Page 29 of The Mistakes I've Made
“But did he say it was impossible?”
I didn’t have a comeback for that.
He shook his head, disappointment showing in every creased line on his face. “They’ll just send someone else to finish the job. Maybe Mr. Hart himself. You saw what they did to that hotel up in Corolla? It’s massive now!”
“So, that’s it? You’re just gonna roll over and play dead? Wave your white flag of surrender and let her do whatever the fuck she wants to that hotel and our town?”
He looked over at me, the wheels spinning in his head. “No. I’m going to use you.”
I let out a breath of relief. “Thank you, Dean. You won’t regret this. Seriously. When I have her out of this town, you’ll see—”
He shook his head. “I think you misunderstood me. I don’t want you to sabotage her. I want you to work with her—on behalf of the town. You said you overheard her father say that she needed the town’s approval.”
“Right,” I said, my voice wary.
“Then, I’m appointing you as the official go-between to make that happen. I’ll need to run it past the other members of the building and planning committee, but when I let them know how well you two have already hit it off, well, I don’t think anyone will mind.”
“What?!” I was dumbfounded.
“We won’t solve this problem with backhanded tactics or lies. We will solve it by joining forces and compromising.”
“Compromising?” I hissed. “You want us to compromise?”
“If it means the difference between middle ground or completely losing control, then yes, I’m all for compromise. This town has always been welcoming of newcomers. I don’t see why we can’t do the same for Leilani Hart.”
“But she’s not a newcomer looking for a house to rent, Dean. She’s a multimillionaire, hoping to take over a huge chunk of the marina.”
“So, let’s make her one of our own,” he suggested. “Make her understand why we are the way we are, why we love this place, and why we protect it.”
“And is this a demand or a request?” I asked through gritted teeth.
“We’re not kids anymore, Taylor. I can’t demand anything of you—unless it is business-related, and in that regard, it’s always been the other way around. You’ve always had a handle on this business, more so than me.”
“Damn straight,” I muttered.
“It’s a request,” he clarified. “But one I think you should take.”
“And why is that?”
“That woman has been in Ocracoke for twenty-four hours. She’s spoken to no one, yet you’ve managed to run into her on numerous occasions. You can’t seem to stay away.”
I swallowed hard.
“Don’t you want to find out why?”
“So, let me get this straight,” Millie began while waving a large cutting knife in the air. “You overheard this woman—a woman who, by the way, you were supposed to avoid but didn’t—and now, you’ve got some evil plot to overthrow her?”
I shrugged, wincing a little when I smelled something possibly burning in the oven. After being told very sternly by my brother just how this all was going to go, I’d sought out the only voice of reason on this blasted island.
Millie.
She’d, of course, immediately invited me over for dinner. It was a kind gesture, and it gave me the opportunity to get to know Aiden better, but the idea of Millie in the kitchen…
I still remembered By the Bay overflowing with smoke after several of her cooking incidents years ago. She definitely did not inherit that particular gift from her mother, like her sister had, but I appreciated the effort.
And, after the day I’d had, I could use a friend’s good nature.
Even if it involved Millie and a kitchen full of hazards.
