hills into an explosion of color. Those shades would also be brought into the dining hall with flowers and decorations, transforming it into a glorious new world. She couldn’t wait to see how it all looked.
She’d had David and his team start work on the new ballroom she’d devised. In the base of the west building there had been a number of large storage rooms on the main floor. She’d gotten the idea to turn them into one large ballroom after having a discussion with Darby about hosting prom at the resort. They had decided that the dining hall would be cool, but what they really needed was a ballroom so that guests could still enjoy dinner without having to deal with a bunch of teenagers.
The ballroom would be great for indoor weddings or parties, so she’d had David add the demolition of the storage areas to his first phase.
Less than an hour before she planned on clocking out and heading home—and doing a little mental dance at the thought that home equaled Cade and Blue—Cemal knocked on her office door.
“Come in.” She waved the woman in.
“I hate to bother you so close to quitting time,” Cemal said, glancing down at her watch.
“It’s okay.” She closed her screen down. “What can I help you with?”
“It’s about a new rumor.” Cemal sat down when Raven motioned to the chair.
Raven sighed. “What is it this time?”
She was thankful that she’d made a friend in Cemal at the start. The girl kept her ears open and often came back to Raven with any stories she’d heard.
“This one is a little different.” Cemal leaned forward. “This one is about you directly. I overheard a few of the waitstaff talking about you as if they’d known you in school. Before you left. Before the fire.”
“We have a few on staff who I went to school with. Let them talk.” She relaxed slightly. “It is a small town, and the potential employee pool is pretty shallow.” She smiled and turned back to her computer.
“Yes, well, these rumors involve you sleeping with Mr. Ramsey and…”—Cemal took a deep breath— “your uncle.”
“What?” Raven laughed. “Seriously?”
Cemal nodded as she wrung her hands together.
“Who…” Raven started then held up her hands. “Never mind. We agreed that you’d relay the rumors to me, not snitch on who you’d heard them from.”
She knew the girl didn’t feel comfortable tattling on her fellow co-workers.
Raven leaned back in her office chair and had a thought. Pulling out her cell phone, she sent a text to Cade, asking him to meet her there for dinner.
The dining hall was officially open to the public. Most times it was filled with locals and employees. Still, she was happily surprised at how many people showed up each day for meals. She credited Tim and the new kitchen staff for most of the excitement. But she knew that a lot of locals were dying to see what she’d done with the place or just needed a different choice other than the diner. Something a little fancier. More upscale.
Previously, if they’d wanted to experience that, they would have had to drive all the way into Redding.
Besides, it was where two people in town had been murdered. Some people in town found that totally fascinating.
Cade replied to her text almost immediately, saying that he’d see her there at six. That gave her two more hours to come up with an official plan.
When she couldn’t think of a way to stop the gossip about her, she figured a way to add fuel to the fire instead. Maybe stir things up with some obvious lies?
She even made lists of some of the best ones. Still, she didn’t know how any of them could stop the current rumors flying around the resort. Giving up, she tossed the list into the trash and started pacing her office.
“Problems?” Fiona asked, knocking on her door.
“How do you stop a rumor?” she asked, falling into her chair.
Fiona frowned. “Rumors usually die by themselves once the truth is revealed.”
“What if there isn’t any way to reveal the truth?” she asked, feeling slightly defeated. “When there’s a lack of proof or those involved are dead?”
“This is in regard to the new rumor about you?” Fiona asked.
“I know it shouldn’t bother me at this point, but it just…” She shook her head.
“Irks you?” Fiona finished for her.
“Yes,” she said with a slight chuckle at Fiona’s choice of words. “In high school, it used to drive me crazy. Then, after the fire…”