Chapter 9
The weeks flew by in a blur of appointments and decisions. Tori started a large notebook for her plans, carefully keeping track of everything that needed to be done.
She’d extended her stay at the BB but really did need to find a place to stay long term. Darlene’s place was quaint and cozy, but she craved her own space. She’d have to make time to check out what was available on the island.
Then the day finally came that she’d been waiting for. She sat nervously in the lawyer’s office, waiting for Miss Eleanor to come and sign the final papers. Her pulse raced, longing for the papers to be signed and the theater to be hers. She wanted to honor her grandmother’s legacy and rekindle those childhood memories.
Miss Eleanor came in, nodded to her, and sat down. First they signed a contract that she’d restore the theater back to how it was and that she agreed to Gavin overseeing it. She tried one more time to assure Miss Eleanor this contract wasn’t needed. But Miss Eleanor wasn’t having it. Then they signed the sale papers as the lawyer read through page after page. Her fingers trembled slightly as she signed the last one.
The theater was hers. Excitement swept through her.
She rose from the table and reached out her hand. “Thank you, Miss Eleanor. I promise I won’t let you down.”
“I expect you won’t.” The woman nodded. “Because I’ll have Gavin there watching to make sure it’s done right.”
Tori bristled. “I assure you it will be done right. It will be restored to its previous grandeur.”
She hurried out into the sunshine, clenching the key tightly in one hand, her notebook in the other. She headed down the sidewalk and directly over to the theater. Bursting with pride, she opened the front door and stepped inside. With determined steps, she headed into the main theater room. Pride mixed with nostalgia washed over her as she ran her fingers over the worn velvet seats.
“Hey, Grams. I did it,” she whispered into the silence.
“You often talk to empty rooms?” Gavin’s voice came from the doorway, and she whirled around.
“Do you often sneak up on people?” She glared at him, annoyed that he ruined the moment.
“I just stepped in the door. No sneaking involved,” he replied with a trace of amusement.
“My grandmother would love knowing this theater was going to be restored and active again.” She eyed him defiantly but was surprised to see a slight softening of his normally grumpy demeanor. “What are you doing here?”
“Thought we could look around the whole place. Come up with a plan.”
“I have a plan.” She held up her large notebook. “Very detailed.”
“Great, then let’s go over it. Step by step.”
She let out a long sigh, the sound echoing in the vast space of the theater. “Then will you leave me alone?”
“Probably not,” he admitted, his features relaxing into the first genuine smile she’d seen from him.
Gavin felt a tiny bit guilty for interrupting Tori’s private moment. Some people might think it was a bit weird that the woman talked to her grandmother. But he thought it was kind of endearing.
He swept his gaze around the theater. “Okay, want to start here in the theater?”
“My plans actually start at the front door. It’s sturdy but needs to be scraped and repainted. I want to paint it the same green it used to be. And it needs a new lock.” She opened the notebook she’d held up and seemed like she was consulting a list. “The ticket booth outside needs to be repaired. It has broken boards. One of the panes of glass in the window that holds the posters of the shows needs to be replaced. And the word ‘Theater’ over the door is missing the T.” Snapping the notebook shut, she walked away from him, heading to the lobby.
He trotted behind her, impressed with her thoroughness so far. She slowly led him around the theater, pointing out what she’d found. Telling him the estimates to fix things. He followed her around, pleased by her attention to detail. Maybe working with her on the restoration wouldn’t be as impossible as it first seemed when Miss Eleanor asked him to help out. And it’s not like he’d say no to Miss Eleanor.
As she pored over her notebook, a thought popped into his head. “It sounds like it’s going to be pretty pricey to fix this up. You took that into consideration with your financing?”
Her expression was guarded when she turned to him. “Not that my finances are any of your concern, but I paid cash. The repairs are not a problem.”
He swallowed his surprise. Cash? Who had that kind of cash lying around? He hadn’t meant to pry into her financial matters. He just wanted to be sure she could actually swing paying for the repairs.
