A Nantucket Affair

by Pamela M. Kelley

  “What price did she suggest?” Chase asked.

  “Not as much as I’d hoped. But it’s better than nothing.” He mentioned a number that was quite a bit lower than Beth expected. She could tell by Chase’s eyes that he felt the same.

  “Bob, could you give us just a minute?” Beth pulled Chase outside and they quickly agreed on a price to offer Bob—a bit more than what the realtor suggested as they figured if it went to market, it would likely go above asking.

  “Bob, if you’re interested, we’d like to make you an offer for the house.” Chase mentioned the number he had in mind, and for the first time, Beth saw a look of hope on Bob’s face.

  “Are you serious? If you are, I gladly accept your offer.” He looked around the house. “Will you keep it? Or fix it up and sell?”

  “Fix it up and sell. It’s something Beth and I have been looking to get into.”

  “Well, it sounds like it’s a win for all of us, then.”

  And it had been. They learned so much doing that flip. Beth had enjoyed every minute of it. She was proud of the design work she’d done, and Chase’s remodeling had made the cottage absolutely adorable. They’d modernized it and added an island in the kitchen—all new appliances, white subway tile, which gave it a clean, bright look—and they added French doors where the sliders had opened to a big screened-in porch. They’d also redone the bathrooms completely, bringing in an expert to remove the mold, add vents, and sleek, glass shower doors which gave it a spa feel.

  When they gave the listing to Lauren, she’d been impressed, as she’d been the realtor Bob met with initially, so she’d seen the ‘before’. Once the open house was held and they accepted one of the multiple bids, they realized a bigger profit than they’d expected. And from then on, she and Chase were addicted.

  Lauren actually found them their next flip. It was a similar situation, a smaller home that needed lots of cosmetic work to be attractive to buyers. Most people wanted something turnkey that didn’t need a lot of work. She showed them the home a few days before a scheduled open house, said the buyer was motivated and if the offer was good enough, they’d accept and cancel the open house.

  “I’d really rather not do an open house, if I don’t have to,” Lauren admitted.

  And that one had been a no-brainer, too. Chase agreed and less than two months later, Lauren sold the house again for a much higher price. Beth and Chase were feeling a little cocky after the second flip went so well. It almost seemed too easy.

  She hoped that this third house would go as smoothly. She didn’t see why it wouldn’t. Chase was already aware of all the repairs that needed to be made. As long as they didn’t find any surprises along the way, they should be looking at another healthy profit in a few months.

  Chase returned to the office a little after noon, with the subs and chips for their lunch. They sat at a small round table in his office and spent the half hour enjoying their lunch, chatting about the progression of the various projects Chase had going. Just as they were finishing up, his cell phone rang.

  “This is Chase. Oh, hey, Barry. So what did you find in there?”

  Beth watched as Chase’s expression shifted from amused to concerned as he ended the call and told Barry he’d be right there.

  “Is that Barry Holmes, the exterminator?” Beth knew they had him going to check out the smell in the closet and to remove whatever had died there.

  “Yeah. He said it’s a family of squirrels, four of them, that crawled in somehow and got stuck there. While he was removing them, though, he found something he wants me to take a look at. Something to do with the pipes. Might be nothing, or might be kind of expensive as I’d have to hire someone to do that work.”

  “Well, let’s hope it’s something minor.” Beth felt a twinge of worry, which she quickly brushed aside. Chase would be able to handle it, whatever it was.

  Chase took his last bite, crumpled up the paper wrapping and tossed it in the trash. He handed her his almost empty bag of chips.

  “Here, finish these off. I’m going to head out. I’ll fill you in later.”

  Chapter 9

  “So, I have an idea I want to try. An experiment with some different targeting on FB. Do you mind if I change the ads up a little?” Kate asked. She and Lisa were sitting at Lisa’s kitchen island. Kate had come by for lunch and to chat with Lisa about her Facebook ads for the inn. They were sitting side by side, with their laptops in front of them.

