Love Finds You in Holiday, Florida

by Sandra D. Bricker

  Millicent was tucked safely into Cassie’s guest room, and Cassie was in her bedroom changing out of her pajamas into something less pajama-like. Although Richard didn’t think there was anything indecent about what she’d been wearing before in her light pink boxer-type shorts and T-shirt with the row of very respectable ducks swimming along in top hat and tails. The last one in the row, however, was tossing off his hat, holding up his cane, and grinning from ear to ear, and that image screamed “Cassie” to him.

  She does tend to stand out in a crowd.

  He dunked a couple of tea bags into a small ceramic pot of hot water and then pulled two large cups from the cabinet. By the time Cassie reappeared, the tea was steeped and poured, and he carried the cups out to the living room and set them down on the coffee table.

  “Thank you,” she said. She curled her legs underneath her and held the warm steam close to her face. “It must be almost morning, huh?”

  “Not long now.”

  “I’m afraid noon will roll around awfully fast today,” she said.

  “We’ll hit the driving range another time,” Richard replied—and then he found himself wondering if she would still be around for him to keep that promise.

  “I’m hoping to sleep the whole day away.”

  “You’ve had a lot of excitement today.”

  “So have you,” she said. When he glanced at her, she was smiling sweetly at him. “You doing all right?” Cassie asked.

  “Fine.”

  “Honest?”

  “Honest.”

  “I know!” she said, straightening. “Why don’t you come over for dinner later today?”

  “I appreciate the thought,” he answered, “but I can’t.”

  “Better offer?”

  “I’m not sure there is one,” he said with a grin. “But I made dinner plans in Tampa with an old buddy of mine.”

  “Oh.”

  “Steven Hearns. You met him at the golf course.”

  “Oh, right.”

  “In fact,” he said, the moment it occurred to him, “maybe you’d like to come along.”

  “I don’t want to intrude on your male bonding ritual.” She grinned.

  “No male bonding taking place over dinner,” he corrected. “Steven has his own company. He checks the backgrounds of potential employees for companies all over Central Florida. I’ve asked him to use a little of his magic to find out more about Hunter Nesbitt and Hunter’s mysterious friend.”

  “Did he find anything?”

  “I don’t know. He just left me a voice mail asking me to meet him for dinner over in Tampa because he’s leaving in two days for a weeklong business trip. Why don’t you get some sleep, and I’ll pick you up around six for dinner.” Her expression was a little blank, so he added, “If you want to go.”

  “I’m worried about leaving Millicent alone,” she told him. “Do you think she’ll be all right here by herself?”

  Richard smiled. “I don’t think any other creatures are coming up from the lagoon.”

  “Promise?”

  He laughed. “Almost.”

  “Where are we going?” she asked. “So I know what to wear.”

  “A place out in New Tampa called Stonewood Grill.”

  “Casual?”

  “Steak and seafood. But it’s Florida. You can pretty much wear anything, anywhere.”

  “Okay.”

  He considered suggesting the pink boxers with the dancing duck shirt and then thought better of such a joke. “Anything you wear will be fine.”

  Despite the fact that she was exhausted, Cassie had a hard time falling asleep. She’d crawled into bed just a few minutes after Richard had left her house and the sun wasn’t even peeking its head over the horizon yet. Too many things were rumbling around in her brain, and the buzz was just about driving her mad.

  When she finally did doze off, it was almost seven o’clock. Morning sleep almost always brought with it strange dreams, and New Year’s morning was no different. Cassie dreamed of a housesized snake with Hunter Nesbitt’s face, a group of naked neighbors wrestling alligators in the canal, and an embarrassing ride with Richard into Tampa where all she had to wear was a large towel made of glitter.

  She tossed and turned in her sleep, and when Sophie finally insisted that she wake up late in the afternoon, Cassie didn’t feel much more rested than she had that morning. She opened the back door and stepped outside with the dog. While Sophie sniffed around the backyard, Cassie leaned on the wooden railing of the deck and concentrated on the water beyond the dock.

