The Inn at Misty Lake: Book Two in the Misty Lake Series

by Margaret Standafer

  She was doing it. She was leaving Omaha. As sure as she had been the night before, as she loaded her son and their few belongings in the car and drove away, she saw her hands shake on the steering wheel.

  It will all work out, she repeated over and over to herself. She’d made another call the night before to the one person there she could still call a friend and it had boosted her confidence. She thought she probably even had a place to stay, at least for a few days. She took a quick peek in the rearview mirror at the boy. He was vital to her plan and that worried her. She had never been one to put her faith in anyone…let alone a kid.

  But it will all work out, she repeated again. And again.

  23

  Riley had been acting weird for days. Susan figured it had to do with her upcoming birthday and his determination to keep whatever secret he was trying to keep. She had tried to get him to spill the beans, but he had been remarkably tight-lipped. And if Sam knew anything, she wasn’t talking either. Oh well, surprises were fun, Susan tried to tell herself. It was a lie. She hated surprises.

  As she opened the birthday cards that had come in the mail, giggling at the ones from her brothers, her phone buzzed. Seeing it was Riley, she was smiling as she answered.

  “Happy birthday, Red.”

  “Thanks.”

  “What are you up to?

  “Opening some birthday cards that came in the mail. I’ll have to show you the one I got from Kyle. You’ll appreciate his twisted sense of humor.”

  “Can’t wait to see it. Are you almost finished?”

  “Finished with what?”

  “With opening cards.”

  “Um, yes, it’s not a big job.”

  “Good. Then start packing for the weekend. We leave at five.”

  “Huh?”

  “I said, we leave at five.”

  “Leave for where? What are you talking about?”

  Riley blew out a breath. “You’re making this more difficult than it needs to be. I’ll pick you up at five and then we leave. The destination is a surprise so don’t even bother asking any more questions.”

  “Really? You planned a surprise weekend?” Susan’s voice rose as she squeaked out the words. A whole weekend? Maybe surprises weren’t so bad after all. She had known he was up to something, but she hadn’t expected an entire weekend. Warmth spread through her as she realized, yet again, just how much she loved him.

  “Yes, really. As long as that’s okay with you.”

  He sounded nervous and Susan found it impossibly cute. “Of course, it’s okay. It sounds pretty perfect, actually. I just can’t believe you planned everything without me finding out about it.

  “You didn’t make it easy.”

  “Sorry about that. Are you at the inn already?”

  “Just about there. Travis is going to start some tiling today, did I tell you that?”

  “Really? I can’t wait for it to go in, it will make the place look so much more put together. I was already planning on stopping by today, but now there’s more than just your handsome face to get me out there.”

  Riley laughed. “Okay, then I’ll see you later. Happy birthday.”

  Just as Susan hung up, Sam came in the kitchen followed by Jake who was carrying a huge bouquet of flowers.

  “Happy birthday, Susan,” he said as he handed her the flowers.

  “Oh, Jake, they’re beautiful. Thank you.” She buried her face in them and inhaled. “They smell like spring.”

  “Glad you like them. Do you have big plans for your day?”

  “Actually, I just got off the phone with your brother. Apparently we will be going away for the weekend, although I don’t know where, since he insists on keeping it a secret.”

  “Well done, Riley,” Jake said, nodding his head in approval.

  “You don’t happen to know where we might be headed…”

  “I don’t and I wouldn’t tell you if I did. Sorry.”

  Susan turned her smile on Sam. “Sam? I really don’t know how I’m supposed to pack if I don’t know where we’re going. If you’d just give me a hint I promise I won’t tell Riley.”

  “Sorry, Suze, he didn’t tell me either.”

  “So he really did this all on his own?”

  “He didn’t ask me for any help planning the weekend,” Sam answered carefully.

  Susan thought she caught a little glint in Sam’s eye, but Sam turned away before she could be sure. Hmmm, maybe she did know something. Before she could ask any more questions, Jake noticed the mail on the table and commented.

  “Looks like you got quite a pile of mail.”