  “Sure, honey. Whatever you want to do is fine by me. You know I appreciate your help. It’s all Greek to me.” Kate understood the ins and outs of internet marketing, especially Facebook advertising, far better than Lisa ever would.

  While Kate played with the ads, Lisa scrolled through the recent reviews that guests had left on AirBnb, the site that generated many of her bookings. They were always mostly four- or five-star reviews, except for the occasional grump. Now and then, they had a guest who was difficult and impossible to please. There wasn’t enough hot water or the water was too hot, the sheets were too soft or not soft enough. It seemed like some people were just looking for things to complain about. But fortunately, that was the rare exception and most of the guests had been lovely.

  “Hmmm. This is an odd one. This couple was so nice and yet they left me a one-star review.”

  Kate looked up. “What does it say?”

  “It’s the strangest review we’ve had yet.” Lisa read it out loud.

  “Location was lovely, but the service was disappointing. The host, Lisa Hodges, seemed as though we were bothering her at breakfast when we asked for decaf coffee. We won’t be back. Next time, we’ll stay at Red Rose Bed and Breakfast. We usually stay there and tried something new this time and that was a mistake. Don’t make the same mistake we did. Go to Red Rose.”

  “Hm. Wasn’t the owner of Red Rose one of the people that opposed you at that first selectman’s meeting?”

  “Yes. She was.” Lisa sighed. “Maybe the Laceys are friends of hers. Or maybe they really were disappointed.”

  “That review almost reads like an ad for Red Rose.”

  Lisa bit her lower lip, something she did when she was deep in thought or worried.

  “Do you think that will hurt business?”

  Kate hesitated for a moment before saying, “Well, it’s not helping. Negative reviews like that can deter people, which seems like the intention. You should reply to it.”

  “Really? What would I say?”

  “The best way to handle a negative review is to kill them with kindness, and to try to make it right. Even if they don’t reply, others will see that you care about customer satisfaction. Ask them to message you directly with their concerns and say that you will do what you can to make it right. If they do, offer them a free night if they give you another chance.”

  Lisa frowned. “The last thing I feel like doing is giving them free anything.”

  “Remember, Mom, this is a business decision. I know this hurt your feelings. It would mine, too. But don’t take it personally.”

  “It’s hard not to. But, you’re right. I’ll let you take a look before I hit submit.”

  Lisa thought about what to write and then kept it simple. She read it aloud to Kate when she finished.

  Thank you for staying with us and for sharing your concerns. I’m so sorry that you were disappointed with the service. We try our best to make every guest feel welcome, but we’re not perfect. I hope that you will give us another chance. Please message me to discuss how we can make your next visit a better experience.

  “That’s perfect,” Kate said.

  Lisa hit submit and sighed. The bad review had spoiled her good mood. She was feeling very down and like a failure. She got up and cut herself a slice of the cinnamon walnut coffee cake she’d served that morning to the guests. It was decadently rich, made with butter and sour cream, and Lisa usually avoided it or had the tiniest of slivers. The guests always loved it. Instead of a sliver, she cut herself a thick slic
e and asked Kate if she wanted any.

  “No, thanks. That will go right to my hips and I don’t need any help there.”

  Lisa smiled as she settled back in her seat and took a big bite of the cake. It was perfect comfort food and she’d always been a stress eater. Kate was exaggerating a bit, too. She’d never had a weight problem, though she wasn’t as slim as her sister, Kristen, who wasn’t as food obsessed as the rest of them. Kristen often forgot to eat while she was painting.

  “Mom, seriously don’t give too much weight to that review. It’s just one review out of a sea of positive ones. Everyone loves staying here.”

  “I suppose you’re right.”

  “I am. And I understand, believe me. It’s even worse with writing. There are always people that just don’t like what I write, no matter how much everyone else loves it. It took me a long time to realize that they just aren’t my audience. I cried when I got my first bad review. I made the mistake of looking at reviews before writing, and I wasn’t able to write a word that day, I was so upset.”

