Inn Love (Chapters 9-11)

Chapter Nine
       Half an hour later they were on the road to Millvale from the city. He, Alec, and Valentina were all crammed into the front seat of Alec’s pick up.
       “I want to see my husband at work,” Valentina had declared when Anders expressed his surprise at her coming along for the drive. She was dressed for work to boot. In a pair of cut off overalls that he recognized were once Alec’s, a red plaid shirt tied around the waist to make them fit more snugly. Underneath she wore a bright yellow tank top and had sensibly placed her long hair in pigtails wrapped up neatly on the sides of her head down her back. She even wore a pair of old sneakers that were flecked with paint, indicating to Anders that she liked to get right into projects and didn’t mind getting messy. Out of the three of them, Anders looked totally out of place in his navy slacks and crisp white button-down shirt, he was dressed for the office while his brother and sister-in-law were better prepared to handle whatever crisis they were headed into.
       When they arrived, they found a pale looking Jane staring out the bay window of the café. Her mother Fae stood next to Ellie who was waiting for the school bus under a rainbow coloured umbrella that was fastened to the back of her wheelchair.
       “Mr. Brookstone!” Ellie shouted at him when she saw him get out of the truck. She waved enthusiastically at him. He waved back and smiled, happy that she would remember him. He certainly remembered her and had been thinking about her and her mother a lot lately. He was happy now that he’d made the decision to come out here himself.
       The three Brookstone’s scooted across the street and stood under shelter of a nearby tree branch.
       “Good morning Ellie,” Anders said. “You as well Mrs. Michaels
       “Call me Fae,” the silver-haired woman said, and shook his hand.
       “Please, call me Anders,” he said and smiled taking her hand. “You can call me that too,” he said and winked at Ellie.
       “Are you here to fix the leak?” Ellie said, her eyes traveling past him to his brother and sister-in-law. “Wow, you’re pretty,” she added when she saw Valentina.
       “You are very pretty yourself miss,” Valentina rolled her tongue around the letters in the words, making each syllable sound special in her Italian accent. “I very much like your umbrella.”
       “Ellie,” Anders filled in the name for her and introduced his crew and the elder Michael’s family member.
       “Jane is waiting for you inside,” Fae said and the three trouped off hopeful they could fix the problem without too much trouble.
       Jane now stood in the centre of the café staring up at the ceiling. The bell on the door rang announcing their arrival. She didn’t even turn around when they walked in.
       “It’s sagging,” she said, her voice filled with dread.  Jane resisted the urge to pop the bubble like an enormous zit.
       “Don’t stand under there,” Alec snapped. Jane turned to face him.
       “And just what do you know?” She snapped back.
       “This is my brother Alec,” Anders stepped in. “He works in construction.” Jane’s eyes flipped to Valentina and he could have sworn he saw a moment of jealousy in her eyes. But then Alec placed his arm around her and it vanished. It was probably nothing. She was under a lot of stress and looking for a place to let it out. “Mrs. Michaels, please, it’s not safe to stand there. The ceiling might collapse.”
       “Jane. Just call me Jane. I have you here at the crack of dawn, no need to be formal,” she said with a wince on her face. There was a giant silver cooking pot placed beneath the ceiling bulge catching drips that were coming furiously from a pinprick hole in the centre. Valentina stepped forward and took her hand.
       “We brought some tarps and plastic storage bins. Why don’t we try to save your equipment and some of your baking while the men look after the leak?” Her suggestion was well received, judging by the look of relief that Anders saw on Jane’s face.
       They broke up into teams, the men heading up the back stair to the roof while the women tarped off what they could and packed up what could be saved. They loaded the back of the truck with the smaller pieces of restaurant equipment and bins of baked goods. Jane knew they could no longer be sold, but at least they might be able to be eaten by friends and family, so it wouldn’t be a complete waste.
       Anders and Alec inspected the roof and found that a large section of shingles had blown off in the storm.
       “Dry rot,” Alec said over the rain. “This whole roof needs to come off, the entire building. Needs new sheeting, tar paper, and shingles. New eaves, downspouts, the works. And don’t get me started on the cracked foundation, which I know we weren’t here to inspect but I noticed anyway.” They spread a couple of tarps over the section missing shingles in a futile attempt to save the roof. At least it would save some of things the people had inside the building, so they could take it with them when their businesses were forced to move, Anders thought to himself in between the bouts of dread he felt.
       “How much?” Anders said, imagining his proposal to his father crumbling along with the walls of the café.
       “Thirty grand, easy,” Alec said. “Probably more once we get into the foundation work.”
