Aging with Gracie (7 page)

The rest of the place was a designer’s dilemma, however, and questions abounded in Grace’s mind. Tile, wood, or carpeting for the floors? What about wall colors? And the question that seemed to cause the most anxiety: How will the updates meet handicap and fire codes...and still be aesthetically pleasing? It was a monumental task to tackle, but Grace felt that she was game. She simply needed some help...and at present, it seemed that the
help
was nowhere to be found.

She glanced at her simple platinum watch. Jack Ellis was officially three minutes late for their appointment. Minutes that Grace, with practically a million things to do, could not spare. She had just learned from the building inspector that they had exactly two weeks to meet fire codes. She looked toward her tote as if it might hold an answer to his whereabouts, or, at the very least, a game-winning business plan.

Unfortunately, she had begun to understand that general contractors fell into a league of their own. As the game stood, Grace’s team was close to circling the drain, and her special teams coach was rapidly heading for a “delay of game” penalty. He had exactly one and a half minutes to get his tight little tush there, or she was prepared to send him packing just like she had that sweaty menace, Mr. Watson.

Wait a minute
, Grace thought.
Fire him?

She considered the option for a moment before another thought crossed her mind.

Can I actually fire him
?

She flipped open her laptop and accessed the files containing her job description and the contract with Jackson Ellis Construction. She scanned the wording and found her answer.

Sweet
!

The theme song for her old middle school basketball team came to mind, and she began to hum. Her feet itched to do a victory dance, but unfortunately, even if she were suddenly and miraculously gifted with an innate ability to dance, she was still seriously hindered by her present injuries.

She glanced around and realized that, though she was by far the youngest person in the room, she was very nearly the most incapacitated. She knew for a fact that most of the residents could take her in a foot race. Emma Walters, a sweet little eighty-year-old woman who had taken to following her around the facility, was certainly proof of that. Grace had even attempted to lose the woman on the back hallway earlier that day, but Emma had dogged her tracks like a hound on a raccoon.

Goodness gracious! I’m already picking up the regional lingo. Is there no escape from this backwoods place
?

Just as she decided that she could take no more of Mansfield Park...at least for the day...her handsome prince arrived.

Despite her annoyance at his tardiness, she couldn’t help but absorb the sight of him. One would think that Grace would tire of looking at Jack Ellis, but she was a glutton for visual punishment where he was concerned. She had already decided that the person who marketed those hip-hugging, low-riding jeans of his had to be making a mint. For crying out loud! She was almost prepared to chip in half her trust fund just to see them a couple of times each day.

Grace’s pulse hummed. Before she reached her twentieth calming breath, he was at her side.

“Gracie!” Jack’s smile was so infectious that she didn’t even correct him for using the pet name he’d given her...although she had royally protested the first time he’d used it.

“Jack,” she managed, her previous ire dissipating with each second in his presence. “Busy morning?”

“So far,” he nodded his head and pulled out the only remaining chair at the table. Between her foot, her suitcase-sized briefcase, and her own backside, Grace had the other three covered. As he dragged his right hand through his hair, Grace noticed that it was peppered with sawdust.

“What’s going on today?” She had been reviewing the time-line for the renovation, and she was interested to see how close they were to achieving the projected goal.

“We’ve gutted the recreation room and started on the plumbing for the whirlpool area. It’s a mess in there.”

“I can imagine.” She got a momentary grip on her schoolgirl crush and proceeded to the reason for her meeting. “I received a call from the building inspector this morning.”

“Yeah, me too.” He clenched his jaw and let out a heavy sigh. “Already breathing down our necks.”

“He said that an anonymous complaint was phoned in regarding our lack of safety features.”

“Watson?”

“You think so, too?” Grace was shocked to find that she was not as paranoid as she had believed.

“Either him or that sneaky head nurse he’s involved with.”

“Miss North?”

“Yeah, that’s her,” he nodded. “That one’s definitely trouble. You can’t treat old folks the way she does and have a heart. I’d keep my eye on her.”

“I will,” she assured him. “I’m actually planning to release her from her duties as soon as possible, but I’ve been unable to find a replacement. She’s the only registered nurse on staff, and the state requires a licensed person when medications are involved. That’s a big part of our job here.”

“Medications?”

“Storing them and seeing that the residents take their medicine as prescribed.”

“I see.” He smiled then, and Grace barely caught herself before her chin hit the table.

“How’s the patient doing?” He pointed to her arm then leaned down to get a look at her ankle.

Grace froze for a moment then sighed in relief. Because of her injuries, she hadn’t shaved in over a week. If only she’d listened to her cousin, Sophia, and endured the pain of laser hair removal. Oh well, hindsight, and all that. At least she was safe for today with her ensemble of ankle brace and pleated trousers

“My ankle is coming along nicely, but the arm is giving me fits,” she admitted. For the past two days, she had attempted the range of motion exercises the doctor had prescribed, but they were painful. Since Grace did not handle pain very well and had sworn off pain killers after her embarrassing behavior with Jack, her efforts hadn’t been all that effective.

“Hurt a lot?” He touched her left hand, the one on the pillow. She considered jerking it away, but she’d been down the
sudden movement
road already, and her arm was having none of the pain she’d experienced with that. She’d finally figured out that her arm would cooperate only with the gentlest pampering.

“Excruciating.” Grace played up her misery for a moment then smiled. “Not really as bad as that, but still a nuisance.”

Jack traced the veins in her hand, following them up her arm until he reached the bend. He moved his hand around to cup her elbow, and she felt his warmth flow through her skin.

