Page 16 of A Vineyard Love

“Are you serious?” Sandra leaned forward in her chair, genuinely shocked.

“I accept,” Piper said firmly.

“You both need to get better at this side of business. What should you have asked me first?” Kelli asked.

Piper and Sandra eyed one another, confused.

“The money!” Kelli said. “You should have asked me what the raise was going to be.”

“Oh!” Sandra laughed. “Gosh. I don’t know. It feels a little forward, doesn’t it?”

“As women, we shouldn’t be afraid to ask for what we’re worth,” Kelli said, paraphrasing an article she’d just read about “women in business” fromThe Atlantic. “I’ve just told both of you that I want to move you up the ranks.” Kelli waited for one of them to say a number, anything to indicate what they required monetarily for this new role, but neither of them knew what to say.

Kelli understood this very well. She’d spent most of her life thinking she wasn’t worth anything: not a very good salary, nor a kind, romantic partner. Xander had helped with both.

Eventually, Kelli told both Piper and Sandra what she’d been considering for their pay raises, and both of them leaped at it, genuinely over the moon. Afterward, Kelli outlined the responsibilities she felt each would excel at, dividing them up to allow herself more hours of shut-eye, more time with her kids, and more of a romantic and free life with Xander. She was in charge of the hotel, of course, but she didn’t want to go full Jack Nicholson inThe Shining.

Before Kelli finished, she reached into her pocket to find the second master key, which she handed off to Piper. “I’ll give this to you, Piper. Sandra, if you don’t mind, I’ll have a new one made for you by next week.”

“Of course not,” Sandra said with a smile as Piper pocketed the key.

“We’ll get better at asking for raises later on,” Piper joked as they stood to return to their responsibilities. “Especially as our confidence here at the hotel grows.” She winked, and Kelli laughed, genuinely grateful for Piper’s peppy mood and great sense of humor.

“Thank you so much,” Sandra said, lingering by the door for a moment. “I never could have imagined how much Martha’s Vineyard would change my life.”

Kelli smiled to herself for the rest of the morning, relaxing into her life at the hotel now that she’d handed out her responsibilities. When Xander called her around noon to ask if she had plans for dinner, she said, “I don’t!”

Xander suggested that he meet her at the hotel around seven-thirty for dinner. Kelli was pleased. It had been a while since she’d been able to sit in that immaculate ballroom and genuinely appreciate the glorious old place. For nearly two years, she’d romanticized her grandmother’s love for her grandfather, there in the walls of that old hotel, and now, she wanted to pretend to live that love.

Before dinner, Kelli dressed into a beautiful black dress that was cut slightly lower over her chest than most she braved to wear, then did her makeup carefully. She knew that tonight, all eyes of staff and guests would be upon her and Xander, as they knew that Xander and Kelli owned and operated the hotel together. They were a power couple. They were having dinner there to support the hotel, in a way, as though they were movie stars who needed to promote their recent film.

Kelli had never done anything to be seen before. It wasn’t really in her nature. But with Xander’s gorgeous suits and Kelli’s newfound success in the hotelier world, she saw no reason not to try it. Maybe it would be fun. Maybe it would be like acting.

Xander met Kelli in the foyer of the hotel and wrapped his arms around her lower back. There, in the echoing foyer lined with mahogany wood and stylish paintings, Xander kissed Kelli with his eyes closed. Kelli couldn’t tell if this was an act or genuine— if he wanted to prove his love to her in front of so many, or if he just genuinely felt that love in his soul.

“That was something,” Kelli said as the kiss broke.

Xander laughed. “Should I wait for those kinds of kisses till we get home?”

“Not necessarily.”

Kelli and Xander walked toward the dining room, where the host greeted them and led them to the owners’ table. Naturally, the owners’ table had the best view of both the ballroom and the cliffs outside and had been set with the finest china and the whitest tablecloth. When Kelli and Xander didn’t plan on eating at the restaurant, the dining table was always empty, just in case they popped in for a surprise dinner. “That,” Xander had said once, “is what you want from owning a hotel. Isn’t it?”

The host lit the candle between Kelli and Xander and took their wine order— the very best red they had in the cellar.

“We’re celebrating,” Xander said mischievously as the host hurried away.

“What are we celebrating?”

“We’re celebrating your first free time of the week,” Xander said, as though that was obvious. “I couldn’t help but see the fresh fish they brought in this morning— salmon and sea bass and octopus. It looked delicious. I think we should order as many dishes as we can until we’re stuffed. What do you think?”

Kelli could do nothing but follow the night. Tiny plates featuring the delectable dishes cooked up by Chef Billiard and his team came to their table, one after another, in a stream of flavor and inventive pairings. Throughout, Xander and Kelli talked easily, swapped jokes, and glowed with impossible joy.

Just after the salmon dish arrived at the table, and Kelli’s head swam with delectable wine, two police officers appeared in the doorway to the restaurant. Immediately, Kelli sobered up, straightening her spine as she rose.

“What’s up?” Xander turned to follow her gaze as Kelli’s heart pounded.

Terribly, her first thought was of Mike, her ex-husband.How could he have possibly hurt her again? How could she have allowed that?But Mike was miles away from the hotel, away from the island, in prison for stealing funds from the town of Oak Bluffs. He couldn’t hurt her all the way out here.Could he?

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