Anders swore to himself under his breath, wishing he’d been smart enough to bring a contractor along with him for the property inspection. He wanted to be efficient, please his father by saving money but instead he was going to cost everyone much more, especially the tenants of the building. Guilt rose inside him when he suddenly thought of Ellie in her almost too small wheelchair.  “Is there anything we can do?” he said, hoping his baby brother had the magic answer.
       “Tear it down. That would be the best idea, cheapest, easiest,” Alec said. He watched as his brother’s face sank. Anders ran a hand through his dark hair and looked like their father, only soaking wet. “What is it?”
       “Nothing, I just wanted to save this place. There’s something different about it,” Anders said.
       “Like the woman inside?” Alec said, picking up quickly, as usual, what his brother wasn’t saying beneath what he had said.
       “Not just her. All the other tenants too. And the girl we met outside. She’s Jane’s daughter,” Anders said.
       “Jane is some good-looking woman. If I weren’t a happily married man, I’d ask her out,” Alec smirked, knowing he was getting his brother’s goat.  Anders rolled his eyes.
       “You didn’t do too badly in terms of wives,” he shot back, thinking of the very shapely Valentina.  The men climbed down from the roof and stood inside the back-door drip-drying off a bit.
       “I don’t get it,” Alec said looking like a blond reflection of his brother, “you’re with Meredith, what gives with this woman? She’s not anything like your girlfriend.”
       “It’s not like I want to marry her,” Anders heard himself saying, “In fact, I want to marry Meredith. I just want to help Jane and her daughter because they need it. Ellie has C.P. and they have extra expenses. It’s the right thing to do.”
       “And as usual, you’re always doing the right thing,” Alec said.
       “Yes, I guess so,” Anders returned, feeling somewhat disappointed in himself for being so predictable.
       “And did I just hear you say you want to marry Meredith?” Alec said, delight creeping into his voice.
       “Yeah, you did,” Anders said and blushed. He’d never said those words out loud to anyone.
       “Well, congratulations big brother,” Alec said, enthusiastically pumping his brothers hand, then grabbing him for a hug, sending wet spray off his shirt with his gruff back slapping. “She’s a mortician, right? That’s kinda weird, but if you don’t mind it then I wish you all the happiness in the world.” Anders didn’t mind the fact that Meredith was a mortician. Not at all. But something about all of this was bothering him. He just wasn’t sure what.
       “Alec?” Valentina’s musical voice drifted from the dining area.
       “We’re back,” he called to his wife. The men started back to meet up with the women.
       “How bad is it?” Jane asked into the empty space in the doorway where the men appeared in a mere moment. Her breath was sucked out of her chest when she saw Anders standing there, sturdy and dependable looking, large shouldered, with dripping wet jet-black hair and a now transparent white shirt grabbing onto his torso. “Whoa,” she said quietly to herself, but Valentina heard her and smirked a bit.
       “I’m sorry to say it’s very bad,” Anders said, focused on the floor to prevent himself from slipping in one of the gathered puddles on the slate floor. He looked up toward Jane and was struck dumb momentarily by how good she looked, her long chestnut hair hanging wet around her face and shoulders. Her pale blue blouse clinging to all the right places. 
       For an instant time seemed to stop while Jane and Anders looked stupefied at one another. The newly-weds recognized that look and smiled to each other past the awe-struck heads. Amore, Valentina was sure of it.
       Snapping back to reality, Jane started off toward the men. “Just how bad is very bad,” she said, not paying attention, slipped in a puddle and went down, cracking her head on the counter.
       As if in slow motion, Anders watched her drop. He took off across the wet floor, completely heedless of his own safety. Just as he passed beneath the bubble in the ceiling a ripping sound cut through the room and the ceiling collapsed on top of him.
 

Chapter Ten
      Jane woke up on her mother’s chesterfield to the sound of Ellie laughing in the other room. She was cold, despite the blanket draped over her, realizing she was still wearing the wet clothes she’d had on at the café. Attempting to sit up was immediately regretted as her hand rushed to her skull to keep her brain inside.
      “Oww,” she moaned as she felt a large goose egg on the right side of her head.
      “That was a nasty spill you took,” Anders said as he came toward her. When she looked up she saw that he was dressed in one of Tom’s worn out t-shirts. It was a bit snug, but she didn’t mind the fit, only the fact it wasn’t in the drawer where she’d put it after Tom passed.
      “Who gave you that shirt?” she said feeling as prickly as she sounded. She stopped looking at him and closed her eyes, leaning her head back against the pillow hoping the spinning would stop.
      “Ellie loaned it to me, and one to Alec, to wear until our shirts dry out. She said no one was using them,” he sat down in front of her on the floor and waited for her to open her eyes again.
