed, going to meet this Noah Hearst. Insane to see what he might be doing to her boat. Because that was how she still saw it. Millie’s dream come true, the one Jenna had claimed as her own. Now denied them both.
Crazy.
Noah had seemed pleasant enough. He had phoned and thanked her for the chance to speak. When she asked how things were going, Noah described the multiple problems he had faced, transporting the huge vessel seventy miles north and resettling it in its wooden cradle. Thankfully, there was a vast open-sided structure near where he was renting, once used to store bales of hay and all the valley’s farm equipment. The bow still stuck out into the sunlight, but at least all his work in the stern holds and motor rooms would be in the shade. Because it was hot, blisteringly so....
Jenna had basically let him talk, mostly because she spent the time inspecting her internal state. She found it somewhat surprising how calm she felt, hearing this stranger lay claim to her boat. When Noah went quiet, she asked the key question, “Why do you want the mooring? I hear the boat is a wreck.”
“It is. No question. And it all may be just a waste of time. But that’s basically all I’ve got right now. Time.”
The way he said those words, how sad he became mentioning his otherwise empty days, touched her. Which was beyond strange.
Jenna was still coming to terms with that when he went on. “Everybody I’ve spoken with has said how difficult it is to get a safe mooring for a boat like this. Especially one with its own private dock, connection points, the works. So just in case I’m able to make the craft float again, I’d like to go ahead and have a place to call home.” He went quiet, then added, “Crazy as it sounds, I’m hoping it will give me something to aim for.”
