CHAPTER FOUR
TREVOR RETURNED to the Club and recognized Ken the golf pro working on the ninth green with an older gentleman. Both men were thoroughly engrossed in sinking the older man’s putt. Trevor remembered seeing the man earlier with two young boys. He heard some noise and saw the two red-headed boys pretending to drive the golf cart.
Just as the ball fell into the hole, the golf cart seemed to come alive. Trevor stopped in his tracks and watched the boys excitedly call out as the cart moved slowly towards the pond on the other side of the fairway.
He raced across the green, running at full speed to catch the cart. By now the boys realized that they couldn’t stop the cart and were anxiously looking in every direction for an escape. They spied Trevor just as he was almost alongside them. He held out his arms and hollered to jump. They scrambled over the seat and bailed out the back, one landing in each arm.
Trevor managed to stop himself just as the cart rolled down the bank into the pond. All three stared at the slowly sinking vehicle. Then both boys shivered in his arms and clung to his neck. He had to admire them though, scared as they were, they never cried. He heard footsteps running behind him.
“Are they okay?” The older man asked, concern all over his face.
“I think so. Just a little shaken up.” The boys refused to let go, their heads resting on his wide shoulders. He winked at the older man. “Nothing some ice cream won’t cure.”
As expected, both boys raised their heads and stared at him. Even though their eyes were big as saucers and their little bodies still trembled, they managed a smile.
“I’m not sure they deserve ice cream,” Sebastian said sternly.
“Accidents happen,” Trevor defended the boys. “It’s a lot easier to replace the golf cart than these two.”
“Well, I have to agree with you there. I want you to be sure and send me the bill though. The name is Armstrong. Sebastian Armstrong. And these two munchkins are Scott and Sandy, my grandsons.”
The boys started to wiggle. “Can we get our ice cream now?” They chorused.
Trevor laughed as he put them down. “Sure. I was on my way for a snack.” He winked once more at Sebastian. “If it’s okay with your grandfather, you can join me.”
“Please, Grandpop, can we?”
Sebastian frowned down at them. “Don’t you think you have something to say first?”
The boys’ smiles disappeared as they stared down at the ground.
“We’re sorry we crashed your cart,” Scott said as he peeked up at Trevor.
“We won’t do it again.” Sandy added for good measure.
“NOW can we have our ice cream?” They turned their pleading eyes back to their grandfather.
Trevor laughed out loud. “Can’t argue with that.” He held out his hand and introduced himself. “Trevor Graystone.”
Sebastian frowned. “Graystone. I’ve heard that name before.”
“Maybe you’ve seen the name on the different sites. I own the resort and my company is doing all of the construction.”
“Construction is a tough business. But you’ve done a great job here at Snowridge. Up until a few years ago, I used to come on a regular basis. I’m impressed with the changes. Understand more changes are in the works.”
“You in construction too?”
Sebastian nodded. “Design. I retired from Keymaster Architects last year.”
“Keymaster.” Trevor recognized the name. “They’re a big firm.”
“Yes. We worked with a lot of corporations.”
By now they were seated at a table on the patio outside the small Clubhouse café. One of the waitresses joked with the boys while taking their orders for ‘nilla ice cream and promised to be back as soon as possible.
“By the looks of things, you seem to be about finished with most of the construction around here.”
“Yes. Most of the newer units are completed. Just need the finishing touches in some and odd jobs in others. We have another phase to do, but I don’t plan to start that for a couple of months. Also trying to decide whether I want to work with a developer who wants me to build a resort outside Atlanta.”
“Do they plan to use your design here? Or do they want something different?”
“They like this project but are leaving everything up to me. Anxious for me to agree to do the project.”
Sebastian hesitated. “I’ve done a few designs if you think you might be interested. My family and I will be here for a few days, if you want to look at them sometime.”
Trevor tilted his head. “I might be interested.” He watched the boys enjoying their ice cream. “Just you and your grandsons here?”
