Chapter 24

Ronni, Grace and Morgan gathered in Locke Pointe's kitchen first thing the following morning to compare notes.

"Well?" Morgan beamed. "I don't know about either of you, but as far as I'm concerned, last night's Li-Locke Fall Gathering was a resounding success."

"It went better than I ever imagined," Grace said. "Every single inn guest stopped me after it ended and told me how much they enjoyed it. And I bet you'll be able to guess what their favorite part was."

"Lilac Inn and Locke Pointe Bed-and-Breakfast co-hosting," Ronni said.

"They loved making even more new friends, checking out the other property and sampling the dishes," Morgan said. "I call it a major win, which means we need to keep it going."

"Let's plan on hosting this every Friday evening through November." Grace tapped her pen on top of her notepad. "Before December rolls around, we'll brainstorm again and come up with a Christmas-themed event."

"And then Valentine's Day, followed by Easter. The sky is the limit," Ronni said.

"I have to admit, I was surprised when I found out Amber Marais had booked a stay at your place," Grace said.

"You know her?"

"I grew up with her. She was the most popular kid in school. Captain of the cheerleading squad. Valedictorian, graduating with honors and even getting a scholarship to Brown University."

"Brown University." Morgan arched a brow. "I'm impressed."

Grace rubbed her thumb and index fingers together. "Her parents were…are loaded. Her father's company built half of Port Huron. They once lived on the island, at Marais Manor, but moved away."

"I thought the last name sounded vaguely familiar," Ronni said. "I guess I never connected the dots."

"She seemed very curious about me," Morgan said.

"If you had been raised on Easton Island, you would have crossed paths, although I'm not sure you would have been friends. She was snooty," Grace said. "You're the exact opposite, way more approachable and down-to-earth."

"Does Brett know her?"

Grace thought about it. "I'm not sure. We're all about the same age. She may have been a year or two behind him grade wise, so maybe not."

"She mentioned Wyatt and asked if I knew him."

Grace's eyes grew round as saucers. "What did you say?"

"I told her I did, although I didn't feel it was necessary to elaborate. She was giving off a weird vibe." Morgan could tell from the look on her friend's face that there was something else. "What is it?"

"Amber and Wyatt dated. They were ‘the couple.' Homecoming king and queen. He was the football team's quarterback. Everyone thought…" Grace's voice trailed off.

"Thought what?" Morgan prompted.

"They would get married someday." Grace hurried on. "They broke up when Amber left for Brown. Wyatt left for the military. He came back and became a cop."

"And Amber?"

Grace shrugged. "I never really kept track. Of course, I wasn't part of her squad or clique."

"Interesting," Morgan murmured. "I wonder why she's here now, or has she been a regular visitor to Easton Island?"

"Not that I know of. This is the first time I've seen her here in years."

"Maybe she saw you on the news, heard you and Wyatt were dating and was curious," Ronni said.

"It could be. Why didn't she just come clean and tell me she and Wyatt dated? I mean, it's not like they broke up yesterday."

"Maybe she's spying on you," Grace said. "After all these years, she came back to track down her childhood sweetheart and found out about you. What easier way to get the inside scoop than to stay under your roof?"

"True. Thank you for filling me in. This answers a lot of questions," Morgan said.

"Including why she had a list of demands before she ever stepped foot on the property," Ronni said.

Grace blinked rapidly. "A list of demands?"

Morgan ticked off several that came to mind. "I can't remember them all. Although, to her credit, she apologized for coming across as demanding."

"You have to understand she was queen bee. Everyone wanted to be friends with Amber Marais," Grace said. "Although, as I already mentioned, if Morgan Easton had been around, it might have been a different story."

"She also seemed curious about my family."

"Because the Easton family makes the Marais family look like paupers."

"Not to change the subject." Ronni tapped Morgan's arm. "With the hustle and bustle of last night, I forgot to ask you about Gerard's proposal. Did you have any idea he was going to pop the question?"