  I wonder if there really are alligators out there, she thought.

  Fortunately, Sophie derailed that train of thought by trotting past her and back into the house.

  “I had the strangest dream last night,” Millicent told her, as she brought two cups of coffee and a plate of toast into the dining room and set them on the table in front of her neighbor.

  “Me, too,” Cassie said, shaking her head.

  “I dreamed that a large snake got into my house and I didn’t have a stitch of clothing on!”

  Cassie gazed at her for a moment and then the two of them broke into laughter.

  “It does feel a bit like a nightmare, doesn’t it?”

  “Hunny bunny, I can’t thank you enough for coming to my rescue.”

  “All I did was hide in the bathtub with you,” Cassie said, chuckling and then taking a bite of wheat toast with jam. “It was Richard and those cute firemen that did all the rescuing.”

  “Still.”

  “Well, you’re welcome.”

  “Is it all right if I stay another night?” Millicent asked her timidly.

  “Of course.”

  “I can’t get anyone out here until tomorrow.”

  “No problem,” Cassie replied. Then she tried a sip of the strongest, blackest coffee she had ever encountered. “Oh, hey, do you mind being here on your own for a while tonight? I’ve got some plans with Richard at six.”

  “Certainly not. The two of you are seeing a lot of each other, aren’t you?”

  “Millicent, I want you to know something,” Cassie said. She put down her cup and looked her friend right in the eyes. “Richard is not behind any of that mess Stella was talking about.”

  “All right.” She didn’t seem convinced.

  “You have my word on it. I’ve been helping Richard try to get to the bottom of it, and I can assure you that he’s not the one trying to buy your house—or Stella’s.”

  Millicent’s eyes grew as big and shiny as oil. “You’re helping him?”

  “Richard adores you. And he wouldn’t do anything underhanded. I promise you.”

  “Does he know anything about what’s going on then?”

  “A little,” Cassie replied, but she knew she couldn’t say any more about it without betraying Richard’s confidence. “I know he’ll fill you in when he has something solid. But in the meantime, I don’t want you to worry about anything. Promise me.”

  “I promise.”

  There was a vague mist of emotion in Millicent’s eyes, and Cassie wished she could better reassure her. She wondered if Steven Hearns would offer up any information to help settle the whole matter once and for all.

  “Sophie and I will keep each other company until you get home.” A beat or two passed, and then Millicent asked, “What are these?”

  Millicent had the crystal box in front of her, with the hinged lid gaping open.

  “Oh, it’s called a ‘Surprise Yourself’ box. Each day you pull a card from the front of the box, and read the scripture there. And then you turn the card over and find an idea of how to live that verse. Go ahead and pull one out.”

  Millicent produced the card at the front of the box and read it out loud. “ ‘Do not be afraid of sudden terror, nor of trouble from the wicked when it comes; for the LORD will be your confidence, and will keep your foot from being caught.’ That’s Proverbs chapter 3, verses 25 and 26.”

  “Now turn
it over.”

  She did as requested but read it in silence and then lifted her eyes to Cassie as if she’d somehow been shamed.

  “What does it say?”

  Millicent looked down at the card, swallowed hard, and then read it. “ ‘Say a prayer right now about what concerns you most, and then believe God for the solution to your most unsolvable problem.’ ”

  Cassie grinned. “Those cards are so timely, aren’t they?”

  “Well, this one is.”

  Cassie leaned over and kissed Millicent’s cheek and then headed down the hall toward her bedroom. As she pushed her door closed, she could hear Millicent whispering.

  She’s praying, she thought. And the realization warmed her soul. Cassie found herself wishing she had the time to do a little praying herself.

  She opened the closet door and then plopped on the edge of the bed and stared into it. She hadn’t really brought any clothes with her that would be suitable for a dinner out, and she hoped she would still fit into the ones that had been hanging in the closet already.