“Oh no!” Sebastian laughed. “I can only handle these two for a short time. My daughter is with me. She had an appointment this morning but plans to take them for their second swim this afternoon.”
“I have some free time this afternoon. Maybe we can get together. My office is upstairs.”
“Sure.” By now Scott and Sandy had finished their ice cream. “We really should be going. My daughter was supposed to have been here by now. Can’t imagine where she might be.”
Both men shook hands and agreed to meet at two o’clock in Trevor’s office.
At two o’clock, Randi relaxed in the hot tub while she watched the boys play in the children’s pool nearby. She rested her head against the side and let the motion of the water sooth her weary body. ‘Ah,” she moaned as her sore muscles relaxed.
The hot tub and children’s pool were located at one end of the Olympic size pool. The entire area was surrounded by glass. One long side displayed a magnificent view of the lush green mountains, the other a glimpse of the game rooms and basketball court. Two stories of windows looked down from each end. One end housed the restaurant and sports bar and the other the executive offices. The drapes in some of the office windows were drawn but in most, they were open, overlooking the activities in the pool.
During lunch, her father had relayed the events of the morning. The runaway golf cart and the daring rescue by none other than the owner of Snowridge Resort. It was obvious to Randi that all three of the males in her family were smitten with this big-time developer. She herself had to appreciate that he had saved her son’s lives and hoped that she would be able to thank him.
“I hope you told him he needed to build a mini-market,” she had grumbled, still upset by her morning adventure with the handyman. Not even the second trek along the nature trail had helped. She hadn’t planned to tell her father what happened, but they had found the note the handyman left for her.
“No, but we plan to meet this afternoon at two while you and the boys are swimming. I’ll try and remember to mention it.”
She jumped then laughed when Sandy squirt her with his water gun from the children’s pool. She splashed him back then rested her head on the edge once more.
Her heart skipped when flashbacks of her brief moments in the handyman’s arms crowded her thoughts. It had been a long time since she had been in a man’s arms. The boys consumed much of her attention and then there was the struggle to build up her business. Most of her clients and closest friends were women and her evenings revolved around the boys. Men and a social life were non-existent and she was obviously rusty. Had forgotten how men could ruffle the emotions and was more than a little exasperated at her clumsiness this morning.
She turned her head to check on the boys and noticed that they were waving at someone behind her. Already self-conscious that the people in the offices could gawk at anyone swimming, she turned and looked up. High above, her father grinned and saluted.
She stood, waved and then turned to follow the boys who wanted to swim in the big pool. She didn’t see Trevor join Sebastian at the window.
Trevor’s brows shot up, he couldn’t help but appreciate the view. He braced a hand against the window when his stomach suddenly lodged in his throat. All he could do was stare down at the woman stepping out of the hot tub. Normally immune to the near-naked beauties, he couldn’t take his eyes off the magnificent view of the scantily clad lavender bikini. He watched as she rounded the corner of the pool and instantly recognized her as the little lady in unit thirty-eight. Then experienced a sense of loss when she dove into the water. When she came up, he watched her help Sebastian’s two red-headed grandsons into the water. Her smile was very much like theirs.
He frowned. Suddenly things began to fall into place. It occurred to him that Scott and Sandy resembled the red-headed boys at the Circle in Brownsville and he now understood why her car had seemed familiar when he had helped her last night. She’d even mentioned that she was vacationing with her boys and her father. Then there was their escapade this morning with Sgt. Slaughter that just happened to coincide with Sebastian’s comment about the daughter who had an appointment.
Trevor turned to Sebastian. “Is that your daughter?”
“Why yes.” The older man smiled. “Beautiful, isn’t she?” Having watched Trevor’s reaction, he asked, “Have you met her before?”
Trevor laughed. “You might say that. First I watched the two of you chase one another in Brownsville yesterday.”
Sebastian grinned. “It wasn’t really a chase. She kept making a wrong turn.”
“So, she said.” Trevor chuckled and continued when Sebastian eyed him suspiciously. “I was the one who gave her the ride back to the unit last night.”
