Page 6 of Love is a Game

“Sassy Sadie,” he said, wrapping his arms around her in a hug so tight, he was able to lift her to her tiptoes. She had resigned herself long ago to his bearlike affections and waited patiently to be released. Her brother-in-law was a foot taller than her and still had the broad shoulders that made him such an effective lineman back in his high school football days. She knew him to be a goofy marshmallow of a man, but she couldn’t imagine a more intimidating figure emerging from a police car.

When he let her go, she raised her hand to her forehead in a mock salute. “Officer Monroe.”

“Don’t do that,” Julie scolded. “It’ll go right to his head!”

Sadie eyed his new facial hair, a carefully trimmed beard in an even darker shade of red than his hair. “I like it,” she told him, rubbing her own chin. “You look like a real Northwest mountain man.”

“Thanks,” he said, beaming.

Everyone jostled into their seats, adjusting their silverware and saying their hellos. It felt kind of nice to be back in the chaos of her family, to hear her dad and Tyson argue about baseball teams while Julie gossiped about the book club ladies with their mother. A waitress came by the table once they were settled, and everyone ordered their usual, even Sadie, who had been ordering the club sandwich since she was ten years old. As the waitress headed toward the kitchen, her dad cleared his throat.

“Tonight we’re celebrating! Sadie, it’s good to have you home. We always thought it would be Julie that would need to move back in, but we’re glad to have you too.”

“Hey!” Julie cried, throwing a napkin at her dad’s grinning face.

“No, really,” he started again. “In all seriousness, we’re all looking forward to spending this time with you. Mom and I will have to get used to wearing clothes around the house again, but it’s worth it.”

“Dad!” Sadie and Julie cried in unison while Tyson burst out laughing.

Camille smacked his arm. “Bob, that’s enough. Sadie, tell us about this job you’ll be doing.”

Sadie took a sip of water as she considered her words. She appreciated the topic change, but she wasn’t sure she was ready to talk about the thing that caused the most contention between herself and her parents: her job.

“Maddox is starting a new line of hotels out here. I told you about it, the coastal collection, remember?” she asked.

“Oh yes, that’s right. But I thought you were going to be at the hotel in Port Angeles.”

Sadie nodded slowly. She had explained this to her mom a number of times already. “I am. We’re not building a new one, just rebranding the one we already have. I’m here to help with the transition and to root out any issues that could be hurting the location’s performance.”

“That’s going to be a lot of driving,” Camille said. “I hope you’re getting reimbursed for all that mileage. You know, Carol’s son was driving for one of those rideshare companies, but he quit because he said that between the cost of gas and the wear and tear on his car, it just wasn’t worth it.”

“I’m very fairly compensated,” Sadie assured her, giving a curt nod. “You don’t have to worry.”

“What other places get to be part of this collection?” Tyson asked.

“I’m not sure yet. We’ve purchased a location in Forks, and I think acquisitions is looking into Sequim.”

“If Maddox wants a hotel that’s already built and ready to go, they should check out the Cypress,” Bob told her. “That could really bring some business to town if we had a big-name hotel here.”

Sadie tapped a finger against her chin, considering this. The old Cypress Hotel had been sitting empty for years. “Do you think the owner would be willing to sell? I thought it had been in that family for a long time.”

Her dad nodded. “They were the ones who built it, what, a hundred years ago? But I don’t think Robby is ever going to get it up and running again.”

“I think he was in over his head after his parents died so unexpectedly,” Camille added. “It was such a shame when he shut it down.”

“Rumor has it he’s ready to let the place go. They’ve been talking about it at work.”

Their waitress arrived at the table and started handing out plates of food. Sadie sat back and tried to picture the old hotel on the beach. It was a three-story building with a wraparound porch and a beautiful staircase that led to a walkway lined by the tall cypress trees that gave it its name. She had never been inside but the exterior was beautiful. It could be a perfect fit for the kind of micro hotels Maddox was going to create in the coastal collection. She knew her dad was right about it bringing business to Briar Cove too. If she were responsible for that, it might change the way her family saw her work.

“Is Robby still living here?” she asked.

“No.” Camille shook her head. “Hasn’t lived here in a long time. He’s down in Florida now, I think.”

“Do you know how I can get in touch with him?”

“I can ask around,” her dad offered, “but you might try talking to that guy—”

“The librarian!” Julie cut in suddenly. She nodded, her eyes wide. “Yes, you should definitely talk to the new librarian. He’s working on getting a grant for repairs, or something.”

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