Sisters by Choice (Blackberry Island #4)(98)

She pulled out her phone and dialed. Sophie picked up on the first ring.

“Hey, you. What’s up?”

“Mom and I had a fight and I can’t live here anymore. Can I stay with you?”

“Oh, Heather, I’m sorry. Of course you can, although I have to warn you, all the kittens have reached the exploration stage so it’s kind of a madhouse.”

“Death by kittens?” Heather asked, her voice cracking a little. “I’m okay with that.”

“Good because I’m excited about having a roommate. Need me to help you pack?”

“No. I’ll be about an hour.”

“Then I’ll head home right now and get things ready.” Sophie hesitated. “It’s going to be okay. I promise.”

“Thanks. I’ll see you soon.”

Heather hung up and reached for a box. She had no idea what okay looked like, nor did she know how this was going to end. She wanted to get away but she had a feeling it wasn’t going to be as easy as she would have thought.

Even worse was the niggling fear that she might have a little more of her mother in her than she’d been willing to admit. And if that was true, was getting away even an option?

  “I’m sorry,” Jerry said, his voice raspy from what sounded like a bad cold. “I’m sick, my guys are sick. We’re falling behind everywhere.”

Including at her place, Kristine thought, standing in the middle of her store, aware that his falling behind meant pushing out her grand opening.

“Okay,” she said slowly. “Let me know when you’re going to be back.”

“I will. Sorry, Kristine.”

They hung up.

She walked to what would be the retail space. The new counter and display case had been delivered but weren’t installed. The old flooring was ripped up but nothing was in its place. The walls were patched but not painted. She couldn’t get her health inspection until she had everything installed. She couldn’t open until she had a finished retail area.

Every day she put off opening meant she wasn’t making any money. Not that she could put off her lease payment. That was due, regardless. She could cook in her kitchen, but with only her regular oven, she couldn’t begin to bake enough to cover her lease payment.

She had new orders from the Blackberry Island Inn, but that money was going to cover what she’d spent on the mixers. The flooring for the remodel had been more than she’d expected, due to some subflooring repairs. And the wall patching had been more extensive than she’d hoped. Money was going out, very little was coming in, and what if Jaxsen was right and she failed? A lot of new businesses did.

She looked around once more then told herself her time would be better spent at home where at least she could be baking. The way Jerry had sounded on the phone, she wasn’t going to see him until next week. A disaster she hadn’t planned for at all.

She headed for the front door, only to see Jaxsen pull up in front of her place. She briefly thought about bolting out the back, but told herself that would be childish. Instead, she unlocked the front door and let him in.

“What are you doing here?” she asked, afraid he knew about the delays and that he’d come to gloat.

“Jerry told me he was sick.”

Dammit. “Why are you talking to my contractor? What are you telling him? Is he really sick or did you put him up to this?”

Jaxsen looked startled by the question. “Is that what you think of me?”

“I don’t know. It’s not as if you’re being supportive.”

He seemed to deflate. “Come on, Kristine. I wouldn’t do that. I’ve been talking to him because I want to make sure everything is done right. You have to believe me.”

“Why? You’ve been against this from the beginning. You don’t want me to have this business and you certainly don’t want me to be successful. You’ve made that really clear.”

He nodded. “Okay, I deserve that. But can you let it go just for a little while?”

“Why?”

“Because I’m here to help. When Jerry said he was sick and falling behind, I knew your job would get pushed to the side. It’s small and he’s fitting it in around other work. I took a couple of days off so I could come here and get things moving for you.”

She couldn’t have been more surprised if he’d sprouted wings. Okay, yes, wings would be more shocking but not by much.

“But you don’t like what I’m doing. Why would you help?”

“Can’t you just go with it? Please?”

If she’d had the strength she would have shaken him and demanded to know what he’d done with her husband. Nothing about this made sense. But as he spoke, he looked sincere—more like the Jaxsen she knew than the man who had left her. As she didn’t have a bunch of people lining up to work on her space, she was going to shut up and be grateful.

“Thank you.”

He offered her a brief smile. “You’re welcome. Now, where are the plans?”

She showed him the rudimentary sketches Jerry had been working from.

“The flooring can’t get installed until the counter and display case are in place,” she said. “Plus, there’s painting and the baseboards, and the shelving units in back. It’s a lot.”