“And judging from the note on the table, I don’t suppose you were by any chance the handyman who came by this morning?”
“The one and only.” Trevor walked over to the mahogany desk covered with Sebastian’s plans. “Don’t take this the wrong way but she certainly seems a little overwhelmed at times.”
Sebastian laughed. “I will admit that she has had a rough time of it lately. The holidays and Ginny and Cliff’s wedding, then Brina and Rafe getting engaged on Valentines and their wedding last month. She was actually looking forward to some down time before she and the girls started working on their project again.”
Trevor realized there were suddenly too many coincidences. “Wait a minute. Are you talking about Brina Hollingsworth? From Edmondsville?” The two men stared at one another. “What’s your daughter’s name?” Trevor wondered if this little lady was also one of Brina’s partners.
“Miranda Cavanaugh.”
“That’s Miranda Cavanaugh?” Now he had heard of that name. From his sister. Who was always telling him he needed to collaborate with her when he put the finishing touches on the new units. He walked back to the window and watched her frolic with the boys. She was laughing just like the picture in a recent magazine.
He turned back to Sebastian. “That’s the Miranda Cavanaugh that has been in the magazines?” Sebastian nodded. “And the same Randi Cavanaugh that is working on a project with Brina Hollingsworth?”
Sebastian frowned and nodded again.
“I’m the contractor that is working on the Edmondsville project. With Brina.”
Sebastian laughed out loud. “How strange is that? Randi has never mentioned you.”
“We haven’t officially met. Now that I think about it, we always seem to miss one another. She’s usually coming in one door as I’m leaving another. And if I recall, Brina was always talking about how Randi had all these plans for the project.”
“They all do,” Sebastian said. “Brina her personal shopping office. Ginny a children’s museum and adult center. Marcie a wine shop. And Randi an office for her interior decorating business.”
“Yeah. Now that we seem to have gotten past all the public hearings and the weather is warming up I’m sure they’re looking forward to getting the project done.”
Sebastian laughed. “Yes. And you definitely have a busy plate. Here, Edmondsville and that project in Georgia?”
Trevor smiled. “Haven’t definitely decided on the Georgia project. And I have a good foreman and crew to handle the Edmondsville project.” Although now that he had met Randi, he might be spending a little more time on The Row project himself.
“Randi has a full plate as well. Because of that article in Decorating Today, her career has suddenly taken off. She says the phone never stops ringing. Fortunately, the boys are in school so that frees up her days. It’s also the main reason she wants to move everything to an office at the fire house. Separate the business from her home life. These past six months have been a little overwhelming which is why I talked her into bringing the boys here for their spring break. I’m trying to get her to slow down a little and just enjoy life again.”
“Yeah. She seemed a little strung out last night. I almost felt a little sorry for her.”
“Hah! She might have a few bumps in the road from time to time but overall, she is very focused and independent. Takes after her mother.”
Trevor chuckled. “I said almost. She let me have it when I teased her about walking after dark by herself and then a few minutes later she was hesitant when I offered to carry her back to her car. Her bark is louder than her actions?”
“That’s my Randi. Fiercely independent. Not one to let things get to her. And don’t ever tell her she can’t do anything. Only people she depends on are me and the girls. Lately though, she’s been so stressed out with the business and weddings. Hopefully some R and R this weekend will get her back to her normal self.”
“Don’t know what her normal self is like but she has definitely made my last twenty-four hours interesting.”
“She can be hard-headed but deep down, she’s sweet and easy-going.”
“I don’t doubt that. No, I’m very familiar with her reputation as an interior decorator and as a businessman myself, I know how we sometimes push ourselves too far.” He winked at the older man. “We’ll just have to make sure these next few days help her loosen up.”
It occurred to Sebastian that Trevor Graystone had more than a passing interest in his daughter. Trevor just might be the answer to some of his plans for his daughter.
“Are you by any chance doing anything tonight?”
Trevor leaned back in his chair. “Well, no, not really.”
