Page 52 of When You Got a Good Thing (Misfit Inn 1)

“I am completely okay with you remaining naked for the duration of your stay. Which, for the record, I hope will be until morning.”

Warm and happy, she pressed a kiss against his chest. “I always wanted to wake up with you.”

“Who said anything about sleeping?”

Kennedy stopped laughing when she ran her hand down his belly and found him already semi-hard again. “Sleep is entirely overrated.”

“We’ve got a little while yet. Tell me something good.”

“Something good?”

His hand strayed lower, tracing lazy patterns on her butt. “We’ve had a lot of awful the last couple of days. I feel like we need to focus on something good to balance it.”

“What we just did felt pretty damned fantastic.”

“Just warming up.”

She drilled a finger into his ribs. “Cocky.”

He laughed and captured her hand. “Confident.”

“I’d argue, but I’m clearly the beneficiary in this scenario.”

“I’d say the benefits are pretty mutual. But seriously, there has to be something good. With Ari? Or your sisters?”

Kennedy thought of the plan she’d been in the midst of constructing when he’d come over last night. “Well, I don’t know if it constitutes something good exactly, but I think I know how to save the house and land.”

“Yeah?”

“Partly inspired by you, actually.”

He listened intently as she described her idea for turning the house into an inn.

“It doesn’t have to be a huge out

lay. We have this massive house, with all these bedrooms already. By my calculations, we could have eight guest rooms and still maintain the family space. They’d just need some paint, some spit and polish, and we can outfit most of them with furniture we’ve already got. The only areas where we might need to make a splurge would be on quality linens. But other than that, application for a business license, and setting up a website to get the word out, we could be up and running in a month or six weeks, to take advantage of the spring tourism season. It would take a little time to build a following, but we’d know by the end of the year whether it’s a viable option. And if it is, there are options for expansions.”

“That makes so much sense.”

She bit her lip. “You don’t think it’s stupid?” What she really meant was, You don’t think I’m stupid? It hadn’t felt like a dumb idea, while she’d been pulling it together, but sharing it with someone else made it bigger, scarier.

“Absolutely not. This plays perfectly into what the mayor and city council are wanting to do. You’ve worked in pretty much every area of the hospitality industry, so you’re the perfect person to pull the concept together. It’s brilliant.”

Something in her relaxed. She hadn’t realized how much she’d needed to hear someone else back her up. “Well, I don’t know about brilliant, but it’s workable. And so far it’s the only idea on the table.”

“What did your sisters say?”

“I haven’t told them yet. I’ve been trying to get everything pulled together and organized so that I can present the whole thing in a formal business plan, like Maggie would do it. None of them expect this kind of thing from me, and I want them to take me seriously.”

“If you tell them what you just told me, they can’t help but take you seriously. It’s a smart move, Kennedy. More, I think it’s something your mom would’ve liked.”

He believed in her. No one but Joan had ever believed in her like he did. Was it any wonder she still loved him?

Untangling their legs, she rolled until she straddled him.

Xander grinned. “He’s probably got another minute or five recovery time, but I’m sure we can make good use of that span.”

Heart full to bursting, Kennedy bent to frame his face between her palms. “I love you, Xander.”

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