The Bluebird Bet

Her doubts were clear. The fact was he didn’t have a plan. But he’d need one. He had some savings, but getting his camp set up would take a lot of cash. A new marina wouldn’t be cheap. Mortgaging his home to finance a gamble without a detailed schedule and some consideration of how he might cover the payments was crazy. His confidence took a hit, but the only way to deal with a situation like this was to pretend everything was under control.

Convincing his dad he could handle the details was critical.

“And you’re interested in having your chance for what? To move into an inn with eight guest rooms...all by yourself.” He didn’t have to ask about a husband or kids. No ring. No doubt she was focusing on her career. “Kind of a big house for a single woman. All alone. Out here by yourself with the wildlife.”

Elaine opened her mouth and then closed it. She raised one finger. “I’m only going to say this because...” Her lips tightened to swallow whatever it was she planned to add. “Never mind. Doesn’t matter.”

She headed for the entryway. “Mr. Collins, I hope this works out, for your sake.”

“Everybody just...wait.” His father’s voice was loud, and Dean could hear the anger bubbling under the surface. He wasn’t sure Elaine was going to stop, but she jerked to a halt next to the door.

“Before this goes too far, I’ve got something to say.” His dad narrowed his eyes, and Dean got the impression that he’d better keep his mouth zipped until his dad was done.

“Dean, you’re my son. I want you to have this place if it will...I don’t know, make you happy. But,” he said as he held up a hand, “this woman saved my life. And she loves the place.”

“Saved your life?” Dean said as he rubbed his forehead. “What does that mean?”

“I only did my job,” Elaine said and crossed her arms. “Any other doctor would have done the same.”

“Somebody tell me what we’re talking about.” Dean propped his hands on his hips. “Now.”

The sudden tightness in his chest made it hard to breathe.

Elaine’s eyebrows rose, and Dean got the impression there was only one thing she was interested in telling him, and that was exactly where to get off.

“I went into the emergency clinic with chest pains. That’s all. I’m fine.” His father tried a reassuring smile, but it looked so wrong on him that Dean said, “No way. You didn’t tell me any of this. When?” He turned to the doctor because he was certain he stood a better chance of getting a straight answer from her.

“It’s been almost two years. He’s done great since then. Takes his meds. Lost some weight.” She shrugged. “And he’s making a change for the better with this new plan to hit the road. He’s a model patient, actually. That’s rare.”

“We don’t have to talk about this now. Let’s come up with some suggestions on what to do here.” His father paced in a small circle on the dull hardwoods.

He and Elaine stared at each other for a long second, and he wondered if she felt the same tension he did. When her cheeks turned a pale pink and she looked away, he thought maybe she did.

“How about a real bet?” His father paused. “I’ll hit the road. You’ll both have time to make plans, figure out the money and talk to the bank. I’ll listen to both proposals and decide based on what’s best for the Bluebird. A month? How’s that?”

Elaine looked as if she was about to argue. He could almost see the dueling urges on her face. She wanted the Bluebird, but she needed to do the right thing. He waited to see which would win.

And he braced himself when she stepped up next to him.

“It’s a bet.” She held out her hand.

“I love a challenge,” Dean said as he gripped her hand, surprised again at the warmth that spread from her to him. “This could be what I was looking for.”

“I guess we’ll see.” The smile was back. A simple curve of her lips that gave her eyes a sparkle. The way Dean’s world shifted in that second worried him. He’d started the game. He had no choice but to win. Unless the Bluebird worked its magic, he was lost.

* * *

ELAINE TRIED TO understand the emotion in Dean’s eyes. For a split second she’d thought it was fear or maybe worry, but that didn’t make any sense. He was a guy who traveled the world, photographed wars and looked supremely confident in ratty clothes. On top of that, he was family. If anyone was a solid contender, it was him. Had her certainty that the fish camp was a bad idea convinced him to reconsider his plans?

“Well,” Robert said, looking from her to Dean and back, “good. That’s settled. Got an appointment with a contractor tomorrow. Here’s what we’ll do. Get him to take a look, maybe give you estimates on what you’d like to renovate.”