“Would you be interested in a home-cooked meal?”
“What sensible man wouldn’t be interested in a home cooked meal?”
“Would you like to join us tonight?”
“Sure. But don’t you think you ought to ask your daughter first?”
“Oh,” Sebastian waved a hand, “she’ll be okay with it. And I’m sure there will be more than enough food. Once I tell her that I invited the developer of Snowridge to dinner, I’m sure she will be anxious to tell you all about the improvements you need to do.”
Both men laughed.
“If you’re sure she won’t mind,” Trevor said. He remembered how his mother had felt whenever he invited his friends without asking her permission.
Sebastian stood and crossed his fingers behind his back. “Of course, I’m sure. I tell you what, why don’t I leave these plans with you and you can look them over. We have plenty of time to discuss them.”
“Sure thing,” Trevor said as he walked Sebastian to the door. “Seven?”
Trevor closed the door, returned to his desk but was no longer interested in the plans. Especially now that he knew the identity of the lady in thirty-eight.
The door opened and Sebastian poked his head around it. “I won’t tell her who you really are. Let’s let her find that out when you get there.” Both men laughed, each anticipating a different reaction.
Sebastian sprinted down the stairs to join Randi and prepare her for the plans he had made. Apparently, she and Trevor had had a rocky beginning and he was more than a little interested in seeing how they would adjust to one another.
“How’d your meeting go?” Randi asked as they drove back to the unit. Scott and Sandy were already half asleep in the back seat, their heads nodding from side to side.
“Interesting,” Sebastian said.
“Interesting as in he is interested in your ideas? Or because he’s an interesting man?”
“Both, actually.” He wasn’t ready to spring the news about their surprise dinner guest. “He’s come a long way in six years.”
“Six years? Wow. That is impressive. Not too many people could have accomplished all he has done with Snowridge in such a short time.”
“Yes. And he has other projects in the works as well. But you know, you haven’t done so bad yourself, young lady.”
Randi smiled as she parked the car. She appreciated his confidence in her. “Well, I don’t have the capital he seems to have.”
“Your time will come.”
Each carried a twin inside and settled them on their beds for a short nap.
“What’s for dinner?” Sebastian followed her into the kitchen.
“Pot roast. I’m on vacation, remember?”
“Yeah, okay. But could you fix some of those farmer’s potatoes? And didn’t you pick up the ingredients for that bean casserole I like?”
Randi leaned against the counter, crossed her arms and feet. “What have you done? Who’ve you invited to dinner?” Her father was famous for inviting someone for dinner. Usually he took them out. But tonight, she would be doing the cooking. And he always had an ulterior motive for his invitations.
Sebastian opened the refrigerator and reached for a beer. “What makes you think I invited someone over?”
“Why else would you ask for your favorite dishes when it would be so much easier for me to fix plain potatoes and carrots and green beans?”
“Well… I did mention that you were a good cook.” He wasn’t ready to spring Trevor’s identity yet.
Randi gaped at her father. “You invited the owner of Snowridge to our unit? The owner? For dinner? Dad,” she exclaimed, “I thought I was on vacation. Not a personal chef.”
“Aw, honey,” Sebastian rested his hands on her arms. “I know, but it just happened. Besides, it might convince him to consider my plans.”
Randi stared at her father, then accepted the inevitable. She stepped towards the fridge. “Lucky for you I happened to pick up most of the ingredients last night. Just hadn’t planned on cooking them so soon.” She reached for the roast. “What time is he coming?”
“Seven,” Sebastian answered sheepishly.
Randi shook her head. “I don’t know why I let you do these things to me.”
“Because you know I love you.”
“Mom?” Sandy stood at the door. “I’m hungry. Can me and Scott have some popcorn?”
“Scott and I,” Randi corrected him. “That was a short nap,” she said as she put the package of popcorn in the microwave.
Sandy started to race to tell his brother but turned at the door. “Mom?” Big brown eyes stared into green ones. “I love you to.”