  “Birthday cards from my parents, my brothers, a few friends. It’s nice. I haven’t opened this one,” she said as she held up a bright yellow envelope. “It’s from Cassie. I still haven’t heard anything from her about taking the job. I don’t want to pressure her, but I really expected an answer by now. The longer it takes, the more I’m convinced she’s going to turn me down.”

  “It would be a really big change for her, Suze. It’s a lot to think about.”

  Even though she hadn’t come right out and said it, Susan knew Sam was thinking it was unlikely Cassie would say yes. Jake’s expression told her he thought the same. She couldn’t fault them.

  “I know. I’m sure she’s looking around to see what’s available in Chicago before she makes a decision. A position in Chicago would mean a lot more money and the lifestyle she’s used to. I shouldn’t have gotten my hopes up so much after she visited,” Susan said as she started to tear open the envelope. She read the card and grinned at the picture of two orangutans holding hands and hanging from a tree branch. The caption read ‘Through it all, friends hang together.’ Susan didn’t read the rest of the card because the word ‘job’ in Cassie’s handwritten note on the inside caught her attention.

  Susan scanned the note then gave a little shriek. “She’s coming! She’s coming to Misty Lake!”

  “Really? Oh, Susan, that’s fantastic!” Sam pulled the card from Susan’s hands to read it for herself.

  “It is fantastic, she’s the perfect person for the job. What a relief,” Susan said on a sigh as she fell into a chair. “I tried not to let myself think about it too much so, of course, it’s all I could think about. I really don’t know what I would have done if she had said no.”

  “Well, I’m glad you don’t have to think about it,” Sam said leaning over to give Susan a hug. “Cassie seems incredible from what I’ve seen.” After a moment, Sam added, “I still wonder what the real story is with her and Frank, though.”

  Susan nodded thoughtfully. “She didn’t tell me anymore than she and Frank told everyone, just that they knew each other in Chicago and had a fling, as she called it. I’m not buying it, but I have to wait until she’s ready to talk, it’s her business. Truthfully, I was afraid that’s what was keeping her from taking the job.” Susan gave Jake a questioning look through narrowed eyes.

  Jake, in response, held up his hands. “Hey, I don’t know any more than you do. Frank didn’t say a word to me.”

  “Okay. I’m not going to think about it right now, I’m just going to celebrate the fact that she’s really coming. I can’t wait to tell Riley.”

  “It’s nice when good news comes in the mail,” Jake said.

  Susan whipped her head towards Jake. “That reminds me of something. Do you have a minute, Jake? I’d like you to look at a couple of weird emails I’ve gotten.”

  “What do you mean, weird?”

  “I’m not really sure. I think it’s probably just someone goofing off, trying to scare me or upset me or something, but I promised Cassie I’d talk to you about it and I forgot until now.”

  Susan grabbed her laptop from her bedroom and brought it back to the kitchen. As she opened her email she told Jake and Sam, “There was one a few months ago and I didn’t really think anything of it so I deleted it. Then I got two more that were similar so I saved those. Here, they’re in this folder.”
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br />   The email popped up on the screen and she turned the computer so Jake could get a better look. With Sam looking over his shoulder, he read the first, then the second, then went back to the first.

  “What did the first one, the one you deleted, say?”

  “Something like, ‘You will pay.’ I don’t know what that’s supposed to mean any more than I know what these two mean.”

  “Has there been anything else going on? Strange phone calls, anything in the mail?”

  “No, just the emails. I’m sure it’s nothing. Probably just someone who happened upon my website and thought they’d mess with me. Maybe it’s someone who’s worried I’ll take their business away.” Susan started to chuckle but quickly realized Jake didn’t find it funny in the least when he looked at her with a furrowed brow and a frown.

  “I hope that’s all it is, but I don’t want to just ignore this. After what happened with Sam last summer, I’m not writing anything off as a harmless prank.”

  “Oh, Jake.” Sam seemed ready to argue that he needed to stop worrying, but changed tracks when she caught his worried expression. Instead, she leaned her head on his shoulder and rubbed her hand up and down his arm.

