Grand Passion

filled it. This was Thursday. By rights it should have been a slow night, but there was a surprising flurry of activity going on in the pouring rain. Men hurried back and forth between the parked cars and the lobby entrance, transporting bags and suitcases.
    Max finally found room for the Jag behind the kitchen. He parked, got out, and made his way toward the back door with a sense of bleak inevitability.
    The fragrant aroma of fresh bread and a curry-spiced stew enveloped him as he opened the kitchen door. Max allowed himself a moment to savor the warmth. Almost like coming home.
    Andromeda, intent on a pan full of steaming vegetables, looked up as the back door opened. A welcoming smile lit her eyes.
    “Max, you're home. Thank goodness. We're in a real panic here. A bunch of men who are supposed to be engaging in something called a Warriors' Journey on the beach got rained out. They all showed up here about an hour ago.”
    “Hi, Max.” Daystar brushed flour from her fingers. “How was the drive?”
    Trisha walked into the kitchen through the swinging door that opened onto the dining room. Max steeled himself against the hope in her eyes. Better to get this over with quickly, he decided.
    “I'm sorry, Trisha,” he said into the thick silence that had suddenly descended on the kitchen. “Ben's not with me.”
    Trisha's eyes glistened with tears. She nodded, as if she had already guessed the truth. “You saw him? He's okay?”
    “Yes. He's fine.” Max sought for something more to say. “He was worried about you.”
    “But not worried enough to come home.”
    “Cleo's right.” Max gripped the handle of his cane. “He's scared.”
    Trisha's smile was watery but real. “He's not the only one, but I'm luckier than he is. At least I've got family around me. He's all alone out there.”
    “Yes.” Max waited for her to blame him for his failure.
    “Thanks for driving all that way to talk to him.” Trisha crossed the room and put her arms briefly around Max. “If anyone could have talked him into coming home, it was you.” She hugged him quickly and stepped back. “You're a good friend, Max.”
    He searched her eyes and found no sign of rejection. “I don't know what Ben's going to do,” he warned, just in case Trisha had not fully understood that he had screwed up.
    “Well, it's up to Ben, isn't it?” Andromeda said calmly. “You spoke to him and let him know that his family wants him to come back. Now we'll just have to wait and see what he decides to do. In the meantime, we've got an inn to run.”
    “Max needs a cup of tea to warm him up before he leaps into the fray,” Daystar declared. “He must be chilled to the bone after that drive.”
    “I'll get you a cup, Max,” Trisha said. “Sit down.”
    Max glanced back toward the door. The Jaguar with his packed carryall in the trunk was waiting outside.
    Sylvia pushed open the kitchen door. “Everything okay in here? Looks like we're going to need dinner for twenty tonight. Mr. Quinton, the chief honcho of this bunch, said all his guys want red meat, can you believe it? I told him we don't serve red meat.” She stopped short when she saw Max. Her slow smile was filled with satisfaction. “Well, I'll be darned. You did come back. How was the drive?”
    “Wet. What made you think I wasn't coming back?” Max asked.
    “Sammy came rushing downstairs right after you left this morning and informed us that all your things were gone,” Sylvia said dryly. “Some of us naturally assumed that you had no intention of returning.”
    “I'm here.” Max started toward the kitchen nook where Trisha had set a cup of tea for him. “But I didn't bring Ben with me.”
    Sylvia sighed. “Can't say I'm surprised. But it was worth a shot. Thanks, Max. You went above and beyond the call of duty on this one. I'll bet you could use a shot of whiskey rather than a cup of tea. George keeps a bottle behind the front desk.”
    Max looked at Trisha. “Tea will do fine.”
    The kitchen door banged open again, and Sammy dashed into the room. He skidded to a halt, his eyes widening when he saw Max. “Hi, Max.” He dashed forward and seized Max's leg in a quick hug. “I was afraid you wouldn't come back.”
    Cleo appeared in the open doorway. “What's going on? I could use a little help with this crowd of manly males out here. They're milling around like so many bulls in a china shop. I think one of them is toting a spear—” She broke off when she saw Max.