Page 87 of Just One Chance

Boone: It's sounds like a good opportunity.

It was exactly what I'd said to myself. This was an amazing opportunity I couldn't walk away from it. But I didn't want to walk away from Boone either. I couldn't help but think that I'd screwed everything up by not waiting and talking to him first.

He was in a meeting, and I wasn't sure how long it would take for it to be over. But I couldn't forget what happened the last time I got serious with someone in the hotel industry. In the end, Shane kept his job and took credit for my ideas. I was the one who lost her job and had to start over.

I'd worked too hard to leave something like this to chance. It was too soon to be turning down offers. I had to take what I could. Sure, I picked through the ones I received and took the best ones, but I'd never gotten anything like this. It was the biggest hotel chain I'd ever worked with. And if they wanted a snow room, it meant I'd hit on something big. Something I couldn't ignore.

If I didn't take this job, then someone else would.

Kennedy: I'd hoped we could spend the night together.

Boone: Your business comes first.

My heart contracted. Was he moving on because we were never supposed to continue our relationship after I left?

I set my phone aside, not sure what to say to him. I didn't want to declare my feelings over text or even phone. It was late in New York. I needed to go to sleep if I wanted to be coherent tomorrow when I met with Barrett.

I needed to sleep, and everything would make sense tomorrow. I'd see what Barrett needed, and then I'd figure out what to do about Boone.

I tried not to think about the possibility of him moving on from me. If that happened, then he wasn't the right guy for me anyway.

He never told me if things had changed for him, and I shouldn't assume that they had.

* * *

The next morning, I had bags under my eyes, and my muscles were stiff. I hadn't slept well. I kept replaying the text conversation with Boone over in my head. Had I said the right thing?

I couldn't shake the feeling that I should have stayed and talked to him. Figured out where his head was at before I left.

At the time, it seemed like the only thing I could do. But now with hindsight, I could see that I was avoiding him. Running away from the man who'd come to mean everything to me. I didn't want to make decisions with a man in mind, but how could I not?

At some point, your personal life had to be a consideration. But was I established enough in my business to do that?

I was afraid to say no or to set boundaries. The business could fail more quickly than it took to build. One wrong move and I'd lose everything. Or was that just a story I was telling myself?

I met with Barrett in the lobby, and he took me to the restaurant for breakfast. Once we ordered, he pulled out his laptop and showed me the latest picture of the snow room at Hart Inn. I was pleased that they were documenting the construction on social media like I suggested.

Occasionally, a client would not follow all my suggestions for marketing the updates and were disappointed with the results. But Judy and Raymond had been enthusiastic about my ideas from the start.

"It's going to look great and draw so many guests," I said simply.

"I'm impressed that you would suggest something like this for a smaller inn, one that's family run and, let's be honest, located in the sticks."

I barely covered the wince that resulted from that statement. "I predicted that it would get a lot of attention, and it has. Plus, it fits perfectly with the aesthetic in Colorado."

"See, that's where you had me confused because Colorado has a lot of snow. Why did you want to bring it inside?"

"The obvious reason is the summer. No one has to miss out on what makes Colorado great. But it's something unique that other hotels in the area don't have. It sets Hart Inn apart."

"You think outside the box, and I like that. I'm excited to see what you can do with Westbourne Hotels."

"You act like I'm already hired."

He raised a brow. "You're here, aren't you? You turned down the other offers and took this one."

I didn't mention that he was the only one who'd offered me a bonus to come immediately. "It was an interesting offer I couldn't ignore."

He smirked. "Now that you're here, I'd love to see what you'll suggest for Westbourne Hotels. These are family-owned hotels as well."