Island Refuge (Wildflower B&B Romance Book 1)

by Kimberly Rose Johnson

  Zoe patted the younger woman’s arm. “Hey, don’t stress about it. Autumn knows none of it’s true.”

  Rachel’s eyes widened. “You didn’t tell her about—”

  “Absolutely not. Your secrets are safe with me.” She nodded toward Rachel’s middle. “You realize though, at some point you won’t be able to hide the package you’re carrying?”

  “I know. And I’m actually becoming okay with it. But I want to find the ring before I get big and can’t look in small spaces.”

  “You have me for that.” Zoe shot her a grin. “So you haven’t found it yet huh?”

  Rachel shook her head. “Now that the B&B is looking better and guests are flocking here, it’s been more difficult to sneak into the rooms to search.”

  Zoe caught her breath. “You mean you were snooping in guests’ rooms? When? How?”

  “Not when anyone is staying there. I search when a room is vacant.” Her face tinged pink. “I swipe a key from the reception desk.”

  Zoe shook her head. “You realize I’ll need to tell Nick to secure the keys better?”

  Rachel frowned. “I don’t see what the big deal is. I’m not bothering anything or any of the guests.”

  “Anyone could’ve walked in and done exactly what you did. That’s a security risk.” Rachel had no business taking anything from the reception desk, much less room keys. What was done was done, though. “I’ve been keeping an eye out for the ring when I clean. I really wish you hadn’t snuck the keys. How many rooms have you searched?”

  Rachel’s faced turned as red as the flesh of the watermelon Zoe planned to serve with breakfast the next morning. “All the rooms upstairs, yours, and the sitting room.”

  “It’s good to hear you finally admit you were in my room.”

  “Sorry. I should have been honest from the start.” Rachel stared at her hands for a moment then looked up again. “By the way, what did Nick say about helping me find the ring?”

  “I forgot to mention it to him.”

  “What ring?” Nick stood behind the women.

  Zoe spun around. “How long have you been standing there?”

  “A few seconds. I was about to say hi when I heard my name.” He stepped between the chairs and plopped down onto the grass facing them. “What’s going on?”

  Zoe looked at Rachel. “Do you want to tell him or should I?”

  Rachel’s eyes widened with fear.

  “I will.” Zoe told him everything, and by the time she was finished, Rachel’s hands shook. Zoe reached out and grasped her hand giving it a gentle squeeze. “It’s okay. Nick’s a good guy.”

  Nick’s surprised gaze met hers. “Thanks.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “First of all, I wish you both would have told me sooner. I could have been helping you look. Secondly,” he directed his attention to Rachel, “I don’t approve of your methods. I will be locking up the room keys from now on. I probably should have done that from the beginning, but being new at this, I didn’t think of it. I’ll do everything I can to help you locate the ring, but it would be nice if we had a clue where to look. It’s a huge house, with plenty of hiding places. Still, I have a few ideas where it might be.”

  Rachel straightened, her gaze hopeful.

  “That’s right, you were an eight-year-old boy once.” Zoe grinned. “I didn’t even think of the advantage you’d have over us.”

  He chuckled. “Yes, I was once a child. And to tell you the truth, I don’t think being male gives me an edge over you ladies. But since my apartment has always been the living quarters for the proprietor, it makes sense that the ring might be there. I’ll do some searching tonight before bed.”

  “Can we help?” Rachel asked.

  Zoe held her breath. It was one thing to help, but an entirely different matter to open his private quarters to them.

  “Not tonight. It’s a bit of a mess.”

  “I’ve seen enough messes for one day.” Zoe stood and offered Nick a hand. “See you later, Rachel.”

  He pulled up, and they strode side-by-side toward the house. “I’m disappointed you didn’t tell me Rachel’s secret sooner considering this is my house.”

  “I know it sounds crazy, but I forgot.”

  “Um-hmm. I’ve been hearing that a lot from you.”

  “Will I ever live down the overbooking?”

  He smirked. “Unlikely.” He gave her shoulder a squeeze. “Sorry. I’ll try not to tease anymore.”

