The divorce had been relatively painless. They’d divided the company’s assets, sold some mutual property down in Tampa and they’d each gone their separate ways. The Mexico Beach house was the only link between them now. It had been on the market for over two years. They’d had a few nibbles, but Terrie had always refused to negotiate the price down.
He texted her back. Great. Details?
Meet me for lunch to discuss. That fishy place right near the house. Noon sharp.
He was supposed to meet Kitty for lunch. No need. Just tell me. Or better yet, have the realtor call me.
His cell phone rang. He reluctantly picked up.
“It’s just lunch, Steve. I promise not to bite,” Terrie said silkily. “We have a lot to discuss.”
“Can we make it some other time?”
“The offer just came in and they want an answer by five, so no, we can’t make it some other time.”
“Fine. I’ll meet you at noon.” Before she could say anything else, he hung up and dialed Kitty. “Hey, sweetheart, it looks the house in Mexico Beach has a solid offer.”
“You’re kidding!” Her enthusiasm swept through him, making him smile for the first time this morning. “I’m so happy for you!”
“Yeah, well, we’ll see. Terrie wants to discuss the offer over lunch today.”
“Sure. No problem. I have a potential client I can take to lunch,” she said good-naturedly. Not that he’d expected her to take it any other way. Kitty was the first woman he’d ever been with who didn’t seem to be jealous of his exes. Not that she had any reason to be. Her confidence in them as a couple was refreshing. It was one of the many reasons he…liked her so much.
“You’re still meeting with Tom Donalan, right?”
“I’m seeing him at ten.” He was about to click off, but then he remembered how bizarre his morning had been. “Hey, Kit, is there some reason that Frida would be mad at me?”
There was a pause on the other end of the line. “Mad at you? Like…how?”
“I don’t know. Did I forget to tip her or something? She’s actually charging me for the milk I put in my coffee now,” he added with a confused chuckle.
“Oh, um, that’s weird.”
“Tell me about it.”
He thought briefly about telling her about the business card Betty Jean had given him. Kitty would probably laugh about it, but on the other hand, maybe not.
“Don’t forget about dinner tonight,” Kitty said. “We’re meeting Dad and his surprise at The Harbor House at seven.” He could hear a slight edge of tension in her voice. For Kitty’s sake, he hoped good old Dad didn’t show up with another Miley Cyrus look-alike.
He drove to work and spent the next hour laboring over a project budget. At exactly 10am his assistant, Stacey, buzzed Donalan into his office.
Steve stood and they made the usual niceties. “Let’s get to it.” He waved the man to a chair behind his desk. Donalan was tall. Clean cut. Nice suit. A college boy. But Steve hadn’t missed the calluses on Donalan’s palm when they’d shaken hands. He was used to getting his hands dirty. A quality Steve appreciated in another man. Especially a man he was about to hire.
“I’m looking for a project manager. Someone with good experience. You seem like you might fit that description,” Steve said. He went on to give details about the job. The demolition of the old senior center and the subsequent construction of the town’s new state of the art recreational center. “I’m doing this at cost as a goodwill thing for the city. But the pay is decent. Not what you’re used to in Atlanta, but there’s the potential for a few nice bonuses. And if your work is excellent, a promotion in the future.”
“Sounds good.”
Steve let a few seconds of silence pass between them. “So why the move? Whispering Bay must be pretty tame after Atlanta.”
Donalan shifted around in his chair. “It’s home. Plus, my ex and my son moved back to town a few months ago, due to some family issues. Being a long distance dad was never in my plan.”
Steve nodded. Maybe being a long distance ex-husband wasn’t in the guy’s plans either. Maybe he wanted his ex-wife back. Not that it was any of Steve’s business, but it was good to hear he had strong ties to the community. It meant he was serious about relocating. And just as importantly, staying. “The job’s yours. I’ll have my assistant draw up a benefit package. You can tell me by the end of the week if you want it.”
“That’s it?”
“Yeah. You got a big thumbs-up from my…girlfriend.” Steve frowned. That was odd. He’d referred to Kitty as his girlfriend for a long time now, but for some reason today the title sounded all wrong.
“Kitty Burke, right? I heard you two were together.” For the first time since he walked in the room, Donalan smiled. It seemed like a stupid thing, but Steve didn’t like the way the guy’s eyes lit up at the mention of Kitty’s name. “Believe it or not, she used to babysit me when I was in grade school. I was ten and she was fifteen and…” Donalan’s face suddenly went blank.