Page 1 of A New Chapter in Rosewood Beach (Rosewood Beach #7)

CHAPTER ONE

Vivian Owens smoothed back wisps of her short brown and gray hair and let out a sigh of contentment.

It was another busy Saturday afternoon at The Lighthouse Grill, the pub that she and her family owned and ran in Rosewood Beach.

She was feeling slightly out of breath from all of the hurrying around she’d been doing, but her body was humming pleasantly with adrenaline, and she felt that there was no place on earth she’d rather be.

She made her way back into the dining room, where the air was filled with the appetizing aromas of fried potatoes, clam chowder, and cheeseburgers.

Customers talked and laughed, and the sound of their clinking glasses and silverware added a sort of accompaniment to the melody of their conversations.

“Vivian!” An older woman who was one of the pub’s regulars waved to her. She was seated at a table along with five women Vivian didn’t recognize.

Vivian smiled and hurried over. “Hi, Molly! Is everything all right?” she asked cheerfully. “Does someone need something?”

Molly shook her head so emphatically it made her beaded earrings swish back and forth.

“No, ma’am. Not at all. I just wanted to introduce you to my friends here.

They’re visiting from out of town for the month.

We’ve having such a great time, and they’re amazed by how good the food is even though I already told them that it would be. ”

Vivian laughed, feeling thrilled by the compliment. Even though customers had been telling her for years how wonderful the food was at The Lighthouse Grill, she never got tired of hearing it. “I’m so glad you like it.”

“This sauce is just divine,” one of Molly’s friends said, holding up her grilled chicken sandwich. “What is it?”

Vivian shook her head, smiling. “It’s a secret family recipe, I’m afraid. We’re famous for it.”

“Mm! Well, I guess that means I have to come back here if I want to eat it.” The woman laughed.

“I was reading about your place in the newspaper last week,” another one of the women said.

“There was that article talking about how you started this place with your husband, and how it’s become one of the most popular places in town, if not the most popular.

The article said you run The Lighthouse Grill with your kids? ”

Vivian nodded, feeling happy. “I do. Two of my daughters used to live in big cities in other states—L.A. and New York—but after their father’s funeral, they both decided to stay here in Connecticut with the rest of us.

It’s been amazing having us all together again.

Alexis is usually a waitress here, although now she’s taking a break because of her pregnancy, and Julia does our marketing and some other management duties. ”

“I just think that’s so sweet,” Molly said warmly. “Alexis is the one who made my earrings, girls.”

The women around the table cooed with appreciation. Alexis made a lot of jewelry as a side business, and her online store was immensely popular, especially with local people.

“Ah! I thought those looked familiar.” Vivian smiled at her. “They look great on you.”

Molly grinned. “Thanks. Alexis custom-made these for me. She let me pick out the colors and everything. Your kids are all wonderful, Vivian. Hard-working and creative. I love that your family is so involved in your business.”

“You said that in the article, didn’t you?” another woman said. “You credited your success to the help of your children. Do they all work for you?”

“Not really.” Vivian waved a hand in the air. “They’ve just all helped out in times when it was needed. I know I can count on them to keep the pub running. They care about it as much as I do.”

She smiled quietly to herself as she remembered how her children had organized a fundraiser to save The Lighthouse Grill when she’d learned about her husband Frank’s secret gambling debts after his passing.

They’d also been struggling against a conniving businessman at the time, Judd McCormick, who owned a local brewery and was trying to pressure them into selling him The Lighthouse Grill.

In the end, it had all worked out beautifully, and now the pub was more beloved and doing better than it ever had before.

Vivian knew that it never would have happened without the help of her children.

They had wonderful ideas, and they were willing to roll up their sleeves and work hard for the family restaurant.

And even more than that, their support gave her the strength she needed to do what she needed to do.

If she’d had to do everything on her own, she knew it all would have turned out very differently.

She’d been reeling from the news that her husband had betrayed her and kept such a terrible secret from her along with dealing with the grief of losing him.

For a while there, she’d been sure that her business was going to go down.

Because of her children, however, every aspect of her life was now thriving.