Elaine refused to take a step back even though she was closer to Dean Collins than she was strictly comfortable with. She could see he had hazel eyes, a mix of brown and green that was warm and possibly too intelligent for an easy win. Getting this close to him was a bad idea for a long list of reasons. Still, she was not going to back down. Not now. He’d made his opinion of her clear. He thought she was a fragile flower. He was wrong.

When Robert coughed quietly, she and Dean both turned.

“How will you decide a winner?” Elaine asked.

Dean’s snort set her teeth on edge, and she did her best to forget her own snort of disbelief earlier. Maybe turnabout snorting was fair play.

She and Dean watched Robert think. He paced. He cracked his knuckles. He opened his mouth and changed his mind twice.

Then he said, “We’ll get judges. That’s the fairest thing. All three of us. That way, an impartial panel will decide what’s best for the Bluebird and for Tall Pines.”

“And you don’t have to disappoint either one of us.” Elaine raised her eyebrows.

“Why, I never thought of that,” Robert said and smiled. “Excellent point, Doc. I like this plan. What do you think?”

Dean ran his hands through messy, dark curls that were entirely too long. Men should not have such nice hair. It was unfair. Of course, he looked as if he’d combed it with a pasta fork.

“Fine with me.” Dean’s gaze locked with hers, and she experienced again the breathless awareness she’d felt when she stepped out of her car to see him there, a part of her favorite view in the world.

She wouldn’t let it rattle her.

She was going to give this her best shot. After all, she’d played to win her whole life. Even though she’d built the busiest medical practice in the area, she needed to strengthen her position. The judges would have a hard time choosing her over Dean, Robert’s son and a hometown boy. She raised her chin and nodded. “Me, too, but I think I should move in while I’m planning.”

Dean shook his head while Robert smiled broadly. “Great idea. Give you a real good feel for what it’ll take to put it back together.”

They both turned to Dean. He waved his hands in surrender. “Fine. Plenty of space. Just don’t expect room service.”

Robert clapped his hands once loudly. “Good. Let’s get this show on the road. Pack a bag. Move in. Meet with the contractor tomorrow if you’ve got time.” He put one hand on the small of her back and started to escort her onto the porch. Elaine managed to keep the satisfied smile from creeping through.

“If you don’t mind, Dad, I’d like to talk with Dr. Watson.” Dean followed them out. “Alone.”

Robert responded eloquently without saying a word. There was a threat in his eyes. Dean had better be on his best behavior.

Elaine had to fight the smile that came with the shot of pleasure that someone was looking out for her. Dean raised his hands in surrender, and Robert disappeared inside.

“I’m not sure you’ll have as much privacy as you want, but feel free to say whatever it is that’s bothering you, Mr. Collins.” She adjusted her purse strap and studied the view carefully. This would be no harder than talking to any other upset family member. Doctors spent a lot of time delivering bad news and listening to complaints.

Dean checked inside the shadowed foyer. “You could be right. Two things.” He held up two fingers, probably so he wouldn’t lose his spot in the conversation.

At the unkind thought, Elaine knew she had to take her competitiveness down a notch. There was no need to get nasty. Ever.

Even if she knew how to.

“Call me Dean. Call him Robert. Otherwise, this whole thing is going to get weird,” Dean said as he eased into a creaky rocking chair and motioned her to the other one.

She studied the peeling paint before she sat. “Fine. And?”

“Tell me why this means so much to you.”

She tilted her head, hoping he could read what she thought about his tone.

“Fine. Please. I want to understand.” He eased the rocking chair into motion, and the rhythmic creak combined with the cool shade and the stillness of the lake made it easy to answer his question, if only to sit there a few minutes longer.

“The last time I visited, I was twelve. Like most twelve-year-old girls, I wished things were different. My mother wanted me to wear my hair down and try makeup, and my dad wanted me to keep my mother happy while he did his own thing. But Mom loved this place, and she loved drinking tea on this porch. And your mother was so kind that we all somehow got along when we were here.” Elaine started rocking back and forth, too, her creaks a perfect counterpoint to his. “Then my parents divorced. Loudly. We never came back to the Bluebird or Tall Pines.”

