Chapter 30

thirty

W hen Blossom invited her to dinner, Shelby wasn't expecting her grandmother to join them. The mysteriously magical woman had been of great comfort to her lately, and she didn't want to have to share her with Izzy.

Based on the way she jerked the chair out from under the table, Izzy wasn't thrilled about eating with Shelby either.

"Where's Blossom?" Isabelle asked, glaring at Shelby over the table set with candles, blue-checked linens, white basketweave china, and an arrangement of blue hydrangeas.

Before Shelby could answer, Blossom emerged from the kitchen, calling out, "Here I am." She was dressed in chef's attire and carrying an ice bucket. She positioned the ice bucket near the table and popped the cork on a bottle of expensive Champagne.

"What're we celebrating?" Izzy asked.

"I'm glad you asked. Listen carefully as I outline your challenge for the evening," Blossom said as she poured a small splash of the golden liquid into each of their glasses. "To drink the Champagne, you must first agree on something to celebrate. You two have been sulking all day. I want you to focus on the positive and remember all the many blessings in your lives. One blessing earns you one sip of Champagne."

Izzy rolled her eyes. "Good grief. I should've known you were up to something."

"You'll thank me later." Blossom returned the bottle to the bucket and strolled off, calling over her shoulder, "I'll be out in a minute with your salads."

Izzy folded her hands on the table. "What have you been moping about? Luke?"

Shelby nodded. "He really hurt me. Turns out I'm not good enough for him. I can't compete with his fiancé's father's billions." Shelby sat up straight in her chair and reached for her glass. "But I refuse to shed another tear over him. I'm officially declaring him out of my life." She held out her glass to Izzy. "And that is a reason to celebrate."

"I'll drink to that," Isabelle said, clinking her glass to Shelby's.

The kitchen door opened, and Blossom hollered, "Remember! Only one sip per blessing."

Shelby set down her glass. "Ugh. She's so bossy."

Izzy gave her a rare smile. "That she is."

Shelby stared down at the table. "I wish I knew how to get back at Luke for what he did."

"I'm sure we can think of something," Izzy said with a devious smile. "Does his fiancée know he was here?"

"I doubt it." Shelby's face lit up as an idea came to her. She pulled out her phone and clicked on her photos. "I took this selfie before we went out last night." She flashed the picture at her grandmother. I could post it to social media."

"Do it!" Izzy demanded.

Shelby zoomed in on their faces. This would be the last picture taken of them together. "Do you really think I should? It could ruin his relationship with Alexis."

"Absolutely! You're doing Alexis a favor. She should know what her fiancé has been up to."

"That's true." Accessing her Instagram account, Shelby uploaded the image and thumbed off the caption. Look who visited me in the Lowcountry this week. She dropped her phone on the table. "Done. I feel better already."

Izzy lifted her glass. "Another reason to celebrate."

Shelby's face grew long as she sipped Champagne.

"What's wrong now?" Izzy asked.

Shelby lowered her gaze. "I'm not proud of the way I treated Matt. I blew him off when I found out he works construction. Luke gave me a dose of my own medicine. This whole experience has helped me realize how obsessed I've been with money."

"I hate to tell you, Shelby, but despite his occupation, Matt comes from a very old, well-established, and wealthy family."

Shelby jerked her head up. "What? Then why were you so rude about his grandmother the other day?"

Izzy appeared genuinely perplexed. "Was I rude? I didn't mean to be. Adele and I aren't close friends, but we've been in the same bridge club for years. Adele's son, Richard, grew up with Pritchard."

Shelby burst out laughing. "Cute! Richard and Pritchard."

Izzy smiled. "It's a mouthful. Richard is a nice man. He handles all our insurance needs."

"I'm glad Matt's family meets your approval. That's another reason to celebrate," Shelby said, draining the last of her Champagne.

Blossom arrived with their salads—arugula with perfectly ripened honeydew, tiny balls of mozzarella cheese, and prosciutto. She refilled their glasses and said, "I see you ladies are successfully identifying your blessings."

Shelby dug her thumb into her chest. "I have. Now it's Izzy's turn."

