On Sunset Beach: The Chesapeake Diaries

by Mariah Stewart

  “Oh, help yourself.” Hazel reached for her painting of her tiger cat and watched over Carly’s shoulder as the contents of the folder were viewed. She ran a commentary the entire time. “That there’s Milton, and that next one, Sherlock …”

  “How many cats do you have?” Carly couldn’t help but ask.

  “Oh, only the three right now, the first three I showed you. These others, they’ve all gone over the Rainbow Bridge.”

  “The Rainbow Bridge?” Carly asked.

  “Kitty heaven,” Hazel whispered.

  “Oh. I’m sorry for your loss.” Carly corrected herself. “Losses.”

  “Thank you, dear.” While Carly looked through the rest of the paintings, Hazel chatted away.

  “You know, when we heard that the town was bringing in some New York art dealer to show our paintings and run our exhibit, well, we all thought for sure you’d be some stuck-up art snob. But Grace Sinclair said you were lovely, and she was right. You’re a very nice young woman.”

  “Well, thank you, Hazel.” Carly went back and forth between several of the paintings, trying to decide which one was least likely to frighten small children. “You know, your work is very … unique, Hazel. I can honestly say I’ve never seen anything quite like it. But space in the mansion is very limited, and I did want to save what space we have there for living artists from St. Dennis, so you’d certainly qualify. But in all fairness to others who might want to bring in works for the show, I really can only accept one painting from each artist. I’m sure you understand.”

  “Well, I was hoping …” Hazel frowned.

  “Of course you were. And I don’t blame you. Your work has a certain … energy, and we’d certainly be privileged to show it. But I can only choose one …” Carly went back through the portfolio a second time, hoping that she might have missed something that was better than what she’d seen. Finally, she pulled one out at random. “I think this one, Hazel.”

  “Kitty Bright.” Hazel sighed. “She was my first.”

  “Then it’s appropriate that we choose her, don’t you think?” She handed the painting to Hazel. “Now, I’m going to ask you to have this framed, and to hold on to it until we’re ready to start arranging the exhibit in the mansion.”

  “All right.” Hazel put the selected work on top of the others in the portfolio and closed it. “I hope you’ll remember that I was the first person to bring in a painting and that Kitty Bright will have a prominent place in the hall.”

  “I promise I’ll find the appropriate place.” With a hand on Hazel’s back, Carly guided the woman to the door, opened it, held it for her, then, with a final wave good-bye, closed the door and slumped against it.

  She ran a hand over her face, wondering how many more such viewings she’d have to endure.

  “Cam, your work has a certain energy.” The voice floated from the other side of the partition.

  “I know, Ford. I bet you didn’t expect to find anyone with talent like mine. You’re speechless, right?”

  “I sure am. Your work is so … unique.”

  Carly peered around the side of the partition and found Cam and Ford leaning against the wall.

  “You two think you’re so funny.” Carly crossed her arms across her chest.

  Ford walked toward her, laughing. “If you’d heard that conversation from back here, you’d think it was funny, too.”

  “Actually, it was pretty funny,” she admitted, “in a macabre sort of way. Those cats were scary. It’s the only word that I can think of to describe them. But I had to pick one.”

  “That’s pretty much what you’re going to get from the locals,” Cam told her. “We had an art fair about four years ago and you wouldn’t believe what people brought out.”

  “After seeing Hazel’s cats, I’m afraid I would.” She grimaced at the thought of an entire exhibit filled with Hazel’s frightening felines.

  “I think you handled her really well,” Ford told her. “I know I couldn’t have kept a straight face.”

  Still laughing, Cam headed toward the door. “I’ll be back in an hour or so to finish up,” he told them. “Thanks for the entertainment.”

  “So what brings you out this morning?” Carly asked after Cam left.

  “I was hoping to catch Tony. I tried to call him this morning to see if he could grab a quick lunch before he heads back, but he didn’t pick up. It’s been a long time since we’ve gotten together, so I thought this would be a good opportunity to catch up. I hope you don’t mind. I wasn’t intending to hang around for your meeting.”