“Uh, sorry. I just don’t want Miss Eleanor to be disappointed.” In the restoration. In him. Because not many people had stood up for him the last time he’d helped the town with a restoration, but Miss Eleanor had. Probably the only reason anyone still spoke to him around town. They had a way of listening to Miss Eleanor.
Clearing his throat, he gestured for her to continue. “Okay, let’s keep going.”
Hours later, they had gone through all her notes. Tori sank onto one of the seats in the theater, exhaustion lining her face. He sat down beside her and stretched out his legs. “I think that was a productive afternoon.”
She raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything.
“You have a very thorough list,” he said, trying to bridge the gap between them.
She eyed him with a measured and determined look. “So, you’ll back off and let me do this on my own?”
He met her gaze, just as firm and unwavering. “Not a chance.”
Tori’s brisk walk back to the BB did little to curb her irritation. This was getting to be her new routine. Get annoyed by Gavin and then walk back to Darlene’s with her emotions swirling. Today’s walkthrough had been a mix of helpful and exasperating. Each step she took was punctuated by annoyance at his unwelcome and yet annoyingly helpful advice. But now that he’d seen the plans, couldn’t he just step away?
Tori approached the BB and saw Darlene sitting on a rocker on the porch. A tranquil scene compared to her raging thoughts.
“Care to join me? I have a pot of tea here and extra cups. Just needed a few minutes off my feet. Busy day.”
Tori sank into the chair next to Darlene and accepted the cup of tea, grateful for the chance to unwind. “I need to sit for a few minutes too. It was quite the day.”
“Did you get all the papers signed?”
“I did. The theater is officially mine.” The thrill of ownership seeped through her again. “Then I went over to it and…” She let out a long exhale. “Gavin showed up and wanted to see all my plans. He’s just so… annoying. I wish Miss Eleanor hadn’t insisted he help with the restoration. But I sure couldn’t talk her out of it. I tried.”
“Eleanor just wants to preserve the island’s charm. She’s very protective of keeping things the way they are.”
Tori frowned. “You know, you’re the first person I’ve ever heard call Miss Eleanor just Eleanor.”
Darlene laughed. “We were childhood friends. Grew up together on the island. I pre-date the whole Miss Eleanor name.”
“I just wish she’d let me do it alone. I promised her I wouldn’t change it. Just restore it. Hopefully, now that Gavin has seen my plans, he’ll stay out of my hair.”
Darlene looked doubtful. “Maybe. But if Eleanor asked him to keep an eye on the restoration, I’m sure he’ll keep his word.”
Tori leaned back in her chair, taking a sip of the tea. “Yeah, you’re probably right. He seems like a man of his word. She made some comment about him working on the restoration of the lighthouse?”
Darlene hesitated, a bit of a reserved look crossing her face. “Ah, yes. He was involved…”
“And the restorations turned out fine?”
“The lighthouse is working again now, yes,” Darlene said with a strange tone to her voice.
Enough talk about Gavin. She’d had enough of him for one day. She steered the conversation in a new direction. “You seem to be really full with guests at the BB these days.”
“It has been busy.”
“I plan on finding my own place soon. I just haven’t had time to do much looking around.”
“I’ll miss having you here, but what kind of place are you looking for?”
“An apartment or something simple. I’ll be so busy with the theater I won’t have much time for upkeep.”
“I heard of an apartment in a nice older building right on the gulf. Used to be a huge house. Now it’s divided into two living areas. This is the upper level. Heard about it from Beverly. I can make a call and see if you can go see it if you’d like.”
“Thank you, I’d love that.” A sense of relief washed over her. If she could take this step and find a place to call her own, maybe she’d start feeling more like she belonged here.
“I’ll call first thing in the morning and let you know.”
“Thank you, Darlene. You’ve been so helpful with everything.”
“I like to keep my guests happy.” Darlene smiled. “And besides, after all this time you’ve been here, I consider you a friend.”
A friend. She had a friend in Magnolia. The thought brought an unexpected sense of warmth. Maybe she would find her place here on the island.