Read Diamond in the Rough (Diamond J #2) Online
Authors: Lori L. Robinett
Diamond in the Rough (Diamond J #2) (11 page)
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Milton
She'd just crawled into bed, wrapped up in warm memories of being in Aidan's embrace, when the telephone on her nightstand rang, jangling her nerves and making her jump. She snatched up the handset before it could wake Toby up. She glanced at the clock, 9:54, as she said, “Hello?”
Midge’s voice came through the phone line. “I’m sorry to call so late.”
Good news never came late. “No problem. What’s up? Is everything okay?” A sick feeling settled in the pit of her stomach.
“No,” Midge sighed. “I heard some bad news tonight. I wanted to get the details and confirm before I called you.”
Gina sat on the edge of the bed and gripped the handset tighter, then asked, “What?”
“It’s your old boss, Milton. He passed away this afternoon.”
Gina felt a chill go down her spine, all the way down her legs. It was as if all the heat in the room had been sucked out. She closed her eyes and shivered, then whispered, “What happened?” Milton had been like a father to her.
“Apparently he was out in the yard filling the bird feeder and fell over dead. Heart attack.”
Gina tried to murmur something, but it came out as little more than a strangled cry. Milton was gone. He was such a good, kind person. Why did the good ones always have to die? Goosebumps raised on her arms.
Gina finally got out a few words, “But he was in good health.”
Midge agreed, “Yes, he was. Walked all the time, worked in the garden.”
Gina protested, “But he couldn’t have been more than sixty!” Tears filled her eyes.
Midge said, “I heard he would've been sixty-nine next month.”
"That's not old." Gina swallowed the lump in her throat. She finally managed to string together a few coherent words, “Any idea what the arrangements are?”
Midge said, “No, I don’t think so. I'm sure somebody will take Milton’s wife to the funeral home tomorrow to make arrangements.”
Gina said, “If you hear, would you call me as soon as you know?”
Midge promised she would and said, “I’m sorry, Gina. I know you really looked up to him.”
Gina pushed the end button and sat the handset on the charger, tears coursing down her cheeks, one right after the other. Midge had no idea. Milton had been more than a boss, he had been a mentor and her patron, allowing her to rent the scrapbook store location for a pittance.
She hated herself for being selfish at a time like this, but she wondered what effect his death would have on that arrangement.
She laid awake most of the night, worrying about the dishwasher, the scrapbook store, Milton’s wife . . . everything.
When she had turned forty a couple of years ago, she cut her hair into a short pixie cut and bleached it. It was perfect for her, it fit her. And it had the added bonus of making her cheekbones stand out, and showed off her small ears. Gina sighed, irritated at herself for feeling those pangs of jealousy over her friend's looks. Gina was feeling older than her 29 years these days.
Gina called out a cheery, if forced, “Good morning!”
Midge walked to the center counter, a Styrofoam cup in each hand and handed offered Gina one of them. “Got you one, too. Carmel latte, whole milk, double shot.”
“Thanks.” Gina took the offered drink. The steam warmed her face. She put it down to let it cool for a moment.
Midge’s lower lip pooched out. “Are you doing okay this morning? I know Milton was special to you.” Her eyebrows scrunched together.
Gina nodded. “More so than you know.” A lump in her throat made the words come out with a strangled sound.
Midge cocked her head sideways. “I know you worked for him before you opened the store. Isn’t he the one who encouraged you to open the store?”
Another chill ran down Midge’s spine at the memory. “Yes, he did. The law firm wasn’t turning a profit and it was going to close. He felt bad about leaving me hanging out to dry, especially with Toby, so he helped me get this place.” She spread her arms wide to indicate the store.
Midge asked, “Didn’t he represent you in the divorce, too?”
Gina shook her head. “No, but he got Jed Clinkscales to handle it at a reduced fee. Since Jed and Milton were partners, I did all the typing and drafting of documents. Jed just looked over everything and advised me on what to do.”
Midge took a sip of her coffee and peered over the top of the cup. “Your eyes are really puffy today. This hit you pretty hard.”
