The Man Must Marry(34)

"I didn't get to vote. Abram died the next morning, and my proxy died with him."

Maureen's excitement instantly vanished. "The old poop." She turned to   leave. "This place isn't the same without him running around sticking   his nose into everything." She stopped at the door and looked

back. "Are you coming to the break room? You can at least tell us about the funeral." She smiled.

"Abram looked right good in his casket, didn't he?"

"You saw him in it?" Willa asked in surprise.

"Spencer arranged a viewing for us before Abram was shipped out. We all   wanted to say our good-byes. That Spencer is a really nice fellow, for a   lawyer." She frowned. "Except he invited the coffee clubbers to come   say good-bye, too. The mood sort of disintegrated when they walked in."   She lifted her chin. "Those people are really annoying. They were  acting  as if Abram was their best friend."

"He had breakfast with them every morning, Maureen."

"Still. That Doris Ambrose tucked an angel figurine in Abram's casket,   bawling like a baby. After she left, Silas shoved it down to Abram's   feet so his grandsons wouldn't think we're all wacko up here. So, are   you coming to the break room?"

Willa sighed. "I'll be there in a minute, and I'll tell you all about Rosebriar, the grandsons, and the funeral."

Maureen rushed off to inform the others, and Willa took her time   straightening her bathroom. Before she'd left, she'd endured three days   of being told how to act in a big-business board meeting, and her   mentors were expecting to hear the details.

Willa stared into the mirror. She owed these sincere people so much for   supporting her these past five years, and they deserved nothing but   honesty from her. Besides, the majority of them were retired executives   with cumulative decades of experience; surely they could help her  figure  a way out of the bequest.

Willa walked out of her office and down the hall, inhaling the familiar,   comforting scent of hardwood resin. What had made her think that she   could ever sail off into the sunset? She belonged here , in Keelstone   Cove, in her factory, taking care of her adopted family. And Emmett. And   Shelby and Jennifer and Cody. There might be times when she felt  damned  if she stayed, but she would surely die inside if she left.                       
       
           



       

She had just started to push open the door to the break room when she heard a familiar male voice say,

"And this is where the mainsail winch took the first chunk out of me. They really should put safety guards on those things."

What was he doing here? Willa inched open the door and peeked inside,   then immediately let it close, putting her back to the wall, her hand   covering her heart. Holy hell, she'd forgotten how handsome he was. The   last time she'd seen Sam, he'd had a five-day beard and more bruises   than a prize fighter and had been stuffing his face like a caveman.

Damn, he cleaned up good.

He obviously had no intention of going back toNew York . Did he think to   pick up where Abram had left off, hoping to rally her workers to his   cause? By God, she'd fire them all if they even hinted that Sam would   make her a wonderful husband.

The door suddenly opened, and Maureen walked out, giving a surprised   yelp. "Land gracious, Willa, you startled me! I was coming after you   again. You'll never guess who's here." Then she frowned.

"Wait, you knew Sam Sinclair was in town, because he said he sailed in   on the RoseWind with you. How come you didn't tell me about him when I   came to get you?"

"I forgot," Willa said, walking past her into the suddenly silent break   room. "Carl, I sold that custom rock maple casket last night and put  the  sales slip on your desk." She went to the coffee pot and poured  herself  a cup, then turned and smiled at her crew. "I see you've all  been very  busy while I was away,"

she drawled. "Last night, when I stopped in to get Cyrus a casket for   Gramps, I had to go back outside and look at the building to make sure I   was in the right place. It amazes me how you can suddenly decide to   remodel the reception area and get it completely done in less than ten   days-all without the owner of the business knowing she even wanted to   remodel."

Nobody said anything.

Willa kicked her smile up a notch. "And I see you've all met Abram's   grandson Sam." She looked directly at him. "Thank you for stopping by on   your way back toNew York , to thank everyone personally for their   condolences."

Sam brushed the front of his shirt, sprinkling the floor with tiny wood   shavings. "Actually, I stopped by this morning looking for a job." He   nodded toward Silas. "Mr. Payne was nice enough to give me a position in   the planing room. I had no idea how precise woodworking is, but I hope  I  can get the hang of it in a few days." He glanced toward Levi, the   master carpenter, and smiled. "Assuming Levi doesn't run me through the   planer for ruining another bird's-eye maple board."

He was working here?

Willa's hormones started doing their little happy dance, and she firmly tamped them down. "Wonderful."

She looked at Silas Payne. "Though I just got back, I have to leave for   the day, I'm afraid.Shelby 's moved in with me, and we have to do some   house rearranging."

"Shelbyleft Richard!" Maureen shouted, thumping her cane. "I knew that girl would come to her senses!"

Shelbywas a regular at Kent Caskets when her kids were in school,   sometimes filling in when a worker was sick and sometimes just visiting.   Everyone knew she was unhappy, and in their own subtle way, all had   encouraged her to leave Richard.

"But why did she move in with you?" one of the women from interiors asked. "Why didn't she kick Richard out?"

"She can't, Mabel," Willa explained. "That house has been in the Bates family for five generations."

"But that means Ida Bates will have to move back home to take care of Richard," another woman said.

"We're going to lose our fourth for bridge."

"Richard Bates can damn well take care of himself," Maureen interjected.   "Ida's not about to move back to that drafty old farmhouse. She loves   her apartment at Grand Point."

Willa set her coffee mug in the dishwasher before heading for the door.   "I have to go. Richard is getting back today, and he doesn't knowShelby   moved out." She stopped in the doorway. "I promise to tell you all   aboutNew York tomorrow. Try not to remodel anything else until then,   would you?"

She headed down the hall and out the back door and had just made it to   Jennifer's truck when Sam called out, "Wait up, Willa. I want to talk to   you."

Willa turned to watch Sam loping toward her. She turned and eyed   Jennifer's truck. She smiled, reaching into her pocket for the keys and   tossing them to Sam.

"If you want to talk to me, you'll have to drive me home," she said,   walking around to the passenger side. "That way, you can use the truck   to come back to work ." She gave him a Cheshire cat grin when he got   into the driver's seat. "Levi is a tough boss. You ruin any more of his   precious wood, and he'll have you sweeping floors with a toothbrush."                       
       
           



       

Before she could read his intention, Sam reached over the console, took   her face in his hands, and gave her a loud kiss on the mouth.

"What did you do that for?" she snapped, glancing toward the building to   see if anyone was watching. She narrowed her eyes at him. "Never mind.   Just don't do it again. The voyage is over, Mr. Sinclair, and I am no   longer interested."

"That kiss was for not firing me," he said with maddening calm, sliding   the key into the ignition. Willa snorted. "Fat lot of good it would do   me. Silas would just hire you back."

"I thought you owned Kent Caskets," he said in surprise.

"I do."

"Then how could Payne hire me back if you fired me?"

Willa motioned toward her factory. "Do you like the color of my building?"

Sam gave her a quizzical look. "It's gray."

"I had the entire building painted white when I bought it, and I had the   trim painted a really nice green. But then I went out of town for  three  days with Shel and the kids to do some shopping inPortland . When  I  came back, my factory was gray with blue trim." She turned in her  seat  to face him. "What did you think of the lobby when you walked in  this  morning?"