“That pretty boy doctor said that it will take you weeks, maybe months, to regain the complete use of your arm. Don’t try to rush it, okay?” He clasped his hands in front of him on the table as if he felt a need to keep them otherwise occupied.

“I’m trying.” She flexed her fingers. Jack’s touch had sent tingling sensations streaking from her elbow to her fingertips. “There’s just so much to do around here, and I want everything to go smoothly.”

“Princess, this place is already a world apart from what it was a week ago.” He glanced around the dining room.

The dining space was next on his...or rather, Grace’s…agenda. Jack had wanted to start working on some of the resident rooms, but Grace had insisted that the dining room come next. Her reasoning was sound, but Jack hated admitting it. Working for her, a woman he’d always assumed was a spoiled Daddy’s girl, was harder than he’d expected it to be. In fact, he had only taken the job because he’d assumed Paul Woodhouse would be handling the major decisions. Dealing with the debutante was certainly more of a challenge.

“Maybe it would be a good idea to have your father send up a replacement for you,” he began, but he quickly backpedaled as her eyes narrowed. “I’m just saying that with your injuries and all...”

“I know perfectly well what you’re saying, Jack Ellis,” Grace snapped. “You don’t think I’m cut out for the job, do you?”

“It’s not exactly that,” he wavered.

“Then what exactly is it?”

“You’re fresh out of school, Grace. This is your first real assignment.”

“And?”

“And...all I’m saying is that we’re talking about people here. This is not just some project for your thesis.”

“I recognize what’s at stake here, Jack.” Grace glared at him as she tapped her pen against the already battered dining room table. “I’m not stupid.”

“I know all about you graduating with highest honors. My grandparents talked about it for weeks,” he mumbled. “I just wish you would look at the entire picture here. The decisions that are made here will affect lives. They will determine the quality of life around here.”

He motioned toward a group of residents huddled around a sparse buffet. “Don’t you think they deserve the best we can give them?”

“What do you think I’m doing?” Her voice was steadily rising along with her anger.

Grace pushed the stack of handwritten suggestions she had removed from the suggestion box earlier toward him. The residents had wasted no time giving their input. The suggestions were well thought out, some concise, others very eloquent.

“What are these?”

“Suggestions from the residents,” she told him. “You may not agree with my tactics, Jack, but I really do have the best interests of the residents at heart.”

“What do they say?”

“Read them for yourself,” she challenged him. “The residents seem to think we have a ways to go before things are set right.
I’m
willing to work toward that goal. Are
you
?”

Jack grumbled. She’d been slick about acquiring it, but he knew that Grace had gained the upper hand in their battle of wills...at least for the time being.

“What’s on their minds?” He picked up a sheet of pink stationary and began to read. “A beauty parlor?” He chuckled. “Why in the world would they need one of those?”

“It kind of makes sense.” Grace felt her defensive mode kick in. “You have no idea how hard it is to maintain that blue color some of these women walk around with.” That earned her a smile. “Really, Jack. A woman still wants to feel beautiful...no matter what her age might be. Some of our residents still drive, but many of them have a hard time finding transportation, especially during the colder months.”

“I suppose you’re right,” he agreed as he handed the paper back to her. “What else?”

“Better work-out equipment, a stereo and intercom system for music and announcements in the common areas, holiday decorations...” Grace rattled off several of the suggestions.

“Good grief! It’s not even October, and they’re thinking about decorating for the holidays?”

“I suppose so,” she shrugged. “You have to realize, Jack. Many of these people decorated for their children and grandchildren for years. Not to mention, we have our own little colony of retired schoolteachers. Don’t you remember all those gaudy holiday decorations we used to have in school?”

“I see your point,” he admitted. “Oh, by the way...” he began.

Grace looked up from her paperwork and gave him her full attention.

“The stereo system you mentioned earlier is a done deal.”

“What do you mean?”

“This place already has a brand-new sound system. The crew came across it during the electrical inspection. Looks like it’s never been used.”

“Where’s the control station?”

He laughed, and she wondered what was humorous about her question.

“That’s the funny part,” he explained. “It’s no wonder the thing hasn’t been used. We found it in a closet in the women’s restroom down the hall.”

“You’re kidding.” Grace shook her head, and Jack raised his hands in the air.

“A southern gentleman never tells a lady a lie.” He returned her list to the table. “Let me know if you need help getting it to work. The electrician has already re-wired it so that there are controls in both the nursing station and the director’s office. It has a radio, but there’s a CD changer and an auxiliary hook-up, too.”

“Thanks,” she said with a smile. “I’ll look at it later.”

“I guess I’ll get back to work, then. We’ve got a lot of it to do. If we’re lucky, we’ll finish up a couple of weeks before Christmas. Just in time to get all those decorations up, right?”

As Jack flashed his smile in a half-hearted way that led her to believe he wasn’t promising anything in regards to the time-line, everything she’d ever heard about contractors and deadlines came to mind. She just prayed that her contractor didn’t turn out of be a snake in the grass!

“It’s doable, Jack,” she pointed out. His smile had disarmed her again, and she shuffled the suggestions nervously.

I’m so pathetic,
she thought.
I can barely sit at a table with the man without fawning all over him.

“So, the Princess deems it possible?”

Grace started to argue, but she knew that Jack would have a comeback for anything she said. Instead of engaging in the sparring match, she played along.

“It’s a royal decree.” She raised her brows in her haughtiest expression.

“Well, your wish is my command, Highness.” He smiled obsequiously.

“I thought the day would never come when Jack Ellis bowed to my will,” she preened. He didn’t comment, so Grace got back to the business at hand. “So, what’s the rest of the day looking like?”

“Drywall and ceramic tiles,” he paused.