“Actually, what I’m used to is something not much bigger than my room at the Serenity Inn,” Tom said. “I spend so much time on the job that all I need at home is one room where I can relax, a refrigerator to hold a few necessities and a bedroom.”
“I think we can do better than that,” she said. “You know, I didn’t want to mention this earlier, but I had a call from your mother the other day.”
Tom’s expression turned dark. “Oh?” he said, his voice like ice.
“She’d apparently picked up one of my brochures on her last visit and saw a few houses she thought might be appropriate for you. She said she’d call next week and schedule an appointment to look at them.”
“I don’t think so,” Tom said. “If she calls back, tell her that you’re working for me, not her.”
Mary Vaughn winced. She’d already gathered that Clarisse McDonald had a mind of her own and would not take kindly to being dismissed. “I think she’s just trying to take some of the burden off your shoulders,” she said, hoping to pacify him. “After all, you’re incredibly busy getting settled into your new job, plus the Christmas festival takes a lot of your time.”
He leaned forward. “Mary Vaughn, I would greatly appreciate it if you did not show my mother any houses in Serenity, unless she’s planning to live in one of them herself. I’ll make my own choice when the time comes. If that’s a problem for you, then I’ll work with another agent and you and my mother can look to your heart’s content.”
Obviously she’d stepped into the middle of some family dynamic she didn’t understand. “Of course it’s not a problem, Tom,” she said, backing down at once. It would have been a coup to have someone of Clarisse McDonald’s stature as a client, but a good relationship with Tom was more important. “Don’t worry. If she calls again, I’ll make some excuse to put her off.”
“Thanks.”
Mary Vaughn turned to Jeanette. “Do you have a contractor in mind for any renovations once the house is officially yours?”
Jeanette shrugged. “I’m still a little dazed that I actually signed a deal to buy a house today. I suppose I’ll talk to Ronnie. He knows most of the contractors in town.”
“And, of course, she has my promise to help,” Tom added, giving Jeanette a meaningful look.
“I thought I’d declined your offer,” she said, regarding him with amusement. “It came with too many strings.”
“We can always negotiate,” Tom said. “That could be fun.”
Mary Vaughn sat back, barely containing a sigh. Okay, they might not be moving in together, but there was definitely something there. She was practically being singed by the sizzle in the air.
What was wrong with her? She was much more suited to a man like Tom McDonald than Jeanette was. She understood style. She had money and social graces. She’d worked hard to create a polished, well-educated, successful life so she would never be trapped in a lousy marriage as her mother had been. She’d been determined to have options. Sonny might not have been her first choice, but he’d been a decent guy from a good family. He’d adored her, and yet he’d left her. In some ways, that had been harder to take than losing Ronnie Sullivan the first time.
Obviously she had some kind of fatal flaw when it came to men, but for the life of her she couldn’t figure out what it was. Was she too aggressive, too self-confident, too independent? Or was it the exact opposite? Was she too needy?
Ironically she’d always been so focused on her relationships with men that she’d done little to cultivate friendships with women, so there was no one she could ask where she was going wrong. Up until today, she would have considered asking Jeanette, but that was out of the question now. It would be too humiliating to ask the woman Tom was clearly infatuated with.
One of these days, though, she needed to figure it out, because she was tired of going home alone at the end of the day. All the money and success in the world couldn’t compensate for having no one special in her life beyond a daughter who was mad at her half the time.
She took one more sip of champagne, then cut herself off. The last thing she needed was alcohol to deepen the funk she was already in. The only thing less attractive than a sore loser was one who was throwing herself a pity party. Mary Vaughn was not going to be that woman. She was a survivor, dammit! No matter what else happened, she wouldn’t ever let herself forget that.
* * *
Jeanette, Tom and Mary Vaughn were just finishing up a shared slice of chocolate-decadence cake, when Helen and Maddie arrived, along with their husbands and kids. At the same time, Dana Sue emerged from the kitchen with another bottle of champagne, a bottle of sparkling cider for the kids and glasses for everyone. Erik and Karen were on her heels. Elliot arrived just minutes later with Karen’s kids.
“What’s going on?” Jeanette asked, staring at them in amazement. “What are you doing here?”
“You bought a house!” Maddie exclaimed. “That deserves a celebration. Not just for you, but for us. It means you won’t be leaving us.”
“How did you know about the house?” Jeanette asked.
“Did you really think Dana Sue wouldn’t call us the second you told her about making an offer that Nancy Yates accepted?” Helen scoffed. “She, Maddie and I have been terrified you’d pack it in one of these days and leave Serenity. After all, you’ve lived in Charleston and even Paris.