Dean contemplated the shoreline. “So it’s got some good memories. I can understand that. Is that enough reason to spend this much time and money? Maybe the money doesn’t matter to someone like you. Couldn’t you make nice memories somewhere else?”

“Couldn’t you?” Elaine asked. “No, of course not. They’re memories, Dean. Nothing is the same now. My father is happily remarried with a nice wife and a new family. And my mother is...well, she’s not as settled. These are the memories I want to keep.”

“At the expense of mine?” He didn’t look at her, and it was a good thing.

This was the troublesome point—the idea that she would cause Robert any pain by getting what she wanted. If Dean and Robert were strangers, she’d get the Bluebird. There was no question in her mind. This concern for Robert hampered her efforts.

Now that she knew his father had kept his health problems a secret, she was more forgiving of Dean’s time away. Exciting careers could take over a life easily. Being a doctor didn’t often involve the risks he took, but the adrenaline rush could be intense.

“It seems you’ve done fine through the years with the memories alone. Why is now any different?” Maybe she couldn’t go for the kill. That didn’t mean she had to give in.

“It just is. Now is different. I’m different. And it matters.” Dean stood and waited for her to get the picture that this conversation was over.

“Are you sure you can abide by this competition?” Elaine asked as she slowly walked down the steps toward her car. “Tell me here and now, before I pack my bags and drive down that road again. I’ll back down before I cause your father any pain.”

“But it will kill you to throw in the towel before anyone rings the bell.” Dean glanced toward the foyer and nodded. “Yes, to prove to my father that I have what it takes, including the commitment to stick this out, I will agree to the bet and the rules, but I intend to win.”

CHAPTER THREE

DEAN STEPPED INSIDE and shut the door, snapping Elaine out of her reverie. “Rude,” she muttered and got into her car.

She made her way to the highway. In the middle of making a mental list of the things she’d have to pack, her phone rang, and she hit the hands-free button to talk. “Hi, Mom.” She didn’t even have to look. It had to be her mother.

“I haven’t heard from you in a while, so I thought I’d make sure you’re okay.”

A while meaning approximately two hours. Checking to make sure she was okay was more about her mother not being okay. “I’m fine. What’s up?”

“Oh, not much. I started thinking about the reception we had and how you and Jerry argued about the proper way to serve red wine. Remember, he was certain it had to be warm, and you said to chill the wine and warm it in the hand? What an impression you must have made on your new stepfather. I thought that was the craziest thing to argue about.” Her voice broke on the last word. “You’re so much like your father sometimes. So smart. Even when you were a little girl, I’d listen to the two of you talk and just...marvel.”

Elaine couldn’t recall the wine conversation. She and her mother’s last husband, Jerry, had often agreed to disagree, but she’d never intended to cause friction in any of her mother’s marriages.

Being compared to her father didn’t surprise her at all.

Elaine could remember the days when she’d hoped to be exactly like her father.

Now she was afraid that her wish had come true. He lived to work. Most days, she did, too.

“Mom, are you drinking wine by any chance?” Elaine parked in front of a small line of apartments. She’d lived here since she’d come to Tall Pines to satisfy the terms of the scholarship that had helped her get through medical school debt free.

“Yes.”

The hiccup made Elaine smile as she switched the call to her phone. She unlocked the door and asked, “How much?”

“It’s my...second glass.” Her mother’s answer was a relief. Maybe she was too emotional, but she’d never been a big drinker. Elaine could picture her mother perched on the end of her expensive couch, not a single hair of her carefully highlighted bob out of order. Even tipsy, she’d be well behaved and beautiful.

Sometimes Elaine wondered if she was the only person who saw the emotional, messy, ragged side of Catherine Stillman. She was the model hostess with lovely manners, but inside, her mother still seemed to be searching for something.

Elaine, on the other hand, always looked a bit frazzled. Her sundress was wrinkled after less than three hours, and the curls escaping her careful updo were driving her crazy. Scrubs and a ponytail fit her better.

And if she was searching for anything, it was the way things used to be.

