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A beat later, my cell buzzes in my pocket.
I pull it out to see a text from Chase—The property is yours. I’ve alerted Kayley that your intent-to-sell document takes precedence, and she’ll be getting a full refund. We can close tomorrow morning. Let me know a good time for you, and I’ll make it work on our end. Congrats!
Well, shit.
I can’t remember the last time good news made me feel so bad.
ChapterTen
KAYLEY
I collapse onto the cozy couch at my best friend, Nancy’s farmhouse, and burrow under the mound of covers piled on top. “That’s it. I’m curling up here with you, and I’m never leaving ever again. The world is too harsh and cold.”
“Sounds good.” Nancy snuggles under a thick quilt on the other side. “We can feast on saltines, broth, and ginger tea, and lose ourselves in a Downton Abbey rewatch. I hardly ever get queasy watching Downton Abbey. It’s the saltine of television series.”
My lips turn down. “Oh no. Still having morning sickness?”
“More like all day sickness, but it’s worth it. And at least I can work from home, so I never have to be too far from the bathroom.”
“Ugh. That sounds miserable. Have you talked to your doctor? Isn’t there something they can do?”
“There are drugs for morning sickness, but I don’t want to take them unless I absolutely have to. For now, ginger tea is helping. And if I eat eight tiny meals instead of three big ones, I do okay. It’s just a matter of remembering to take a break from work and eat.”
I extend my arm her way, wiggling my fingers. “Give me your phone. I’m going to set alarms for your new meal schedule. Then I’ll make a big batch of chicken and dumplings for you to keep in the fridge. It’s the ultimate, easy-to-digest comfort food.”
She shakes her head. “No, I can do both of those things later. You aren’t here to fight morning sickness. You’re here because you’re sad and need comfort. I’m so sorry you didn’t get the property. That sucks. Shinglepuss is a dick. And so is Bran. I’ll tell Elliot to kick him off the back of the snowmobile the next time they go riding as punishment.”
I sink lower in the covers with a scowl. “No, don’t. He isn’t a dick. He’s just a businessperson doing business and he got the mountain fair and square. Shinglepuss signed the letter of intent with him first, so…it’s fine.”
“It doesn’t sound fine,” she says. “It sounds like it’s personal. Are you sure this is just about the mountain? You know I don’t like to gossip but Martha, who works in the stockroom at my aunt’s store, has a sister who works in the kitchen at your place, and allegedly Bran organized a big fancy dinner for you last night on the roof. And I know I’m old fashioned, but I don’t think that business meetings usually take place on the roof of a fancy hotel with champagne and fireworks.”
I sag even lower, until only my eyeballs are visible above the blankets, and mumble, “Fnn, mmmbbee we nnning ert.”
Nancy arches a brow. “Excuse me?” She reaches over, tugging the blanket down to my neck. “Try again, please?”
“Fine,” I say with a heavy sigh. Then I tell her everything—from the one-night stand, to the property snafu, to Bran shacking up with me in the honeymoon suite.
“Wow,” she says when I’m done. “And how was that? Having him at the resort with you? You’ve never had a guy sleep over with you there, have you?”
“No, I haven’t,” I say. “But it was great. Really great. We were having so much fun and banging like bunnies, and I was starting to fall for him, and I totally thought he was going to give me the mountain because he felt the same way. But he didn’t and he isn’t and I’m just an idiot who got played by her own game.” I sniff and hug the bulk of the quilt to my chest like a security blanket. “I’m never going to try to seduce someone ever again.”
“I think that’s a little extreme,” Nancy says. “Maybe just no seduction with ulterior motives. No one likes ulterior motives.”
I scrunch up my face, trying to stuff down the guilt rising in my chest. “But I liked him, too, I truly did. A lot. It wasn’t just ulterior motives.”
“If you thought someone was trying to sex you out of a piece of property, would you feel comfortable dropping your guard around them and letting the feelings flow?”
I wrinkle my nose even harder, but I’m forced to admit, “No, I wouldn’t. But Violet said it was okay as long as I genuinely had a thing for him.”
“Violet the twenty-two-year-old who’s never had a long-term relationship?” Nancy asks. “And who thinks she’s going to find her real-life rom com hero topping trees in the forest behind her cabin?”
“She’s twenty-four,” I counter defensively.
“She also lives in the national forest where no logging is allowed, and lumberjacks fear to tread. I’m more likely to meet a lumberjack buying fudge at the country store.”
I exhale, giving up the fight. “You’re right. And she wanted the Shinglepuss land for the hotel as much as I did. I should have asked a wise, neutral party for advice before I launched Operation Sex Bran into Seeing Things My Way.” I peek at Nancy from the corners of my eyes. “Are you mad at me? For messing with your brother-in-law?”
Nancy shakes her head, a smile curving her lips. “No. Why would I be mad? Bran’s a grown man. He can take care of himself. And it sounds like he did.”