  “You sure you can stop? It seems to come naturally.” She tried to ignore the tingling his touch had caused, but couldn’t. Why did Nick have such an effect on her? She’d come outside to escape him, but apparently the yard wasn’t far enough.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  A FEW DAYS LATER, NICK SAT on the porch swing lightly pushing himself back and forth with his foot. He had a perfect view of Zoe talking with some woman in the front yard. Zoe waved her arms about, clearly unhappy. He frowned. She had been acting weird for several days, and now this. It was not normal for Zoe to have visitors, much less act so disturbed. What was going on?

  Zoe had looked pleased to see the woman at first, but the longer they talked the more animated the stranger became and the more agitated Zoe appeared. Enough—he stopped swinging and stood. Going down the porch steps he called out, “Zoe! May I have a word with you?”

  She glanced over her shoulder with a startled look. “Can it wait?”

  “No.” One way or another he’d get to the bottom of her odd behavior.

  Zoe jogged toward him. “What’s up? My friend’s here, and I don’t want to be rude.”

  “That woman is your friend? I’m concerned. You look upset.”

  “Oh.” She shifted to her other foot. “Autumn is…” She glanced toward the woman, clearly at a loss for how to describe her.

  “Yes…?” He lowered his voice when she didn’t reply. “I consider you a friend, Zoe, and I care about you. I hope you know you can trust me—no matter what the problem is.”

  “Really?” Doubt laced her voice.

  “Excuse me?”

  “Sorry. That didn’t come out right. I appreciate your concern, but this isn’t something I care to talk with you about.”

  “Why? Don’t you trust me?”

  “I trust you, at least as much as I can when I haven’t known you for long.” She glanced away then returned her focus to him. “Look, some things have happened in my life that make trusting people difficult. Suffice it to say, my trust radar was blown to smithereens shortly before I came here.”

  “Okay. I get it. I was just concerned.”

  “I’m fine—really.” Zoe reached out and put a hand on his forearm. “Thanks for caring.” She smiled then turned and jogged back to her friend.

  He would never understand women, but he was thankful for the peek into Zoe’s past. That was the first hint he’d had of why she’d come here. It looked like she was running from something, or maybe someone. There was a lot of that going around.

  He went back inside and spotted Rachel at the top of the stairs. He waved, and grinned when she waved back. He’d finally adjusted to having her around the B&B all the time, and it would be odd when she finally moved on. She almost felt like family—the little sister he never had. He adjusted a game on the shelf then stepped back, satisfied the stack looked neat and tidy enough.

  Hopefully one of them would be able to locate the ring Rachel was searching for. He’d given the ladies permission to search the other guest rooms, but they’d turned up nothing. He was beginning to think the ring didn’t exist or someone had found it years ago.

  The latter was probably more than likely the case. After all, who would miss a seemingly discarded ring? Discarded—that gave him an idea.

  ****

  ZOE RESTED HER hands on her hips. “Let’s agree to disagree.”

  Autumn flipped her long espresso-colored hair over her shoulder and narrowed her eyes. “Fine, but you’re making a mistake. You said yourself that you get two days off
a week here, and you’re done working by early afternoon when you do work, so you could easily work the dinner hour at the restaurant.”

  She still couldn’t believe that Mr. Trask would, number one, offer her a position after what he’d said, and number two, send Autumn here to convince her to say yes. “Please drop it. I have to get up very early to prepare breakfast for guests. I can’t be out until midnight and expect to give one hundred percent to this job too. It’s more than I can handle.” Inquiring about a position at the restaurant had been a colossal mistake. Nick made it clear that he wanted her around, and his display of concern a moment ago was even more evidence.

  Her friend’s shoulders drooped a little. “I hear you. But I don’t understand. You were the one who asked about working at the restaurant. I thought that’s what you wanted.”

  Zoe motioned for Autumn to follow. “So did I, but then I thought about it again. I really like working here. Sure I do the same old thing every day, but it’s fun meeting the guests, and I’ve come to think of this place as home. I don’t want to jeopardize all that I have here.”

