I’m so deep in thought, I almost miss the woman peering over the fence separating the B&B’s land from the property next door. Ash’s property, I remind myself.

“Can I help you?” I call.

She startles, caught. “Oh, hi, great to see you again! It’s me, Hallie, the realtor?” she adds, when I clearly don’t remember.

“Oh, right, hello.” I walk over, remembering how she blind-sided me at the funeral. I give her a cautious look. “Is there anything you need?”

“Just taking a little look-see.” She gives me a bright smile. Just like the last time we met, her hair is smoothed back in a tight bun, and she’s wearing an expensive-looking silk blouse and tight skirt. “I was planning on setting up a meeting next week. My clients would love to make an offer on your property.”

“I’m not selling,” I tell her firmly.

“You haven’t even heard the deal!” she exclaims. “My clients are willing to offer double the valuation.”

Double? I shake my head. “No thank you.”

Hallie blinks. “A hard negotiator, I admire that.” Hallie forces another smile. “I’m sure we can come to some agreement eventually. They really are motivated to get this place locked down along with the rest of the land.”

“The rest?” I pause, confused.

“Oh yes,” Hallie replies, sunny. “They’ve bought up all four of the lots along this stretch of beach.” She points, down to where the inlet starts to curve way in the distance.

“But, what for?” I begin to get a very bad feeling.

“Well, it’s all hush-hush for now, but between us, it’s a big development project.” Hallie looks excited. “It’s a big outfit, out of New York. I heard they’re looking to build a luxury hotel right here in town. A country club style place, you know, pool, private villas, a fancy restaurant, the whole deal.”

Her words hit me like an anvil. A luxury hotel, right next door to Rose Cottage? I stare at her in disbelief. She can’t be serious!

“It’s just the thing this town needs.” Hallie continues, oblivious. “And property prices will sky-rocket! Not yours, of course,” she adds, making a rueful face. “I mean, being stuck right next to the construction, and then all the activity from the guests… It’s not exactly the tranquil vacation people want from an old place like yours. That’s why I’m telling you, sell now, while the Callahan Group is willing to pay top dollar for the land.”

No.

I stare at her in disbelief. I must have heard wrong. “Say that again,” I ask faintly. “The client. Who’s going to be building the hotel?”

“The Callahan Group,” Hallie chirps. “They’re a very big deal. Apparently, the CEO has family in town. He took one look around, and decided this place was crying out for a real, classy vacation experience. No offense to your little B&B,” she adds quickly. “I’m sure it’s very charming.”

“Uh huh,” I murmur, too shocked to take offense. It doesn’t add up, this couldn’t possibly be coming from Ash. He wouldn’t.

Would he?

“Ash Callahan, now he’s a man with vision,” Hallie continues, confirming my worst fears without even realizing. “And between us girls, he’s pretty easy on the eye. No, you don’t find men like that around here often. Ambitious, driven, sophisticated…” She catches herself and gives a brisk smile. “Anyway, you think it over, give me a call!”

I turn back to the house in a daze. With the afternoon sun glowing off the freshly-painted shutters, it looks like a scene from a postcard. The gardens in full bloom, roses twisting up around the porch, the ocean sparkling blue down by the shore.

It’s my home now. My passion. And Ash knows how important it is to me, he’s seen how hard I’ve worked to make this dream a reality.

So how could he even think about destroying it?

17.

I can’t believe it.

No matter how much I turn it over in my mind, I still can’t believe Ash would be planning to build a luxury resort right next door to Rose Cottage. It doesn’t make any sense. All this time, he’s been right here: helping out with renovations, and Bunny, and the plumbing. Making sure the B&B gets on its feet, the way I dream about.

Hallie must have it all wrong.

“Just ask him,” Lexi urges on the phone. “Go over there, look him in the eye, and ask if he’s been planning on screwing you over from the start.”

“I can’t,” I reply, searching through files in the windowless basement. “Think how that sounds. If he hasn’t done anything wrong, then I’ll be wrecking everything. We just got together, I don’t want to risk that. I need to know more.”

More, like exactly what the new buyer of all that neighboring land has got planned. Which is why I decided to think like a lawyer again, and go do my research before confronting Ash with my worst fears. I figured out that any new development will need planning permits and approval from the county clerk’s office, so instead of soaking in a bubble bath, getting ready for our date tonight, I’m two towns over, digging through file cabinets that clearly haven’t been organized since 1962.

“Any luck yet?” Lexi asks, yawning.

“Nope. But I do know that Missy Jenkins and Kyle Fuller have been fighting over a boundary fence for the last ten years.”