Better Than Chocolate (13 page)
“That I do. Leave the flowers with me and I’ll take care of them.”
Which was good to know. That just left her with a few hundred other things to worry about. Like the weather. She needed good weather tomorrow. If she’d known who the patron saint of weather was she’d be praying to him, or her, now. But she didn’t so instead she checked it out on the net. 80 per cent sunshine with a 20 per cent chance of intermittent clouds and showers. In short there were a good chance of showers and rain but also a good chance it could be sunny and warm.
She stopped in at the bakery and checked the order for tomorrow. Four dozen brownies, Nanaimo bars, lemon bars and pies. There was bumble-berry pie and strawberry-rhubarb, apple and blue-berry. There were an assortment of muffins and monster cookies. It would be up to her to set up the ices tonight. They’d decided on a margarita ice and a raspberry. From the directions Mary had given her it didn’t look that hard and the ice-machines looked sleek and gorgeous. Along with the deluxe coffee machines and other state of the art kitchen appliances. She didn’t even want to think about the cost.
There was nothing to worry about. Nothing. Everything was on track she told herself repeatedly. And still she couldn’t help going over lists in her mind looking for something she’d missed, something that still needed to be done.
The sleepy Sea Side hotel had momentarily changed into a hive of activity. In the centre of it all stood her parents. Staff ran in several different directions while her mother spoke to the desk clerk and her dad, surveying the room, spotted her.
“Darling, how are you?” he said, coming over quickly. He stood back surveying her. “You look wonderful. Hard work obviously agrees with you.”
She threw her arms around him hugging him hard. “Dad, it’s so good to see you.”
“Mm. You’ve been avoiding me for the last six months.”
“You know I had to. I wanted this to be my special project.”
“I know, I know. You know I’ve been asked to teach a business course at Vancouver College?”
“And you’ll be so good. I know you will be. But – Dad! – can you honestly say you’d have let me do whatever I wanted to do with Elena’s?”
“You said yourself Brad’s been a big help.”
“He gave me advice and help when I needed it. He didn’t try to take over.”
“I wouldn’t have either.”
“Daa-ad.”
“OK, OK. Are you ready for the opening?”
She rolled her eyes. “I keep thinking of things I need to do.”
He laughed. “That’s part of being a business owner. There’s always something more.”
“I guess.” She squeezed his arm. “I understand you a lot better now after this whole process.”
“Really!?”
“Really.”
Her mother approached along with her younger brother Nathan.
“Darling! You look so good.” She hugged her briefly and turned towards Greg. “We’ve got the whole top floor and some of the second.”
“Hi,” Nathan said. He smiled and his face transformed. “It’s been too long.”
She smiled at him, glad to see him again. His hair was spiked and he wore a ring through his lip. He had a dragon tattoo on his arm which she knew had caused huge conflict wit their mother. “Likewise.”
“I think we should get set up in our rooms dear, then meet down here in an hour.” She turned to Elena. “Is there a good restaurant we can go to dinner at?”
“I haven’t really checked out the local restaurants,” Elena said apologetically. “I know the Sea Side has one.”
“Which will be fine,” her Dad said.
Her mother looked doubtful.
“We’re here for Elena,” her Dad said firmly. “We don’t need to eat at a five-star restaurant every night.”
“I know that. I just think if you’re going to eat you might as well eat well,” her mother said. Realizing how strange that sounded in connection with her bird thin figure she said, “It’s not quantity I care about – it’s quality.”
Nathan rolled his eyes. “The locals have to eat something Mom. It’s not exactly Survivor.”
“Nathan!” her Dad said.
“I can see I’m out-voted,” her Mother said with a tight smile. “I’ll just let the staff know there’ll be – you’re coming for dinner dear? And Brad?” Her brow arched in surprise when she shook her head. “Oh, well, twenty – twenty-five, give or take.”
Elena gave a small gasp.