  “The emails didn’t come from the same email address, but I’d still like to have our tech guy do a little checking, see what he can find on where they originated. If they’re from the same place, we can be pretty sure they’re from the same person. If you’re okay with it, he can probably dig into your computer’s memory and pull up the first one that you deleted and see where that one originated, as well.”

  More concerned now than she wanted to be, Susan nodded her agreement. “Take it, I don’t need it this weekend. I can use my phone for most everything.”

  “Okay, I’ll let you know what we find. In the meantime, you be sure to let me know if anything—and I mean anything—out of the ordinary happens…you get any strange phone calls or mail, you notice someone who seems to be hanging around watching you, anyone you don’t know shows up at the B&B…anything, Susan.”

  “All right, I promise. Geez…you’re sure putting a damper on my birthday and my good mood,” she frowned.

  “Sorry, I just don’t want to ignore something that’s right in front of us.”

  Susan nodded again then decided she’d had enough of the unhappy thoughts. “I’m going to get back to enjoying my day. First, I’m going to call Cassie to celebrate and talk details. Next, I’m going to go try to pack for a trip for which I don’t know what I’ll need, and then I’m going to go see Riley and check out the tiling work that’s starting today. What I’m not going to do is worry about this anymore right now. Happy birthday to me,” she sang as she danced her way out of the kitchen.

  Later, as she walked into her ever-changing inn, she did so with a bounce in her step. Her talk with Cassie had gone well. They’d decided Cassie would start towards the end of the summer. Susan hated forcing Cassie to stick it out that long at the Billingsley, but she really couldn’t afford to start paying her until she was closer to her opening date. Cassie had seemed fine with it saying that just knowing her days were numbered would make heading into work every day and putting up with Stephen Billingsley a little easier.

  Susan checked out the tile work in the kitchen and was surprised to see it in place in over half the room. She met Travis and his assistant, Will, and after complimenting them on their work, went in search of Riley. She found him laying the bathroom tile in Lakeview.

  “I thought Travis was doing the tile.”

  Riley hadn’t heard her come in and jumped a little at her voice causing him to push a tile out of place. Grumbling to himself, he reset it before turning to Susan.

  “Since I’m so good at it I thought I’d help.” He stood and bundled Susan in a hug. “Happy birthday again,” he said as he landed a kiss on her upturned lips.

  “Thank you,” Susan answered breathlessly as her stomach fluttered the way it always did when Riley kissed her. When he tucked her head under his chin, she just closed her eyes and enjoyed. There was no place she’d rather be.

  When she finally stepped back, it was to survey Riley’s progress. “It looks great and I love the color. It’s a relief to see it in here and find out I still like it. I have to admit I’ve been doing some worrying ever since I made the final decision.”

  “You made a good choice. It’s neutral but has enough color that the room won’t look washed out. You’ll be able to use different colors to decorate since anything will go with the beige hues in the tile.”

  “Are you an interior decorator now, too?” Susan teased.

  “With as much time as you’ve made me spend looking at tile, fixtures, paint, towels, furniture, and a thousand other things, I probably am by now.”

  “Oh, poor Riley,” Susan soothed as she went back to him, extended her arms, and laced her fingers behind his neck. “How can I ever make it up to you?”

  Riley grinned and his brows rose. “I bet I can think of something. I might even come up with something this weekend.”

  “Speaking of this weekend,” Susan said as she pushed away from him, “are you ready to tell me where we’re going?”

  “Not a chance.”

  “But how am I supposed to pack if I don’t know where we’re going and what we’ll be doing?”

  “I’m sure you’ll figure it out.”

  “Hmpf. You’re no fun.”

  “Oh, I’m lots of fun. You’re just nosey.”

  “I’m not nosey.” When Riley gave her a sidelong look, she added, “Well, maybe I’m a little nosey but this hardly qualifies. I just need some information in order to be properly prepared.”

  “Like I said, I’m sure you’ll figure it out.”

  “Fine. Actually I’m already packed, I just hoped you might give me a hint because I could always repack.”

