Page 18 of Wild Love

"Probably. So will the Wilde brothers."

"I can be there."

I was feeling impulsive, so I threw my arms around her neck and hugged her. "Thank you. It's so good to see you again."

"Just keep in touch the next time you leave."

"I will." I blinked away the sting of tears. "Come on. There's a shop I wanted to show you. They have all these costumes and fun stuff we could use in a play."

I gave her an exasperated look. "Marigold. I'm here for a week or two at most. I'm not putting on a play."

"But it's so cool," Marigold pleaded.

I was interested, so I said, "Okay."

"I know you're leaving soon. I won't get my hopes up that you'll stay." Marigold kept her voice light, but I felt bad for letting down the people in my life. That was probably why I didn't stay in touch with anyone. There were too many expectations, and all they did was push me further away.

5

ELI

I'd spent the week pouring over our plans for the cabins, then walking the property with Mac to stake out the location for each building. I enjoyed managing the restaurants and bars inside the lodge, but it was nice to get outside.

I didn't realize how good Xander had it. He worked outside every day whether it was hiking, skiing, or snowboarding.

After lunch, I finally got the call that the zoning board had approved the addition of the cabins on the resort's property. I assumed they realized how important it was to have more places for tourists to rent for their vacations.

My assistant, Delores, popped in at one. "Your next appointment is here."

"Who's that?" I asked without looking up from my computer. I was excited for the expansion. It meant big things for the resort. I didn't listen to any of Oliver's concerns that the cabins might not get rented out. Who didn't want to rent a cabin with all the amenities?

"It's Scarlett St. Claire."

That had me lifting my head. "Why does she have an appointment with me?"

Delores shrugged. "She said it was important."

"Send her in." I stood and went to the window that showcased the mountains. Even if I didn't make it outside most days, In winter, I could see the guests flying down the mountain as specks of blue, red, and yellow.

There was a knock on the door, and I turned. Scarlett stood at the door in a silky red button-down shirt and a curve-hugging black skirt. She wore spiky heels on her feet that had me thinking all sorts of dirty things. "Have a seat."

Scarlett moved across the room to the chair. "Thanks for meeting with me."

I leaned against the edge of my desk in front of her chair. I used the stance when I was more familiar with my guest, and I wanted to be intimate with this one. "Why did you schedule a meeting?"

"Chance mentioned you might have a place for me to live while I'm here."

My jaw tightened. "I thought you were staying with your parents."

Scarlett sighed. "As much as I love my parents, I don't want to stay in my childhood bedroom. There's a lot of pink."

Her nose scrunched up, and I couldn't help but chuckle. "Do you know how long you'll be in town?"

Her forehead wrinkled. "Is that a requirement to getting a place here?"

I shook my head. "Not at all. I was just wondering if you'd prefer a cabin or maybe one of the rooms in the lodge instead." There was no one else on my floor. I had a penthouse. But there were other apartments my brothers used to live in. I'd left them empty, thinking that one day we'd need them for family. My cousin, Walker, visited on leave, and occasionally a brother would stay when they'd had too much to drink.

"I don't need a lot of space."

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