The guilt was tearing Gina apart as much as the grief. She should be upset about the poor man’s death, his poor widow. For God’s sakes, his children and grandchildren. Instead, all she could think about was whether or not she’d be able to keep the store open. She said out loud, “I cried a lot last night, and didn’t sleep very well.”
Midge offered, “Do you want to take the day off? I’d be glad to work all day.”
“No,” Gina shook her head. “That’s okay. But I'd like to take a rain check on that offer so I can go to the funeral.”
Midge said, “Of course.”
Gina took a small sip of her coffee. Still hot, but not quite scalding. “I don’t suppose you’ve heard anything about arrangements?”
“No,” Midge said as she pushed the power button on the computer tower under the counter. “But there might be something online.”
Gina glanced around the store, thinking about all the work she had put into the place over the last year since it had opened. All four walls were covered with white slat board and hooks held everything from templates to adhesives. Long wooden shelves created rows of paper, everything from Bazzill to beautiful patterned papers. Carousels and end caps displayed embellishments of every type.
She and Midge stood in the center of the store, the island that was the business center of the store, the heart of the store, with easels displaying finished works on the counters. The back third of the store was her favorite, though. She referred to as the scrappy area, with several white banquet tables set up in the center with folding chairs so that people could come in and crop. The surrounding walls were filled with kitchen counters that contained every tool a scrapper could dream of.
But how long could she stay open if she had to start paying rent? She froze, cup midway to her mouth, a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach.
What if the building were sold? Would she lose her location?
Midge asked, “What’s the matter?”
Gina’s chest rose and fell with a heavy sigh. It felt like a physical weight pushing down on her. She and Midge were close, and they discussed nearly everything, but they had never discussed money. She felt it was a burden that she had to carry upon her shoulders, and hers alone.
But now that burden felt overwhelming.
Gina sat her coffee down and stared out the front window, unable to meet her friend’s eyes as she told her secret. She whispered, “I’m terrified I’m going to lose this place.”
Midge touched her arm. “Oh, sweetie, it’ll be okay. I’m sure business will pick up. It’s been going well. Your crops are popular and—”
Gina interrupted her, “No, that’s not it.” She blinked away tears before they could fall.
Midge pulled back and her features softened. “You can cut my pay. Or cut my hours.”
Gina shook her head. “You don’t understand, it’s so much bigger than that.” She sucked in a deep breath, then let the words out in a rush. “Milton rented this place to me for a dollar a month.”
Midge blinked and whistled. “Wow. That is so generous!”
Gina snorted. “That was
so
generous. And now I feel
so
like a heel for even thinking about it.”
Understanding dawned on Midge’s face. Her jaw dropped. “Oh! I get it. You’re worried that the deal won’t continue now.”
Gina felt miserable. “I don’t see how it could continue. At this point, I’m not just worried about the rent being raised, I’m worried about the building being sold out from under me.”
Midge broke in. “And then what will you do?”
Gina cocked one eyebrow up. “Exactly. That is the question of the day, my dear friend.”
The front door opened and the bell chimed merrily. Ed, the mailman, came in and greeted them with a hearty, “Good morning, ladies!”
After he handed off the bundle of mail, which consisted mostly of magazines, junk mail and the electric bill, he turned to leave. At the door, he met a customer and held the door open for her. The woman announced that she was working on a John Deere album for a gift, and that set the tone for the day.
Customers were in and out, and neither Midge nor Gina had time to give Milton’s passing and the implications of his death another thought until the doors closed that evening.
The Fixer
"That sucks," Midge said as she rearranged a display. "Who are you going to get to fix it?"
"The cowboy from the Diamond J." The memory of Aidan in her kitchen made her knees weak.
Midge turned to look at Gina with a twinkle in her eye. "Do tell!"
A flush crept up Gina's neck. "Aidan was driving past when I was outside trying to get the water shut off. He stopped to help." In spite of herself, she grinned so wide her cheeks hurt.
The telephone rang and Midge held up one finger. She answered it, then covered the mouthpiece as she turned toward Gina. She whispered, “It’s for you. It’s Jed.”
