Page 33 of Through the Dark Night
Shannon nodded. She really didn’t think there was anything wrong with Marina, but Fran was right. She probably should get her checked out.
“I’ll ask her tonight. I haven’t probed too deeply, but it would be good to have something on file. She’s not technically on payroll right now, so I’m not worried about that, per se, but when the time comes, I’m going to need to have something.”
“Oh, definitely. You need to have an application on file that always includes references. Anyway, we don’t have to go into it now, and I just want you to know that I haven’t seen anything or heard anything at all negative about her. In fact, she seems like a really sweet girl—woman—but… She does seem a little bit afraid as well.” Fran’s voice lowered, and it seemed thoughtful as she said her last sentence.
Shannon couldn’t argue with her. She’d noticed the same thing. Probably even more than Fran had, since she worked with Marina so much.
“Plus, it’s possible that she’s running from something, and… Depending on the situation, the town will want to protect her.”
That made Shannon smile. The idea that Marina, who had only been there for a short time, was already someone the town loved and wanted to protect, just warmed her heart and soul to her very bones. She loved her small town.
“Thank you. I know that would make Marina really happy to hear that.”
“Of course,” Fran said. “Now, is there something I can help you find?” she asked, and Shannon showed her the shopping list. It was longer than usual, because of the storm, but Dominic and Lance had both seemed confident that they would be able to have the inn back in shipshape shortly and continue on with the work, continuing to aim for an early November soft launch.
The thought of which gave Shannon a little tingle of nervousness. Plus excitement. Plus fear. And the knowledge that she needed to get to work on her marketing plan.
She was thinking about that as she walked into the inn later. She delivered the supplies where they needed to go and found Marina sitting in the kitchen, writing something down in a notebook.
She had just noticed Marina glancing fearfully at her phone and then sigh, almost in relief, before she glanced up and jumped off her chair, shocked to see Shannonin the doorway.
“I’m sorry. You scared me,” Marina said with a hand to her chest.
“I’m sorry…”
This seemed like the best time to talk to her about it, so before Shannon could second-guess herself, she said, “I can’t help but notice that you seem to always be looking over your shoulder. Is there something I should know?”
Marina shook her head.
Shannon thought maybe she should take a slightly different tack. “I just talked to Fran, who told me that Dominic said that he could maybe check some references in Chicago. I actually need to have an application on file if I would ever put you on payroll.”
“No. That’s not necessary. I’m between stages in my career. I… I just…would prefer not.” Marina’s voice kind of trailed off, and Shannon could see she looked vulnerable and a little scared. All the protective instincts in Shannon came out, and she walked over and put an arm around Marina.
“All right. You don’t have to talk to me about it, and maybe it’s not smart on my part, but I trust you. You’ve been a huge blessing to me, like I said this morning. And if there’s anything I can do to help you, just let me know.”
“I appreciate that. It’s been a long time since I felt this…safe.”
Thirteen
Shannon watched as Emma’s car pulled into the lot. A shiver of excitement wrapped around her ribs. She always enjoyed spending time with her children. There had never been a time when she hadn’t.
She had to admit she was a little nervous. What would Emma think about the huge changes she’d made in her life?
Emma, being pragmatic and protective, might not think that she’d made the best choices.
She didn’t want to allow her daughter to talk her out of what she had decided to do. After all, she had always been her daughter’s biggest cheerleader, even when Emma hadn’t always done everything she thought she should.
Emma’s car came to a stop, and Shannon hurried over to it, enveloping Emma in a huge hug as soon as she got out of her car.
“I’m so glad to see you, Mom,” Emma said as she hugged her back, just as tightly. They’d always been close, and the divorce had seemed to make them closer, even as Emma had pulled away, starting her own life.
At one point, Emma had volunteered to move back, to give up everything she’d started just to be with her mom and take care of her in her time of need, but Shannon had put on a brave face and told Emmain no uncertain terms that Emma was to go live her own life and if Shannon needed her, she would let her know.
“So what was it that you wanted to show me here?” Emma asked as they pulled away.
“This is it,” Shannon said with a little bit of pride and a little bit of fear mixed together.
Emma stared with her mouth open. Obviously, she hadn’t thought the inn behind them was the one that Shannon had talked about.