  “Oh, honey. I’m sorry. You’re a wonderful writer. Ignore those mean reviews.”

  Kate grinned. “Exactly. That’s excellent advice, so you do the same.”

  Lisa laughed and felt her bad mood fading.

  An hour later, as Kate was getting ready to head home, Lisa’s mailbox dinged with a new email. It was from Ron Lacey, who must have seen or been notified about Lisa’s reply to their review. She steeled herself for more negativity when she opened the message, but Ron surprised her.

  “Lisa, I have to apologize. I’m not sure what came over my wife to leave that review. We had a great stay and everything was just fine, better than fine. I’m embarrassed to admit this, but Debbie is friends with the owner of that other bed-and-breakfast. She must have been trying to help her. I will make sure the review is amended, or removed. And I thank you again for a great stay. Ron Lacey.”

  “Oh, how interesting,” Kate said.

  “Do you suppose Lillian put her up to it?” Lisa asked. She couldn’t imagine deliberately trying to harm someone’s business that way.

  “It wouldn’t surprise me. Unfortunately, from what I’ve heard online it’s a thing. Competitors try to sabotage the competition by leaving bad reviews or trying to direct traffic their way by mentioning their name in a review for a competing product.”

  Lisa was shocked. “And that’s allowed?”

  “It’s against the terms of service, but it’s not always obvious or easy to enforce. People have a right to their opinion, even if it’s a negative one.”

  “Hm. Well, I guess I’m lucky then that he offered to fix it.”

  “You really are. That seldom happens.”

  “I knew Lillian wasn’t happy about my new business. She obviously thinks it’s a threat to hers.”

  “It looks that way. But hopefully this is a one off, and won’t happen again.”

  That thought hadn’t crossed Lisa’s mind. “Ugh. Hopefully not.”

  “I’m sure it won’t. Don’t worry about it. I’ll keep you posted how the new ads go.” Kate gave her mother a hug and headed back home.

  Once she was gone, Lisa put on her sneakers and walked down to the beach. It was cool but sunny, and she could use a long walk down to the lighthouse and back to work off some coffee cake. Walking along the beach always lifted her spirits, too. She loved the salty smell of the air coming off the water, and the soothing crash of the waves as they hit the sand. Every time she walked along the beach, she felt better and couldn’t imagine living anywhere else.

  Chapter 10

  Barry was waiting outside having a smoke when Chase pulled up to the house. He took a final puff, then put the cigarette out with the heel of his scuffed boot.

  “How bad is it?” Chase asked when he reached the front steps.

  “I’m no plumber, but I don’t think it looks good.” Barry led the way to the closet. He’d disposed of the dead squirrels and already plugged an air freshener into the wall, so the scent of lavender mingled with death as Chase entered the room.

  “Take a look.” Barry stepped back and handled Chase his flashlight.

  Chase kneeled down and trained the light on the hole in the wall and the exposed steel pipes that were not in good shape. They were rusted at all the joints.

  “Did you check the water?” He asked Barry.

  “Color is good, nice and clear, but the pressure is low.”

  Chase frowned. When he’d toured the house with Beth and Lauren, he’d checked the kitchen faucet and the water pressure seemed fine. He hadn’t bothered to check the bathrooms. But he did that now, and all the faucets were all the same, very low pressure.

  “You thinking what I’m thinking?” Barry asked.

  Chase sighed. “Yeah, I’m probably looking at a full re-pipe. No one uses steel much anymore, but all these older houses have it and they always have to be replaced at some point. Looks like it has to be now on this one.”

  “What do you think that will run you? You’re doing this as a flip, right?”

  Chase nodded. “I’m guessing between eight and ten thousand. Hopefully not more than that. I usually use Rick Cushman for plumbing. I’ll see if he can get out here tomorrow. And yeah, this is a flip, so it’s not ideal to have to sink that kind of money into it, but what are you gonna do?”

