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She’d left him openmouthed then, just as the sight of the Seaview Inn had him openmouthed now. Apparently he’d been overly optimistic about just how idyllic this trip down memory lane was going to be.
* * *
Luke knocked on the front door of the inn, but when no one answered, he stepped inside and called out. “Mrs. Matthews, it’s me, Luke Stevens. Are you home?”
He heard a door to his left bang open and then Jenny Matthews came bustling out of the kitchen and across the dining room, drying her hands on a dish towel.
“You’re early,” she said, making it sound like an accusation. “I thought you weren’t coming for another week.”
“I was able to get away sooner than I expected. Since you mentioned having work to do around here, I figured the sooner I was here to help, the better. Is it okay?”
She looked troubled, but then shook her head. “Don’t worry about it. I just haven’t had a chance to explain this to Hannah.” She shrugged, then gave him a rueful look. “Well, she’ll get used to the idea soon enough, I expect. Let me show you to your room.”
“You don’t need to do that,” he said, worried about her ability to negotiate all those stairs. “Just point me in the right direction. I can manage.”
“Okay, then. I’ll get you a key and you can take your things upstairs. Less running up and down I do, the better I like it.” She went to a small desk in the foyer, pulled a key from the drawer and handed it to him. “Since there’s no one else staying here right now, I’m giving you the room on the end. It has more space and the best view. Has a real nice bathroom, too. Hannah’s mother talked me into putting one of those Jacuzzi things in there. Said we could double the price if we did that.”
Luke thought of how wonderful that would be for his bad leg, which still ached like the devil when he stayed on his feet too long or tried to walk too far. He couldn’t seem to stop himself from testing his limits, though. Being incapacitated and less than his physical best bothered him more than he liked to admit. Being strong and athletic was as much a part of his identity as being a doctor.
“Thanks,” he said. “I appreciate it.”
“I dusted in there myself just yesterday. There should be plenty of clean towels, but if there’s anything you need, let me know when you come back down. I’ll fix some lunch for you. You can eat out on the porch, if you like. I imagine you’ll find that more pleasant than sitting in the dining room all alone. Won’t be fancy, but it’ll be filling. Tuna sandwich, home-baked cookies and lemonade. How does that sound?”
“Perfect.” He remembered her baking with the affection of a teenage boy for whom chocolate-chip cookies had been only a couple of rungs below stealing kisses on his list of favorite things.
“Will a half hour give you enough time to get set-tled?” she asked.
“More than enough. Thanks, Mrs. Matthews.”
“If you’re going to be staying here awhile, you might’s well call me Grandma Jenny.”
“I’ll do that, then,” he said, and impulsively gave her a quick kiss on her cheek. “Thanks for taking me in.”
“Oh, you’ll earn your keep soon enough,” she assured him. “Now, hurry along. You need to be settled before Hannah gets back.”
He regarded her suspiciously. “Why is that?”
“Trust me, it’s just better that way.”
“You think she’s going to want to kick me out, don’t you?”
“Oh, I expect so,” she said nonchalantly. “But don’t worry too much about that, Luke. Despite what she thinks, I still have some say around this place. She hasn’t sold it out from under me yet.”
“Hannah wants to sell Seaview Inn?” he asked, astonished. “Why?”
“Because I’m old and she doesn’t want to be bothered with it,” she said succinctly. “I’d say that sums it up. Oh, she thinks I don’t know exactly what she’s up to, but I can read all the signs.”
Luke didn’t begin to understand the dynamics at work here, but he did know one thing. People shouldn’t be forced into doing something just for someone else’s convenience. He’d treated enough elderly patients with hip fractures to understand how many of them wound up leaving homes they loved because it put their children’s consciences at ease.
Until he knew more about this situation, though, he needed to keep his opinions to himself. It would be wrong to leap to Grandma Jenny’s side before he knew all the facts, as well as heard Hannah’s perspective.
“Well, there’s plenty of time to figure all of this out, I’m sure,” he told her. “At least you and Hannah are agreed on fixing this place up, so as soon as I’ve had some lunch, you can put me to work.”
“You’re eager. I like that,” she said approvingly. “Now, run along. Your lunch will be waiting on the porch as soon as you’re ready.”
“Will you and Hannah be joining me?”
“Not me. I have things to do,” she said, looking vaguely guilty.
“And Hannah?”
“She’s taking a walk on the beach. No telling when she’ll be back.”
Luke got it then. Grandma Jenny didn’t want to be anywhere in sight when Hannah discovered that he’d taken up residence at the inn.
“You’re a very sneaky woman, aren’t you?” he said, delighted by her spunk.
She grinned at him. “I have my moments.”