  “I don’t mind at all, and you’re welcome to stay while he’s here.”

  “So what does Kitty Bright look like?” Ford put first one, then his other arm around Carly.

  “All white, huge yellow eyes.” Carly pretended to shudder. “All of Hazel’s cats have huge yellow eyes totally out of proportion. That’s what makes them so scary.”

  “But you’ll include it in the exhibit and Hazel will be happy.”

  “What’s the point in making her feel bad? She obviously enjoys doing it. There must have been thirty watercolors in that portfolio.”

  The door opened and a dark-haired man stuck his head in. “Hello?”

  “Yes?” Carly broke out of the circle of Ford’s arms to see who was there.

  “Tony Rosetti.” The dark-haired man entered the room. When he saw Ford, he grinned, his arm outstretched. “Hey, buddy. Long time …”

  Ford nodded and took the hand that reached for his. “Tony. You’re looking good,” he said as they exchanged a man-hug.

  “You, too. Thinner maybe, but good.” Tony patted Ford on the back, then turned to Carly. “Sorry. We used to … work together. It’s been a while.”

  “It’s quite all right. I’m Carly.”

  Tony nodded and looked around and got right to the point. “So is this the place?”

  Carly nodded.

  “You’re planning on displaying a fortune in art here?”

  “I am. Assuming, of course, that you can secure it.”

  “I can secure anything.” He walked around the room, mostly looking up.

  “Take all the time you need,” Carly told him.

  Tony took some measurements—walls, ceiling height, length and width of the room—with an implement he removed from his back pocket. He studied the doors and the windows, then, without a word, went outside.

  Ten minutes later, Carly looked out front and saw him get into his car.

  She frowned and turned to Ford. “You don’t suppose he’s leaving?”

  “He wouldn’t leave without saying something. Maybe he’s making a phone call. Give him a few minutes. He’ll be back.”

  Several minutes later, Tony came through the door.

  “Okay, this is how I see it.” He walked Carly through his proposed system, where he would install cameras and sensors.

  “How soon can you do this?” she asked.

  “I can have this up and running in …” He appeared to be calculating. “A week. Ten days. No more. I’ll have to order a few things that aren’t normally available.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “He means stuff you don’t find in the average home security store,” Ford told her.

  “Okay, then. How much do you think a system like this would cost?”

  He gave her a number, and she almost passed out.

  “Tony,” Ford said before Carly could find her voice, “I think you can do better.”

  Tony scratched his head. “I don’t know, man, the kind of sensors we’re talking about are really pricey.”

  Ford continued to stare at him.

  “All right.” Tony tossed out a revised number. “That’s the best I can do.”

  Carly thought over the other systems that had been proposed, none of which were nearly as sophisticated as the one Tony had in mind. Of course, none of them cost as much either. After all the renovations on the carriage house, there wasn’t much left in the budget.
She’d have to go back to Ed and see what the town council was willing to contribute. The rest of it would have to come from the book sales.

  “All right. Get me a written proposal, outlining exactly what you’re doing.”

  “Uh-uh.” Tony shook his head. “If I outline what I’m doing and circulate that, then what’s the point? Someone could possibly figure out how to get around the system. Not real likely, but it could conceivably happen.”

  “You have to give me an estimate for me to take to the town council.”

  He nodded. “I’ll get you something you can use. It just won’t spell out all the bells and whistles.”

  “Can you get it to me by Monday?”

  “Sooner, if I can.”

  Carly gave him her email address. “I really can’t thank you enough for coming all the way out here on such short notice.”

  “Hey, anything for an old comrade-in-arms, right?” He bumped his fist on Ford’s arm. “Got time for a quick lunch before I head back?”

  “I was just about to ask you the same thing. I know a great place just about a mile from here.” Ford turned to Carly. “You’re welcome to join us, of course.”

