The Magnolia Inn(41)

“If we have one, you can have it.” The sales clerk opened a huge file drawer and flipped through until she found the right one. “Once these are gone, we won’t be giving them away anymore. Folks will have to order samples from the internet. Kind of loses the human touch, if you ask me. This is our last one.”

“Thank you. We’ll need to order quite a lot because we’re going to use it throughout a whole house. Could we call you Monday with the measurements?” Jolene asked.

“Just tell me how many feet of it you’ll need. I’ll do the figuring and send in the order. You might want to order a couple of extra rolls for matching and emergencies.”

“Thank you. Now about paint. Two gallons of this color and two of this one.” Tucker put the two samples on the counter.

The saleslady and Jolene started up a conversation about how well those two colors went with the border, and he bit back a long sigh. Women talked a helluva lot about nothing. Just mix the paint and get on with it.

Hey, now! Melanie’s voice was back in his head. Cut her some slack. Us women like to discuss things and think about them before we do them. This is a big deal for her.

He cut his eyes around the room, but he stood as still as if he’d spotted a spider in the corner. Of all the times he might want her to talk to him—this wasn’t one of them.

Well, it’s a pretty damn big deal for me, too, but I don’t have to discuss it to death, resurrect it, and talk some more, he argued. If Melanie would continue to drop into his head every now and then, surely he could get rid of these feelings that were developing for Jolene.

He listened intently, but Melanie had left the building. Did that mean she liked Jolene? Or was she giving him a hard time because of all the times he’d been impatient when she was trying to make a decision—like with the Christmas dress?

“We don’t have time to do much this afternoon, so maybe we could go to the antique stores,” Jolene was saying when he tuned back in to the conversation.

How long had he been zoned out, anyway? Evidently long enough for the saleslady to mix four gallons of paint, because they were right there on the counter. He pulled his credit card from his wallet and paid the bill, picked up the paint, and followed Jolene outside.

“So?” she asked. “What about the vanities? I love the way you used that washstand for one in the first bathroom. It’s awesome.”

He’d had compliments on his work many times, but the way that her eyes twinkled put a big smile on his face.





Chapter Eleven

Dotty met Jolene at the Gator door that night and put a key in her hand. “Now I won’t have to watch for you anymore. How’s the parking lot lookin’?”

“Like we’re in for a rush.” Jolene stashed her coat and purse under the counter.

“So what’s goin’ on at the inn this weekend? I tell you one thing for sure, that Tucker is one hardworkin’ man. I can see that he’s really tryin’ to get past his troubles. And, for that matter, you seem happier these days, too,” Dotty said.

Jolene was tying an apron around her waist when she realized what Dotty was doing. Maybe the whole bunch of them were even in on it. “Dotty Beauchamp, are you playing matchmaker?”

“Oh, no!” Dotty laid a hand on her chest. “Not me, chère. I’m just tellin’ you not to slam the door in the face of opportunity if it’s starin’ you right in the eyes.”

“That sounded just like Aunt Sugar.” Jolene smiled.

“It should,” Dotty sighed. “She used to say it all the time. You want to buy my bar? I might get me an RV and join her after all.”

“No, thank you. Running the inn is going to keep me busy.”

“Has he kissed you yet?” Dotty’s eyes twinkled.

Jolene shook her head. “No, ma’am.”

“You think y’all might ever get together if he sticks around?” Dotty said.

If he sticks around—her mother had said that so many times. If this rich man sticks around, he’s going to take me out of this damned trailer. If this wonderful guy sticks around, he’s going to take me to Vegas for a whole week. This man is the CEO of a trucking company—if he sticks around, I’m going to quit my shitty job and go on the road with him. And every time it all fell through, Jolene had to clean up the messes those men left behind. Just thinking about it made her mad all over again.

Dotty wiped up a spill from the bar. “Sugar wants an update on Tucker and you tonight. She says you change the subject when she asks about y’all, and I’ve got to give her something or I’m afraid she’s goin’ to turn that RV around and come home.”

Jolene sighed. “Then don’t tell her anything, and maybe she really will come on back to Jefferson. As far as me and Tucker, we’re partners. That’s all. I can’t get involved with him, Dotty, not unless and until he unloads all that emotional baggage, and even then it’s iffy.”

“Life’s too short to be carryin’ around heavy burdens. You both need to get rid of the past. Treat it like it’s a material possession. Like Sugar did. She gave you everything that wouldn’t fit in an RV and drove off with Jasper like a couple of newlyweds,” Dotty said. “I wish I’d really sold the bar, got me an RV and a feller to drive it, and gone with her. God, I miss that woman. She was the most levelheaded one of us.”