Luke had a feeling that coming here was about to take some very interesting twists. Oddly enough, the prospect of a few fireworks intrigued him.
* * *
The salt air and cool waters of the Gulf of Mexico usually worked their magic on Hannah, but today it was going to take a lot more than a walk on the beach to settle her chaotic thoughts. Though she loved her daughter dearly and was anxious to see her this afternoon, she was dreading the battle to come over college.
Oh, who was she kidding? The real issue wasn’t whether or not Kelsey remained at Stanford, but what she was going to do about the baby. Her daughter was pregnant! The thought still boggled her mind, at least when it didn’t make her angry. Of all the careless, irresponsible things Kelsey might have done, this was one that Hannah had never even considered.
Sure, college kids in lust took chances, made mistakes, but Kelsey had always had a rigid, almost puritanical set of values. They’d talked about sex being best in a committed relationship. They’d talked about precautions, just in case a situation got out of hand. Dammit, it was the one subject about which they’d always been on the same page!
As close as she and Kelsey were, Hannah thought she knew everything there was to know about her daughter’s life at school. She’d never mentioned any special young man, not even in answer to Hannah’s direct questions about her social life.
“Sure, I go out, Mom, but it’s nothing serious.”
Hannah could recall her precise words. Well, she’d call a boy responsible for an unplanned pregnancy serious enough to qualify for a mention.
Spilt milk, she reminded herself sternly. She needed to stop thinking about all the dreams that might be going up in smoke. She needed to be calm and rational by the time she picked up Kelsey at the airport. The last thing her daughter needed was a barrage of judgmental, unanswerable questions the instant she stepped off the plane. Nor did she need her mother stepping in and trying to fix things, the way Hannah was always inclined to do.
Crossing the street from the beach, Hannah spotted someone sitting in a rocker on the porch, a very masculine someone who looked vaguely familiar and very much at home.
“Hey, Hannah,” the man said, lifting a glass of lemonade in greeting. “Care to join me? Your grandmother left an extra glass.”
She gave him another hard look, took in the dark brown buzz cut, the angular features on a face that was almost gaunt, the broad shoulders, the lips threatening to curve into a grin. It wasn’t until she looked into his brown eyes, though, that she recognized him.
“Luke?” Her expression brightened. “Luke Stevens? How long has it been?”
“More than twenty years,” he said, his gaze sweeping over her with the kind of masculine appreciation she wasn’t accustomed to, from him. “You look good, Hannah. How’s life treating you?”
“Don’t ask. How about you?”
“Don’t ask.”
“You’re not still living in Seaview Key, are you?”
“No. I haven’t been back in years.”
“Well, what on earth are you doing here now?” She heard how that sounded and quickly amended, “Not that I’m not glad to see you.”
“I just came back for a visit.”
“Well, isn’t that an amazing coincidence?” Amazing and a whole lot more, frankly. It was troubling to discover that Luke still had the same ability to rattle her and make her tongue-tied. Forcing herself to remember the way things had been—Luke and her best friend madly in love, rather than Luke at least noticing her—she deliberately asked, “Do you ever hear from Abby?”
He shook his head. “You?”
“Not since college. So, where are you staying?”
“Here, actually. I moved in about an hour ago.”
Hannah, who’d been about to lean down and give him a friendly peck on the cheek, backed up so fast, it was only luck—and a sturdy railing—that kept her from sailing right off the edge of the porch.
“Here?” she said incredulously. “You moved in here?”
He chuckled and raised his glass of lemonade again. “Surprise!”
“But we’re closed. Who said you could stay?” she asked, though the answer was obvious. Grandma Jenny wasn’t taking any chances. Obviously she figured frugal Hannah wouldn’t turn away a paying guest.
“I made the reservation with your grandmother a couple of weeks ago.”
Hannah directed a sour look toward the house. No doubt her grandmother was sitting right beside a window to get a perfect view of this encounter. “Really. For how long?”
Luke shrugged. “Hard to say. I have some things to figure out. I told your grandmother I’d help the two of you get this place spruced up a bit.”
“Really,” she said again. This must be the help Gran had said was on the way. “She never mentioned you. Did you and my grandmother make any other plans without sharing them with me?”
“Not me,” he claimed. “I can’t speak for her.”
Hannah bounced up. “I think my grandmother and I need to have a talk.” She was about to walk away, when her intrinsic manners kicked in. She turned around. “It really is good to see you again, Luke, but one word of caution.”
“Oh?”
“Don’t get too comfortable. In less than two weeks, this place will be closed, I’ll be back in New York and my grandmother will be...” She faltered on that. “Well, she’ll be somewhere. Right this second a psychiatric facility sounds like just the place.”