“You know you’re going to be happy again, right? Have you thought about taking a class like we talked about?” Elaine pulled a bag out of her closet and started shoving clothes inside.

While she packed, she thought about all the activities her mother should consider instead of focusing on how she didn’t have a husband anymore. A part-time job, a class at the community college, a new hobby or a trip to someplace she’d always dreamed of. They were all reasonable, fun options. If Elaine’s schedule ever cleared up, she might give something on the list a try herself. As always, her mother had one answer. “I don’t want to do that by myself.”

“Mom, do you remember the Bluebird Bed-and-Breakfast? The inn we used to visit here in Tall Pines?” Elaine crossed her fingers and hoped this didn’t lead to a meltdown.

“Sure, that pretty old farmhouse on the lake. Had the tastiest sugar cookies as I recall.” Her mother paused as she sipped her wine. “Your father fished, and we ruled the world from that shady porch. Those were nice times. Before your father ruined it all.”

Elaine took a deep breath. This was the tricky part. Any time her father came up in conversation, things could get out of control fast. “Yeah, so the owner is a patient. I took a trip out there today because he’s considering selling.”

“But you’re a doctor. What would you do with an inn? The last thing you need is another job. No, you should spend fewer hours working.” Her mother left off the advice to get married, have kids, probably because she didn’t want an argument, either.

“Maybe we could reopen it. Together. What would you think about that?” She held her breath while she waited for the answer.

“I’m not sure, Elaine. I mean, the memories...”

Her mother hadn’t said no. That was a new development. “It could be fun, but it may not work out anyway, so you’ve got time to consider it.”

“I will. I promise,” her mother said quietly. “Thanks for talking, Elaine. I swear, no more men. Ever. This time is different.”

Right. Elaine was sure she’d heard that the last time, too. And with the boyfriends in between, one of whom had been so steady and good for her mother she’d mourned him like...well, her own father. Her father wasn’t dead. He was just gone, content with his new wife and two sons.

Neither of whom were doctors.

Not yet anyway. There was still time, and her youngest brother did mention medical school now and then.

At least her mother’s wails had already quieted to grumbles. This seemed to indicate she was on the mend. The fact that she’d gotten there quicker than Elaine expected was a positive sign. There’d been surprisingly few bitter warnings about men or guilt trips about grandkids. Elaine was tired of hearing that all her mother’s problems would be solved if Elaine would just get married and have babies. Following her mother’s train of thought could be exhausting.

She’d had plenty of time to build up her endurance. When her father left, Elaine had picked up the pieces. Ever since, she’d hung on to the roller-coaster ride that was her mother. Relationships came and went, men were magic until they disappointed her and then Elaine was a lifeline.

She was used to the pattern by now, even if she tried to alter it.

Her mother was only three hours away, but Elaine was always working. When things were good, the distance was easy. Her mother’s happy phone conversations satisfied them both. When her mother was going through a breakup, the distance could be a relief.

“You aren’t planning to drive anywhere, are you, Mom?”

This time her mother gave a disbelieving grunt. “Do you think I’m crazy? I’m going to take a nap.”

“Sounds good. Call me tomorrow.” After her mother mumbled goodbye, Elaine tossed her phone on the couch cushion next to her purse, dropped down beside it and covered her eyes with both hands.

Taking a day off and doing anything other than laundry and napping was rare, but she was glad she’d made the trip out to see the Bluebird. If only Dean Collins wasn’t going to be such a problem. She had a small chance to beat him. Ignoring him was going to be a lot harder.

But leaving this economy apartment would be no problem. There were no pictures on the wall, and the only decoration she’d added was three small framed photos of her with her parents, all taken at award ceremonies. The furniture belonged to her landlord, Edna. Why she hadn’t done more to make the apartment feel like home was something she should consider long and hard. Some other time.

Today she was going to grab her bag, go back and move right in. She’d start leaving her stamp as soon as possible.

Men would come and go and take her mother’s sanity with them, but the Bluebird would last. Getting attached to the place that held such sweet memories only made sense.

“Hit the road, Elaine. There’ll be plenty of time to figure out the cure for your problems on that beautiful porch.”

