Wanting You

Chapter 8 Restart

Aiden stood at the end of the driveway directing the sign company to the exact spot where he wanted the brand-new sign for the inn to sit. They'd never had a sign on the road near the entrance. Flannery was tucked in his arms purring.

"That's perfect," he said, admiring the placement. It was a beautiful sign about four feet high. It was large, wooden and had The Apple Blossom Inn scrolled in beautiful calligraphy across the top and a shiny red apple painted in the center. Surrounding it were huge baskets with large red glass apples brimming over the top. The apples were attached to the basket by aquarium epoxy. It looked stunning.

This was the last thing that needed to be done to complete the renovation of the inn. When the sign crew left, Aiden walked down the center of the new driveway and smiled. He looked about him and all he could see was the beauty of the inn restored to its heyday, with a few additions.

He'd had the front porch extended and added a beautiful wooden rail. The porch was long enough now to fit four wooden rocking chairs with bright red cushions. The new burgundy painted window boxes were filled with burnt orange chrysanthemums, cardinal red dahlias, and purple tibouchinas. Above the door, the original Apple Blossom sign had been restored too, below the door was a big black mat with Welcome written in red.

Flannery hopped out of his arms and started rolling around in the new grass. She seemed to enjoy the softness of it. He walked into the lodge and heard the dinging of the bells, but still wasn't used to a crew not being there. I'll have to do something about that.

Everything inside the lodge had changed too. His eyes took in the new pictures on the walls, all with rustic themes. The fireplace had been resurfaced so that the entire wall was made of beautiful modern gray stone. The old antler chandelier was replaced by an artistic wagon will with 8 bright globes on the circumference. New rust colored drapes had been hung, open to an expansive view of the mountains. The dated red sofa was replaced by a new black leather set. The remnant smell of fresh paint hung in the air.

"Wonderful," he sighed. Then he walked towards the fireplace and warmed himself. Flannery came back through the pet door and sauntered over to him. The two of them laid down on the bear rug. That was the only thing that remained in the lobby from the old days.

He had a very contented look on his face. The only thing that would have made him happier was if Jas had warmed up to him. She was different ever since the day he and Bruce were in the kitchen. It was as if she wanted to talk, but couldn't bring herself to it. Aiden hated the strain between them.

He never noticed that Jas had been standing on the landing upstairs watching him as he came through the door. Flannery has more sense than I do. Jas was a little jealous of that cat. Flannery simply adored Aiden, becoming his shadow. Jas felt a sting each time she noticed the bond between them.

Even as she was watching them now, from the landing, Flannery was curled under his hand as they lay by the fire. Flannery was the one that got a chance to sit on his lap, to curl up in his arms and to have his soft stroke upon her back. She was the one that got a chance to purr in response being near him and nuzzle against him any time that she wanted to. Thinking about it made her agitated, but why? She'd shot down all of Aiden's advances.

She regretfully began to notice that during the last two week Aiden had stopped coming around her as much. He wasn't stopping by the reception desk. He wasn't following them into the kitchen asking could he help. All his invitations to come sit with him had all but dried up. Maybe I've been too hard on him.

She often watched him, thinking about what life would have been like if things had gone well. The sight of him was addicting and she couldn't get enough of how handsome he was. Nor how beautiful he was on the inside, as reflected by how he'd restored the inn. Yet, Jas always made sure to keep at a distance. Ever since her conversation with Nanna, she'd thought about life a lot.