Chapter 16
“Welcome to Locke Pointe.” Morgan shook hands with an older couple who looked vaguely familiar. Thankfully, Ronni was at her side and introduced them. “Morgan, I’m not sure if you’ve ever met Winston and Mimi Besteman, the owners of Easton Harbor Beacon.”
“How do you do, Mr. and Mrs. Besteman?”
“Please…call us Winston and Mimi.”
“And you can call me Morgan,” Morgan said. “You’re Priscilla Finkpin’s boss.”
“We are. Priscilla has been with us for many years,” Mimi said. “Have you met her?”
Morgan bit back the “unfortunately” part and answered with a tight smile, “I have.”
Winston shoved his hands in his pockets, a wistful expression on his face. “It’s been a good many years since I’ve been inside Locke Pointe. Joseph and Ann would be tickled to see you have retained the character and charm of their home.”
“Thank you. I like to think they would approve.”
“More than approve. I’m sure they would applaud your efforts.” Winston gazed thoughtfully at Morgan. “As luck would have it, Mimi and I have been talking about running a feature story about your bed-and-breakfast. This will give us the perfect opportunity to see what it has to offer firsthand.”
“I would love to see you publish a story,” Morgan said. “However, I’m not sure Ms. Finkpin is much of a fan.”
“We have heard rumblings from Priscilla, a general dislike for the Easton family in particular.” Mimi patted Morgan’s hand. “We’ll be sure to have someone else write the piece.”
“Thank you. I hate to even mention it. You know what they say…any publicity is better than no publicity.”
“However, I get your point.” Winston winked. “Prissy is Prissy.”
Morgan chuckled. “Without a doubt. We have some delicious treats, along with an array of beverages available at the side table. Please help yourself. After you’ve had a chance to grab a bite to eat, I would love to give you a tour.”
“We would very much enjoy that.”
The couple wandered off, heading toward Tina, who was on hand to serve the food and beverages.
Ronni elbowed Morgan. “We’re off to a good start. I can’t think of anything better. A nice write-up without Prissy being involved,” she whispered.
“This open house might turn out even better than we had hoped.”
A local travel blogger arrived, along with a trio of travel agents. Morgan introduced herself and Ronni. She told them where to find the food and waited until they walked away.
“I’ll give them a tour if you want to take the Bestemans,” Ronni offered.
“Sounds like a plan.”
More guests arrived. Introductions were made. Soon, the living room was filled with echoes of laughter, warm voices, and lively conversations.
It was music to Morgan’s ears. Ronni had knocked it out of the park. Not only was Locke Pointe full of newspaper publishers, travel bloggers, travel agents, but also a YouTube channel influencer whose sole purpose was to review unique and noteworthy destinations.
As soon as the last guest arrived, Morgan mixed and mingled, mentioning the Lilac Inn next door and encouraging the guests to stop by Grace’s place after leaving Locke Pointe.
Ronni hurried over. “Where is the champagne?”
“Champagne?” Morgan pressed her hand to her forehead. “Crud. I forgot and left it in the breezeway. I’ll go get it.”
She grabbed her keys and hurried out of the house. Taking the quickest route home, the main drag, Morgan drove as fast as she dared.
Coming toward her from the other direction and not far from Looking Glass Cottage, she noticed a familiar vehicle hugging the center line, forcing Morgan to swerve off the road. As she got closer, she realized it was her exact same SUV. Amber was behind the wheel.
Through the windshield, she could see the woman staring, or more like glaring, at her.
“What is she up to now?” Morgan turned into the driveway and shifted her SUV into park. She left it running and hopped out. Reaching the back door, she found the screen door was ajar. She specifically remembered shutting it, something she made a habit of doing after discovering Jason had trespassed.
Morgan’s mind whirled. There was a good chance Amber knew about the open house, knew she was busy hosting guests over at Locke Pointe.
Backtracking, she scoured the driveway, searching for signs of someone having been there. Despite not finding any other clue, Morgan knew someone had been at her house.
It would have to wait until later. She dashed inside and grabbed the box of champagne. On her way out, Morgan checked to make sure the back screen door was closed.
She eased the box onto the passenger seat and ran to the front porch to check the screen door. Again, it wasn’t fully closed. Even if she’d inadvertently forgotten to close one, there was no way she had left both doors ajar. The bottom line was…someone had been at Morgan’s door.
Thanks to the surveillance cameras, she planned to find out who that person was.
Back at Locke Pointe, she dropped the case of champagne off and caught up with Ronni.
Working as a team, the women split up, giving tours to groups of guests. It went like clockwork; the event going off without a hitch.
With the final tour completed, Morgan and Tina brought out the flutes of champagne and gourmet chocolates. The open house wound down and Morgan thanked each guest for taking the time to attend.
She reminded them to stop by Grace’s place if they had time, to which all of them assured her they would.
Finally, the last guest was escorted out, leaving Tina, Ronni, and Morgan, along with Chester, who had enthusiastically greeted each visitor, behind.
