grinned. “Thus the margaritas.”
“I made some killer guacamole,” Dana Sue added. “And I got a big ole bag of those tortilla chips you like, too, though all that salt will eventually kill you.”
Maddie looked from one to the other and sighed. “With you two scheming behind my back, something tells me I’m doomed anyway.”
The tart margarita was strong enough to make Maddie’s mouth pucker. They were on the brick patio behind Helen’s custom-built home in Serenity’s one fancy subdivision, each of them settled onto a comfy chaise longue. The South Carolina humidity was thick even though it was only March, but the faint breeze stirring the towering pine trees was enough to keep it from being too oppressive.
Maddie was tempted to dive straight into Helen’s turquoise pool, but instead she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. For the first time in months, she felt her worries slipping away. Beyond her anger, she wasn’t trying to hide anything from her kids—not her sorrow, not her fears, but she did struggle to keep them in check. With Helen and Dana Sue, she could just be herself, one very hurt, soon-to-be-divorced woman filled with uncertainty.
“You think she’s ready to hear our idea?” Dana Sue murmured beside her.
“Not yet,” Helen responded. “She needs to finish that drink.”
“I can hear you,” Maddie said. “I’m not asleep or unconscious yet.”
“Then we’d better wait,” Dana Sue said cheerfully. “More guacamole?”
“No, though you outdid yourself,” Maddie told her. “That stuff made my eyes water.”
Dana Sue looked taken aback. “Too hot? I thought maybe you were just having yourself another little crying jag.”
“I am not prone to crying jags,” Maddie retorted.
“You think we didn’t notice you were crying when we got to the gym?” Helen inquired.
“I was hoping you’d think it was sweat.”
“I’m sure that’s what everyone else thought, but we knew better,” Dana Sue said. “I have to say, I was disappointed you’d shed a single tear over that man.”
“So was I,” Maddie said.
Dana Sue gave her a hard look, then turned to Helen. “We may as well tell her. I don’t think she’s going to mellow out any more than she has already.”
“Okay,” Helen conceded. “Here’s the deal. What have all three of us been complaining about for the past twenty years?”
“Men,” Maddie suggested dryly.
“Besides that,” Helen said impatiently.
“South Carolina’s humidity?”
Helen sighed. “Would you try to be serious for one minute? The gym. We’ve been complaining about that awful gym all our adult lives.”
Maddie regarded her with bafflement. “And it hasn’t done a lick of good, has it? The last time we pitched a fit about the place, Dexter hired Junior Stevens to mop it out…once. The place smelled of Lysol for a week and that was it.”
“Precisely. Which is why Dana Sue and I came up with this idea,” Helen said, then paused for effect. “We want to open a brand-new fitness club, one that’s clean and welcoming and caters to women.”
“We want it to be a place where women can get fit and be pampered and drink a smoothie with their friends after a workout,” Dana Sue added. “Maybe even get a facial or a massage.”
“And you want to do this in Serenity, with its population of five thousand seven hundred and fourteen people?” Maddie asked, not even trying to hide her skepticism.
“Fifteen,” Dana Sue corrected. “Daisy Mitchell had a baby girl yesterday. And believe me, if you’ve seen Daisy lately, you know she’ll be the perfect candidate for one of our postpregnancy classes.”
Maddie studied Helen more intently. “You’re serious, aren’t you?”
“As serious as a heart attack,” she confirmed. “What do you think?”
“I suppose it could work,” Maddie said thoughtfully. “Goodness knows, that gym is disgusting. It’s no wonder half the women in Serenity refuse to exercise. Of course, the other half can’t get out of their recliners because of all the fried chicken they’ve consumed.”
“Which is why we’ll offer cooking classes, too,” Dana Sue said eagerly.
“Let me guess. New Southern Cuisine,” Maddie said.
“Southern cooking isn’t all about lima beans swimming in butter or green beans cooked with fatback,” Dana Sue said. “Haven’t I taught you anything?”
“Me, yes, absolutely,” Maddie assured her. “But the general population of Serenity still craves their mashed potatoes and fried chicken.”
“So do I,” Dana Sue said. “But ovenbaked’s not half-bad if you do it right.”
“We’re losing focus,” Helen cut in. “There’s a building available over on Palmetto Lane that would be just right for what we have in mind. I think we should take a look at it in the morning. Dana Sue and I fell in love with it right away, Maddie, but we want your opinion.”
“Why? It’s not as if I have anything to compare it to. Besides, I don’t even know what your vision is, not entirely anyway.”
“You know how to make a place cozy and inviting, don’t you?” Helen said. “After all, you took that mausoleum that was the Townsend family home and made it real welcoming.”
“Right,” Dana Sue said. “And you have all sorts of business savvy from helping Bill get his practice established.”
“I put some systems into place for him nearly twenty years ago,” Maddie said, downplaying her contribution to setting up the office. “I’m hardly an expert. If you’re going to do this, you should hire a consultant, devise a business plan, do cost projections. You can’t do something like this on a whim just because you don’t like the way Dexter’s gym smells.”
“Actually, we can,” Helen insisted. “I have enough money saved for a down payment on the building, plus capital expenses for equipment and an operating budget for the first year. Let’s face it, I can use the tax write-off, though I predict this won’t be a losing proposition for long.”
“And I’m going to invest some cash, but mostly my time and my expertise in cooking and nutrition to design a little café and offer classes,” Dana Sue added.
They both looked at Maddie expectantly.
“What?” she demanded. “I don’t have any expertise and I certainly don’t have any money to throw at something this speculative.”
Helen grinned. “You have a bit more than you think, thanks to your fabulous attorney, but
