Page 7 of Between the Lines

“The town is doing just fine, thank you.”

“Is it? Because that’s not what I saw today. I saw closed-down stores, I saw empty rental properties. I saw one coffee shop and one bar in the whole of New Milton.” He cocked his head, lips curling into a satisfied smile. “How many young people live here these days? How many return once they’ve finished school?”

Luca clenched his jaw and refused to think of Dee’s absent girls.

Triumph lit Wishart’s dark eyes. “Am I right, Jude?”

“There isn’t much to keep young people here, it’s true.” She pursed her lips. “But I don’t know—a golf resort? Are those the sort of people we want in New Milton?”

“Wealthy people,” Wishart said. “Wealthy people on vacation, looking for an excuse to spend their money. Forgive me, Jude, but those are exactly the sort of people you want in New Milton. The fact is, by selling your property to Lux, you’ll be leaving a lasting legacy to the town—one that will see a whole new generation moving here andstayinghere. Creating a sustainable community. Isn’t that something you want? This grand old place has had her day, but through us the Majestic’s legacy will live on and bring new prosperity to New Milton.”

“But you’re going to tear her down!” Luca protested. “You’re going to changeeverything.”

“Change is what New Milton needs.”

“It’snot!” Luca surged to his feet. “And if it was, it still wouldn’t need a damned golf resort.”

“You have a problem with golf?”

“I have a problem withyou. Coming here and conning my mom—”

“It’s a business proposition, Mr. Moretti, and a bloody good one.” Wishart cocked his head, frowned as if thinking. “What’s your solution to your mother’s revenue problem? Do you have one?”

Luca glared and said nothing. He had no answer to give and Wishart’s raised eyebrow suggested he knew it.

“Luca, sit down.” Jude tugged his sleeve, her other hand on Don’s knee as if to keep him from jumping to his feet, too. “Theo, I understand what you’re saying,” she went on, “but my family has owned the Majestic for three generations. I’m not sure I can be the one to let her go—not to a company planning to tear her down.”

Thank God! Luca shot a victorious look at Wishart.Suck on that, douchebag.

But Jude hadn’t finished. “What I’d like is for someone to take over the Majestic as a going concern. Someone who understands what makes her special—and what could continue to make her special.”

“I understand,” Wishart said.

Luca snorted. “The hell you do.”

“Ido.” His eyes flashed again. “I can assure you our new build would capture everything which makes the Majestic special.”

“Such as?”

Wishart blinked and didn’t answer, a flush creeping back into his face. Luca smiled:Gotcha.

“That’s a good point.” Jude leaned forward in her chair. “Whatdoyou think makes the Majestic special, Mr. Wishart?”

His eyes closed briefly, lips moving. “I think it would become clear during the construction phase of—”

“Bullshit!”

“Heck, Luca, will you can it?” Don turned to Jude. “Sweetheart, the truth is we’ll never get a better offer than this and the last thing we want is a fire sale.”

A fire sale? Luca looked to Jude for a response, but she was staring down at her fingers, clenched together in her lap, the skin tight over her knuckles. “Mom?”

“He’s right,” she said reluctantly. “Now is the time to sell. Ideally, I’d have found a...a successor. Someone with the drive to restore the Majestic. Someone who appreciated her and understood what made her so special to the people who’ve come here, and still come here, year after year. That would have been my dream, but—” she glanced at Luca “—failing that, I have to consider other options.” She turned to Wishart, shoulders straightening. “Theo, I’ll make you an offer.”

“What?” Luca grabbed her wrist. “Mom, no.”

She covered his hand with her own, but carried on. “Two weeks, Theo. Stay here for two weeks, as our guest. Get to know the Majestic, let yourself fall in love with the place. I won’t sell to a stranger, and I’dliketo sell to someone who’d rather restore her than rebuild.”

Wishart stared. “I—Uh. I’m not sure I can...” He trailed off, frowning.

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