  A blue dress caught her eye, so she pulled it out and hung it on the closet door by the hanger. The tags were still on the dress, and she wasn’t sure she even remembered buying it.

  Size 4. Well, that might be a problem.

  She slipped the steel blue sheath off the hanger and over her head. The straight skirt barely made it over her hips. It was too tight. Then she tried the little black dress Zan had seen in a store window in a New Port Richey shopping plaza years back. She’d only worn it once, she remembered, as she pulled it out of the closet.

  Richard had said to dress casually. This was more of a cocktail dress.

  Too dressy.

  A splash of blue inside the closet caught her attention, and she removed the hanger and admired the light blue cardigan with silver-and-white beading across the front. She’d brought it down with her two or three springs back and then left it hanging in the closet because the humidity made it unappealing. It would be just right for a Florida winter, though.

  A so-called winter, anyway.

  She decided to pair the cardigan with black pants, a string of pearls, and an updo. When she walked out into the living room and saw Millicent’s expression, she knew she’d made a good choice.

  “Oh, hunny bunny, you look lovely.”

  “Thank you. The pearls aren’t too much?”

  “They’re just right. You’re a dazzler.”

  Cassie caught Sophie’s attention mid-stride, and she jumped back and held both hands down toward the dog.

  “No, no, Soph!” she exclaimed, and Sophie sat down right where she was. Cassie grimaced and told Millicent, “Black pants and Sophie are not a good mix.”

  “Well, Sophie, you come over here and sit with your aunt Millie then,” she said, patting the sofa. The dog hopped up before Millicent was finished.

  Cassie opened the drawer in the table next to the chair by the front window and produced a small lint brush. She began running it over her pants while Sophie looked on, dejected.

  “So where are you all going?”

  “New Tampa,” Cassie replied tentatively. “A place called Stonewood Grill. Do you know it?”

  “I do. It’s quite nice.”

  “I’m dressed right then?”

  “Just right. The pearls will play nicely.” Millicent’s grin put Cassie at ease.

  “Can I get you anything before I go?”

  “You can show me how to use this complicated thingy for the television set.”

  “Oh,” Cassie said on a sigh. “Sorry. It’s not too difficult. Press the green button to turn it on and off. Here’s the volume, and here are the channels. And if you want to watch something on the DVR—”

  “No, no,” Millicent interjected. “Volume and channels are about all I can handle.”

  Cassie chuckled as the bell rang. Sophie sprang from the sofa, all barks and snarls until Cassie opened the door and they saw that Richard was there.

  “Hey, Sophie.”

  The dog turned tail and headed back to Millicent and the sofa.

  “You look beautiful,” he told Cassie. She exhaled for what felt like the first time in an hour.

  “Thank you. I wasn’t sure what to wear.”

  “It’s just right.”

  He looked so handsome that her breath caught, but Cassie didn’t tell him so. Richard was wearing black trousers and a light blue shirt that really brought out the blue in his eyes, and Cassie realized they looked like they’d coordinated their clothing.

  “Ready,” she said, grabbing her purse and heading for the door. “Millicent, you have my cell number in case you need me?”

  “This isn’t my first time home alone,” the woman commented, and then she shot them both a smile. “You kids have a good time.”

  “We’ll bring you home some dessert,” Richard said in a mock whisper, his hand cupped around his mouth in a conspiratorial way.

  “I wouldn’t turn that down,” Millicent returned, and Richard and Cassie headed out the door.

  Chapter Eighteen

  19 ACROSS: Rare excellence; appealing perfection

  Stonewood Grill was leather and wood and casual elegance. Cassie decided she probably could have left the pearls behind after all, but they wouldn’t hurt anything now.

  Steven Hearns had already arrived, and he was seated at a large booth.

  “You remember Cassie Constantine?” Richard said. She could see from Steven’s expression that he was rather stunned by her presence.

  “I do. Good to see you again.”

  Once they’d slipped into the booth across from him, Richard reassured Steven. “Cassie knows pretty much everything. It’s fine to talk in front of her.”