“Nathan brought a couple of friends and your sister Suzanne’s coming over with her husband Mark. Your artist friends will be here – and Mary. And then we’ve got
Aunt Margaret and Aunt Lulu coming over along with some of your cousins. A few of my friends decided it might be fun…” her voice trailed off as she saw the look of horror on Elena’s. “It’s going to be fun darling. Honestly.”
It was going to be a zoo. She smiled at her mother. “I’m sure it will be.”
“Can I have a sneak prevue of Elena’s,” her Dad asked.
“I’d love it,” Elena said.
“I’ll just make sure the bags get upstairs and be right down.”
“Greg…”
“Darling – I’ve only got one suitcase of stuff. Leave it and I’ll be back in an hour. That will give you time to get organized and relax a little.”
Her mother relented. “Oh, OK.”
It was not until they got outside the hotel that Elena felt herself relax. “How can you live like that? She exclaimed horrified. “It’s like being in the middle of a, a road show, a zoo!”
“It’s not as bad as it seems. It just takes a little while to get organized.” He gave her a huge smile. “And your mother’s an expert.”
“But don’t you just want to be alone sometimes!”
He shrugged. “Sometimes. But it’s all family. The more the merrier. I figure when I’m old and grey there’ll be enough time to sit back and relax.”
“I guess.” She looked her dad over. He was wearing jeans and a polo shirt. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you in jeans.”
He grinned. “It feels good to get out of a suit.”
She could see Elena’s from where they were. “I can’t wait until you see it,” she said, squeezing his arm.
“Will Brad be there?”
“I don’t think so,” she said, not elaborating.
“But he’s still on the project?”
“Definitely. I can call him anytime. And he’ll be here tomorrow.”
“Mm. He’s not coming for dinner then?”
“I never asked him.”
“OK, any idea what his new project is?”
“He never said anything to me about it.”
She was aware her dad was scrutinizing her and wanting more details. Too bad. She was a grown-up now.
“Elena’s!” she said, coming to a stop in front of the gallery/coffee shop.
“Very nice,” her Dad said approvingly. “Good location.”
She felt a rush of pride as she opened the door and ushered him in. “Isn’t it gorgeous!”
He stood, surveying it slowly, eyes travelling from the seating area of the café to the display cases and fancy coffee makers on into the gallery. “I like the coffee area,” he said finally. “Do I get a personal tour of the gallery?”
“Of course,” she said, taking his arm and leading the way.
“See. The pictures are all mine. Forest, beach, flowers. And then I’ve got some of Bente’s work and some of Race’s,” she said, pointing to one of the fairies and an iridescent ball of Race’s.
He shook his head in wonder moving slowly around the gallery, pausing before each picture. “I always knew you were talented – but this?”
“You like it?”
“Was there ever any question?”
“But if you didn’t know me. If I was a total stranger?”
“It’s beautiful. You’re an incredibly talented woman Elena.”
“Oh dad! You wouldn’t believe how much that means to me.”
“But you know how I feel about you,” he said seemingly puzzled.
“I know you think my pictures are all right. But you’re my dad”
“And I always will be. But even if I’d never met you before I’d still think you were an incredibly talented woman,” he said grinning.
Upstairs she could hear workmen hammering. Grant had promised her it would be ready by opening but it still sounded like they had a lot to do. She wondered if he would mind if they did a quick tour but then decided not too. Her dad would probably start asking her questions about why she wanted to live in Elena’s as well as work there. Maybe when it was finished. She looked over at the tables.
Irene had brought the flowers over and they looked wonderful. She’d put a larger bouquet of Irish bells and riotous daisies in a huge vase up on the counter area. On it a simple card said ‘Congratulations on the opening of Elena’s.’
“So that’s it,” she said. “Tomorrow we’re having a grand opening from 12 – 5 with free coffee and bakery treats for everyone.”
“I’m impressed,” Greg said honestly. “How are you fixed for money?”
“What?”
“This is costing a lot. If you need something to tide you over …”
“Dad! I’ve got financing in place.”
“You should’ve come to me. No one’s going to give you a better deal than I would.”
Elena’s lips set in a stubborn line. “This is my project! REMEMBER! Mine.”
