“Sounds good,” Maggie said briskly. “Now, would you like to lease the flat upstairs as well? I certainly love mine. And makes for an easy commute to work,” she added with a wink.
Addison smiled with pure delight. “Oh, I had forgotten about that! Yes!”
“You can park around the back of the building and enter there, but you can also go up the back steps from the shop. Follow me,” Maggie said. She loved the enthusiasm floating in the air. One of the things she relished about real estate was the joy of ownership or, in this case, the start of a new business. Maggie had never been just about the sale and liked to match clients to homes that they would be happy living in. Addison seemed sharp and savvy, not surprising, given who her mother and uncle were. When they reached the top of the stairs, Maggie switched on the lights.
“Oh my gosh—it’s gorgeous!” Addison spun in a circle as if trying to take it all in at once, but then hurried over to the floor-to-ceiling windows. “Oh, would you look at the view of the river? There goes a barge,” she said as if she’d just spotted the
“I love the open feel,” Mia said. “You could furnish it with a modern flair or with antiques.”
“Or an eclectic mix,” Addison agreed. “Wow, recessed lighting. Oh, and the kitchen is gleaming with stainless-steel appliances, but the exposed-brick wall to the left just warms everything up, don’t you think?”
“Did you see the loft guest bedroom?” Maggie asked.
Addison put a hand over her mouth and Mia squealed with delight, making Maggie forget to be businesslike. She chuckled. You’d never know these two young women came from privilege. Mia was a sweetheart and Addison seemed so grounded. It was hard to believe that two men had let her get away.
“You don’t like it at all, do you?” Maggie teased.
“I don’t like it. I love it,” Addison admitted, and then turned to Mia. “What was that dance we did in the diner?”
“The Snoopy happy dance.”
“Let’s do it again!” Addison said.
“Come on, Maggie. Join us!”
Maggie hesitated for a fraction but then giggled like a schoolgirl. “Oh, why not?” A moment later all three were dancing in the middle of the big open space.
“Time to go to Sully’s and celebrate!” Mia announced. “Oh, and we need to come up with a name for your shop. Let’s get the party started!”
Maggie laughed with the girls as she locked up the building. “Addison, I’ll get the paperwork to you, and if you have any questions don’t hesitate to call.” She handed her a business card. “My cell phone is on there and I’ll pick up just about anytime of the day. Congratulations! I can’t wait to see the bridal boutique full of dresses!” She gave them both a hug and was still smiling after they left.
But as she closed up her office and headed up to her own loft apartment, she felt a stab of loneliness. She was so glad that she had made the decision to move to Cricket Creek to live near Tristan, but he was busy with the Whisper’s Edge expansion and spent much of his downtime with his fiancee. Although she also kept busy trying to list other property and lease the remaining shops in Wedding Row, her nights were often spent alone. Now that summer was arriving, Maggie would also work with the Chamber of Commerce, helping to place visitors in rental properties, and although she absolutely adored having her own agency, her social life left, well, a whole lot to be desired. Savannah had encouraged her to join some of the activities at Whisper’s Edge, but at fifty-three Maggie really didn’t feel as if she fit in with that crowd just yet, as lovely as the ladies of the retirement home were to her.
Maggie sighed as she thought of the day last week when she had bought the wedding dress at Violet’s Vintage Clothing with the intent of putting it in the display window. Violet, bless her heart, had thought that Maggie was getting married. “Not ever likely,” Maggie said with another little sigh.
“Oh, just stop,” she chastised her sorry self. It wasn’t like her to let blue feelings get a grip on her, and she straightened her spine. But when she opened the fridge she didn’t feel like cooking dinner. The freezer had a selection of frozen dinners, and she wrinkled her nose. “Yuck.”
“What you need to do is get the hell out of here and go out on the town,” she said out loud, as if hearing her own words would stiffen her resolve. Back in Cincinnati, she’d had her regular dining spots, hit an occasional happy hour where she would see friends, hobnob, and socialize. But it wasn’t as easy in a small town. Even though she’d been born in Cricket Creek, she’d left in a bit of a local scandal and hadn’t really kept in touch with anyone as a result. Coming home from freshman year of college pregnant would do that to you, especially when she had no idea who the father was. And it didn’t help that her own father hadn’t been supportive.
Maggie ground her teeth together. That was years ago. Tristan was a grown man, and her father was long gone. She thought about going up to Wine and Diner, where there was an elegant bar in the rear of the restaurant. She could sashay in there and maybe listen to the live music they had in the lounge most evenings. Have a glass of wine. Flirt.
And she would kill for a hot, steamy kiss.
“Not likely to happen,” she grumbled again, and then decided she just might head over to Sully’s and buy Mia and Addison a martini. Not only would she be networking and could write it off, but it would get her out for the evening. Maggie snapped her fingers. “Yeah, that’s the ticket,” she said, and tried to pump herself up. Just when she’d talked herself into it, her phone rang on her business line.
“Maggie McMillan,” she answered in her best business voice.
“Hello, Maggie. This is, um, Rick. I mean, Richard . . . Rule. I’m interested in renting a vacation home for a week or so. Do you have anything available?”
7
Rules of the Game
“WELL, I HAVE A FEW SUGGESTIONS,” RESPONDED THE pleasant voice of Maggie McMillan. “Several bed- and-breakfasts, a newly remodeled lodge located near the marina, or I have a very nice secluded log cabin down by the river. I also have some furnished condos that we usually rent by the month, but I happen to know at least one is available by the week. It’s within walking distance to the baseball stadium and has a river view.”
“Interesting,” Rick said. The sound of her low-pitched, sultry tone was somehow soothing—a good thing, since he was in a helluva bad mood. “Can you tell me some details about the cabin?”
“Sure, just give me a minute to get to my desk and pull up the information.”
Finding out that his own publicist had started a rumor that Rick had been having an affair with his son’s fiancee would put anybody in a foul mood. When he’d confronted his now former publicist, the jackass had said that Rick needed to ramp up his bad-boy image if he wanted to have a shot at another world tour. To make matters worse, Garret refused to deny the accusations, since he’d landed a role on a
Rick had been fond of Addison Monroe and wanted to assure her that he wasn’t a part of this fiasco. But Garret refused to give him Addison’s phone number, so Rick had decided he would track Addison down and personally apologize for whatever damage he’d done to her reputation—if she wanted, he could even make a public statement denying everything. The tabloids were going to have a field day with this sordid lie. Rick couldn’t believe that Garret wouldn’t do the right thing and squash the rumors and it made Rick furious. Unfortunately, firing his publicist led to the man spitefully mouthing off to the media that rock star Rick Ruleman was going off the deep end.
Unfortunately, Addison had disappeared a week ago and no one seemed to know where she was hiding out, not that Rick could blame her. Rick had his manager do some serious digging and he’d turned up a Facebook post by Addison’s cousin Mia Monroe saying that she was superthrilled to have her cousin in town for a visit. Mia lived in