  Autumn’s face softened. “I get that. Home is important.”

  “Come on, there’s a spot with a million-dollar view that you must see.” She led Autumn across the stone pathway and settled into her favorite spot. “Well?”

  “It’s amazing. I see why you like it here. You could have it all, you know.”

  “Huh?” Her new friend must have had too much sun today. She made no sense.

  “Hear me out. You wouldn’t have to give this up. You’d only work three nights a week at the restaurant.”

  Zoe shook her head. Why wouldn’t Autumn let this drop? It’s not like the restaurant didn’t have a chef already. Why did they suddenly want her so badly? “Give it a rest already. I told you—”

  “I know. I know. I’ll tell Mr. Trask that you need time to think without being pressured.”

  “But—”

  “No. You owe it to yourself to give this serious thought considering what he offered to pay you. Plus I don’t see how someone with your background could be satisfied working at a B&B long term.” Autumn grinned. “I know we don’t really know each other, but anyone around here will tell you I mean well.” A guilty look crossed her face. “But I need to be honest about something. Mr. Trask offered me a week off with pay if I could get you to say yes.”

  “I—”

  “Wait before you say anything. I honestly meant what I said about someone with your background. Take all the time you need, and give me your answer. But if you could decide in the next week or two that’d be great.”

  Zoe laughed. “You’re unreal. I’ve never met anyone quite like you.”

  “I get that a lot, actually. Umm, there’s something else you should know, but keep it to yourself because I’m not supposed to tell you. Mr. Trask’s change of heart was brought on because the chef quit this morning. He was offered a position in Tacoma and will be gone in two weeks.”

  “Now I understand. Thanks for telling me.” Zoe leaned her head back and looked up into the clear sky. Was this offer really something she should consider? “I’m so confused.”

  “When I’m confused and don’t know what to do, I ask God.”

  “You’re kidding?” She cast Autumn a sideways glance.

  “Totally serious. You should try talking to Him. You may be surprised by what He says.”

  “Does God actually talk to you?” She used to go to church when she lived with her foster family. She’d even been plugged into the youth group and committed her life to God one night during a youth rally, but after she moved out on her own she’d gradually stopped attending church and reading her Bible. God had disappeared. Hmm—weird. She hadn’t even realized she’d cut Him from her life until now.

  “Yes, God talks to me. Not like you and I are, but I do get a sense of what He’s saying, and sometimes it’s like I hear Him in my head.”

  Zoe grinned. “So, you hear voices. I don’t know, that sounds a little sketchy to me,” she teased.

  “Oh stop.” Autumn giggled and shoved at her arm. “I’m not crazy.”

  “I’m teasing.” Zoe chuckled then sobered. “I’ll think about what you said.” She knew God spoke to people. Many times her foster mom had said that the Lord said this or that to her. But Zoe had never heard anyone else talk about God like that.

  “That’s all I ask.” Autumn learned forward and pushed up. “I should head home. It’s been a long day. Thanks for hearing me out.”

  Zoe stood and walked with her friend to her car. “Sure. Feel free to stop in again.” She hesitated. “Maybe next time we can have a less intense conversation.” Zoe much preferred peaceful afternoon walks along the beach to intense debating.

  “You got it. Bye.” Autumn waved and drove away.

  Zoe groaned and headed for the house. She had a lot of thinking—and praying—to do. But for now she needed to find Nick. She didn’t have far to look, since he stood at the reception desk talking with Rachel. “What’s going on?”

  Dark circles shaded Rachel’s eyes. “Nothing much. Did your friend leave?”

  “Yes. She works at the Wildflower Golf Club and stopped in to say hi on her way home.”

  Rachel yawned. “I think I’ll take a nap. See you later.” She trudged up the stairs and disappeared down the hall.

  A frown marred Nick’s face. “Zoe, would you mind taking a walk with me?”

  Zoe’s breath caught. What could he possibly want now? She’d come looking for him, but upon seeing him, the reason immediately escaped her. “Okay.”

