Page 13 of Meet Me at Sunset Cove

The unnecessary custom moldings Hunter had spoken at length about with his father. They were supposed to have been edited out of the design. Hunter ran a hand over his face. “All right, I’ll call them and see if I can expedite it. What else?”

“Two of our best crew members called in sick, we’re short-staffed on the Riverfront project because we keep sending portions of the framing back to be redone,” Dawn continued.

“Let me guess?—”

“Your father says the nail spacing was off from the blueprints. Waylen’s there now, but we’re going to be behind.” Dawn continued, “Oh and Mrs. Henderson is threatening to sue over the color of her kitchen cabinets.”

“The colorshechose and signed off on three separate times?” Hunter asked incredulously.

Dawn nodded, a wry smile on her face. “The very same.”

Hunter let out a long breath, his eyes drifting shut. At least that was a problem that didn’t require him to babysit his own father to keep him from derailing the entire business over minute details. “Okay, I’ll handle the inspection issue first, see if I can call in a favor and get us rescheduled and back on track. Can you reach out to David over at Midwest Reno, see if he’s willing to loan us some guys? If he gives you any flack, remind him of the carpentry job I did for him last minute a month back. And schedule a meeting with Mrs. Henderson for this afternoon. I’ll smooth things over. Oh, and I asked Waylen to help out with Riverfront tomorrow, so add him to the crew count. He’ll make sure they stick to the specs.”

Dawn’s shoulders visibly relaxed. “What would we do without you, Hunter? This place would fall apart in a week.”

Warmth washed over him despite the heavy weight in his chest. He was good at his job. And he enjoyed the work. But sometimes it felt like he was single-handedly keeping the company afloat while his father obsessed over every little detail.

“Is my dad in?” Hunter asked, glancing toward the office at the back of the building.

Dawn’s expression turned hesitant. “He is, but he’s in a meeting.”

Hunter frowned. “Did he say with whom?”

Before she could answer, the door to his dad’s office opened and Seb Jonathon, the mayor of Jonathon Island, with his graying hair and normally positive demeanor, stepped out, his expression sour as he stormed down the hall.

Apparently, Hunter and Dawn weren’t the only people having a rough day.

“Seb,” Hunter said in surprise.

Seb was so deep inside his head, he hardly noticed Hunter standing at the desk. He did a double take, Hunter’s greeting finally seeming to click. “Hunter! How you doin’?”

Hunter tilted his head, his brows raised. “It’s been one of those days.”

Seb chuckled half-heartedly. He glanced back over his shoulder and nodded in the direction of the office. “Maybe you could talk some sense into him?”

If only that had ever worked…

“I’ve got a great opportunity for the company,” Seb explained. “An opportunity to get the business back onto the island, where you belong.”

Hunter’s brows shot upward. “Really?”

“Really,” Seb said. “Thanks to the revitalization plan, we’ve got a lot of new business owners on the island, living in houses that have been abandoned for a good deal of time. But aside from that, Liam has been looking for specialty contractors for the Grand to restore some of the hotel’s more iconic features. We need a Barrett out there.”

Hunter’s chest squeezed at the opportunity.

Again, Seb nodded toward Joe’s office, a look of disappointment seeping through the age-old responsibility lines of his face. “Talk to him. I know there are a lot of people who’d like him back, even if he doesn’t believe it.”

Before Hunter could ask for more, Seb clapped him on the shoulder and pushed past to the exit.

Hunter turned back to Dawn, who shared his look of confusion. She gave a sudden jolt and uncovered the phone receiver. “Yes, I’m still here…” Her words trailed off as the call resumed, and Hunter left her to it.

His father’s office door was cracked, and Joe Barrett sat behind his desk, looking years older than he should. His broad shoulders slumped back against his chair with one hand threaded through his thinly combed, graying hair as he closed his eyes. Hunter could remember a time when his father used to look energized coming home from work, like the work had filled him rather than draining him dry. Hunter hesitated, his hand on the knob.

Even if he could convince his dad to take Seb’s offer, if they sold the house, there’d be nothing left to go back to.

With a swift motion, he opened the door.

His dad dropped his hand from his face. “Hey, Hunter.”

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