Stepping up to the door, he handed Colton a box from the local bakery and wished them both a good morning before clapping his hands together and saying, “Gentlemen, let’s do some damage control!”
3
For two days Susannah did her best to keep busy. There was so much to do to get ready for the inn’s first official guests that she almost didn’t have time to let her thoughts go to how much she missed Colton.
The nights were a completely different story.
And unfortunately, right now she was dealing with a bull in a china shop who wanted to do nothing but talk about all that had gone wrong.
“Honestly, Susannah, this is for the best,” Georgia Bishop, Susannah’s cousin, said as she moved around and fussed with the silk flower arrangement in the inn’s library. “Don’t you have enough on your plate without having to deal with a needy man?”
“I never said Colton was needy…”
“I mean, look at all the work you’ve put into this house! Almost an entire year has been spent renovating and rebuilding and if you don’t keep your focus, well…the whole thing could fail. And then where will you be?”
“It’s not going to fail, Georgia.”
Her cousin’s expression pinched slightly. “Most new businesses fail, Susannah. You have to be shrewd and you need to maintain your focus. As it is, you’ll be distracted by Mallory’s wedding plans and then if Sam decides to get married, you’ll be involved in that too, I’m sure.” She paused. “Of course, Mason and Scarlett want something different when they get married so you won’t have to be involved in that.”
Georgia’s son and his fiancé were expecting their first baby together and everyone had been wondering when they were going to get married. “Any news on that front? Have they set a date?” Susannah asked, hoping to get the focus off of herself and on to Georgia’s children.
Sighing dramatically, she straightened a silk lily before turning to sit on the sofa. “Beau and I offered to pay for a wedding for them – you know, since Scarlett comes from such a poor family – but they just won’t commit to anything. It’s very frustrating. I’ve got the country club on speed dial just in case. We would love to host a reception there. It would be so elegant.”
Forcing a smile, she nodded.
“But I suppose with the holidays being right around the corner, it’s the last thing on their minds. I’m sure if I wait until after the new year, they’ll have decided.” Then she frowned. “Of course, then Scarlett will be well-advanced in her pregnancy and she’s already mentioned not wanting to deal with dress shopping or trying to find one that will fit.” Another pause while she shook her head. “Although, who can blame her? It seems rather tacky to be wearing a virginal white gown when she’s clearly expecting a child. She might feel ridiculous.”
“You never know,” Susannah said pleasantly.
“So you see, Susannah, you’ve really dodged a bullet by turning Colton down. You don’t want to have to worry about all those silly wedding details. Especially at your age.”
“Um…excuse me?”
“Hmm?”
“What was that supposed to mean – especially at my age?” she demanded, trying to hold on to her anger.
“I’m just saying…just like Scarlett not wanting to wear a white gown while six or seven months pregnant, you might not want to wear one when you’re…you know…almost fifty,” Georgia said in her perfect little southern drawl and her stiff smile.
“First of all, I’m only forty-six. And secondly, getting married doesn’t mean I have to wear a traditional wedding gown,” she argued. “But if I did, it would be my decision and mine alone!”
To her credit, her cousin merely arched a blonde brow at her. “So if it’s not the fear of looking ridiculous for being a bride at your age, why aren’t you marrying that man?”
With a weary sigh, Susannah sat down at the other end of the sofa. “I never said it had anything to do with how I’d look as a bride, Georgia. That would be the most absurd reason not to get married.”
“Then what is the reason? I would think after the way you’ve been courting attention here in town the last few years that getting married would be right up your alley.”
Every time she thought she and her cousin could get along, Georgia opened her mouth and said something like this. Susannah thought she’d be used to it by now, but right now it was like the straw that broke the camel’s back. She’d done her best to hold it together ever since she drove away from Colton’s house – partly for her own sake, but partly because she didn’t want anyone worrying about her. But something in her cousin’s condescending tone pushed her last button.
Slowly, she turned her head. “Courting attention? Courting attention?” she repeated for emphasis. “How exactly have I done that, Georgia?”
But before Georgia could even answer, Susannah was on her feet and towering over her cousin.
“I had always planned on moving back to Magnolia! I grew up in this town! I have friends and family here! It’s not my fault that you can’t stand sharing the attention!”
“Don’t be ridiculous…”
Susannah wasn’t even listening. “That’s what this is about, isn’t it? It’s what it’s always about! You! You seriously can’t be happy or even feel compassion toward anyone because all you can do is think about yourself and how these situations affect you!”
“Honestly, Susannah, you’re not even making sense,” Georgia said with mild annoyance.
“You loved having all the attention on you as some sort of matriarch in the family when I wasn’t here. It was all fine and well when I was only here for a few weeks in the summer but once I was back for good, your bitch-factor went off the charts!”
“My…my…what?”
Leaning down, Susannah said, “Bitch. Factor.” Straightening, she paced a few feet away. “You were upset that I got the house, you’ve been snippy and condescending about Mallory’s wedding and trying to convince her to have something small so you’ll be able to outdo it when your girls get married!”
“Now you’re just talking gibberish, Susannah.”
“Am I?” she demanded. “You can’t stand that Mallory’s wedding is going to be a big deal in this town. And you’ve made more than enough faces over the fact that Sam and Shelby will more than likely follow suit quickly. So you must be positively giddy that I turned Colton down because now you can hold that failure over my head! Well…shame on you!”
“Don’t you have enough?” Georgia snapped, her own patience ending. Coming to her feet, she did her best to look intimidating. “Yes, you got the house, and yes, your children have their lives together and are getting married. And for months you’ve paraded around town in total bliss with Colton! Not everyone has it like that, Susannah! And not everyone can handle having all that love and…and…all that happiness thrown in their face!”
For a moment, all Susannah could do was blink.