“OK,” her dad said and she could see he was hurt.
“Dad, I know you’d help me. But I’m a grown up now. It’s time for me to stand on my own two feet. And Brad helped me set it up.”
He sighed. “OK. But you have to know I’m here for you.”
“Always dad.”
“And Brad wouldn’t set you up in anything too outrageous,” he said.
“Mmm.”
“He’d come to me if there weren’t any decent options.”
“What make you think he didn’t want to?”
Her dad was beginning to look alarmed. “If he’s set you up with some loan shark!”
“Dad…besides I thought you kept in touch with him.”
“On my projects. Until he quit. He wouldn’t give me any information on you or Elena’s,” he said grumpily. “Something about client confidentiality.”
She felt a huge sense of relief. “That’s just the way it should be,” she said playfully.
“Doesn’t mean I have to like it,” her dad said.
“Oh come on. Do you really think I’d let anyone talk me into something like that?” She looked at him. “I am your daughter you know.”
“I know,” he said and she could feel his pride in her. “Are you going to give me any details on it?”
“Nope,” she said firmly. “Just that it’s a good deal. As long as Elena’s does half the business I’ve projected for it I’m on easy street.”
“Well, it looks to me like you’ve got a winner here.” He held up his hands. “I know I had my doubts but this looks like a first-class business you’ve set up. You’ve got the location and you’ve got the traffic.”
She smiled at him and touched his nose with her finger. “See, like father, like daughter.”
“Is there anything that still needs to be done before you open tomorrow.”
“I’ll have to come down tonight and start the ices.”
“OK then. I guess I should get back to the hotel.”
“I’ll come up at 6:00 for the dinner.”
“Make that ten to six or your mother will drive me nuts.”
“OK.”
She watched him walk away, a smile on her face. He was right. Family was important. There was more than enough time to sit on the sidelines and relax. For now there were things to do, people to see and she was lucky enough to be able to.
She turned and headed up the stairs to where Grant and a couple of workmen were putting the finishing touch on her loft living area. She gasped!
It was so much better than anything she could’ve hoped for. It extended half-way over the café/gallery area giving her a living area 600 sq feet in size. The floors were made of the same cork material the rest of Elena’s had and the walls were a lighter shade of the green the gallery had been done in. There was a small area with cupboards to store some dishes and cutlery in but no dishwasher, stove or fridge. In their place was a bar fridge/cooler and toaster oven and hot plate along with a state of the art coffee machine. A bar area complete with stools gave way to a living room/sleeping area. She’d already ordered in a large couch/fold out bed. A couple of large comfortable chairs and a travel trunk/coffee table rounded out the furniture in the small room. Some small florals she’d done and had decided against hanging in the gallery decorated the walls.
Along side the far wall stood a small desk complete with a laptop computer and a comfortable chair. When she looked out she looked out over a million dollar view of the marina and Chemainus harbour.
She turned around to look at Grant, eyes wide with astonishment. “I never expected anything like this! This is brilliant.”
“Don’t thank me,” he said. “Brad did a lot of the planning.”
“Brad?”
“He figured you could change things around once Elena’s got going and you had a bit more time but he wanted you to be comfortable right from the start. And you’d already ordered the sofa bed and furniture. It was just a matter of figuring out the layout.”
“It was a lot more than than,” she declared with tears in her eyes. “Really I’d have been perfectly happy if you’d just managed to get Elena’s up and running. This – this is so amazing.”
Grant and the workmen just grinned at her. “We do our best.”
“Well your best is pretty amazing. Really. I can’t thank you enough for this.”
“You already have,” he said simply. “Oh, I’ll show you the blinds too.”
“Blinds.”
“You don’t really want to wake up and face Chemainus in your pajamas everyday,” he said laughing. “Even though you’re above street level.” He pressed a button and sleek blinds that ran the length of her loft area from floor to ceiling snaked out of the wall and ran across the room effectively acting as a wall blocking her off from the rest of Elena’s. He turned on some lights and the area was bathed in a soft, glowing light.