“Her mother is rich,” he said. “Old money. Apparently there’s a difference,” he added.
“She didn’t make it on a dot-com,” Iris said with a grin. “I assume there’s enough so that it keeps growing itself. Not only was Grace born into it, apparently her mother was, as was her grandmother.”
“It might be billions,” Troy said.
“Billions? Come on!”
“I don’t know. How would I know? But here’s what I know after spending a few days at her childhood home. The house is bigger than four normal houses, and it takes a full staff to run it so just one person can live in it. There’s a full-time driver, even if he’s not driving much. I think her mother might have other houses—she likes to spend time in Cabo, in New York, in London. There’s art and jewelry and her mother can rent private jets anytime she wants to. I mean, she stinks with it. I’m serious.”
“Wow. Incredible. Sounds like the Gettys. You should look and see if they’re on the Forbes List.”
“I’m afraid to,” Troy said.
“Why?” she asked with a laugh. “She’ll still be your friend.”
“Iris, we’ve been more than friends. And I can’t relate to that kind of money.”
“Just as well,” she said, laughing. “It’s not yours. It’s hers.”
“Iris, could you please stop laughing. It makes me feel like a poor relation with his hand out.”
“You have your hand out?”
“Of course not! But that’s how I feel! Do you know anyone that rich?”
“I’m not sure,” she said. “Peyton comes from a pretty rich family.”
“She does?” he asked, shocked.
“Uh-huh. Her parents own one of the biggest farms in Oregon. Huge. They grow pears for Harry & David, potatoes for grocers, have a ton of sheep for the wool and now she says her father and brothers are into Christmas trees. Scott says it’s a huge family, almost all of them in the business, and her father has holes in his jeans and drives an old pickup with no shocks. He probably doesn’t have a twenty in his pocket, but his net worth is astronomical.”
“I didn’t know that,” he said. “Do they live in a big house?”
“Yes. With one bathroom. Eight kids, one bathroom. Try to imagine.”
“Okay, we’re not talking about the same thing at all. Grace has money to burn. I think if she started spending it now she couldn’t go through it all. Unfortunately for her mother, it’s in Grace’s near future.”
Iris sat back in her chair and chewed on her pen. “Troy, what about this is a problem?”
He shrugged and looked down.
“Spit it out before I start guessing.”
“I don’t feel good enough.”
“Ridiculous,” she scoffed. “Your individual incomes have nothing at all to do with your worth. After all, Grace didn’t earn hers, did she? She was born to it—that’s nothing but luck. You should start playing the lottery, maybe you’ll get lucky.”
“Tell me how to get past this,” he said. “My brain is telling me it makes no sense to feel this way and I don’t know why I can’t shake it. I’m a smart person. I don’t discriminate against anyone. What the hell is this?”
“I think it’s testosterone,” she said. “Really!” she said, her tone indicating some disgust.
“Where’d you come up with that?”
“It sounds like just another version of ‘let’s get ’em out and measure ’em, boys.’ Men have this competitive thing, this need for mastery. You have a hard time if you think you’re not in control, especially in control of your woman. Something about Grace’s family money makes you feel vulnerable and awkward. And yet the girl lives in a tiny loft! She drives a flower delivery van!”
“I’ve never been like that,” he said. “I’ve never been controlling toward women. If you knew my mother or sister, you wouldn’t even suggest that.”
“Then what is it?” she asked.
“I don’t know. It’s just...I wonder what I could ever get her if she has everything. What can I do for her if she can pick up the phone and hire it done?”
Iris stared at him in wonder. She leaned toward him and her voice was disarmingly soft. “Troy, I want you to think about those questions—what could you give her, what could you do for her? When you come up with the answers, you will have solved the problem. I’m not going to be able to answer for you. But can I just tell you one thing?”
“Please.”
“The important things Seth gives me never come out of his pocket.”
* * *
Grace didn’t sleep as well without Troy as she had with him, but after all he’d done for her the past week, she’d never complain. She was up early, not because she was ambitious but because she didn’t want to struggle again and again to fall back to sleep. The look it left on her was less than gorgeous. After the past week, including her four days in San Francisco, she had dark circles under her eyes. She used a little cosmetic concealer and hoped she wouldn’t yawn all day.
She got into the shop early and found it was as clean as an ICU, her flowers all well cared for and chilling, her desk clear and the front of the store sparkling. Even the scarred, stained worktable had been scrubbed and if she wasn’t mistaken, the floor had been thoroughly mopped, something she didn’t bother with more than once a week. That workroom saw a lot of action and keeping it pristine was a never-ending task.
Ginger wasn’t due until nine but she came in at eight, using her own key. She was clearly surprised to see Grace and her face lit up with a happy smile. “Welcome home! How was the trip?”
“Productive,” she said. “And very tiring. I’m going to want to speak to Ray Anne at her earliest convenience. Is she awake?”
“Awake, already left the house and said to tell you she’s planning to come down to talk with you today, probably before noon.”
“Outstanding,” Grace said. “The place looks great, Ginger. It looks like you were scrubbing all night.”
