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“You haven’t been single that long. Relax. It’ll happen.”
“Easy for you to say. You’re already divorced.”
Laughing, I shake my head. “Not exactly the outcome one hopes for when they go into a marriage, Beau.”
“Says you,” he teases. “Regardless of all that, what do you think about the upgrades? Can we make them happen?”
“Not with already being this far over budget. I’m sorry. It’s just not doable.”
He gets that look in his eye, and I can feel the push-back in the air. “What if we were to do onlysomeof them?”
“It won’t make any sense to do them. People talk about amenities, but studies have shown that the highest ROI for resorts is the rooms. Both guest rooms and meeting rooms. So, if you want to spend, it makes sense to spend more there. Make more suites out of the existing floorplans. For the meeting rooms, upgrade the lighting, the climate control, the tables, whatever you want there. The expenses will be far lower, and we will get more for it.”
“What about the amenities?”
“Beau,” I smile and shake my head, “you already put together an incredible amenity package for our guests. They will love what you’ve done. You don’t need to worry about what you’ve already accomplished. You did well.”
“Well, I still have to work with an architect to finalize large portions of what we want and I have one particular person in mind,” he says as the worry lines on his face start to fake. That shocks me a little bit. I had not thought he’d fall for that.
“You really think I did a good job?” He asks.
“Of course. What is it you’re so afraid of?”
He jams his elbows onto the desk and holds his forehead in his palms. His voice is ragged. “Everything.”
I pat the back of his head, and he jerks up, grimacing. “Sorry, man, you reminded me of my kids when they’re having a bad day.”
He laughs once. “How are they? I should have asked.”
“Good. Their new nanny is great with them.”
“This one isn’t going to run away?”
“Not so far.” As long as I don’t chase Lily off by trying to sleep with her, things should go just fine. But damn, it’s hard not to. She bent over the counter last night, and I nearly lost my mind. Not that I can tell Beau about any of it.
He nods, smiling. “I’m glad to hear it. Can’t have another one run out on you when we’re neck deep in this shit.”
Which is why I’m not putting the moves on her. “Agreed. And on that note, I am meeting with another investor soon—
“And you didn’t think to mention this until now?”
“I’m not exactly sure how it’ll go. He’s not like the rest of them. He’s skittish and more of a family man.”
“And you’re not?”
I make a face at him. “I am a divorced dad of two, who barely has time for his kids, even though he has them half the time. The investor is an older man who has a huge family with the same woman he’s been with for forty years. I think he’ll be averse to working with a bunch of young men. He’sverytraditional, and I’m not sure how to woo him.”
“The same way you woo anyone. Tell them what they want to hear until you get what you want.”
I laugh. “This is why you’re single.”
-
12
Lily
In the kitchen of my parents’ B&B, Dad cooks breakfast the way Dad cooks breakfast. Messily. It’s all I can do to keep myself from diving in and taking over, but I can’t. I don’t want to offend him. So instead, I grab a pastry from the counter basket. It’s one of those flaky, delectable things with the cream cheese center that I’ve loved since I was a kid, and I cannot help myself.
