Rainier Drive (Cedar Cove #6)(88)

Justine smiled brightly. “Mom, I really think this idea of yours is going to work.”

“Of course it’s going to work,” Olivia said as if she’d never doubted that for a moment. “And it wasn’t really my idea. If you recall, we came up with it together. I just happened to comment how nice it would be to have a special place to go for an elegant tea. Next thing I know, you’ve got everything in motion.”

“I don’t have to eat at this tearoom, do I?” Jack asked as he unplugged the vacuum and rolled it toward the hallway closet. He thrust his little finger in the air and sipped from an imaginary cup.

“Not unless you wear your apron,” Justine teased, saluting him with her own hooked pinkie.

Her comment earned her a dirty look from Jack. “Very funny.”

“Next time I’ll lock the front door,” Olivia promised him.

“There won’t be a next time.”

“Yes, dear.”

Jack checked his watch. “I’d better get to the office. Some of us have to work, you know.” He kissed Olivia long enough to cause her mother to blush profusely. With a flourish Jack bowed, then started for the door. Just before he left, he caught Justine’s gaze and winked. She winked back.

Justine loved the changes she’d seen in her mother since Olivia’s marriage to Jack. For the first time since Jordan’s death, she felt her mother was truly happy. Come to think of it, she was happy, too. The fire had changed everything for a while and she’d faltered; so had Seth. They were finally coming out of this stupor and finding themselves again.

Justine and her mother talked over cups of tea, exchanging ideas. Olivia suggested a brand of tea she particularly enjoyed. They talked about dishes for the tearoom and Justine decided to purchase an assortment of teapots of different colors and styles. Justine wondered if her grandmother would share her recipe for coconut cake, a longtime family favorite. Olivia was sure she would. Lunches would be soups, salads and sandwiches, with a special each day. They wrote out lists of recipe ideas and discussed decor.

Justine picked Leif up from preschool at noon. While he napped, she spread out the architect’s rough drawings on the kitchen table, and made notes in pencil, incorporating some of the ideas she and her mother had come up with.

By the time Leif was awake, everything had been put away. Dinner was in the oven, the salad was made, and a bottle of wine was cooling on ice while she waited for Seth’s return from the boatyard. She had so much to tell him, so much to share.

The doorbell rang, surprising her. Penny, who was in their fenced yard, was barking wildly. Before Justine could stop him, Leif raced ahead of her and happily threw open the front door. He stared blankly at the man who stood there.

“Warren,” Justine said, trying not to frown.

“Hello, Justine,” he said. When she didn’t immediately invite him inside, he asked, “Would it be all right if I came in?”

Seth was due home any minute and wouldn’t be pleased to find her entertaining Warren Saget. “I suppose so.” She hoped the hesitation in her voice let him know she was reluctant.

She unlocked the screen door and held it open. Regarding their guest suspiciously, Leif wrapped his arm around her leg, and Justine reached down to pick up her son.

“What can I do for you?” she asked. She didn’t mean to be inhospitable, but she wasn’t interested in his company. She wanted him to state the purpose of his visit and then leave. That was it.

Warren wore a pained look at her reaction. “I stopped at the bank last Friday. You weren’t there but I learned that you’ve given notice. You never mentioned that you’d decided to quit.”

Justine felt it was none of his concern, but didn’t say so. “The job was only for the interim while Seth and I figured out what we were going to do about the restaurant.”

“So you’ve made a decision?” he asked curiously.

“We have,” she said, her enthusiasm bubbling to the surface. “We’re going to rebuild.”

“When we spoke earlier, you told me you were disappointed that Seth hadn’t listened to your ideas. Has he had a change of heart?”

Rather than explain the complexities of her business—and her marriage—she just nodded. “Something like that.”

“Well, great. We’ve been friends for many years, and I hope we can work together on this.”

Justine was sorry she’d confided in him at all, friend or no friend. She now felt disloyal to Seth for saying anything. She didn’t answer.

“Tell me what you’ve decided,” he pressed.

“I don’t have time to go into it now. But I will say I’m quite excited about it.”

Warren smiled. “That’s wonderful, Justine.”

Bored now, Leif squirmed and she set her son back on the floor. He tugged at her shirt. “Read me a story, Mommy,” he clamored. “Now, okay? Read me Good-night, Moon.”

Justine shushed him. “I need to get back to my family,” she said, hoping Warren would get the message and leave.

“I understand,” he muttered, edging toward the front door. “You will give me an opportunity to bid on the construction project, won’t you?”

“I’m sure we can do that,” Justine said, although she already knew Seth wouldn’t want Warren on the job. For one thing, his methods and materials were sloppy; for another, he’d use every opportunity to spend time with Justine.