“You broke in? Jesus, Riley. You’re on some kind of criminal streak, aren’t you?”
“No. The back door was standing wide open. I think kids and vandals have been hanging out there. There was trash all over, and you could see where people had made fires. I was walking around, checking it out, taking pictures with my cell phone, and Nate walked in and scared the hell out of me.”
“What was he doing there?”
“He didn’t want to tell me at first. He gave me some line about how he used to love to go fishing there as a kid, and he just happened to be riding around in his boat and decided to see the house for himself.”
“And then what?”
Riley shrugged. “He started telling me how beautiful I was and how talented, and he said he’d seen clips of my work from when I was an anchor. Then the next thing I knew, he was hitting on me.”
“Just like that.”
“He said some other stuff.”
“So what, he just jumped your bones right there?”
“Not exactly. He kissed me.”
“Did you kiss back?”
“I don’t remember.”
“You are such a liar. How was he?”
“He’s definitely improved with practice.”
“I knew it!” Parrish crowed.
“Hush!”
“What happened next?”
“Same old Nate Milas,” Riley said, wrinkling her nose. “One minute he was kissing me, the next minute he was heading for second base.”
“Well I certainly hope you let him have his way,” Parrish said.
“Really? You think I’m that big of a slut? I’d just drop to the floor and do the deed with some random guy in an abandoned house? In broad daylight?”
“Why not? He’s single and so are you. He’s rich and successful, and easy on the eyes, and you said yourself he’s a good kisser.”
“Nate Milas is just another guy on the make,” Riley said flatly. “He finally admitted he’d gone out there because he wants to buy the Holtzclaw place. He even said he didn’t blame Wendell for wanting to tear the place down, because that was the smart thing to do.”
Parrish studied her friend. “Riles, you know all that property is going to be auctioned off this week. Somebody is going to bid on it, and the reality is that that somebody is probably going to be a developer. Maybe they won’t build a hotel and all that other stuff Wendell wanted to do, but it really is inevitable. Don’t you think it would be a good thing if that buyer is Nate Milas? He’s a local boy who made good. His family has been on the island almost as long as yours. He’s not gonna want to foul his own nest.”
“No,” Riley said vehemently. “That’s just the point. Mama always says there’s nothing worse than new money. Nate is hot to prove to the world that he’s not just Captain Joe’s kid. He’ll pave the roads, mow down the wildlife sanctuary next door, put in a marina, and God knows what else. It’s the perfect spot for another ferry landing. Before you know it, Belle Isle will be like Myrtle Beach or Panama City Beach: pancake houses, golf courses, and high-rise condos. It’ll be nothing like what my great-grandfather intended. The island you and I grew up on, the one I thought Maggy would grow up on, will be gone forever.”
“That is not going to happen on Belle Isle, and you know it,” Parrish said. She signaled the waitress for their check. “This is just you, panicking and throwing up roadblocks to your own happiness.”
“No, this is me trying to save my own life,” Riley retorted. “I’ve already let one man ruin it. I’ll be damned if I’ll give Nate Milas a second chance.”
37
Aunt Roo looked around at all the somber faces gathered at the big mahogany dining room table at the Shutters. Evelyn sat at the far end in her customary Chippendale chair, and Riley sat opposite her in the chair where Roo’s brother, W.R., had presided. Billy sat across from Roo, and Parrish sat beside him.
“This better be something good,” she said, stirring the ice in her Manhattan. “I’m missing poker night.”
“Roo is right,” Evelyn said. “Dinner was very nice, so, Parrish, thank you for bringing that delicious lobster. But why all the urgency, Riley?”
“I’m thinking it’s bad news,” Billy said. “Why else would we all be here on a Wednesday night?”
Riley looked desperately at Parrish. They’d settled on a game plan for this dreaded meeting, but Riley was already starting to chicken out.
“I realize I’m an outsider here tonight,” Parrish said finally, “but Riley asked me to come because she’s got something really difficult to discuss with all of you.” She looked pointedly at Riley, who nodded.
“Okay, here goes,” Riley said. “You all know that Sand Dollar Lane has been foreclosed on, and is going to be auctioned off by the bank on Friday, along with all the other land Wendell bought for the north end development. And, well, the thing is, I can’t bid on the house, because I’m broke. It turns out that Wendell not only took out a new mortgage on our house without telling me, but he also emptied my trust fund to buy some of that land.”
“Now, Riley,” Evelyn said, frowning.
“It’s true, Evelyn,” Parrish said gently. “From what we can tell, Wendell went on a spending spree assembling all the land for the marina, hotel, and golf course he was planning. He closed down Riley’s trust account at Wells Fargo, and used some of the money to buy the old Holtzclaw property on Fiddler’s Creek. I’ve seen the bank records. Wendell really did take out a two-million-dollar mortgage on Sand Dollar Lane, then defaulted on it, which is how the foreclosure came about.”
“Two million dollars!” Roo exclaimed. “I didn’t know the house was worth that much.”
“It’s not,” Riley said. “He must have bribed some appraiser to give such a wildly bloated value. Daddy gave us the lot, but we only paid four hundred thousand dollars for the house when we built it.”
“Can’t you go to the bank and tell them it was all a mistake? That Wendell had no right to take your money?” Roo asked.
“Afraid not, Aunt Roo,” Riley said. “The bank that made him all those loans actually went out of business when Wendell defaulted, and they’ve been taken over by a new bank. That bank, Baldwin Community Bank, is liquidating those bad loans and selling the whole portfolio at an auction in Southpoint the day after tomorrow. My house will be auctioned off then.”
“It’s definite, then?” Evelyn asked, looking at Parrish.
“I’m afraid so.”
“Well, I’m sorry to speak ill of the dead, but I never trusted that husband of yours,” Roo told Riley. “He had shifty eyes.”
“Roo, for God’s sake,” Evelyn said.
“Well, he did,” Roo insisted.
“The thing is,” Riley interrupted, “I don’t know where else to turn. I’ve started to look at going back to work in Raleigh, in the fall, when Maggy’s school starts. The new house will be ready by then. But in the meantime, I was wondering if maybe you all might be willing to loan me the money to help buy back Sand Dollar Lane.” She turned pleading eyes to her mother. “If it were up to me, I’d just let it go. But it’s Maggy’s home.”