“No, not at all. There wasn’t much business. I only tried my hand at one arrangement, which didn’t turn out too well, then I stopped. I didn’t want to waste flowers on practice.”
“Well, we get a new shipment tomorrow and since they’re mostly for the wedding, I’ll order yet another for Monday. Later today you can feel free to practice. Flowers that have reached their life expectancy have to be disposed of anyway.”
“It must kill you to throw away flowers,” Ginger said.
“It kills me more to get a phone call from a customer saying their centerpiece lasted two days! Fresh is beautiful, remember that.”
“Can I make you some coffee?” Ginger asked, going to the workroom.
Grace thought about it, then lied. “I’ve already had coffee, thanks. Go ahead, make yourself a pot. The minute we have time, I’ll show you how to use the designing computer programs I have.”
While they were in San Francisco, Grace had stayed away from wine and caffeine, though she could have used a full tank of each. She’d let Troy pour her a glass of wine, then nurse it. She’d take a sip and complain of being too tired to enjoy it and once she tipped it into a potted plant when he wasn’t looking. She poured coffee down the drain. No one seemed to notice. She wasn’t sure Troy would question it but since she wasn’t ready to confront it, she kept silent.
Tonight, however. Tonight it had to be done. She was afraid, of course. She hoped he wouldn’t suggest they terminate to give themselves more time, because in the days since she’d peed on the stick she’d been seeing a real, beautiful baby in her mind. Now there was no direction for her other than to have it, to hold it and love it.
It was late morning when Ray Anne came into the shop.
“I’m so glad you’re here,” Grace said. “I’m afraid I have to do everything I can to find a place f
or my mother and quickly. I knew that old house in the Bay Area wasn’t going to work for her—everything is a challenge, from the bed to the stairs to the bath. We practically have to have her doctor flown in and she’s pretty much captive in that bedroom with no fresh air or—”
Ray Anne was smiling. “We’ve got the solution. Everything you need, everything you asked for.”
“Really? How’d you find it?”
“I’d love to take credit, but Cooper will rat me out eventually. He has three spec houses that can be occupied in three months or less and he’s given me the contracts.”
Her face fell. “Ray Anne, we don’t have three months.”
“Not to worry. The exteriors are nearly finished on all three and one of them only needs a little... Oh, listen, come with me, come and see. Ginger can stay here, can’t she?”
“She sure can,” Grace said. “She left the place better than I leave it!”
Grace jumped in Ray Anne’s car and they drove along the beach by the high road that wound behind the houses right down to Cooper’s bar. Stairs led from the bar and houses down to the beach, the structures being safely perched on the hill. Ray Anne parked in the drive of the house nearest Cooper’s, next door to Spencer and Devon Lawson’s home. There were a lot of trucks and construction equipment everywhere and Grace was immediately disappointed. “These houses look far from ready,” she said. “And, Ray Anne, they’re three levels! Stairs!”
“Oh, they’re not completely ready, but Cooper’s hoping to get contracts on them before the interior is finished so new owners can choose their flooring, paint, appliances, decorator items like wallpaper. Come inside, you’ll see.” She led the way and held the door open.
They stepped into a wide foyer that opened right to a large living room and dining room. Very large. “Twenty by twenty,” Ray Anne confirmed. Behind the great room was a nice-sized kitchen with plenty of cupboard space, once the cupboards were installed, that is. A breakfast bar divided it from the dining room and there was an island with a small sink. Straight ahead, a triple sliding door led to a wide deck. There was a fireplace on one wall, mantel unfinished. There were no countertops or appliances; the floors were plywood and still littered with construction trash. To the right of the kitchen were matching up and down staircases with crude railings in want of the finished decorator banisters. There was a door into the kitchen from the garage.
“This way,” Ray Anne said. She walked to the left down a wide hall. The master bedroom was in front, beach side, with a large en suite bath. French doors led onto the deck. A second bedroom was across the hall. There was a generous bathroom down the hall for the use of anyone on that floor. “Now listen,” Ray Anne said. “What do you hear?”
“Hammers and saws,” Grace said, again disappointed.
“But not as loud. And I have a solution for that. But consider this. We can get the flooring, appliances and bathroom fixtures in very quickly. Countertops would have to be rushed. You have your choice of cupboards—once you make up your mind about the wood type. They’re constructed off-site and installed in a day. Paint on this level would take two days.”
“Ray Anne, it’s not finished! It’s noisy! My mother isn’t well!”
“Your mother is quickly becoming wheelchair-bound but she’s not feeling ill or in pain—isn’t that what you told me? And there won’t be any more noise in this property once we get this level finished. And as far as the neighboring houses are concerned—once the exteriors are finished, all the construction noise will be indoors. A good pair of soft noise-canceling headphones can solve that problem easily. Come back this way.” Ray Anne clacked down the hall to the great room in her heels. She stood in the center of the room. “The slab is poured and doors and windows installed on the lower level. The walls for two bedrooms, game room and large bathroom aren’t finished, but it’s closed up, airtight. There are two rooms and a small bath in the loft. The bedrooms have ocean views. The garage has unfinished walls but it’s completely functional. Now use your imagination...” And with that, Ray Anne closed her eyes as if dreaming.
