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A month before, she’d have been jumping in her car and heading back to the city immediately, letting Whitney take over the event and putting the inn on the market from a distance, but now it wouldn’t be as easy to walk away from her hometown.
What the hell was wrong with her? This was her career. Her promotion was riding on this pitch. This was what she wanted.
Friday.
Oh no! That was Marissa’s parents’ day at camp.
Sarah bit her lip as she stared at the message, unsure how to reply. Maybe she could ask Gail if they could keep the original pitch time. Or maybe she could do the pitch in the morning and still make it back in time for the camp event. Marissa said it started at noon. It would be tight, but as long as the pitch was only an hour, like most… Either way, she knew she had to be there.
She squared her shoulders and, hitting reply, she typed,Of course I’ll be there.
But guilt immediately washed over her as she hit Send. She’d promised Marissa she’d be there for her as well. Disappointing the little girl had Sarah’s chest tightening. But this was work. It was important. And she wasn’t actually a parent…
Her stomach twisted. If she was going to be with Wes, be in their lives, she would be a parent. She’d need to step into that role for Marissa. Surprisingly, the idea didn’t scare her. She loved the idea of being in their lives, and she knew she could be a great friend to Marissa and hopefully eventually the stepmom she deserved.
Would she understand if Sarah didn’t make it to camp that Friday? Would Wes?
Sarah sighed. There had to be a way she could do both. She would hate to have to make a choice, but staring at the sent reply to her boss, she felt like she already had.
…
As Wes turned into the driveway of the B&B that evening, he couldn’t help the sense of pride at seeing the newly renovated inn. It had all its original charm but was stronger and sturdier to last another hundred years or more. He climbed out and headed up the path toward the front door.
Seeing Whitney standing on the lawn snapping photos on her cell phone, Wes shook his head. Always on the clock. Whitney probably dreamed of her to-do list when she slept. He’d never met anyone who worked harder than that woman. He stopped next to her. “Hey, Whitney, how are you?”
“Oh, hey, Wes,” she said with a smile. “This place looks incredible.”
“It really does. I’m happy Sarah decided to renovate,” he said. He wasn’t sure if Sarah had told her friends about them yet. They hadn’t really defined or labeled what was going on between them, but he knew he wanted a real relationship, and he sensed she did as well.
“Where’s Marissa?” she asked.
“Girl Guides camp,” he said. “Just dropped her off.” He was still concerned about her mood at drop-off, but he was desperate to trust her. If she said she was okay being there, he’d try not to let it worry him that week. It was only five days, and he was looking forward to the alone time with Sarah before she headed back to the city.
“I hear she and Sarah really hit it off?” Whitney asked, a grin on her face. One that said she suspected Marissa wasn’t the only one.
“Yes. Fast friends.” He sighed. “She’ll miss her once she heads back to L.A.”
Whitney eyed him. “Yeah…I suspect we all will.” She snapped several more photos and shook her head. “After all this time and money, I just hope Sarah’s efforts work to preserve the place.”
Wes frowned. “Why wouldn’t they? I’m sure someone will be interested in buying it.”
Whitney tucked her cell phone into her dress pocket. “I’m not worried she’ll be able to sell it; I’m just not sure the new owner will have the same attachment to it.”
Wes’s gut tightened. It was true. Dove’s Nest meant a lot to the residents of Blue Moon Bay, but an outside investor might not care. “Have you expressed your concerns to Sarah?”
“No. I don’t want her to feel pressured into not selling. She’s gone above and beyond to give the inn a fighting chance against a big chain, but I know she wouldn’t be happy staying here and keeping it just to save it.” She checked her watch.
He couldn’t expect that of Sarah, either, and he didn’t.
“Anyway, I have to run. Let Sarah know I’ll call her later,” Whitney said with a wave as she headed toward her yellow convertible.
Wes stared at the inn a minute longer before heading inside. Sarah descended the stairs, hearing him enter, and she immediately hurried toward him. “How did drop-off go?”
“Good,” he said. He wouldn’t worry her over his own uneasiness. His hands cupped her face, and he pulled her into him. “I’ve been waiting all day to do this,” he said, his mouth crushing hers.
Her hands slid beneath his T-shirt and roamed over his abs and pectoral muscles, her fingers tickling his ribs. Her tongue explored his mouth, and her breathing was labored when she pulled back. “It was so hard not to do that with Marissa around.”
“Tell me about it.” But they were taking it slow and being respectful around his daughter. She may like Sarah, she may even like the idea of the two of them together, but too much, too soon might have her feeling differently. Sarah was the first woman to come into their lives since Kelly died, and Wes still needed to be careful of his daughter’s heart…