She was about to storm inside and have it out with her grandmother when Luke stopped her.
“Hold it, Hannah. If me being here is going to be a problem, I’m sure I can find somewhere else to stay. I noticed a couple of new motels when I drove off the ferry.”
She was about to take him up on the offer when she realized she was being absurd. There was no reason he couldn’t stay in one of the guest rooms, even if having him underfoot was going to dredge up a whole lot of old memories of unrequited longing. It was only the fact that her grandmother had done this behind her back that grated.
She sighed and sat down in the rocker next to his. To buy herself a couple of minutes so that she didn’t sound totally irrational, she poured herself a glass of the ice-cold lemonade and took a sip.
“Sorry about sounding so inhospitable,” she said eventually. “You just caught me off guard. We’ve been closed since before my mother died a month ago. I had no idea that my grandmother had started taking reservations again.”
Luke looked genuinely shocked. “Your mother died? I didn’t know. I’m so sorry, Hannah. She was a wonderful woman. I always enjoyed talking to her. She really listened to all us kids.”
Hannah blinked back a fresh batch of tears. For a woman who’d always prided herself on keeping her emotions in check, since coming back here, she was turning into a regular waterworks.
“She was a good listener, wasn’t she?” she said, a catch in her voice. “I remember how often you or one of the other kids would sneak off to the kitchen to spill some secret to her. I swear she always knew stuff about my friends before I did. I was halfway jealous of that.”
“Your grandmother didn’t say anything about her dying when I called. I thought your mom must just be away on a trip or something.”
“Don’t feel bad. I know she’s dead and I feel the same way. I can’t quite believe I won’t turn a corner and bump into her.”
He hesitated, then studied her with a gaze filled with compassion. “Do you want to talk about it or should we move on to another topic?”
“To be honest, I’m not ready to talk about it yet. She had cancer and things didn’t go well, practically from the beginning, and...” She couldn’t bring herself to say the rest, that she was terrified her own future was destined to follow the same path.
“It’s an awful disease,” he said quietly. “And it’s really difficult to watch a loved one suffer.”
“You have no idea,” she said softly, then stood up abruptly. “Look, I have to catch the four-thirty ferry to the mainland and I really do need to talk to my grandmother about you staying before I go. Not that you being here is a problem, because it’s not, Luke. Really. I just have to be sure you’re not the tip of the iceberg and that hordes of other guests aren’t descending without warning. There’s a lot going on around here right now and, believe me, more unexpected visitors are not a complication I can handle.”
“My offer to find another place is still good,” he said. “I don’t want to add to whatever stress you’re under. I get what it’s like when things start piling up. Big or little, it doesn’t matter. Sooner or later, it’s just too much.”
Hearing the real sympathy in his voice, she fought back tears again. She shook her head, this time with more certainty. “No, stay. Please. Just be prepared for anything to happen. Once my daughter, Kelsey, gets here in a few hours, we may give new meaning to the phrase ‘dysfunctional family.’”
He smiled at that. “You’re not scaring me, if that’s what you’re trying to do. As it happens, I know quite a lot about dysfunctional families. I’ve recently taken a crash course.”
She studied him curiously. “Do you want to talk about that?”
“Nope. I want to forget about it, at least for a little while.”
“You realize we might not have much to say if we keep putting topics off limits,” she said.
“Oh, I suspect we’ll think of something. The weather’s always safe enough.”
She grinned. “At this time of year? The Chamber of Commerce brochures claim it’s always sunny and mild.”
“Except when it’s wet and chilly,” he countered.
“I’m pretty sure they never mention that.”
“But you and I don’t work for the Chamber of Commerce. We can be candid.” His expression sobered. “You can be honest with me, Hannah. You’re sure this is okay, me staying here?”
“I’m sure,” she said, this time without hesitation.
The truth was that the more she thought about it, the more she wanted him to stay. She had a feeling that having another rational adult around might be the only thing that would keep her from going off the deep end before all these family crises were resolved. All she had to do was make sure her already prancing hormones didn’t get any crazy ideas. Falling for Luke Stevens for the second time in her life—especially right now—would be so far beyond stupid there wasn’t even an adequate word to describe it.
Chapter 4
Instead of peace and serenity, Luke concluded he was smack in the middle of some Matthews family drama. He’d heard Hannah’s raised voice not two minutes after she’d left him on the porch. Whatever she’d said, though, hadn’t especially daunted her grandmother. Jenny Matthews had held her own. He couldn’t hear the words, but they’d matched each other in heat and determination. He had to admire the feistiness in both of them, but especially in Grandma Jenny. Too many of his senior patients were cowed by family members. Clearly that wasn’t the case here.
