Sand Castle Bay. Sherryl Woods
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that. You hired most of them.”
“Doesn’t make me biased, though. If they screw up, that’s on me, too.” He hesitated, then said, “I’ve been thinking we could probably start looking for that fourth location you talked about once things around here settle down.”
“You getting bored, Pete?”
“Maybe just a little,” he acknowledged. “You know I love doing the start-ups.”
“Well, we’ll get serious about the next one soon,” Boone assured him. “Start compiling the market research for me, okay?”
“Will do,” Pete said eagerly. “In the meantime, should I cancel the ads announcing the reopening for this weekend?”
“We’ll decide that after I’ve been through the place with Tommy. Maybe it’s not as bad as you thought at first glance.”
“This is bad,” Pete warned him. “If that mold has spread beyond what I saw, we’re talking major renovations.”
Boone thought of the compromise Cora Jane had reached to get Castle’s reopened. “Is the kitchen operational?”
“Good to go and spotless,” Pete confirmed.
“And we know the deck is solid,” Boone said thoughtfully.
“What are you thinking?”
“That we could serve on a limited basis out there temporarily. We’re at the end of the season. Tourists will be pouring in here again by the weekend, based on what I heard from the local officials earlier today. I’d hate for the wait staff to lose out on the kind of tips they get this time of year.”
“You’d want to keep them all on, even with limited seating?”
“Dividing the tips more ways would be better than laying ’em all off, don’t you think?”
“And you’re not worried about our reputation if we can’t handle the usual crowds and can only serve a couple of specialties, rather than our full menu?”
Boone chuckled. “If anyone’s in a rush or out here to review the food, I imagine we can put a good public relations spin on keeping our kitchen open, our food selections limited but high quality, and our people working, despite being damaged by a hurricane.” He thought of Gabi. “I know just the person to draft a press release, in fact. I imagine she can make us sound like benevolent angels.”
Pete laughed. “If she can pull that off for a couple of guys like you and me, she’s a magician. Get that done and I’ll have it distributed. Might as well do a preemptive strike and generate some good buzz.”
“Now you’re getting into the spirit of this,” Boone said. “Put that press release on the list of things we need to finalize when I see you in the morning.”
Pete chuckled. “You are such a glass-half-full man,” he praised. “I don’t know how you do it. Even after Jenny, well, let’s just say it’s one of the reasons I love working for you. I know this was lousy news, yet you’ve turned it around, come up with a plan and are ready for action.”
“That’s why they pay me the big bucks,” Boone joked, thinking of how often he’d gotten by on practically nothing just to keep the first restaurant afloat in the early days. “And making sure the action really happens on schedule is why I pay you the big bucks. See you in the morning, Pete.”
As soon as he’d disconnected that call, he punched in the numbers for Gabi’s cell phone. Other than Cora Jane’s, hers was the one Castle number he’d memorized. She’d be the closest if he ever saw a need for a family member to get here in a hurry. He’d last used it just before the storm to make sure that someone was coming to get Cora Jane away from the danger zone. He’d known she’d never choose to go on her own. If she ever found out he was behind Sam Castle’s appearance on her doorstep, she’d be furious, but he was willing to take the heat to keep her safe.
Now Gabi answered, her voice sleepy. “Boone? What’s up?”
“Sorry, did I wake you?” he asked.
“No, just settling down.”
“I promise not to keep you long.” He explained about the crisis. “Any chance I could hire you to draft a press release for me on short notice? Pete’s worried people will be disappointed if we’re not operating at full capacity.”
“And you want them to see that you’re open at all just for the benefit of your employees and your customers, even though the situation isn’t optimal,” she summarized.
“Exactly. Can you do something with that?”
“Of course I can. Leave it to me. Is the fax machine at the restaurant operating? Or do you want me to email you the document?”
“Send it by email. That’ll be more efficient for distribution, I think.”
“Perfect. What time’s your meeting with Pete?”
“Nine.”
“You’ll have it well before that. And if anything about your plan changes, just give me a call and I can do a new draft on my iPad and get it right back over to you.”
“You’re an angel, Gabi.”
“Seems to me your halo’s pretty shiny, too,” she teased. “Want me to spread the word about that to anyone in particular?”
“I don’t need you to talk me up to Emily,” he said, grasping exactly what she was getting at.
“Why not? It couldn’t hurt.”
“Stick to PR, not meddling, please. Don’t make me regret calling you.”
“Okay, since you asked so nicely, I’ll focus on the task assigned for now.”
“Will you let Cora Jane know why Tommy and I are running late?”
“Don’t worry about that. You did more than your share to help out today. We’ll see you when you get there.”
“Thanks, Gabi.”
He hung up wondering what the odds were she’d keep her nose out of his personal business. Given her genetic makeup, probably not all that good.
* * *
Emily’s gaze kept drifting toward the parking lot. It was midmorning, and there’d been no sign of Boone. Castle’s had been swamped from the minute they’d opened the doors at six. Word seemed to have spread quickly among the locals that they were open for business, at least with deck seating. After an initial trickle, there in time to see a glorious golden sunrise, there hadn’t been a vacant table the rest of the morning.
No one had complained about the limited menu, either. The coffee was strong. The eggs, bacon, toast and grits were plentiful. Everyone seemed thoroughly happy with the limited selection. The baskets of free mini-pastries Cora Jane insisted on putting at each table were a huge hit, too. And the long-time regulars had been delighted to see Emily, Gabi and Samantha working side by side with Cora Jane again.
With the help of two waitresses, Emily and her sisters had managed to keep things moving, but they hadn’t had a minute to deal with any more of the cleanup inside.
Now with the customers thinned out, Emily was finally able to take a deep breath. She carried a cup of coffee to a table by the railing where she could see the ocean...and the parking lot.
“Looking for somebody?” Samantha teased when she joined her, propping her sneaker-clad feet on an adjacent chair with a sigh of relief.
“No, why?”
“You’ve spent a lot of time with your eyes peeled to the parking lot. I just thought you might be wondering where Boone is.”
“Well, he did say he’d be here today at the crack of dawn,” she said. Years of doubts and bitterness crept into her voice. “Despite Grandmother’s