“I say this was a resounding success,” Ronni said.
“Without a doubt.” Morgan lifted her hands and gave them a high five. “I’m betting the phone will start ringing off the hook and we’ll be booked solid through the rest of the year.”
Working together, the trio quickly cleaned up. Tina was the first to leave. Ronni wasn’t far behind.
Morgan tracked down Greg, who had been in charge of escorting the guests to and from the parking lot. “I’m going to run next door to check in with Grace and then head home.”
“How do you think the open house went?” he asked.
“The guests seemed impressed. The travel agents promised to add Locke Pointe to their suggested area travel list. The YouTuber promised to post a video on his site. The bloggers and vlogger will do the same and Easton Harbor Beacon is going to publish a special write-up.”
“I hope we get so busy we have to add on,” Greg said.
Morgan laughed. “I would be thrilled if we filled our empty suites.” She thanked him for his help and reminded him she would have her phone with her if a guest needed help.
She and Chester made a final check of the common areas before walking next door to the Lilac Inn. Morgan stepped inside and found Grace behind the check-in counter, her head down as she studied a sheet in front of her.
Her head shot up when she heard the bell. “Hey, Morgan.”
“Hey, Grace. How did it go? Did any of my open house guests show up?”
“I was just doing a headcount.” Grace tapped her pen on the pad. “Twenty people came through the inn, not including Elin and Ariel.”
“Which means almost all of them,” Morgan said. “I bet they loved the place.”
“They told me they would have a hard time deciding between Locke Pointe and Lilac Inn.”
“Both have their own special charm,” Morgan said. “Why choose? Why not recommend both?”
“Thank you for sharing your special guests with me.”
“You’ve helped me in so many ways. Selling a chunk of Lilac Inn’s parking lot so I would meet the zoning requirements. Teaching me the ropes, offering suggestions. I wouldn’t be where I am right now without your help.”
Grace impulsively hugged her. “You are the sweetest person I’ve ever met. I swear you don’t have a mean bone in your body.”
“Some people might disagree.”
“Speaking of mean bone, was I right about Wyatt pulling Amber over?”
“You were.”
“I hope he threw the book at her.”
“I wish. She ran a stop sign and was driving recklessly. Wyatt let her off with a warning.”
Grace blinked rapidly. “Are you serious?”
“Yep.”
“Why?”
“I have no idea.” Morgan glanced around. “Between you and me, I did a little snooping and found out what Amber does for a living.”
“Let me guess…a gossip columnist. It’s the shallowest profession I can think of.”
“Amber is a psychologist.”
“No way.”
“She works at a clinic in Michigan.”
Grace wrinkled her nose. “I suppose you could connect the dots. Meaning she knows how to manipulate situations and people.”
“If she wanted to, which I think she does.”
“Wyatt must wonder why she’s living down the street from him and driving a car like yours.”
“In his mind, it’s a coincidence.”
“Fat chance. No way. Not if it’s the same Amber Marais from high school. What are you going to do?”
Morgan shrugged. “What can I do?”
“Hopefully she’ll leave soon and stay away for another decade or so.” Grace and Morgan chatted for a few more minutes until Chester began pawing at the door.
“Chester is getting antsy.”
Grace followed her out onto the porch. “Awe…what a cute scarf.” She tugged on the end. “It has little hearts.”
“Chester isn’t a fan. Although to his credit, he left it on during the entire open house.” Morgan untied the knot and removed the bandana. “We should head home.”
“Thanks again.”
“You’re welcome.” Morgan reached for the handrail.
Grace stopped her. “Before you go, is there any word from Quinn?”
“Yeah. She’s taking a job in Naples.”
“She’s staying in Florida?”
Morgan nodded.
“Bummer.”
“Major bummer. Please don’t tell anyone. Quinn wants to tell Grandmother and Brett herself.”
“How do you think Brett will react?”
“To be honest, I have a hunch he already suspects she’s moving back to Florida. It is an incredible opportunity. She asked for my opinion. As much as I wanted to beg her to come back, I couldn’t.”
“Self-sacrifice. You unselfishly told her what she needed to hear.”
“And it was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done,” Morgan sighed. “I love Quinn. I miss her terribly, but I would never forgive myself if she missed out on a wonderful opportunity and I swayed her decision.”
“You’re a good friend, Morgan Easton. We are all blessed to have you in our lives,” Grace said. “You never know what the future holds. Quinn might decide the job isn’t all it’s cracked up to be and comes back to Easton Island on her own.”
Morgan offered her a sad smile. “Maybe. Maybe not. Either way, I only want what’s best for Quinn, not what’s best for me.”
During the ride home, Morgan thought about her bestie and her sadness returned. She would miss her immensely. On the flip side, she had the flexibility and funds to visit her friend whenever she wanted.
With the open house out of the way, Morgan could focus on finding out who had left her front and back screen doors ajar. She had a pretty good idea who it was. If her hunch was correct, Morgan would have proof that she wasn’t overreacting and, once again, was being targeted.