      “They were my husband’s,” she said a little more gently. “Please be careful with them.”
      “Of course,” he said. Being in possession of clothing left behind by a deceased loved one was a funny thing. Either you got rid of them to eliminate a painful reminder of their death or kept them trying to hang onto something which once housed their body. When his grandmother passed the first thing his father had done was give away all her clothing. Anders had felt that this was wrong somehow, not that he’d known what to do with the dresses and hats that filled her closet. He hadn’t wanted to get rid of them was all. It made it all too final in some inexplicable way. “How are you feeling?”
      “Not good,” she moaned again as she turned to look at him. He was back lit with light from the window making him harder to look at. “Shift down toward my feet would you please, the light is too bright behind you. And, this way I won’t have to turn my head so much to see your face.” She leaned back against the pillow again and waited for him to settle because watching him move was too hard, both because her eyes were having trouble focusing and because seeing the t-shirt brought to life again was too much to deal with right now.
      “How bad was the roof?” she said when she stopped hearing him moving around.
      “Let’s not worry about that right now. You have a head injury,” Anders said, trying to be firm and gentle at the same time.
      “I’m fine,” Jane said sternly, and looked at him fighting the urge to hold the side of her head again against the swimming world floating around her.
      “No, you’re not,” he said more seriously this time. “We can talk about it after you get back from the hospital.”
      “I don’t need to go to the hospital. I just need to rest,” Jane said and found the pillow once more behind her throbbing skull.
      “You’re going,” Fae stepped into the room with some frozen peas wrapped in a checked tea towel. “Put this on your head. You probably have a concussion.” Jane did as she was told, in too much pain to argue.
      “Yeah, Mom, you need to go to the hospital. A concussion is serious. You could like, die, if you don’t go to the hospital,” Ellie came into the room, using her walker. She sometimes used her walker around the house when she felt strong enough. Jane thought maybe Ellie was showing off for all the company they currently had, which was somewhat of a rarity around this house.
      “Your mother is not going to die,” Valentina piped up from somewhere behind Jane’s head. “She is a strong woman, and strong women do not just give up like that.” She snapped her fingers.
      “Here, Mom,” Ellie said, holding out a bottle of pain killers.
      “Thank you, sweetie,” she said and took the bottle. When she looked at Ellie she noticed her daughter’s nails were colourfully painted. “Wow look at your nails. Who did that for you?”
      “Valentina, she’s really good at nails. And Alec fixed the funny wheel on my walker,” Ellie sat down on the cushion next to her mom and Jane snuggled her tight.
      “Just a loose bolt and locking nut,” he said from somewhere behind her head next to the spot where Valentina’s voice originated.
      “You didn’t have to do that,” she said. “We would have managed.”
      “It was no trouble at all,” Alec said, and his voice seemed genuine which made Jane relax a bit.
      “Well, thank you,” she said and hugged Ellie again.
      “How long have I been out of it?” Jane asked and looked at Anders, whom she was now noticing had a white film covering his hair.
      “About a half hour,” he said.
      “How did I get here?” she asked him.
      “Valentina saw your mother’s telephone number next to the phone, we called her, and she came to get you. We followed behind in the truck,” he responded.
      “After we got the ceiling off of Anders that is,” Alec said with laughter in his voice.
      “The ceiling?” Jane said, realizing the film in Anders hair looked like plaster dust.
      “He’s making it sound more dramatic than it was,” Anders said trying to sound nonchalant while simultaneously shooting a dirty look toward his brother. “The part of the ceiling where the bubble was fell in on me. It hit me mostly on the leg. Just a couple of scratches.”
      “I got him bandages when they came in Mom,” Ellie said, obviously proud to be able to help.
      “You did, wow,” Jane tried to sound impressed to cover up the worry she felt at the thought her daughter had taken on too much today.
      “She was an excellent nurse,” Anders said, and Jane saw how genuine his words were. He sat smiling at her daughter. Something deep in her core felt warmer and she shifted because it made her uncomfortable.
      “Are you alright?” Fae asked, tuning into something in her daughter she couldn’t remember seeing before but was somehow familiar.
      “Yes, I’m alright, except for my head,” Jane said, avoiding her mother’s all too powerful gaze. “These peas are helping,” Jane tried to smile. “But, maybe we should get to the hospital now. Ellie, go get ready for the trip.”
      “I’m staying here Mom,” Ellie said.
      “You can’t stay here alone honey,” Jane said, a little surprised because Ellie had never asked to stay alone before.
