Page 16 of To Believe In You
She hit the green icon to answer. “Dad? Is everything okay?”
“Galina. How’re you?” His bright tone disproved her theory about an emergency. Usually, he only turned this chipper after closing some big deal. But the good mood didn’t usually turn his interest toward Lina. Even now, he didn’t wait for her to overcome her surprise before plowing ahead. “Listen, we got a fantastic offer on the land in Maine.”
“Oh.” The deal wasn’t a business negotiation, but a personal matter. She felt as though a car she’d been traveling in had been slammed into reverse. She cleared her throat. “I know you wanted to sell.”
She bit the corner of her mouth, trying to imagine a new structure going up on the lot next to The Captain’s Vista. The one thing Grandma had left Dad was the vacant plot next to the beloved property. Grandma had hoped he might build a vacation home there so he and Mom could stay near Lina and her family.
That hope rested on enough unlikely contingencies to make it as risky as any business venture Dad had ever concocted. Dad didn’t take vacations or prioritize his relationship with Lina, and Lina had no prospects for a family of her own.
“The land is just sitting there,” Dad said. “It’s taking up oceanfront views, waiting for someone with a vision to bring it up to date. There’s a void in the vacation rental market, but the demand is there.”
She massaged her forehead. Because Shane had introduced Dad to the world of real estate investments, Dad’s sales pitch conjured a picture of her ex, eyes glittering as he layered one grand promise on another. She’d bought Shane’s lies until he’d betrayed her in ways no lie could cover.
At least, not with her. Mom and Dad had believed Shane when he claimed to have invested the missing funds in a spur-of-the-moment opportunity that would pay him back three-fold in a couple of months. Despite Shane’s failure to return so much as a dime, Dad still associated with him. Probably because Shane’s advice had made him a tidy profit.
“What are they going to build? Condos?” She nearly let out a groan at the thought of tourists on the formerly secluded beach. “What about zoning? Can they build a commercial property there?”
“The community and the county are amenable to rezoning, and you don’t want to miss this opportunity.”
“Me?”
“The investor wants both properties. We’ll get exponentially more if we sell together than if we piece it out.”
She gave her ring a twist. “I’m not selling The Captain’s Vista, Dad.”
“The place is a money pit, and you haven’t been out there in years.”
Because her life had been in upheaval. First, she’d ended her engagement. Then, Grandma’s sudden illness had taken her far too soon, leaving Lina to wade through the maze of assuming control of the sizable inheritance.
“I’m going to fix it up and spend time there.” He didn’t need to know she had her doubts about how long it would be before she could manage a visit, let alone a renovation.
“That would be a sentimental waste of money.”
A topic Dad knew inside and out, since he’d gained and lost two fortunes, once shortly before she was born, once when she was twelve. But his current company had restored his life of luxury, so neither she nor her parents needed funds from the sale of the land in Maine.
She straightened her fingers and watched light catch the emerald ring. Enjoying her grandparents’ keepsakes by wearing Grandma’s rings and occasionally paging through Grandpa’s stamp book meant more to her than all the funds. Though she couldn’t keep it equally close, The Captain’s Vista held similar value. “I can’t agree to sell.”
“I thought you might be hung up on the place.” She could practically hear him shaking his head. “Think about it and get back to me. I have clients waiting.” He disconnected.
Lowering the phone, she stared blankly at the wildflowers in the raised bed before her. Next time, she was letting his call go to voicemail. If something awful had happened, she would deal with the news a minute later when she listened to the message.
She sipped her coffee, but the brew seemed to have lost its flavor. Maybe she ought to stop checking in with them altogether, but did Mom deserve silence because of Dad?
A young couple strolled down the walk, framed by the pink, blue, and orange flowers below and the low tree branches above. The woman’s ponytail swept the guy’s shoulder as she eyed the shops across the street, and the man tilted his head in as if to catch the scent of her shampoo. When the woman turned back, he caught her with a kiss that left her grinning.
Living the fairytale.
Once upon a time, she and Shane hadn’t looked much different.
Handsome, attentive, and successful, he’d made quick work of Lina’s heart.
Now, here she sat, alone.
The slats of the seat back jostled, and a dark shape dropped to the space beside her. She jumped, and milky coffee splattered her thumb.
Matt grinned.
He’d hurdled the bench?