  “Very nice of you, but no thank you. I have to get back to work.” She turned off the lights and followed the two men out the door, then locked up. “Thanks again, Tony.”

  “My pleasure. Any friend of Ford’s, and all that.” Tony walked toward his car at the end of the drive.

  “Where’s your car?” she asked Ford, who’d held back.

  “I felt like a little exercise, so I walked over.”

  “Thanks for whatever it was that you did to get him here so quickly.”

  “You needed something really good, really fast. Tony’s the best, and I figured he’d do a favor if he could.”

  “I appreciate it.”

  He leaned over and kissed her. “We’re still on for tomorrow night, right?”

  “Absolutely.”

  “I’ll pick you up at seven.”

  “See you then …”

  She watched him sprint to the end of the driveway and hop into the passenger side of Tony’s Jeep. Then, remembering there was one more thing she needed to do before she went home to work on the catalog, she got into her car and headed straight to Bling. There was a dress in the window just that morning that might be exactly what she was looking for.

  Chapter 18

  THE dress in Bling’s window turned out to not work on Carly the way she’d hoped it would, but Vanessa had something else in mind.

  “This one.” Vanessa brought a blue sheath with a squared neckline, front and back, into the dressing room and held it up in front of Carly. “The blue is almost the exact shade of your eyes and there’s just enough spandex in it to … well, you’ll see. You have to try it.”

  Always happy to try on pretty things, Carly pulled the dress over her head, then smoothed it over her hips.

  “There. What did I tell you?” Vanessa beamed. “It’s so close to perfection I can barely stand it.” She adjusted the neckline slightly. “Just tight enough, just short enough, and just low enough in front to give you a little cleavage without being, you know, slutty. I take it this is for something special?”

  “I have a date for dinner tomorrow night.” Carly turned in the mirror to check the side view. Vanessa was dead-on about the fit.

  “And you want to wow.” Vanessa nodded knowingly. “This is definitely the dress.” She slipped off the hair tie from Carly’s ponytail and pulled all of her hair to one side. “That’s the look you want. Sexy but ladylike. No man with a pulse could resist you.”

  “Well then, I suppose I have no choice.” Carly grinned and Vanessa helped her out of the dress. “I’ll take it.”

  Vanessa put the dress on a hanger and took it with her while Carly dressed in the clothes she’d worn into the shop. She was putting her hair back up as she walked out front.

  “Do you need anything to go with the dress?” Vanessa asked as Carly approached the counter. “Earrings? Killer shoes? A bag?”

  “Actually, I could probably use some of each. I didn’t expect to be going out, so I left all of my good clothes back home.”

  Vanessa held up several pairs of earrings, and Carly reached for the dangly ones with the blue stones.

  “I’d go with them, too.” Vanessa nodded and returned the other two pairs to the case. Her phone rang, but before she answered it, she told Carly, “Shoes are toward the back, and bags are on the right side of the shop. I’ll be with you in a minute.”

  Carly went straight to the shoes, and gravitated toward the highest pair of heels in the shop.

  “When I said ‘killer,’ those were the ones I had in mind.” Vanessa leaned against a display. “What size?”

  “Seven, please.” Carly couldn’t wait to put them on her feet. Metallic leather sandals that fastened at the ankle on the thinnest straps imaginable, the shoes were, in fact, killers.

  Vanessa found the right size and handed Carly the box and stood by while she sat on a nearby stool and tried them on.

  “I love them.” Carly stood and walked a few steps to make sure she could, in fact, walk in them. “They’re gorgeous.”

  “Here’s a bag that works with them.” Vanessa handed her a clutch of soft, silvery leather.

  “I’ll take it.” Carly took off the shoes and returned them to their box. “And the shoes and the earrings and the dress.”

  She smiled all the way to the cash register. “Vanessa, your shop is amazing. There are places in New York that don’t have what you have here.”

  “Thank you. Just for that, I’m giving you ten percent off.” Vanessa laughed. “Another ten if you tell me who the lucky guy is. If, of course, that isn’t too personal a question.”