      “She won’t be alone,” Fae stepped in with a tone that told Jane she’d better not argue. “Anders, Alec, and Valentina offered to stay with her until we get back. Isn’t that nice.” Her tone suggested that Jane was to agree that it was nice of them, and since her head hurt so much and she was so tired after dealing with the flood, she chose to bite her tongue and keep her fears that they were leaving her only daughter, her special-needs daughter, all alone with practical strangers. She hugged her daughter again, for what she hoped wouldn’t be the last time, and climbed into the car with her mother. Though she felt somewhat worried, deep down she knew she could trust the Brookstones with the most precious things in her life. Her daughter, and her café, which she desperately hoped was not beyond repair.

Chapter Eleven
      While they waited in E.R. triage, Jane worked up the courage to ask her mother about the café and what she’d seen or heard when she’d come to pick her up. The pain killers and peas had helped, and she felt a little more like herself now, ready and capable to handle any bad news that was coming her way. Nothing could be as bad as when Tom had died, anything that might be coming now would be easy to handle compared to that.
      “Well, honey,” Fae began after Jane asked the question that was sitting in her stomach like a burning lump. “It looked pretty bad. I think you should be prepared that we might not be able to keep the café in that building any more, or even at all if we can’t find a place with rent that is the same or cheaper than that location. Judging by the looks on the Brookstones’ faces it will not be good news.” Fae reached over and patted her daughter’s hand for good measure, a gesture that told Jane that her mother was there for her, as always, but also that things might not be looking so great for their future. And for not being able to buy Ellie a new wheelchair.
      “Maybe Brookstone Holdings will just rebuild?” Jane tried to sound hopeful, though it was ringing false to her own ears.
      “Maybe?” Fae said. “They seem like really nice people. They did come to help you at the near crack of dawn, stayed for hours trying to find a way to save your business, got you help when you hit your head, and are now babysitting your daughter for you.”
      “Yes, you’re right. They do seem really nice. Especially Anders,” Jane had a smile on her face that Fae was pretty sure she didn’t realize was there. Interesting, the older woman thought. Jane sighed as quickly as she smiled and said, “Let’s change the subject. Let’s talk about anything else, please.”
      “Alright,” Fae said, figuring now was as good as any other time to tell her daughter the news. “I’m going on a date with Ed.”
      “You’re what?” Jane was so shocked she forgot momentarily that her head was hurting.
      “Calm down, it’s nothing,” Fae tried to play it off as cool, but she failed miserably. A grin spread across her face. “He’s taking me to dinner.”
      “Oh really,” Jane laughed a little. “What made you suddenly decide you wanted to go out with him?”
      “I always wanted to go out with him, it’s just, well,” the older woman searched for the words necessary to express what she was feeling, which was rarely ever an easy task. “I just wasn’t ready I suppose. But I thought about what you said, and you were right, I shouldn’t just sit around all alone. Your father wouldn’t want that.”
      “You’re right Mom, he’d want you to be happy,” Jane squeezed her mother’s hand and felt a little pang of sadness that her father was gone and wasn’t the one making her mother smile anymore. But Ed was a lovely man, who obviously cared about her, and cared for Ellie, so if her mother had to move on, she was glad it was Ed who was helping her do it. They were silent for a time, both lost in their own memories. They watched a couple patients be taken into an examination area and hoped they would be next. Jane was remembering her father, and then her own husband. Both gone too soon and sorely missed. Fae was thinking about the same thing, but also about how her daughter was too young to not try to be happy in a relationship again.
      “What about you?” Fae asked.
      “What about me?” Jane said, knowing what was coming next. Her head had begun to throb, and she wasn’t sure if she was up to the lecture she felt coming her way.
      “You try again too,” her mother said, in a tone that Jane recognized from her teenage years. “You’re too young to just give up on love Jane. You’re only thirty- three. You are beautiful, talented, strong, any man would be lucky to have you go on a date with him.”
      “Thanks Mom, but I’m just not ready.” Jane said, trying not to sound like the snotty teenager who once deserved to be lectured. “I have Ellie, I have the café, I have my memories of Tom, that’s enough for me.
      “Well, if you ever change your mind, that man Anders Brookstone might be a good place to start,” Fae tried to slide the idea past her daughter, hoping she wouldn’t notice her noticing Jane’s growing attraction.
      “I wouldn’t know,” Jane said, not looking at her mother. Inside herself, however, she began to acknowledge that he was a very attractive man, if you like the tall dark sort of look, and he was kind, friendly, nice to Ellie. Maybe he wasn’t so bad after all. Maybe, just maybe she would consider the foolish idea her mother presented. But only for a moment or two. It was best not to get her hopes up since she never wanted to be left alone again like she had been when Tom died. No, scratch everything she had just thought. Anders Brookstone was of no interest to her. She was fine in her little world all alone. No tall dark and handsome needed.