and some vegetables out there in the center of the yard, where it was nice and sunny. If she had a restaurant, she’d want to serve really fresh salads and a vegetarian dish or two. And maybe she’d plant some red peppers to roast with garlic and olive oil. Mint for iced tea to be served on hot summer days …
Stop stop stop!
She tried to shake the thoughts from her head but they did not go gently. It had been easier to ban Christopher, it occurred to her. She wasn’t quite sure what that meant.
The machine had just given up its dark brew when Sophie heard the front door slam.
“Jess?” she called.
“Yeah.” He tossed his jacket over the back of a chair. “Hey, you made coffee. Thanks.”
“Didn’t Brooke make coffee this morning?”
“Yes, but she got up early to bake for the shop, and by the time I got up, it was sludge.”
Sophie reached overhead into the cabinet and grabbed a cup, which she filled, and held out to her brother. When he reached for it, she pulled it back.
“First, the key.”
“What key?”
“You know what key.”
“Oh, you mean this one?” He pulled a braided green string from his pocket and dangled its lone brass key in front of her. “Could I interest you in a trade?”
She passed the cup over and he tossed the key into her outstretched hand.
“This is really it?”
“No, actually, that’s my garage key.”
“Jesse, you …”
He laughed. “Yes, it’s really ‘the key.’ I stopped by the office on my way back from Brooke’s and called Violet. She was just leaving for church, but she knew exactly where it was, as you suspected.”
“Did she say why you had it? Did she think it would be okay if we went in?” Sophie asked eagerly.
“The owner gave the key to Uncle Mike so that he could check up on the property periodically. Make sure there’d been no break-ins and that the roof wasn’t leaking, that sort of thing.”
“When was the last time someone went in?”
“I couldn’t tell. There was nothing in the file to indicate that anyone from the firm had made a visit.”
“Then I’d say we were due.”
“Well,
I’m
due.” He smirked. “A
member of the firm
is due.”
“Now that’s just plain mean. If—and it’s a big fat if—I ever decided to come to work with you, it would be because I wanted to and because I felt it was the right move for me, and not because you goaded or bribed me. That’s a big decision to make, Jess.”
“True. So I won’t goad—but that doesn’t mean I’ve given up. There are other ways …”
Sophie tucked the key into the pocket of her jeans. “I just need to grab my bag and put my shoes on. I can’t wait to see what this place looks like inside.”
“Don’t get your hopes up,” he called after her as she hustled toward the steps. “It’s bound to be a mess.”
Sophie drove her car because she wanted to see what it felt like to drive onto that lot and park near the door, though the reason she gave Jesse for wanting to drive was so that he couldn’t rush her and threaten to leave before she was ready to go.
“This place is really off the beaten path,” Jesse said as he got out of the car. “They probably didn’t do much business here before they closed.”
“Maybe not,” Sophie agreed, “but the new movie studio should bring a lot of traffic down this way, once it’s up and running. So not being in the center of town could be an advantage.”
“How do you figure?”
“No competition.” She fitted the key into the lock and it turned reluctantly. “Plus you heard that talk last night at Walt’s about the bait shop next door filing for a permit to dredge the river to make it deep enough for larger boats to dock there, right?”
Jesse nodded.
“And that they might even build a marina right there so that visitors to the studio could come by boat?” Sophie pushed open the door. “People could fly into Baltimore, charter a boat, and just come right across the Bay.” She paused in the
Stop stop stop!
She tried to shake the thoughts from her head but they did not go gently. It had been easier to ban Christopher, it occurred to her. She wasn’t quite sure what that meant.
The machine had just given up its dark brew when Sophie heard the front door slam.
“Jess?” she called.
“Yeah.” He tossed his jacket over the back of a chair. “Hey, you made coffee. Thanks.”
“Didn’t Brooke make coffee this morning?”
“Yes, but she got up early to bake for the shop, and by the time I got up, it was sludge.”
Sophie reached overhead into the cabinet and grabbed a cup, which she filled, and held out to her brother. When he reached for it, she pulled it back.
“First, the key.”
“What key?”
“You know what key.”
“Oh, you mean this one?” He pulled a braided green string from his pocket and dangled its lone brass key in front of her. “Could I interest you in a trade?”
She passed the cup over and he tossed the key into her outstretched hand.
“This is really it?”
“No, actually, that’s my garage key.”
“Jesse, you …”
He laughed. “Yes, it’s really ‘the key.’ I stopped by the office on my way back from Brooke’s and called Violet. She was just leaving for church, but she knew exactly where it was, as you suspected.”
“Did she say why you had it? Did she think it would be okay if we went in?” Sophie asked eagerly.
“The owner gave the key to Uncle Mike so that he could check up on the property periodically. Make sure there’d been no break-ins and that the roof wasn’t leaking, that sort of thing.”
“When was the last time someone went in?”
“I couldn’t tell. There was nothing in the file to indicate that anyone from the firm had made a visit.”
“Then I’d say we were due.”
“Well,
I’m
due.” He smirked. “A
member of the firm
is due.”
“Now that’s just plain mean. If—and it’s a big fat if—I ever decided to come to work with you, it would be because I wanted to and because I felt it was the right move for me, and not because you goaded or bribed me. That’s a big decision to make, Jess.”
“True. So I won’t goad—but that doesn’t mean I’ve given up. There are other ways …”
Sophie tucked the key into the pocket of her jeans. “I just need to grab my bag and put my shoes on. I can’t wait to see what this place looks like inside.”
“Don’t get your hopes up,” he called after her as she hustled toward the steps. “It’s bound to be a mess.”
Sophie drove her car because she wanted to see what it felt like to drive onto that lot and park near the door, though the reason she gave Jesse for wanting to drive was so that he couldn’t rush her and threaten to leave before she was ready to go.
“This place is really off the beaten path,” Jesse said as he got out of the car. “They probably didn’t do much business here before they closed.”
“Maybe not,” Sophie agreed, “but the new movie studio should bring a lot of traffic down this way, once it’s up and running. So not being in the center of town could be an advantage.”
“How do you figure?”
“No competition.” She fitted the key into the lock and it turned reluctantly. “Plus you heard that talk last night at Walt’s about the bait shop next door filing for a permit to dredge the river to make it deep enough for larger boats to dock there, right?”
Jesse nodded.
“And that they might even build a marina right there so that visitors to the studio could come by boat?” Sophie pushed open the door. “People could fly into Baltimore, charter a boat, and just come right across the Bay.” She paused in the
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