  “Oh, Red.”

  Giving up for the moment, Susan changed the subject. “Guess what?”

  “You’re really going to stop badgering me for details?”

  “Very funny. I was going to tell you that I heard from Cassie and she’s going to take the job, but if you’re going to be mean...”

  “I’m not being mean. Congratulations, that’s a pretty nice birthday present. I’m happy, Red, I know how much you want her here.”

  Susan beamed. “I really do, I just know she’s going to be a perfect fit. One more example of everything falling into place.”

  Riley walked her around, showing her the latest progress and verifying her decisions on a few minor points.

  “When will you install the color-changing tile in the Northern Lights bathroom? I can’t wait to see it.”

  “It will go in next week, but I’m going to have Travis do it. It’s too expensive…I don’t want to screw it up.”

  “I’m sure you could do it. Look around, you can do anything.”

  “Thanks for the vote of confidence, but that’s why Travis is here. Trust me, he’s better at this than I am.”

  They spent a few more minutes walking through the inn then made their way back to the bathroom where Riley had been working.

  “I’d like to get this room done before I wrap up for the day and I told the guys we’d cut out a little early this afternoon. That way I can get home and get showered and we’ll be on our way by five.”

  “And where are we headed again?”

  Riley just shook his head. “Nice try.”

  Susan frowned. “We’re not going to Switzerland, are we?” she asked, almost more to herself than to Riley. The dream she’d had suddenly came back to her and she was scared. She remembered the helpless feeling she’d had in her dream when she’d been unable to get through to Riley and she’d sensed she was going to lose him. A shiver ran down her spine.

  Riley turned to look at her with his eyebrows knitted together in confusion. “Huh? Did you say Switzerland?”

  Feeling foolish, Susan ordered herself to shake off the feeling. “Never mind, I’m just kidding. And okay,
I give up, it’ll be a surprise. I’ll let you get back to work. But first…” She put her hands on his face and, rising up on her toes as she gently pulled him toward her, found his lips with hers. “Thank you for such a wonderful, thoughtful birthday gift.” She paused a moment then looked him in the eye. “I love you, Riley.”

  Riley froze, his heart flipping in his chest. He’d been waiting to hear the words for months, had wanted to say them to her, but had wanted to make sure she was ready to hear them. Finally, was his only rational thought.

  “Susan, I—”

  “Hey, Riley, there’s someone here to see you,” a voice shouted from downstairs.

  Riley let out a huge sigh as he rested his forehead against Susan’s and silently cursed whoever it was that had managed to ruin the moment.

  Susan huffed out a laugh. “Nice timing.”

  “Don’t move, I’ll get rid of him and be right back.”

  “It’s okay,” Susan answered as she turned to follow him down the stairs. “I need to get going anyway so you can finish up and we can start our weekend. You know, there’s still time to repack if you want to give me an—oof!”

  Susan walked into Riley’s back as he stopped short and stared at the woman in the doorway.

  24

  The drive from Omaha was miserable. She was tense and crabby and the boy was whiny. She knew he was scared and that he hadn’t had any sense of security, or home, since they’d left California so she tried to be understanding, but the whining got on her nerves and she snapped at him often. Eventually, he stopped saying much of anything except for the mumbling she heard occasionally from the backseat as he drove his truck or staged some sort of dramatic scene for Spider-Man.

  She glanced at the odometer every few miles and couldn’t decide if she wanted it to move faster or slower. She wanted to get there, but she was scared. She thought she had everything figured out, but knew it could easily fall apart.

  As she finally pulled into town, she looked around and tried to remember. Main Street looked about the same. She recognized the bars and restaurants where she had spent some time years ago. But there were just as many places she didn’t recognize. Whether they had been there before and she just hadn’t noticed or didn’t remember, or whether they were new, she couldn’t be sure. She drove carefully through town, not wanting to attract any attention. She followed the directions her friend Courtney had given her and in a few minutes found herself in front of an apartment building. Gripping the steering wheel tightly, she took a deep breath and told herself again that she was doing the right thing.