“Are you sure?”
Leaning in, she kissed him.
“Mallory!” Sam called out from beside their mother’s car.
“I’m riding home with Jake!” And for some reason, it felt really good to say that out loud.
Growing up, Jake’s parents had argued in front of him and had no problem venting when they were frustrated with whatever was going on in their lives. Sitting back and watching the Westbrooks handle the situation with their inheritances, though, was like nothing he had ever seen.
“Who does she think she is–accusing me of strong-arming Pops into leaving me this house?” Susannah cried as soon as they were in the door. “No one ever told that man what to do and she knows it! Maybe she should consider the fact that he knew she was just being a gold-digger and didn’t want to leave it to her!” She tossed her purse on the living room sofa and began to pace. “Did you know she wanted to put Pops in a home last year? And she wasn’t even shy about making plans for this place right in front of him!”
Jake remembered that whole shit-show. Zeke was livid and vowed that Georgia would never get her hands on his house.
And clearly, Ezekiel Coleman was a man of his word.
“She already has so damn much!” Susannah was saying. “Beau is beyond wealthy and they have more than anyone I know and yet she still wants more! And she doesn’t want anyone else to have anything either! Everything should go to her or her kids and…” She groaned. “She’s impossible!”
No one disagreed.
“What am I supposed to do, huh? How am I supposed to just…go ahead with my plans for the house with her being so unreasonable?”
Jake looked at Sam and Mallory and saw that neither seemed to know what to say.
But he did.
“Excuse me for saying so, Susannah, but…what difference does it make what Georgia thinks? The house is yours. Your name is going on the deed, the account for the renovation will be in your name…the way I see it, Georgia can’t stop you.”
“What if she contests the will?”
Jake grinned. “I guess you missed Richard’s disclaimer at the beginning of the reading.”
All three Westbrooks looked at him.
“Anyone who contests the will, loses their inheritance as will their children,” he said with a grin. “You don’t think for a second that Zeke didn’t know Georgia was going to freak out when she found out you got the house, do you?”
“I don’t remember him saying that,” Susannah said, slowly sitting down on the sofa. “I guess there was so much legalese that I missed it.”
“I remember him saying it,” Sam said frowning. “So now I’m stuck with a business I don’t want.”
“What? How could you not want it?” his mother asked. “It’s the perfect job for you! You love working in the yard!”
“Not as a career, Mom!” he countered. “I’m going to sell the business. It’s the only solution.”
“Um…” Jake began hesitantly. “Have you guys looked at your letters from Zeke yet?”
They all shook their heads.
“Maybe you should before you make any rash decisions,” he said and hated how he had been privy to so many of Zeke’s thoughts before he died. Granted, he had no idea what any of them were getting–except for Sam–but he wasn’t about to share that information.
Out of all his grandchildren and great-grandchildren, Sam was the one Zeke worried about the most. He knew Sam was a hell-raiser who was constantly in trouble, and most of the time he attributed it to the fact that Susannah’s husband had left and there hadn’t been a positive male role model in Sam’s life on a full-time basis. Over the years, Zeke had talked about wanting Sam to grow up and settle down–not so much with a wife and kids, but just…calming down on his wild and impetuous ways.
About a year ago, Sam got arrested. The only reason Jake knew about it was because he had been here when Susannah got the call. It was for a DUI and Sam spent a night in jail, but Zeke had demanded he come here and talk to him in person. Sam had and Zeke laid down the law for him–either get his shit together, or he was going to be disowned. It seemed drastic, but Sam had taken the warning seriously and for the last year it seemed like he was doing okay. Looking at his face now, however, Jake saw traces of the angry and defiant man who had shown up here a year ago.
Not a good sign.
In the letter Zeke wrote, there was most likely a demand that Sam work the company for a year. It was something they had talked about because Zeke knew Sam would reject the idea of coming to work and live in Magnolia. He thought it would be good for Sam to have some family nearby and some stability in employment. If he opted not to stay for the year, the business would go to Mason and Sam would get no monetary gain from it.
He'd begged Zeke not to do it, and he honestly had no way of knowing for sure if he did until Sam read the letter.
And was it wrong that he secretly hoped there was a similar stipulation with Mallory’s inheritance?
If she was forced to move back here for a year, he’d have more time to convince her that what they had was meant to be. But he also didn’t want to be her fallback–a way to pass the time until she could leave. Even though that’s what he originally went into this new phase of their relationship thinking, he now knew it was crazy. They weren’t having a fling. This was the real deal.
He just needed Mallory to see it too.
They were all quiet for so long that he thought he’d go mad, but finally Susannah spoke up. “Jake, do you think…I mean…is it wrong that I want to do this? To turn this house into something new?”
He shook his head. “If anything, I think the timing is kind of perfect.”
“What do you mean?” Mallory asked, sitting up a little straighter where she was on the sofa.
“The hurricane did so much damage to the town. What was once a neat and picturesque little town is now in shambles. We’re going to be picking up the pieces for a long time. And, judging by Zeke’s will, there’s going to be a lot of new owners and management throughout the local businesses. I’d say Magnolia Sound is going through a bit of a transformation and wouldn’t it be great to open the tourist season next summer with a new bed and breakfast?” he asked with a smile. “Think about all the marketing and promoting you could do for it. We always have a very active summer season and to have a place like this–a place with such a long-standing history within the town–would be a big draw. And depending on how big you want to go with this renovation, you could appeal to some very upscale clients.”
He saw the smile on Susannah’s face grow.
“And with Mallory helping with the design and decorating, you know it’s going to be classy and elegant here.” Then he looked at Sam. “And you are going to restore the grounds to the way your great-grandfather always had them–only better.” He straightened and watched as their faces all seemed to transform from wariness to wonder. “What better testimony to the founding family of this town than restoring this place and preserving its history?”
Then, feeling a little smug, Jake walked over and sat down in one of the massive leather wingback chairs and smiled. “But that’s just one way you can look at it.”