  Barry smiled. “Yep. Well, at least it won’t stink of dead squirrels.”

  “There is that.” Chase had his checkbook with him so he wrote out a check for Barry, and as they left, he put a call into Rick.

  Beth had expected Chase to call her after he met with Barry, but she didn’t hear from him until he returned to the office at the end of the day. She could tell that he was in a bad mood the minute he walked through the door. Chase was so seldom in a bad mood that it took her by surprise.

  “Is everything okay? I thought you would have called after your meeting,” she automatically asked before he said anything.

  Chase sighed and ran a hand through his hair. It was thick and wavy and normally one of his best features, but today it just looked rumpled and frazzled, much like Chase himself.

  “No. Sorry I didn’t call. I had to go right to the Johnson site and put out a fire there. One of the vendors is holding up the project and we’re running a little behind. You know I hate that.”

  Beth nodded and waited for him to continue. Chase prided himself on finishing his projects on time or earlier.

  “So, yeah, I met with Barry. There’s a plumbing issue. Probably needs a re-pipe. I called Rick and he’s going to take a look tomorrow. Re-pipes are expensive and we didn’t plan for that in our budget.”

  Beth mentally did the calculations in her head. She knew the going rate for a re-pipe and conservatively estimated high. Even if it came in at ten thousand it would be a hit to their budget, but they could still potentially be okay—as long as there were no other unexpected surprises.

  “We can work with that. If we need to, we can cut costs in other areas, maybe go with less expensive tile or counter tops.”

  Chase frowned. “We still need it to look high end though, or we won’t get the price we need.”

  Beth took a deep breath before speaking. “I know that. We’ll figure it out.” She tried to stay calm and not let her irritation show. Hopefully, Chase would relax about it. She knew he was just worried and she was, too. Neither one of them could afford to lose money on the flip. But she didn’t think that was going to happen, as long as they were smart about how they allocated their budget.

  “Yeah, it’s still early days. You’re right. No need to panic yet. Sorry, I’m being grumpy. It’s been a long day, and I’m hungry. How do you feel about pizza for dinner?”

  She relaxed and smiled. “Pizza sounds good to me.”

  Beth called in the pizza order before they left the office so that it was ready for them to pick up on their way home. She and Chase liked their pizza the same way—plain cheese, extra sauce. They also got a Greek sa
lad to share.

  Once they were home and happily eating pizza, Chase seemed to relax a bit. Beth couldn’t remember ever seeing him so stressed before. She worried that the flip house and its unexpected expenses were making normal stress from his job seem worse than it was.

  “So, tell me what’s going on with the Johnson project?” Last she knew they were running a little behind, but she thought Chase was going to catch up this week.

  “Well, I was hoping to get back on track this week, but we’ve fallen further behind. Two of Shaw’s guys missed work this week, both sick and they didn’t have anyone else to send, so until they get their part of the job done, it’s holding up moving forward on other stuff. It’s just frustrating. Ben apologized up and down, even said he’ll come help himself when he’s done with his current project.”

  “Well, that’s good then. That should help them get it done faster.”

  “It should.” Chase reached for another slice of pizza. “You know how I am about finishing on time.”

  Beth smiled. “Yes, I know.” Chase had built his reputation on doing quality work and meeting project deadlines. It was somewhat unusual in an industry when so many workers were self-employed and were often either stretched thin by taking on too many projects or took too much time off fishing when the weather was good. It was so bad that when someone like Chase came along that was reliable and good, word spread quickly. It also helped that Chase was an island native and most people either knew him or his family, so there was added trust there.

  “I’d like to go with you tomorrow when you meet Rick at the flip house.” Beth had been thinking about it all afternoon. “I think it could help me to better understand everything that goes into doing a renovation like this. And I want to get some more pictures of all the rooms and measure the counters and floors.”