Fear turned into a cold knot in Gina’s stomach and her grin faded. She reached for the phone and held it to her ear, then said in as cheerful a voice as she could muster, “Jed! It’s been ages! How are you?”
“Fine,” came the response, then there was an awkward pause before he continued. “I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but we need to talk. Is now a good time?”
She glanced at Midge, who was pretending to be busy doing nothing, within earshot, but not obtrusive. She turned away from her friend and said, “It’s as good a time as any. What’s up?”
“I’m sure you’ve heard that Milton passed away.”
“I did. Such horrible news.” Her grip tightened on the handset.
“Yes, well, he lived a good life. We were blessed to have him with us for as long as we did.” Another awkward pause, then he continued, “As you might have expected, I’m handling the estate and helping his widow handle things.”
Before she could stop herself, she blurted, “Not wasting any time.” Her hand flew to her mouth, horrified at the words that escaped. Milton had been so kind to her, and Jed was just doing his job.
He cleared his throat. “No. No, she’s not. Feeling a bit like she needs to tackle everything head on. Milton had a good heart. He was a kind man. Generous to a fault. And that brings me to the reason for my call.”
Uh, oh, she thought, here it comes. She leaned against the counter, her knees trembling. The remainder of the conversation turned into a sloggy mess in her mind, something about the widow being left with a ton of debt, going to be kicked out of her house if she didn’t do something soon, the kids were involved and pushing her to do something about some of the generous deals Milton had done for people in the little town of Wilder.
Jed assured her she shouldn’t feel bad because Milton had done other deals like hers, rents that amounted to a pittance to help out the tenants. Not only did she still feel bad, there was the added sting that she wasn’t special. Jed apologized profusely for having to be the bearer of bad news, but was blunt about the fact that Milton had offered her the store location at a reduced rent in order to help her get on her feet, and she had done that.
The store was doing well and Jed knew it. His wife spent a lot of money there, as did both of his ex-wives and his teenage daughter.
By the time she hung up, she had taken one major point from the conversation that kept repeating in her head over and over, like a warning or a bad dream.
Her rent was jumping by a few hundred dollars a month. She could either accept it, or move. The choice was hers.
A tiny, nagging voice - that sounded a lot like her mother - pecked away at her.
You should have known rent would go up eventually. You should have been paying rent into a savings account so you’d be prepared for a rainy day. Rainy days always come along.
Gina sighed. Between extra expenses like the broken dishwasher, her beater of a car and her increase in rent, she felt like a storm was on the horizon. A big, nasty, ugly storm.
She shook the negative thoughts out of her head. It didn’t do any good to sit around and whine. Instead, action was needed. She needed to drum up business, get the current customers excited about new techniques and products, and get new customers in the door. Getting folks in the door was half the battle. If she could get them in the door, they’d buy something.
Most of the time.
She had to up her game at the store. The holidays were simple to plan for, but she needed to take it a step further. Her eyes flared as she looked at July. Of course! Christmas in July! She could do a Winter Wonderland crop, complete with fake snow. It’d be the perfect event in the middle of a hot, humid, Missouri summer. And - Bonus! - that would give her two special events in July, which was usually a slow sales month. She could do an Independence Day crop. Again, she felt inspiration strike.
She pulled into a parking space, plucked her phone from her purse and dialed.
“Midge? Gina.”
She was greeted with Midge’s giggle. “I knew it was you. What’s up?”
“Is your neighbor still the president of the parent-teacher organization?”
“Yeah.” Midge’s voice dripped with suspicion. “Why?”
“And is Glenda Collins still the FHA sponsor at the high school?”
“Yeah,” Midge repeated, drawing the word out.
“You got Glenda’s number? I’m thinking we need to do an Independence Day crop. All weekend long. We’ll provide baby-sitters and—”
“Great idea! I bet Glenda's work out something to give the FHA girls some kind of credit for doing it. Freebie for you!”
“Oh, my gosh! Midge, that’s brilliant!”
“I know. You want to call her, or do you want me to?”
