Sherryl Woods - Seaview Inn

“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?”