you think you’re doing?” she demanded when he answered.
“Ah, Elaine arrived.”
“Yes, damn it, she arrived! And you’re just going to have to get down here and tell her you’ve made a mistake and she has to go home. And you’d better hope she hasn’t given notice at The Grouper!”
“I gave it for her. Stopped in this morning when Lacey and I were on our way to the library.”
“What!” Carin was outraged. “You had no right!”
“Elaine asked me to. And you need time to paint. You said so,” he reminded her.
“That doesn’t mean you’re supposed to hire someone to work for me! I can’t afford—”
“I’m paying her.”
“No!”
“Well, she’s not going to work for nothing.”
“You’re not hiring my help! You presumptuous bastard! You—”
“Stop shouting in my ear. Ms. Gibbs can probably hear you all the way across the room. This is a library, you know.”
“I don’t want—”
“You don’t want me here. That’s the bottom line. Too bad. I’m staying. And I’m trying to make life a little easier for you.”
“Then leave,” Carin muttered.
“Look, Carin, I know you don’t think much of me. So be it. You never gave me a chance. You shut me out. Well, now I’m back. And like it or not, you’re stuck with me.”
“That doesn’t mean—”
“It means I’m taking an interest in Lacey’s life. Lacey’s life involves you. You’ve got a terrific opportunity here. I’m trying to give you a chance to benefit from it. I’ll keep Lacey during the days so you won’t have to worry about her. Elaine will take care of the shop. And you can paint.”
Carin’s jaw tightened. He was so reasonable. He was so right, damn it! “You can’t pay her.”
“We’ll discuss it later. Go paint.”
“I—”
But there was just dead air. He’d hung up.
Damn it! Carin fumed, she paced, she fussed. She didn’t want to be beholden to Nathan Wolfe. She didn’t want him running her life.
But it was true, what he’d said—this gallery show was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity—and Stacia did want more paintings. In fact, she’d called this morning to see how Carin was coming on them.
“Good,” Carin had said, which was only a small lie. “Moving right along.”
“Wonderful. Glad to hear it. When will you be finished?”
“I’m not sure yet. Can I call you in a week or so?”
“A week?” Stacia sounded worried. “I’m going to be out of the city for a few days. How about I call you when I get back? I’ll need to come down so we can pack them up for shipping.”
Ordinarily Stacia wouldn’t be bothered doing any such thing. It was outside the realm of her job. But she was sure Carin had enormous sales potential.
“You’re a phenom ready to be discovered,” was what she’d said. And she was pulling out all the stops to make sure it happened—even going so far as to say she would come to the island herself and make sure that the paintings were packed and shipped properly since there was no “pack and ship” on Pelican Cay.
Stacia had a lot invested in her in terms of time and effort and expense. Of course, she stood to get plenty in return if Carin was the success Stacia thought she would be.
But that meant Carin had to come through with enough work to make mounting the show worthwhile. And that meant she should have hired an Elaine weeks ago, but she hadn’t had the money to do so.
Now Nathan was taking Lacey and offering to pay Elaine.
“I can pay him back,” Carin said aloud now.
“You talkin’ to me?” Elaine called from the front of the shop.
Carin took a breath. “No. I was talking to Nathan.” She would pay him back. And he wouldn’t be able to stop her. “Here,” she said to Elaine. “Let me show you the ropes.”
Elaine learned things quickly. By ten Carin felt she could leave her on her own in the shop, giving her the admonition to call if she needed anything.
Elaine shook her head. “Nathan said not to bother you.”
Carin narrowed her gaze on the young woman. “Call me,” she said. “Or I’ll fire you.”
Elaine flashed a broad grin. “Well, when you put it like that…”
Carin went home. Zeno, hoping for a snack, tagged along after her. She gave him a bit of ham and left him sitting on the porch. Then, somewhere between fierce and furious, she headed for the studio to tackle her work.
Lacey couldn’t have been happier.
As the days passed and she went fishing with her father or shot photos with her father