"I would be hard-pressed to find something to celebrate about my sad life."

Blossom lay a hand on Izzy's shoulder. "I have faith in you."

* * *

Isabelle toyed with her salad while considering how much to tell her granddaughter. Finally, she set down her fork without taking a bite and stared across the table at Shelby. The young woman was strikingly beautiful despite not wearing any makeup. Physically, Shelby reminded Isabelle of Kate at this age, but her granddaughter's personality was more like her own. Kate had been right. They were both stubborn and headstrong with chips on their shoulders. Perhaps Shelby could learn something from Isabelle's mistakes.

"Years ago, I made an error in judgment that greatly affected several people's lives," Isabelle said, and she told Shelby the saga of Savannah, Pritchard, and Harper. She stared down at her untouched salad while she talked. Tears blurred her vision, but she forced herself not to cry. When she finished her sad tale, she slowly lifted her gaze to Shelby's face, where she found the disgust she expected.

"That's bad, Izzy. Really bad." Shelby pushed her empty plate away and fell back in her chair. "Now I understand why Savannah and Harper hate you so much."

A searing pain ripped across Isabelle's chest. "Let's not mince words."

"You're lucky Pritchard still loves you."

Fresh tears pricked her eyelids. "Prichard doesn't love me. He tolerates me."

Blossom bustled out of the kitchen, balancing a large tray in one hand over her head. Noticing Isabelle's teary eyes, she said, "Uh-oh! If we can't make nice, I'll have to take away the Champagne."

Setting the tray down on a nearby table, she removed their salads and set their dinner plates in front of them. On each plate were two soft-shell crabs on a mound of garlic cheese grits covered in corn salad.

"This looks delicious, Blossom," Shelby said.

"Thank you, child. Be sure to save room for dessert. I'm making Key lime pie, as light and fluffy as a Florida cloud." After whispering something in Shelby's ear, Blossom retrieved her tray and went back to the kitchen without pouring them more Champagne.

Isabelle pointed her fork at Blossom's retreating figure. "What did she say to you?"

"That I should be nice to you because you feel awful about what happened with Pritchard and Savannah," Shelby said, breaking off a crab leg and crunching it with her teeth.

"I do feel awful. My actions shaped their lives," Isabelle said, running her fork through her grits.

"Have you tried apologizing?"

Isabelle shook her head. "I haven't been able to find the words. An apology seems inadequate after what I did."

"Maybe, but it's a start," Shelby said, breaking her soft-shell crab in half.

"I hoped to talk to Pritchard this morning, but then he sprung his expansion plans on me, turning my life upside down."

Shelby's teal eyes widened. "What expansion plans?"

Isabelle told her granddaughter about the discovery of Edward's journal and Pritchard's determination to see her late husband's plan through.

"Now that's something to celebrate." Shelby grabbed the Champagne bottle and filled both their glasses. "The Sanctuary sounds amazing. Tell me more about this new building."

"Thirty new guest rooms will be housed on the second and third floors. The ground floor will have a reservations lobby, spa, restaurant, cocktail lounge, and upscale gift shop. The main house will revert to being my home."

"How can you not be thrilled about this, Izzy? You're getting what you want."

"I've never wanted any part of this mayhem. You're young, Shelby, with a bright future ahead of you. If you decide to stay at Magnolia Shores, you could one day be running the resort. But I'm an old lady. I have nothing to contribute to either the family or the business."

"Oh. I see. You're upset because you're getting old, not because Pritchard is making Granddaddy's dream come true."

Isabelle's skin crawled. Was she that transparent? "When did you get to be so ruthless?"

Shelby shrugged. "I'm a chip off my grandmother's block."

Isabelle lifted her glass. "Touché."

"Seriously, Izzy. You're looking at this all wrong. You could play a vital role in this new plan. As grand mistress of Magnolia Shores, you could host afternoon teas. Think of all the interesting people you'd meet. You could take guests on nature walks like you used to do with Grace and me when we were little."

Isabelle's face softened. "You remember those?"