  “For twenty percent … sure.” Carly leaned on the counter and watched Vanessa tally up the damage. “It’s Ford Sinclair.”

  Vanessa’s hand stopped moving and she glanced up at Carly.

  “Grace’s son? Tall, rugged-looking guy? Dark eyes?” she asked.

  Carly nodded.

  “I don’t blame you for going all out.” Vanessa grinned. “I was wondering how long it would be before someone snagged his attention. I’m attracted to men like that myself.” She hastened to add, “Not that I’m attracted to Ford, per se, but my husband, Grady, is cut from that cloth, too. Too rugged to be classically handsome, maybe, but irresistible. And hot.” She wrapped the earrings in tissue. “Pretty boys have never really done it for me.”

  Carly thought back to her last boyfriend. Todd could be categorized as a pretty boy, she supposed, though she wasn’t sure if he was as pretty as he thought he was. Everything about Todd had seemed … precise. From head to toe, he had always been perfectly unwrinkled, perfectly coiffed, and very GQ. What, she asked herself now, had she seen in him?

  “You’re going to kill him in this dress, you know,” Vanessa said as she swiped Carly’s credit card. “I wish I could be around to see it. I love it when a big guy crashes to his knees …”

  “So I made reservations at Lola’s.” Ford stood in Carly’s foyer, his eyes on her face as if he was afraid to look past her chin.

  “Oh, great. I’ve been wanting to try it. I’ve heard it’s wonderful.” Carly leaned across the dining room table, searching for her phone amid the piles of paper. She could feel Ford’s stare, and it was all she could do not to smile. Vanessa had been spot-on. The man had looked gobsmacked when she opened the front door.

  “Here it is.” She held up her phone, then tucked it into her bag. “All ready?”

  She took two steps toward the door, then stopped in midstride and snapped her fingers. “I almost forgot … just one second.”

  She pivoted on her ridiculously high heels and headed to the kitchen to lock the back door.

  “You look really beautiful,” he said when she returned to the foyer. “I like your dress.”

  “Thanks. I got it at Bling yesterday when I realized I didn’t have an
y clothes with me that might be appropriate for dining out.” She laughed, then added, “Who am I kidding? I felt like shopping. It was my reward for working so hard all these weeks without taking a break.”

  “Well, whatever inspired the purchase, I definitely approve.”

  He held the door for her, and she heard his breath catch as she brushed past him. He closed the door behind them and waited while she locked it. It seemed like the most natural thing in the world to link her arm through his as they walked to the car, to walk arm in arm with him on a beautiful summer Saturday night.

  “So how was your lunch with Tony?” she asked.

  “It was good. Great, actually. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen each other.”

  “I gathered that from the conversation. Where do you know each other from?”

  “Oh, we worked together, on and off.” He opened the car door for her and she slid into her seat.

  By the time he’d gotten behind the wheel, she had her seat belt on. He fastened his as well and started the car.

  “I haven’t been to Lola’s in so many years, I don’t even remember what it’s like,” he said as he started the engine.

  “I’ve never been, but I know that Cam and Ellie like it. They’ve mentioned it several times.”

  The restaurant was only a few blocks away, but every available parking spot on Charles Street was taken, and they were forced to park in the big municipal lot on Kelly’s Point Road.

  “Lots of tourists in town this weekend because of the sailboat races,” Ford explained after he pulled into one of the lone remaining spots.

  “Are you racing?” Carly asked as she got out of the car and waited for him.

  “No. Dan always loved to sail, but I’ve always preferred kayaking.”

  “Oh, I love to kayak. I used to go with my dad when I was younger.”

  “I’ll take you out one of these days, and we’ll paddle around some of the little inlets around the Bay.” The lower part of the lot had yet to be paved, and she had to pick her way carefully in those tall strappy shoes until they reached the macadam. He held her arm to help her across the stones, but once they reached the road, he took her hand and held it until they arrived at the restaurant.