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Frieda and Heidi nodded, and as Anita walked into the foyer, the three of them greeted her with smiles.
“Well, there you are, ladies!” Anita said enthusiastically, her red-lipsticked mouth smiling wide. As she approached, her clown-like smile turned upside down into an exaggerated frown, and her pencil-thin eyebrows drew up in a pitying expression.
“I was so sorry to hear about Ursula and Helga; you poor girls must be a wreck. I want you to know that I promise to make this sale go as smoothly as possible for you. I’ll take care of everything; you’ll barely have to do anything other than sign a few pieces of paperwork.”
“Thank you, Anita, that’s so kind of you,” Birgit replied warmly as Anita opened her arms for a hug. Instead, Birgit stretched out her hand, and an awkward silence filled the room as Anita put her arms down to give a handshake instead.
“About the sale, though—”
“Oh, Frank and I are so excited about it,” Anita said, cutting Birgit off as she moved her hand around the room with a flourish. “The other two resorts we have are doing so well, and we plan to make this ourpièce de résistance!Now, I’ve brought some papers for you gals to look at. It’s our opening offer, plus our intended plans for the place.”
As Anita tried to hand the folder of papers to Birgit, she waved them off and clasped her hands in front of her.
“I’m sorry if Frieda gave you the wrong impression, Anita, but we are not going to sell,” Birgit explained calmly but firmly. “After consideration, we’re going to honor our great-aunts’ wishes and take over the place.”
Anita’s face, covered perfectly with a porcelain shade of foundation and a touch of rouge, fell as Birgit said this, and she began to shake her head.
“Oh, trust me dear, you donotwant to do that,” Anita replied with a stressed laugh. “Everyone thinks running hotels are fun and hip, but there’s so much hard work that goes into it.”
“We’re used to hard work,” Birgit replied pleasantly.
“Well, it’s not just the work. There’s so much money that would be needed to get this place up to snuff with the rest of the town. And even if you do, there’s no guarantee you’ll get guests. You could be bankrupt in less than a year!” Anita pushed the folder toward Birgit again.
“If you take my offer right now, it’s money right in your pockets. But if you wait until that happens, all that money will be gone to pay other people,” she continued, looking at the Strauss sisters with pity. “Come now, you just lost your dear aunties. You don’t want to add the stress of a failed business to your plate. Besides, I’m sure your parents need you at the winery. I’ll take good care of this place. I promise you.”
Birgit did not take kindly to people talking to her the way Anita did. She had to deal with it all the time at the winery, and she knew how people maneuvered to make it seem like they were doing her a favor when they weren’t. There were quite a few choice words she wanted to say to Anita the Priss, but instead, Birgit only smiled and took a step back.
“We appreciate your concern, Anita,” Birgit replied politely. “But as I stated,The Winter Oasisis not for sale. We have sufficient funding to do with it what we like. As far as our parents are concerned, they havealwayssupported our choices. This one is no different.”
The false kindness Anita was presenting suddenly left the room as her lips formed into a flat line and her brown eyes hardened with contempt. She tapped her long, manicured nails impatiently against the file she was holding. Then, with a huff, she put it back into her expensive, dark brown leather satchel and crossed her arms.
“I am trying to tell you nicely that this is a mistake,” she said flatly. “You don’t know how competitive the market around here is; you won’t know what hit you. It really would be better if this place was run by someone with experience.”
“And I’m sure we will gain such experience as we go along,” Birgit replied matter-of-factly, meeting Anita’s challenging gaze.
For a moment, tense silence filled the room as the two women continued to stare one another down. Behind her, Birgit could hear her sisters’ steady breathing, and she knew that they had her back. Finally, and with a huff, Anita uncrossed her arms and pulled out the keys to her bright red Cadillac Escalade.
“You’re going to regret this,” she said as she started to walk away. “Just watch. In a year you’ll be bankrupt andbeggingme to buy this place.”
“Goodnight, Anita,” Birgit replied in an upbeat, singsong voice. “Drive safe!”
Anita let out another huff of annoyance, and without another word, she wrenched open the double doors and stormed toward her SUV.
“Well, that wasn’t awkward at all,” Heidi joked.
“I’m so sorry, Birgit. I should have warned you she and I talked,” Frieda apologized again.
“It’s okay,” Birgit said calmly, smiling at both her sisters. “Don’t pay her any mind. She’s just upset because we just threw a wrench into her and her husband practically owning the whole town one day. But we can do this if we work together. I know we can. What do you say? Let’s give this place a shot.”
“I’m with you,” Heidi replied cheerfully, putting her hand in the small circle they formed. Birgit immediately put her hand over Heidi’s, and they both looked at Frieda.
“Come on, Frieda,” Heidi urged. “Birgit’s right. We can do this!”
Frieda looked at them hesitantly for a moment, and then a big smile spread across her face as she put her hand on top of both of theirs.
“We can do this,” she said with an affirmative nod.
“Alright, babes,” Birgit said excitedly, “let’s do this!”