"Not a clue. Did you see how happy they both looked?" Morgan asked.

"They do," Grace said. "I know it's none of my business, but what do you think, Morgan?"

"If Grandmother is happy, then I'm all for it. If marrying Gerard and splitting her time between Easton Island and Toronto makes her happy, I couldn't be more thrilled."

"The timing was perfect. After all these years, Elizabeth finally agrees to reopen the airport and now she'll become its best customer."

Morgan laughed. "You're right. I'll have to point that out to her."

"What about Brett?" Grace folded her arms. "Were you able to work through your issues?"

"We have. He's going to partner with Mr. Wynn and me. In fact, I contacted Mr. Wynn this morning. He signed the revised contract, adding Brett so it's a done deal. I'll be taking over some Easton Holdings' responsibilities. I'll also be watching more closely to make sure he's not overdoing it."

"You're going to be very busy." Grace wrinkled her nose. "Taking care of this place, taking on more Easton Holdings' workload and now the Wynn Harbor Inn project."

"Ronni handles most of the day-to-day operations," Morgan said. "There's really not much for me to do."

"And if something pops up, Morgan is always available," Ronni chimed in.

"Before I forget, how is Quinn?" Grace asked.

"She texted me to let me know she made it to Florida. I haven't heard from her since. She's only been gone a couple of days. I'm sure she'll check in."

"Or at least check in with Elizabeth," Ronni said. "The more I thought about it, the more I agree perhaps a little time away is best. She was getting pretty wrapped up in the Easton family."

"In more ways than one," Morgan said. "Brett has talked to her. She's busy helping her parents get ready to move so she didn't give him a definite date on when she'll return. Although he seems to think she'll be home soon."

The women made chit chat, planning to meet up mid-week to tweak the event before the following Friday's repeat and went their different ways.

Ronni left to run a few errands. Grace headed back to her place, and Morgan wandered into the office. She took a quick look at the upcoming reservation schedule. Mulling over what Grace had said, Morgan pulled up Amber Marais' reservation.

It listed a Bloomfield Hills, Michigan address. A quick Google search revealed the woman lived in what would easily be considered an affluent suburb north of Detroit. Still curious, she accessed several social media sites searching for Amber's profile. She found one and although it was marked "private" the cover photo showed a smiling Amber with the Eiffel Tower in the background.

Several other collage photos were below it, all taken in exotic locations—an Egyptian pyramid, the Tower of London, and ancient ruins of some sort. Morgan also noticed a beach scene and suspected it might be Hawaii, or maybe it was Florida. Clearly, Amber lived the blessed life. So why the sudden interest in Easton Island?

Morgan traipsed into the kitchen. Tina stood at the counter kneading dough to make homemade bread. "Thank you for all of your help yesterday."

"You're welcome."

"The guests loved it. In fact, we'll be hosting another party this Friday."

"I would keep on doing it as long as it makes them happy," Tina said. "Speaking of making guests happy, our new solo guest was here early this morning, asking about taking a bicycle into town. She seems a little more laidback and not as demanding."

"Amber." Morgan told her about the apology. "She grew up on Easton Island."

"What is her last name? You may have mentioned it but I forgot."

"Marais."

"Ah. No wonder. The Marais family has oodles of money, or at least had."

"Which could be why she's a little on the picky side." Morgan meandered to the window, staring out, weighing whether she should mention it to Wyatt or give it a rest. "Maybe she heard about Locke Pointe and was curious."

"We get our share of those—curiosity seekers." Tina craned her neck, peering out the back window. "I see her coming now. She has something in the bike's basket."

Morgan hurried over to the other window, watching as Amber cruised past, on her way to the carriage house where the bikes were kept. She squinted her eyes. "It looks like flowers."

"Purple and lavender roses," Tina said. "I don't think I've ever seen that combination before."

Morgan could feel the blood drain from her face. "I have. I've seen those flowers before, and it was only a few weeks ago."