"People like Mr. Wayne don't let go of what they want that easily," Martin warned. "I want to be honest with you. The tone of this letter is much better than the last one. It's pulled back. It's careful. It's not pressuring us on the surface. But the requestitself is still a form of pressure. Mr. Wayne knows perfectly well that we said no. He's asking us to meet so he can try and change our minds in person, where he reads the room better than he does on paper."
"Wonderful," Linda sighed, suppressing a shudder at how ominous that sounded. The man was obviously a shark that had smelled blood in the water and was circling, waiting for the chance to strike.
"My honest advice?" Martin sat back. "I think we should take the meeting."
"Take it?" Linda asked, turning her head sharply. “Why?” Her brow knotted. “I have no intention of letting them take my family's hotel.”
"I know. Neither do I. But hear me out," Martin replied. "There are two reasons I’m suggesting this. The first is that refusing the meeting outright keeps him at arm's length but doesn't make him go away. People like Mr. Wayne don't simply give up after one polite refusal. They circle. They wait. They look for cracks. The second reason is more pragmatic. If we meet him in person, we get to see exactly who we're dealing with. We learn his manner. We learn his pace. We can read what he wants out of the meeting and how badly he wants it. That information is useful to us, regardless of whether we sell."
"And we make him understand we're serious about not selling," Linda added.
"Exactly," Martin confirmed. "A no in person from the Heart family representatives is much harder to brush off than a no in a letter from one Heart family representative."
She thought for a moment.
"Can we do this when Michael is here?" Linda asked.
"That's what I was going to suggest," Martin answered. "Michael's an attorney. He'll read the man inside ten minutes and pick up things you and I would miss. And he's family. The third Heart in the room adds weight."
"Michael's arriving today," Linda told him. "This afternoon, hopefully."
"Let’s wait to hear what Michael suggests," Martin advised. "He’ll need a chance to settle in, and we can brief him, then let him steer the ship from there.” He glanced at the laptop. “Then we move forward as a united front.”
"Agreed," Linda decided. "Can you write back to Mr. Wayne and let him know that we'll come back with a proposed date and time within forty-eight hours?"
"Already drafting it," Martin assured her.
"Thank you, Martin," Linda told him.
Martin nodded and clicked the laptop closed. He was just about to rise when a burst of joyful squeals sounded faintly through the office window.
Linda's head lifted when she heard her granddaughter's and grandson’s voices as the faint sound of a vehicle’s tires crunched on the drive.
"That'll be Michael and Lily," Linda announced, a smile forming on her lips.
"It sure sounds like it," Martin agreed as the sounds of childish excitement and a dog barking echoed back through the open windows of the office. She stood up so quickly her chair rocked.Martin’s hand shot out and caught it before it crashed to the floor.
"Go," Martin urged her with a smile. "I'll send the email. We can pick this back up once Michael has had a chance to catch his breath."
"Thank you, Martin," Linda said again.
She moved like a streak of lightning through the back corridor of the hotel and out into the warm gulf air. The driveway of Heart House was just visible through the side gate. As Linda came around the side of the hotel, she saw exactly what she'd hoped she'd see.
Michael's gray SUV was pulled up beside the circle in front of the porch. The driver's door pushed open as her older brother unfolded himself from the seat with the slow, careful stretch of a tall man who had just done the long drive from Miami in one go. Michael stood at his full six feet four inches, rolled his shoulders, and looked around with the small contented smile of a man returning to his childhood home.
Lily had come barreling around the side of the car already. She crashed straight into Sophia, who had been waiting for her on the front lawn, jumping up and down in delight. Emma stood beside Sophia with a slightly more shy hello as Lily turned to greet her. Within five seconds, Lily had hugged Emma the way Emma had been hugged by Sophia three days ago, with the unguarded warmth of an eleven-year-old who had never met a stranger she didn't want to befriend.
Jake and Toby came tumbling down the porch steps where they had been sitting on the swing, chatting and drinking sodas.Buddy raced past them and circled the whole group with his tail going in wide enthusiastic circles.
"Hello, big brother," Linda called out, hurrying forward, the tension of the past few days slowly drained away. Her brother was here, and she was no longer fighting for their inheritance alone.
Michael turned. His face split into the wide, warm grin he had been giving her since they were children.
"Hey there, little sister," Michael greeted her.
He crossed the space between them in three long strides and pulled her into a fierce hug. Linda held on for a moment longer than she needed to. Absorbing some of his quiet strength that she very much needed right then.
"I’m so glad you're finally here," Linda sighed.