  Nick rested his hand at the small of her back and guided them out the front door.

  “Who will watch the B&B while we’re gone?”

  “We aren’t going far.” He held up the cordless phone from reception. “I wanted to let you know that I’m giving you a raise.”

  “A raise? Why?”

  Nick looked at her as if she’d grown a second head. “Most people would say thanks and leave it at that.”

  “I’m not most people.”

  “Clearly. I’m giving you a raise because you’re worth it, and I heard a rumor that the Golf Club restaurant made you an offer. I don’t want to lose you.”

  Zoe’s heart thrummed too fast. Had he been eavesdropping on her conversation with Autumn? “How did you hear that? You rarely leave home.”

  “Chase. He did some work over there and thought I would want to know. He called while you were visiting with your friend.”

  “Oh. You’ll be happy to know I didn’t accept the position.” At least not yet. But she would do as Autumn requested and pray about it. It was time to get her relationship with God back in order. It wasn’t like she had deliberately cut Him from her life—it simply happened.

  Nick stopped and searched her face. “Does this mean you’re staying?”

  Zoe gazed at him, mesmerized by the hopefulness in his brown eyes that drew her in like fine chocolate. It felt good to be wanted, needed. “I don’t want to leave. I like it here.”

  He grinned. “That’s a relief.”

  “Actually, I am considering doing both.”

  “Oh.” His smile wilted. “How?”

  “That’s the part I’m still working out. It’s not a matter of money, although I won’t turn down the raise.”

  He chuckled. “I don’t imagine anyone would, but I’m glad you’re not leaving. I like having you around. Besides, your cooking is the best.” He stopped at the wooden shed and yanked open the door. “I’ve been giving thought to Rachel’s ring situation, and I have an idea. Between the three of us we’ve scoured the house top to bottom. What if the ring is out here?”

  “Hmm. I suppose that’s possible.” She peered into the darkened space. Spider webs and bugs littered the overly full structure. “I’m not going in there.”

  “Why not?”

  “I don’t like spiders.” She shivered. Actually spiders terrified her, but he didn’t need to know that. She
ran a hand over her stomach where she still had a scar from the bite of a brown recluse spider.

  “They are more afraid of you than you are of them.”

  “That’s doubtful. And digging through the shed will chase them from their hiding places. I’d like to help, but count me out.”

  Nick closed the doors. “Okay. We won’t search the shed today, but I have no idea where else to look. Maybe I’ll check the shed another time.”

  “Wait. You mean because of me you’re not going to look?”

  “You’re clearly afraid of spiders, and I don’t want to upset you. Are you allergic or something?”

  “Or something.” She shivered again.

  He rested a hand on her shoulder and looked her in the eyes. “It’s okay. The chances of the ring being in the shed aren’t great. It was probably a bad idea anyway.”

  Zoe’s heart hammered in her chest, and it wasn’t because of the spiders. Nick had to be the kindest, most considerate man she’d ever met, and she’d known a lot of men from working in the restaurant business. “No. It’s actually a great idea. Rachel’s husband probably played out here as a child. It’s the perfect hiding place.”

  Nick’s face brightened, and he removed his hand from her shoulder. “Really? You think so?”

  She nodded then faced the shed. The space was cluttered with more than tools. Boxes were stacked four high and looked to be a few deep. “I wonder why the previous owners didn’t take this stuff with them?”

  “Beats me. I haven’t had the time to see what’s in the boxes. Running this place consumes most of my time.”

  Zoe knew that was true, so why was he taking so much time to help Rachel? Surely he had better things to do. Her gut told her that was simply the kind of person he was. He wanted to help people. “Let’s do this. I have a pair of gardening gloves I use in the herb garden—”

  Nick’s eyes widened. “You mean you’ll help?”

  “I can’t let you have all the fun now, can I? That wouldn’t be fair.” She turned and jogged to the house before she could change her mind. What possessed her to do this? She didn’t have to think for long. Her answer stood in the form of a tall hunk. She burst through the kitchen door and yanked open a drawer she reserved for gardening supplies.