“I’m trying,” Grace said. “I’ve got to get my mother out of that San Francisco house soon, before she goes stir-crazy in that big old bedroom of hers. Before she breaks a hip falling down the three stairs into the bathroom or slips trying to get into the pedestal tub...”
“Grace, if we concentrate on this floor and leave the lower floor and loft until last, we can get you in here in a month at the very longest, but I bet I can do better, lots better, if it doesn’t take you long to make your decorating selections. I recommend hardwood floors, shutters for the ocean-side doors and windows—that setting sun can be brutal. I can place all the orders and call in favors—people all over Coos County owe me. And once they start, I know how to motivate. That gives you a finished main level with access to the bath, kitchen, two bedrooms, great room and deck. The other two levels can be left until...” She swallowed and cleared her throat. “Until it’s more practical. Devon and Spence moved in when all they had finished was this level. Spencer worked over the summer and finished the lower floor and loft himself to save money.”
Grace was beginning to see it in her mind. She’d been in Cooper’s house once when she delivered Mother’s Day flowers for Sarah and it was spacious and beautiful. The deck with the fireplace was to die for. She pointed to the deck. “Awning and fireplace?”
“Anything you want. The awning and some comfortable outdoor deck furniture is easy, the fireplace much more complicated, but you’re not going to crave an outdoor fireplace for six months. At least.”
Anytime she heard six months, it caused her eyes to water, but she’d been very emotional lately. Her mother could be gone in six months. Then again, she could live another year. She could live long enough to meet her grandchild.
“You’re close to town. You’re close to Dr. Grant and Peyton if you need medical attention for your mother.”
“Yes,” she said. There was that second bedroom for health care workers who stayed full-time. “Washer and dryer?” she asked.
“In the hall,” Ray Anne said, pointing to the two spaces. “Washer and dryer on one side, linen closet on the other. No laundry room, I’m afraid. There is room for one downstairs if a laundry room with a sink is important, but there are a lot of stairs involved in that idea.”
Grace walked back down the hall. The master had two walk-in closets and it was, in itself, a spacious room. The bathroom, very roomy. “Could we put a glass block wall in here for the shower? No sliding glass door?”
“I think so!” Ray Anne said. “Not only handicap accessible but very up-to-date decor!”
Grace looked at her. “All right, how much?”
“Brace yourself,” Ray Anne said. “It’s oceanfront, even though it’s a good twenty feet above the beach. One-point-two.”
That wasn’t thousands, Grace knew that.
“Cooper said because it’s you, he’d rent it to you for up to a year, but the rent would be pricey, too.”
“How in the world does Spencer do it on a coach’s salary?”
“I’m sure he got a great deal. He and Cooper share a son and it was important to everyone that Austin live close to them both. You said not to worry about the money. I know it’s a lot, but for what you want...”
“I know. I want my mother to be comfortable and near beauty. And near me, and my shop is walking distance. But I need that loft finished as soon as possible—how complicated is that?”
“Well, there are only floors and paint needed up there, no cupboards or countertops, so that should be quick. But you’re going to have to add light fixtures. Light fixtures are simple if it doesn’t take you six weeks to decide what you want. Even I know how to install light fixtures.”
“Is that fireplace ready?”
“Except for the glass and ceramic logs—acces
sories. But you won’t be cold for...”
“Just thinking about what has to be done to make it ready.”
“Take a little time to think about it, Grace. But don’t think long if you want to get started. You won’t be able to close on it for about thirty days if all goes well, but this is Cooper’s property and, given your circumstances, he’s willing to start the interior work and even let you in before closing. He didn’t ask for a contract for that, but I will. I want him protected in case you change your mind or...” She blinked and made a face. “Or in case something unexpected happens and you don’t need the house anymore.”
“In case she dies before I get her here? Well, that’s not going to happen—she’s in pretty good shape for the shape she’s in. And we have to move ahead before she gets worse. Where do I have to go to make selections?”
“You want it?”
“Let’s do it. Will twenty percent down for a cash sale convince Cooper to take a chance on me?”
“I believe so,” Ray Anne said, smiling. “Even better, it’ll convince him he made the right choice giving me the listings.” She laughed merrily. “I can get this in shape for you, kiddo. You won’t believe how good I am at that. If Ginger can watch the shop, I can take you to a couple of places. You should choose countertops, appliances and flooring first. Cupboards and banisters should be next. I can bring you catalogs for fixtures, blinds, shades and shutters, ceramic logs and paint. Given the openness here, you’re going to want to match your cabinetry with floors and banisters.” She stuck out her hand. “Let’s shake on it and go over to Cooper’s bar and sign papers.”
* * *
Grace had to call Ginger and ask her if she felt confident enough to manage the shop another day and, bless her, she was good with that. She then spent four hours with Ray Anne, first signing the contracts for the house and then heading to Bandon and North Bend to make decorating selections. She didn’t screw around pondering her choices, but Ray Anne enthusiastically endorsed every one.