Two hours later, Randi relaxed in a mountain of bubbles enjoying a glass of wine. The meat and potatoes were in the oven and her father had handed her the glass suggesting that she go and take her time getting ready. He and the boys would set the table and fix the appetizers.
Now that she could relax, the evening ahead worried her. Why did she feel nervous? Because it involved a man, she scolded herself. Up until now, the only members of the opposite sex she ever had time for were her sons and her father. Now, suddenly there was another man intruding on the scene. Make that two men. The handyman and the owner. They seemed to be coming out of the woodwork here.
And why did she feel there was one last trick to be played before her day was complete?
Her thoughts went back to the handyman this morning. Recalled how she had simply dropped into his strong arms. He had flustered her with one small look. She felt her cheeks flush as she recalled how he had stared down at her unbuttoned shirt, then squirmed as she remembered how he seemed to enjoy holding her close. With a sparkle in his eyes and smile on his lips. He was very potent and she wasn’t sure she was up to handling him.
Randi rested her head against the tub and let the goose bumps thrill down her body. Felt a throbbing and an itch she hadn’t felt in a long, long time. “You are so horny,” she scolded herself as she reached for a towel. The shivering wouldn’t stop so she grabbed her cell phone and dialed Marcie’s number. Hopefully she wouldn’t be too busy to talk.
“What’s up?” Marcie asked.
“Nothing really,” Randi leaned against the door, the towel wrapped around her. “Just getting ready for some company.”
“I thought you were on vacation.”
“I thought so too. Then my father decided to invite the owner of Snowridge to dinner.”
“Hmm, this sounds interesting. Hold on a minute so I can put you on speaker phone. Brina and Ginny are here in the tasting room.” A few seconds later Randi could hear the hum of the deli case in the front room of the wine shop. “Now,” Marcie continued, “tell us about this dinner guest.”
“Probably some stuffy old guy Dad wants to impress. He said he ran into him this morning and then pitched his business proposal to him this afternoon. Must have gone well as he invited the guy to dinner when he said he wasn’t busy.”
Randi heard Brina laugh. “Are you sure he’s old? You know how your Dad is always trying to match you up with someone.”
“Yeah,” Marcie added, “remember the dentist he tried to hook you up with last year?”
“And the realtor before that?” Ginny added.
“Very funny,” Randi responded. “Judging from the improvements he needs to make, I am sure the owner is still living in the last century. I just might give him an ear full.”
“So, what are you going to wear?” Ginny asked. “In case he happens to be a handsome devil.”
Randi was silent a moment. “Considering that I packed only jeans and sweaters, I guess it will be jeans and a sweater. After all, I AM on vacation.”
“Be sure and wear those dangling earrings I gave you for Christmas. They make your eyes sparkle.”
“And add an extra dab of your Rapture perfume,” Brina added. “Remember how Rafe and Scooter always tease you about smelling good? Who knows, this Snowridge guy just might be a handsome devil like Ginny said. Reel him in.”
Randi laughed. “I have enough men in my life. Besides, I’m saving myself for Trevor, remember?”
There was a loud knock at the door. Her Dad’s warning that she had thirty minutes. “That’s my cue to get my ass moving. Wish me luck.”
“We’ll call you later,” Marcie said before breaking the connection.
Randi hung the towel on the rack and studied her reflection in the mirror. Her breasts were small but firm, her waist still slim, and her hips as trim as when she had raced on the track team in high school. Not bad, she thought. At least her cheeks had a natural blush and she had a full head of hair. Why was she worrying about whether her figure would appeal to some old goat? If she was going to doll herself up, she’d make sure he was young and good-looking first.
She decided to leave her hair down and put a little more effort into her makeup. “Just in case,” she thought to herself. In case he happened to be the handsome devil Ginny suggested he might be.
She was dressed and ready for the evening ahead when she heard her father open the door downstairs. She added an extra dab of perfume, gave herself one final look over before heading downstairs and smiled, pleased with what she saw.
She stopped at the top of the stairs when she heard a very familiar voice.