True to Me - Kay Bratt Page 0,96
did he take it?”
She chuckled. “As expected.”
“What did he say about your new job?”
“That it wasn’t a good career move to leave a big-brand hotel chain to renovate and manage an inn with only nine rooms.”
Her grandmother was desperate for her to stay on Maui and had offered her the project of reopening the dilapidated inn they’d bought in Hana a year before. A project no one else in the family had wanted. Quinn accepted. They set up terms, and if she pulled a profit after the second year, she’d be part owner. Helen was so grateful that Quinn had helped the family forgive her actions that she would’ve handed the entire property over free and clear, but Quinn wanted to earn it.
“You having second thoughts?”
“Not at all. I can’t wait to get my hands on that place,” she said. “Or should I say your hands? There’s a lot of renovation to do, and this time you’d better not delay things just to keep me here longer like you did on Maria’s house.”
He laughed. “She’s so happy with the maple butcher-block counters. You’d think they were inlaid with pure gold.”
“I’m glad. She should have the house exactly as she wants it. We were just lucky the soapstone got delayed, and we could change it to Maria’s preference.”
Right on time, Maria stepped out of the house and walked out to them. She looked like she had something important to say.
“I’ll go see what’s left in the cottage to load,” Liam said, then left them.
Tears welled up in Maria’s eyes as she reached out and took both of Quinn’s hands, holding them tightly.
“The new furniture came in yesterday,” she said. “You’re generous. The house is so beautiful now. It’s everything I ever dreamed it could be. And it’s ours again. How can I ever thank you?”
Quinn shook her head. “You don’t need to, Maria. The Rochas caused your heartache, and they’re making up for it. It was only fair to legally give the house back to you, this time with both of your names on it. Please don’t thank me for that.”
Maria’s tears flowed freely now.
“But a pension too? How?”
Quinn wouldn’t take credit for that either. She didn’t want Maria thinking she owed anything to anyone. “Jaime worked for that pension. With the loyalty he had for that company, they should’ve had patience and given him more time to adjust. He’s only getting what he’s already worked for, what he would still have if he’d continued on there. Now he won’t have to go out and get a job unless he wants to.”
Maria pulled her into a tight embrace, and it felt so right to Quinn. It hadn’t been long since they’d met, but it felt like what a real friendship should be. Warm. Accepting. Forgiving.
When she let go, she nodded forcefully. “Oh, he’ll want to work. Jaime is not the type of man to let grass grow under his feet. Liam has talked to him. I just wish Jaime had gone to Liam before all this happened. His pride—that’s something that has always gotten in the way.”
“It’s all going to work out,” Quinn said.
“I think so too,” Maria replied. “And Alani is thrilled she doesn’t have to leave her best friend.”
Liam joined them again, glancing from one to the other. “Did you hug it out?”
“Of course we did,” Maria said, laughing. “Did you expect anything else? We’re just talking about how, all at once, everything has changed.”
“So fast it’s making my head spin,” he said. “I’m not complaining, though. I’m coming out ahead too. I guarantee I’ll have the best site foreman on the island.”
Maria turned and hugged him too.
Quinn loved seeing how affectionate they were with one another. Yes, they would be just fine. Maria was getting shortbread cookie orders faster than she could fill them and had hired Pali’s girlfriend to help her. Of course, the girl wouldn’t know the secret recipe, at least not until—or if—she became a permanent fixture of the family. For now, she was in charge of cutting out the dough and seeing the cookies through the packing process.
Even Pali had turned over a new leaf, actually becoming quite a nice kid. He’d simply needed his family back together. And Quinn was starting to understand just why that mattered so much.
“I’ll see you two soon,” Maria said, stepping away. “I’d better go corral the troops.”
Liam turned to her. “There’s a lot happening right now. People changing places, switching jobs, and building new relationships.”
She nodded. “I