AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Shut the door, if you please,” Patti said.
He did and sat down in front of her desk, hardly noticing the framed pictures of the staff on the walls or the other desk in the room that sat empty now. “Let me guess. This about Steve?”
“Yes. I told you yesterday I found the letter when I went to his home.” Patti spoke with a lilting accent. “There was also one for Hope, by the way. She was here a few minutes ago askin’ where his house is, so I gave her the keys and sent her to investigate on her own.” She picked up a piece of paper from the desk. “But the letter I found was actually addressed to both you and me, so I wanted you to read it too.” She passed him the letter scrawled in Steve’s unruly handwriting.
Dear Alex and Patti,
I’ve decided to leave tonight. I’m terribly sorry to do this to you both—you deserve better from me. I’m only taking my most important things with me. The rest you can get rid of. I won’t need it anymore.
I can’t do this. That’s what it all boils down to. Susan and I worked all our lives to build this place, and I can’t bear to turn it over to someone else. I know that’s unfair to Hope, and I’m sure she will do a fine job with the resort. She seems smart and willing to work hard.
I know I don’t have the right to ask you two for any favors, but could you help her out? This is an awful thing to do to her—and to you guys as well. She’s going to need a guiding hand here at first, and you two are the obvious choices.
Please don’t try to track me down. I really need some time to decompress and start over. I’ll be in contact if and when I’m ready. I know I owe everyone at Half Moon Bay an apology.
You’ve been like a son and a daughter to me, and I love you both.
-Steve
“Wow,” Alex said, sitting back in his chair. “I was almost wondering if he got kidnapped in the middle of the night or something. I guess this letter settles that.”
“I’ll keep up a good front for everyone else, but I don’t mind tellin’ you that I’m totally stunned here.” Patti reached up to fiddle with her bead necklace. “After all we’ve done for him, he just leaves us like this? Especially you and me?”
“I know. But we’ll find a way to make this work.” Alex sighed, frowning. He didn’t want to let Patti know how angry and deeply hurt he was.
Like a son to you, huh? Yet you bolt in the middle of the night, you son of a bitch. Even worse, you’re a coward.
“What a mess.”
“We’ll survive this, Patti. We’re a good team here, and that can make all the difference.”
She straightened and took a deep breath. “Yes, it can. This is a great place, and I love my job. Hope seems very nice, so we’ll just have to take her under our wings and show her the ropes.”
Alex hunched in his seat. “I don’t know why you or Steve think I should be involved in this. I’m only the dive guide. What am I supposed to show her?”
“Oh, stop it. You’re the dive operations manager. At a dive resort. Of course she’s gonna have to know somethin’ about that.” A small smile crept onto her face. “She’ll probably want to learn to dive at some point too.”
“Says who? You never have.”
Patti laughed. “I can’t even swim! No, I’ll keep my feet nice and dry, thank you very much.” She pointed to him. “And quit tryin’ to change the subject. You’re goin’ to have to interact with her, like it or not. It could be worse, you know.”
Alex grinned. “How? If the whole place burned down?”
“No! I mean Hope. She didn’t fall to pieces or blow up yesterday. And when I saw her this morning, she was focused and determined to make Steve’s house her own. I’d say it was the best possible start under the circumstances.”
He shrugged, then narrowed his eyes as a full smile spread over Patti’s face. “What?”
“You know, she’s not so bad looking either.” She was clearly trying not to laugh now.
“Oh, no you don’t.” Alex tensed, sitting up straight. “That is the absolute last thing I need in my life right now, and probably the last thing she needs too. Jeez, what else could go wrong?”
* * *
Hope descended the same stairs outside the lobby she’d climbed yesterday morning. She followed the road Patti had indicated, and after a quarter mile, it opened onto the front facade of a lovely single-story house painted white with green shutters. Several stairs led to a small deck in front of the dark-red front door. Like the guest bungalows, it was raised on two-foot cement blocks. A garage/shop sat at a ninety-degree angle to the cottage, painted to match, and a grassy lawn surrounded the house until it met the sandy beach.
Hope stood there, blinking.
She’d never lived in a detached house before. Living in Chicago had meant a series of apartments, and growing up, the closest she had come was her family living in an attached townhouse for several years.
