She grinned. “I’m a thrifty Scotswoman. It takes me a while to part with money.”
Emily had moved here from Scotland all those years ago with her boyfriend, who was going into business with one of our local fishermen. Sadly, a year later, the boyfriend mysteriously disappeared and was presumed lost at sea. Emily was devastated but decided to stay in Lighthouse Cove. She had only recently opened her tea shop and had a few good close friends who saw her through the tragedy.
“Where’s the house?” I asked.
“It’s over on Emerald Way,” she said. “Overlooking North Bay.”
I could picture the neighborhood with its glorious pine trees and amazing view of the coast. I’d worked on a number of homes in that area, and as far as I could remember, there was only one available house and it was . . . whoa. “You bought the old Rawley Mansion?”
“Yes,” Emily said, and paused to pat her chest. “I get a little breathless when I think about it. I can’t wait for you all to see it.”
I exchanged a look of concern with Jane and knew she was recalling the Halloween night when we were seven years old and I had dared her to look in one of the windows on the Rawleys’ front porch. She took the dare, but after one quick peek, she screamed and ran away. I wasn’t smart enough to follow but instead peeked inside myself and saw a beautiful woman with golden hair wearing an old-fashioned dress, sitting at a desk near the window, crying. She looked up and her smile was so sad, I wanted to cry too. I touched the glass, reaching out—until I realized I could see right through her. She was a ghost!
For years, I’d been convincing myself that it was just a silly Halloween trick. What else could it be? I quickly covered my unease with a happy smile. “If you need any help with renovation or with the move itself, I’m available.”
“We’ll all help,” Jane said.
“Thank you. That means so much.” Emily blinked, overcome with emotion. “And yes, Shannon, I would love your help with the rehab. It needs a lot of work,” she admitted, “but I had to have this house. I can’t explain it, but it spoke to me. It’s going to look like a fairy castle when it’s all spiffed up. I can’t wait to move in.”
“When do you close escrow?” Lizzie asked.
“Since nobody’s living there, I was able to get a fifteen-day escrow.”
“Good grief, that’s fast,” Marigold murmured. She had left her Amish community years ago but still preferred to live at a slower pace than the rest of us.
Lizzie nodded. “The faster she closes the deal, the faster Shannon can get started on the rehab.”
“Well, then.” Jane raised her glass again. “Here’s to Emily’s castle.”
“May all your dreams come true,” Lizzie said fondly, and we drank down the rest of the sparkly champagne.
Now, as I gazed up at the old house, I knew Emily really needed help. Still, the place had good bones, and that was what counted. Right?
At the thought of good bones, I shivered. I wondered if Emily had heard the tales of old Grandma Rawley’s ghost still haunting the place. It didn’t matter. All those scary stories were just silly urban legends and tricks, meant to frighten small children on Halloween. Weren’t they?
I brushed those thoughts aside. Everything would be fine. There was no such thing as ghosts. I repeated the mantra as I studied how the roof rolled and dipped in spots.
Emily’s delicate features registered doubt as the sun slipped behind a cloud and the house grew even darker. “Perhaps I exaggerated a bit, thinking you might be able to turn it into a fairy castle.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll make it beautiful for you,” I assured her, and I meant it. Making Victorian homes look beautiful was my business, after all.
Years ago, our town had been designated a national historical landmark because of all the Victorian-era homes and buildings located here. The Rawley Mansion had once been a gorgeous example of that nineteenth-century Victorian style, before the last Rawley heir died and their gracious home was left to rot. But it didn’t have to stay that way. Within a few months, my crew and I would restore it to its original luster and this shadowy eyesore before us would be a vague memory.
“Thank you, Shannon.” She slung her arm around my shoulders and gave me a quick squeeze. “If anyone can do it, you can.”
“Never doubt it.”
She laughed. “I did for a while, but now I must admit I’m starting to get excited.”
“I don’t blame you. The house is amazing.”
She looked up at the imposing structure. “Or it soon will be.”