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allowed me to make that change.” She took a sip of coffee. Strong coffee, just the way she liked it. “Of course, when I took on those two new consulting clients you introduced me to, that made all the difference. I could let every one of the alpaca clients go except Jayleen.” She smiled at him over her cup.
    “Jayleen’s real grateful you’re keeping her on. She’s gotten used to having a CPA do her work.” Curt grinned. “Kinda like once you taste sirloin steak, you can’t go back to hamburger.”
    Kelly had to laugh. “Those bookkeepers are hardly hamburger, Curt. They’re good, experienced accountants and they’ll take care of the rest of my old clients.” She looked out over her favorite Old Town coffee shop. Non-corporate and non-chrome, the walls were covered with paintings from local artists. There was even a large rendition of Van Gogh’s Starry Night taking up half of one wall, giving the coffee shop its name. “I’d gotten really fond of several of them, but . . .”
    “But the work just wasn’t challenging enough, right?” Curt sipped his coffee. “I wondered how long it would take before you got bored. Every time I asked about your job, your answers got shorter and shorter. Face it, Kelly. Alpaca ranching doesn’t provide the same challenge as Bob Houseman’s company, right?”
    “You’re right about that. Houseman’s got properties all over northern Colorado.”
    “And now that you’ve taken on Werner Development, I guarantee you won’t lack for challenge.”
    Kelly took another sip of coffee and watched the customers line up for lattes and other specialty drinks. “I can’t thank you enough for recommending me to those companies, Curt. That was perfect timing.”
    “Well, I was watching you and kind of figured out when was a good time, judging from your restlessness. Plus, the Wyoming wells were settling in and producing at a steady rate, so I figured you’d be receptive to my suggestion.” He grinned over his cup. “It’s nice to be successful, isn’t it?”
    “Ohhhh, yeah,” Kelly said with a laugh. “In fact, I think now would be a good time for me to refinance the cottage and get out of that awful loan Aunt Helen made three years ago. It’s been over two years, so those penalty clauses have run out.”
    “That sounds like a good idea, Kelly girl. You’re a successful businesswoman now with significant assets in your name. So, you’ll be able to get a loan when a lot of folks can’t.”
    Kelly ran her finger around the rim of her coffee cup as the word “successful” shimmered in her head. Curt was right. She had created a successful business in the years since she’d come back to Fort Connor for her aunt’s funeral.
    “I wish I could spread some of that success around, Curt. Steve’s in such a bad place right now. It’s really heartbreaking to watch him work so hard, and things keep getting worse, not better.”
    Curt shook his head in the manner of someone who’d endured his share of economic hard times. “I know, Kelly. This is the roughest construction downturn I’ve seen. I know he’s barely hanging on. I’ve seen those foreclosure signs at his sites. And I heard about the apartment in Baker Street.”
    “Maybe you could talk to him,” Kelly suggested, leaning over her cup. “Suggest that he take on an investor. That would take off the pressure of losing those properties. He’s taking on extra work in Denver so he can earn more to keep those bank loans current.”
    “I’d be glad to suggest it, Kelly, if there were any investors out there to talk to. But they’re scarcer than hen’s teeth right now. They’ve gone to ground, just like the buyers.”
    “Damn,” Kelly said softly. She lowered her voice, so as not to be overheard by neighboring tables. “I was hoping there was someone out there who’d like a stake in prime Old Town property.”
    “I’m sure there is, Kelly, but right now they can’t get investment loans. The money’s