"How could I forget?" Shelby swept an arm at the dunes and ocean beyond. "You know more about the Lowcountry's natural habitat than anyone in our family. You should share that knowledge with our guests. As well as the history of Magnolia Shores. The story of how our family came to be here is fascinating. You could have bakeoffs in the kitchen and whiskey tastings in the afternoons. I mean, the possibilities are endless."

"When did you get so creative?"

Shelby pressed her hands to her head. "I'm not sure. The ideas keep coming. It must be the Champagne. I think I'll have some more." She emptied the bottle into her glass. "We can build a second dock and have our own mini marina, offering kayak and paddleboard rentals, sightseeing trips, and water taxis to town."

As they finished supper, Shelby babbled on about her ideas for the resort. Isabelle couldn't help but smile. The girl's enthusiasm was contagious.

Isabelle dabbed at her lips and pushed her empty plate away. "You need to write these ideas down to share them with Pritchard."

Shelby grew still, her fork frozen in midair. "I will. Does this mean you approve of the expansion?"

"As much as I'm ever going to approve. You've helped me see that it's time for me to step aside and let you young folks handle the dirty work. I will be the grand mistress of Magnolia Shores. Thank you for your vote of confidence, Shelby. I will focus my efforts on providing activities for our guests. As it happens, I am well versed in the art of entertainment." Isabelle frowned. "But before we can move forward, I must figure out how to apologize to Pritchard, Savannah, and Harper."

"That's easy," Shelby said with a flick of her wrist.

Isabelle planted her elbows on the table. "Okay, smarty pants. If it's so easy, tell me how I go about it."

Shelby tapped her chin. "Hmm, let's see. You should invite them over. Not for dinner. And definitely not for drinks. You need everyone to keep a level head. Maybe tomorrow afternoon around five. You can meet with them in the cottage or Edward's study if you can find somewhere to sit."

Isabelle bit down on her lower lip to keep it from quivering. "What do I say to them?"

"Tell them you're sorry. Own up to your mistake and let them know how much you regret what happened. It's not what you say, Izzy. It's how you say it. The apology must come from your heart."

"How do you know so much about apologies?"

"Because I've spent the last year apologizing to Luke."

Isabelle tilted her head to the side. "I don't understand."

"Luke never gave me a legitimate reason for breaking up with me. He said our relationship had run its course, but I convinced myself I'd done something wrong. I apologized for every single thing I might have done to turn him away. I basically apologized for being me."

Isabelle patted her hand. "You should never apologize for being yourself, Shelby. You have much to offer the world."

"Thanks for your vote of confidence, Izzy." Shelby glanced down at her phone on the table. "My friends are blowing me up about the picture I posted."

"Are you going to respond?"

"Nope." Shelby turned her phone face down. "I'll let them wonder. I don't care about those people anymore. My life is here now."

Blossom came out of the kitchen with three slices of Key lime pie and sat down at the table with them. "I'm sensing a more positive vibe between you two. I assume this means you identified reasons to celebrate."

Isabelle looked over at her granddaughter. "We did. More importantly, I believe we've buried the hatchet."

Shelby gave Isabelle a definitive nod. "We did." She flashed Blossom a mischievous grin. "Can we have more Champagne?"

Blossom held out empty hands. "I don't have any more to offer you, child. Besides, I think you've had enough."

Shelby giggled. "You're probably right. I'm definitely a little tipsy."

After they finished their dessert, Blossom refused their offer to help clean up and sent them off to bed.

Isabelle and Shelby walked together to the courtyard. "Where are you sleeping these days?" Isabelle asked.

Shelby pointed at the far corner window on the second floor of the pool house. "The room at the end of the hall on the second floor. It's so small, I wouldn't feel right renting it to our guests."

"You're welcome to move back into the cottage if you change your mind."

Shelby hesitated. "Thanks. But we're better off having our own space."

Isabelle sensed something still bothering Shelby. "You're disappointed in me. I can see it in your eyes. I'm . . ." The word was on her lips, but she couldn't bring herself to say it. "I'll try to do better in the future."

Shelby embraced her. "No worries, Izzy. I'm not the one you need to apologize to."