“I'll call her, but would you call your neighbor and see if she’d promote it to the mothers in the PTO?”
“Will do.”
Gina ended the call and dialed the FHA sponsor. She didn’t know the other woman well, but took a deep breath and prepared to grovel. The sponsor’s voice came over the line, electronic and not available. Gina left a message. Gina was always thinking she needed to focus on marketing and build the business, but she was so busy, well, with everything. Being a mom. Working. She was so busy making ends meet that she never looked forward.
And now she felt the wolf sniffing at the door.
Paying rent would be difficult, but what were her options? Without a store, what would she do? There wasn’t much work available in Wilder. Could she find a job? Just the thought of having to find a job made her stomach churn. Owning her own business gave her the freedom she needed to be there when Toby needed her. If she worked for someone else, she couldn’t do that.
There had to be other events she could plan, to build business, to breathe new life into the store, to draw in new customers. But that would have to wait. She grabbed the old motor out of her passenger seat and hurried into the hardware store.
That evening, she stood in her kitchen watching Aidan replace the front panel on her dishwasher. When he'd tightened the last screw, he pushed to his feet and looked down at her. His t-shirt hugged his muscles. Without his cowboy hat, she could see his brilliant blue eyes clearly. She'd never seen eyes like that on a man with such dark hair, and it was incredibly sexy because it was so unexpected.
He swiped his hands together. "All fixed." He glanced at her, then busied himself stowing his tools in his case.
She pressed her lips together and stuffed her hands in her pockets. "What do I owe you?" He looked so natural standing there in her kitchen. Maybe she was ready for a man in her life.
His voice dropped to a husky whisper. "A date." He turned to face her. He gazed into her eyes, then took a step toward her.
She hadn't been on a date in so long, she could barely remember what they were like.
He reached out and cupped her cheek in his hand. "I'd really like to get to know you better."
She swallowed hard, nodded, then raised up on her toes as he lowered his head. Their lips met and she pressed her body against his. Feeling playful, she flicked her tongue against his lips. He groaned and pulled her closer.
"Hey, Mom, I need a drink of water."
Gina stepped back and blinked away the fog of desire. "Okay, sweetie." She opened the cabinet door and pulled out a plastic cup.
She glanced over her shoulder to see Toby staring up at Aidan with round eyes. "You're the cowboy that let me ride the steer."
Aidan's eyes widened and he looked quickly at Gina. Toby still had a band-aid on his chin from the tumble he took. Aidan shifted from foot to foot under her gaze.
Gina handed the cup to Toby. "Okay, drink up, then you need to get back to bed."
Toby tipped the glass up and drained it. He started to put it on the counter, then stopped and looked at the dishwasher and the tools scattered on the countertop. He turned and fixed his gaze on Aidan. "Mom said we can't afford to fix the dishwasher. Did you fix it?"
Aidan nodded. Gina blushed at her son's confession.
Toby frowned, forming twin furrows between his big, blue eyes. "Okay, you can stay." Abruptly, he turned around and disappeared down the hallway.
Gina's mouth dropped open. Life was so simple for Toby. She wished that were so for her, too. She turned back to Aidan and shrugged. "Kids, huh?"
He nodded toward the hallway. "I haven't been around many kids, but he seems okay."
She studied his face. He had to be weighing whether or not to date her, given the fact that she had a child. A relationship with her was more complicated than most.
He swept his hat off the counter and settled it on his head. "I should get going." He glanced at the hallway. "Not keep Toby awake."
She reached out and touched his forearm. It was firm and well-muscled, covered in a dusting of dark hair. "He said you can stay."
Aidan's mouth quirked up. "I know, but he's probably got to get up and go to daycare and you probably have to get up and go to work, just like I do."
She dropped her hand and caught her lower lip with her teeth. He was right. She hoped that was all it was. "I'll see you at the barbecue, though, right?"
His lips parted in a full-grown grin, deepening his dimples. "Absolutely." He bent and brushed his lips against hers, then pulled back and looked deep into her eyes. He took her hand in his and ran his thumb over the back of hers. "I'm looking forward to it."