  “I was wondering,” he replied. “Good—because I have a lot to tell. Shall we order some appetizers?”

  Richard nodded. “What do you suggest?”

  The waiter arrived as if on cue, and Steven asked him for smoked salmon and baked Brie. Richard added three mineral waters, and Cassie could sense his anticipation.

  “What have you got for me?”

  “Richard never was one for suspense,” Steven told Cassie. “He doesn’t enjoy the buildup.”

  “I’m not a big fan of it either,” she admitted.

  “All right, all right,” he said, producing a file folder from the seat beside him and opening it on the table.

  Steven reached into the pocket of his sport coat, pulled out wire-framed glasses, and placed them on his substantial nose. He scanned the paperwork for a moment and then looked up at Richard over the top of the lenses.

  “I think you were correct in your assumption that something’s up with Nesbitt,” he said. Richard squirmed slightly and then leaned forward to the edge of the table. “He did work for Mandalay once upon a time—you were right about that—but he’s not involved with them now. For the last three years, he’s been employed by a corporate entity out of New York called Pressman Ventures. They’re basically a much smaller version of Mandalay. Land development, resort properties, and the like, but not on the scale of Mandalay.”

  Richard cast Cassie a quick glance, and she could sense that his anxiety level was cranking upward.

  “Last year Nesbitt was a key player in a questionable development in Pennsylvania. It was a sweet deal for him, really. Somehow he knew that Mandalay was going to develop a resort community, despite the fact that he didn’t work there anymore. He swooped in, bought up three or four properties in the area, and then had them in his pocket as bargaining chips.”

  “I don’t understand,” Cassie interjected. “He bought the properties and then held on to them?”

  “Until Mandalay had acquired every other property necessary to make their deal happen. And then he emerged as the last man standing and demanded quite a hefty profit on those properties. He made something like half a million dollars on that one deal.”

  “Half a million!” she exclaimed. He should spend some of it on charm school. />
  “So it is Mandalay that wants to move in on Holiday, then?” Richard asked him.

  “That’s the interesting part,” Steven explained. He paused while the waiter delivered the appetizers and drinks.

  “Can I take your orders now?” he asked.

  “We’re going to wait a bit,” Steven replied. “We’ll give you a shout when we’re ready.”

  “My name is Tim, if you need anything.”

  “Thanks, Tim.” Steven waited for a moment and then picked up where he left off. “Anyway, it’s not Mandalay that’s invested in developing anything in Holiday. It appears to be Pressman Ventures, his own company.”

  “That doesn’t make sense,” Cassie said to Richard. “He didn’t work for Mandalay anymore when he bought the properties in Pennsylvania, so it didn’t matter. But now he works at Pressman, and they’re the ones who want to develop Holiday? Would he take a chance on outsmarting his own company and possibly losing his job? Surely Pressman Ventures wouldn’t take kindly to him moving in on their deal. With Mandalay, he had nothing to lose because, as you said, he didn’t work for them anymore.” She looked at Steven as she finished.

  “Maybe he has a partner,” Richard offered. “Maybe someone from his old days at Mandalay, someone who gave him the information about Pennsylvania. Then Hunter went in and did the actual buying.”

  “My guess would be,” Steven said, pausing to finish his mineral water, “that’s the suit you saw with him at the golf course.”

  “So Hunter has a friend who still works at Mandalay who advises his own company to buy in that particular area,” Richard surmised. “Then he feeds the information to Hunter, who steps in and acts as the front man for the deal. Afterward, he siphons in the information to Pressman about the place, and his friend from Mandalay plows the road on that one.”

  “Oooh,” Cassie said, shaking her head, “Stella will flip her wig when she realizes the game he’s playing.”

  “The good news for you, my friend,” Steven told Richard, “will be if this guy’s aunt has any influence over him at all. If she can put a stop to him starting the ball rolling in her own little neighborhood—”

  “And no one will sell to Pressman once they hear about this, Richard.”