She smiled at the idea and did her best to ignore the fact that she was talking to herself.

After one more quick trip through the closet and tiny bathroom, Elaine had enough necessities to get her through a week or so. She grabbed her bag and purse and locked up.

On her way to the Bluebird, she decided to take advantage of the rare combination of a beautiful day and free time, so she drove around the town square. Elaine was happy to see the tourists. Tall Pines was her new home, and almost everyone here depended on these visitors. Spring could be hit and miss, but now that the trees were blooming and temperatures were inching back up, shoppers wandered down the streets, bags in hand.

As a child, she’d loved every single one of these shops.

She stopped at a crosswalk and watched a boy who kept a serious stare locked on her car as he walked by, one hand grasped by his mother.

A few minutes later, as she headed down the rutted road toward the Bluebird, Elaine wondered whether reopening the inn could help draw even more tourists to her adopted hometown.

She parked next to a dilapidated Jeep that had to belong to Dean Collins. It matched his wardrobe perfectly.

She grabbed her bag and thought about honking the horn, just to let him know she was back and ready to get started. The kitchen was appalling, every room required work and the whole farmhouse needed a coat of paint, but the potential was all there.

Elaine was hit by an unexpected wave of excitement. The renovation would be expensive and a lot of hard work, but the reward, a home that connected her to some of the happiest times in her life, was worth it. She couldn’t remember wanting anything as much as she wanted this.

In only one day, she’d pinned her hopes on a long shot.

Okay, Elaine, too emotional. Take a deep breath.

She did. Then she got out of the car like a totally rational person and almost made it to the steps when she could feel someone watching her. Dean was near the dock again. Deciding that she should begin as she meant to go on, she marched down to meet him.

“I’m back.” What a terrible opening line, Dr. Obvious. “Which room should I take?”

He waved his filleting knife, and they both watched a bit of...fillet plop into the water. Dean studied her face, waiting for a reaction. She stepped closer. “Hmm, you’d never make it as a surgeon.”

Then she raised her eyebrows at him. She was a doctor. A little bit of gore had no effect on her.

“Take any guest room you want. They’re all the same. Dusty. Stuck in the past.”

She nodded. “Okay. Thank goodness that’s easy enough to change.” Pleased with that parting line, she spun on one heel and bit back a curse as she nearly toppled right off the dock. Determined not to look at him, she pretended she was absorbed by the beauty of the inn. And she was, even if it was hard to see.

For the first time in a while, taking a break from the emergency clinic seemed like a good plan. She could weed the garden, try to rescue Martha Collins’s roses.

Before she went inside, she paused to look at the bluebird boxes on the hill. She couldn’t see any birds, but she remembered how much she’d loved to wait for them. Before the trips to the inn, she’d never seen a bluebird, so every single sighting had added to the magic of Spring Lake. Her parents got along here. Her mother smiled, and her father laughed.

Even then she’d been more scientist than fairy-tale princess, but the bluebirds seemed to promise happy endings. The nesting boxes had faded like the rest of the place. She should research how to fix them up. The Bluebird Bed-and-Breakfast needed bluebirds.

CHAPTER FOUR

AFTER A LONG, sleepless night, Dean slipped out the front door and headed to the dock. The sun was rising over the lake. Watching the light spread across the calm surface was the only compensation for being unable to close his eyes without nightmares shaking him awake. A week of peaceful mornings like this had started to work a little of the familiar magic.

He cast his line and pretended to fish. If his father saw him, maybe he’d see it as a sign of progress. And maybe he’d decide to join him.

Steady, quick footfalls distracted him from his accidental meditation. He looked over his shoulder and winced at the morning stiffness of his old injuries, large and small. Elaine Watson didn’t even glance his direction as she ran by.

Joggers usually seemed to be suffering, but Elaine’s face was as calm as his own. And she was fast.

Of course she was. He had a feeling if she committed to something, she did it well. She probably ran because it was good exercise, but she excelled at it because she saw no other option.

“Must be exhausting.” He’d never aspired to be the best. Adventure and the chance to make a difference had been enough to keep him going. For a long time anyway.