She asked the women again if they needed anything.

They assured her they would let her know if they did, and she left their table, feeling lighthearted and pleased.

Happy customers were one of the special joys of owning a restaurant, and she never got tired of hearing that they were pleased with their meals.

She stepped into the kitchen, where her daughter Julia was walking toward the doors to the dining room. Julia was wearing a chic blue blouse with dark slacks and glossy flats, and Vivian thought to herself that her daughter looked absolutely beautiful.

It’s that prewedding glow, she thought to herself with a chuckle. I can tell that Julia is on cloud nine about marrying Cooper.

“Hey, Mom.” Julia gave her a sideways hug. “How’s the rush?”

“Slowing down, finally.” Vivian laughed. “They really had us on our toes for a minute there.”

“Well, perfect. Time for you to take a break.” Julia kissed her mother on the side of the head.

“A break, huh? I don’t think I need to, sweetheart, I’m not that tired.”

“But you are tired, right? Come on, Mom. I’ll take a break with you. We can sit in the office together and drink some coffee.”

“Ooh, you’ve got a deal. Let’s go get some coffee.”

“I’ll get it. You go sit down and relax. You want cream and just a little sugar in yours?”

“Yes please.” Vivian smiled, feeling touched that her daughter remembered how she liked her coffee. “That sounds lovely.”

Julia went off to get them both cups of coffee, and Vivian went into the pub’s cozy little office.

It was a space that she shared with Julia, who used it more often than she did.

It was comfortably furnished and charmingly decorated, and ever since Julia had started using it regularly, it had become impressively organized.

Vivian sat down in the comfortable chair behind the desk.

She would have left it for Julia, but they’d taken breaks together like this many times, and Julia always insisted that her mother sit in the more comfortable chair.

She let out a sigh of contentment and closed her eyes for a moment, realizing that she was much more tired than she’d thought she was.

“Here we are!” Julia sang out a moment later as she returned to the room. “Two piping hot cups of coffee. This one is yours.” She set the cup that had more cream in it down in front of Vivian.

“Thank you, sweetheart.” Vivian smiled warmly at her. “This will just hit the spot.”

Julia grunted happily as she took a sip of her drink. “I sure need this, and I haven’t even been running around on my feet. I’ve just been in here balancing our books.”

Vivian chuckled. “Hey, math is hard work. Speaking of hard work, how is the wedding planning going?”

Julia grinned. “That doesn’t feel like hard work at all.

You know how much I love planning things, and this is the most wonderful thing I’ve ever gotten to plan.

” Her eyes shone as she spoke, and it was clear how much she loved her fiancé, Cooper.

“And it’s going well. We have most things figured out, I’d say. ”

“Wonderful.” Vivian smiled warmly. “Have you decided on what colors of flowers you want yet? Don’t forget you need to get the order to the florist this week.”

“Ahh!” Julia bit her lip as she smiled. “I haven’t forgotten.

I just haven’t decided on what colors and types of flowers I want yet.

” She laughed, seeming almost giddy in her indecision.

“Cooper doesn’t have any kind of preference, and he told me to pick out whatever I want.

That’s sweet of him, but I’m having trouble deciding.

I don’t know if I want something elaborate and brightly colorful, or something elegant, with soft colors.

Or even something sweet and folksy, like daisies and baby’s breath. ”

“I can understand your dilemma,” Vivian said sympathetically. “I know you love flowers as much as I do. Just think about what you feel would go best with the wedding colors you and Cooper have picked out.”

Julia nodded and took a thoughtful sip of her coffee. “I guess I shouldn’t complain about having so many good choices. It’s a much better problem to have than not having any good options.”

“So true. And our local florist is absolutely wonderful. Maybe you should go down there and talk with her again before deciding. I bet she can help you land on the right floral arrangement. And bring Cooper—even if he doesn’t care all that much, he’ll probably still have an opinion and that can help you decide. ”

“You’re right.” Julia brightened. “Those are great ideas, Mom, thank you. It’s always nice to have other people give their input. I bet the florist and Cooper will be able to point out things I haven’t thought about.”