Page 9 of Unforgettable

What started out as an exciting new opportunity now feels way more complex. And all the fantasies I’ve been entertaining about Scarlett over the past couple of weeks will have to be filed away forever. There’s not only no time for that with all the work that needs to be done, but it’s obvious that she would rather jab her eyeballs out than ever see me again.

CHAPTERFIVE

UPSIDE-DOWN SMILE

SCARLETT

My pen hovers over today’s list, pausing over the last line.

Skip the bakery this morning.

Meet Lorena in the lobby, 7:30 a.m.

Mtg with HP, 8 a.m.

Let HP do the rest of my work since he wants this place so bad.

I nicknamed the new boss Head Prick before I even met him, but now that I know Jamison Ledger is the new owner of my family’s lodge, I wish I’d been meaner.

I pace my office, regretting not making the bakery stop. I could use a chocolate croissant right about now. I didn’t want the HP to expect that from me every day, even though I’ve picked up coffee and treats from Happy Cow from the time I could drive. As with everything in this transaction, the joke’s on me because Jamison doesn’t know what he’s missing. I’m the one who’s left with gnawing hunger and a headache from not having my usual morning treat and caffeine fix. I purposely made disgusting coffee this morning just in case the HP was a coffee lover. But I didn’t think that one through.

Jamison.A whimper escapes me and I put my hand over my mouth, trying to keep it in. The number of times I’ve wished I could see him again in the past two weeks…it’s ridiculous. How could he be here? In my resort, probably in Granddad’s office by now…that man, who has taken over every waking and sleeping thought since we slept together, ishere,in Landmark. Population 4,505 now.

How am I going to work with him every day?

I groan and then jump when my timer goes off. I grab my planner and hurry out of my office, making a point to not look in the direction of Granddad’s office. I refuse to call it Jamison’s.

Lorena is right on time and comes in rolling a huge cart of flowers. I can barely see her behind all the flowers and feathers. I help her into the lobby and admire her work. Our front desk clerks are switching over—Doug is officially off for the night and Elsie is beginning her shift—and they both ask what they can do to help.

I give them the list of arrangement placements, checking to see if each arrangement is labeled as I asked. They are, which earns Lorena huge points in my book.

“Stunning, Lorena. I love what you’ve put together. And thank you for marking them—that makes our job so much easier.”

“The rest is in the van,” she says, beaming.

“I’ll help you,” I tell her, walking outside with her.

Lorena’s not quite five feet and her voice is soft and childlike, her brown skin flawless. When I went in to visit her new shop, she shocked me when she said she’d been in business for forty years in Portland, and she had the pictures to back it up. The crinkles at her eyes when she smiles are the only evidence that she’s not exactly my age, but the way she unfolds another cart and hauls these arrangements out of the van like they’re nothing when some arrangements are nearly as big as her is impressive.

It’s windy this morning, so we hurry to avoid anything getting messed up, guests from the resort slowing down to watch as we roll the cart toward the entrance. I stop abruptly, causing Lorena to squeak, when Jamison opens the door for us. He has his sleeves rolled up already, his tie loosened slightly, reminding me of that night when he took off his—

Heat floods my face. “I’m sorry about that,” I tell Lorena, steadying a few of the arrangements before we move slowly toward the door and Jamison.

He grins at me tentatively and quickly moves his attention to Lorena when I don’t smile back. He chats with her easily and has her eating out of the palm of his hand in no time, the bastard.

Grinny would be appalled at my behavior, Granddad too.Iwould be too, if I thought Jamison was telling the truth about not knowing it was me that night.

I just can’t buy the coincidence.

And yet, I never once noticed his name either. I was in too much of a fog, too upset about what was happening for it to register. Now that I think about it, Theo did go on about how cool it was that an NFL player would be part of the history of the lodge…

Lorena is giggling at something Jamison says and Elsie blushes as she takes one of the arrangements from him. Elsie is tall and beautiful and freshly twenty-one, so totally legal. My stomach clenches and I feel a pang in my chest at the thought of the two of them hitting it off.

“Are you an NFL player?” I ask Jamison quietly.

“Pardon?” he asks, turning away from Elsie to look at me. He’s closer than I realized and I freeze. He blinks slowly and glances down at my mouth and seems to shake himself out of a stupor when he says, “Oh, did you say NFL player? No, that’s my brother, Zac.”

I can’t explain the relief I feel when he says that. I don’t know any professional athletes, but I know there are a lot of women involved…right? That’s a thing?

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