Chapter Seven
Hannah
––––––––
Five minutes later, the fire was crackling. I put marshmallows on two metal sticks and handed him one. The tips of his fingers lingered on mine a beat too long, and a bolt of heat unexpectedly coursed through me. Averting my gaze, I turned to the fire, putting my marshmallows right into the flame.
Sunset was my favorite time. The sky was a mix of blue, orange, and streaks of pink. The birds were singing happily, and if I concentrated, I could almost hear the ocean waves, even though we were pretty far from the shore.
"That's it," I said a few seconds later. "Watch me do it so you don't accidentally burn yourself." As carefully as possible, I put the marshmallow between two graham crackers with a chocolate bar. Then I bit into it.
"Mm, these are good. Your turn." I pointed to his stick, and he shoved it into the fire, but his eyes were fixed on my mouth. I pressed my thighs together, fidgeting on the log.
"Your marshmallow is melting off," I said. He hadn't taken his stick from the fire. Two marshmallows had completely melted, but one could still be salvaged.
He prepped the s’more the same way I did, blowing cold air before eating it.
"So, what's the verdict?" I asked.
He glanced up at me. "I kind of expected more."
I gasped. "You don’t like them?”
"I do, but I'm not impressed."
I narrowed my eyes. “You’ve just lost all the goodwill you earned at the wedding. All of it.”
He wiggled his eyebrows. “How can I gain it back? Another dance? Or another kiss?”
Excitement spiked in my veins. It was thrilling. But I felt like I was missing part of the story and was playing catch-up.
“Chase, why are you here?”
He lowered the stick, planting it in the soil. I did the same with mine.
"I talked to Josh today."
"Oh my God. Did anything happen to him or Blair?"
"No, no. Everything's fine."
"Okay." I felt really confused.
“I asked him what kind of trouble you're in.”
I jerked my head back. "Why?"
"Because you mentioned it a couple of times, and I couldn't get it out of my head. You sounded mortified." He pinned me with his gaze. "Josh told me that the inn is in financial troubles."
I didn't say anything. Where is he going with this?
"I've thought about a few things that could help," he continued. "I figured we could talk about it over s'mores.”
"Chase," I murmured, "I'm not sure what to say." For some reason, I didn't feel at all ashamed about my troubles. I glanced back at the inn. "You came here to give me advice? Why?"
"Because I like you, Hannah, and I hate the idea of you losing the inn."
I was touched. I didn't expect this grumpy man I thought was an asshole at first to be so thoughtful.
“And I can’t turn off my business brain,” he went on. “But first, can you tell me the state of things and what your plans are?”
I nodded. “The best part is that there are no debts. It’s fully paid off. I was going to invest my nest egg in renovations, but then there was an incident where workers came to inspect the roof and it collapsed. Their medical care wiped out my savings.”
Chase frowned. “Insurance should cover accidents.”
“I know. But the thing is, my gran hadn’t paid the insurance for a while. In the last months of her life, she was confused about a lot of things but wouldn’t let me help her, even though I really tried. I should’ve checked everything thoroughly after she passed, but I couldn’t focus.”
“Hannah, that’s more than understandable.”
I shrugged. “And it didn’t help that my ex-husband wasn’t a fan of the inn. Thought I should just sell it. I was so overwhelmed right after she passed away that I couldn’t keep up with work and the inn. A year ago, I left my job, determined to give the inn my best. Then the insurance disaster ate my savings, and Gary and I separated.”
I heard Chase grit his teeth. Actually heard it.
“What?”
“Yeah. He said something like I kept making bad decisions, and he didn’t want me to drag him down too. He served me divorce papers three weeks later. I think he’d been planning to do it anyway. We’d been married for two years.”
Just remembering that fight made my skin crawl and my heart shatter all over again.
“Let me get this straight. You were mourning your grandmother, and the asshole blamed you for bad decisions? How about helping out?”
I waved it off, shrugging. “Let’s not talk about him anymore. I only mentioned him because... honestly, I don’t even know why. Anyway, enough babbling. In a nutshell, I don’t have money for renovations. I asked the bank for a loan, but the interest is so high that I’d rather save up for a year.”
He nodded. “A loan was one of the solutions I thought about. Would you consider taking on an investor?”
“Perhaps. But finding one isn’t easy. The market for investors interested in small inns is... tiny. Plus, I like to call the shots.”
“That doesn’t surprise me. But a silent investor would solve your problem.”
I laughed. “Damn. A silent investor who's interested in a small inn? I feel like that pool is getting smaller and smaller.”
He took out his phone, showing me the screen. To my astonishment, he’d made a list with possible solutions.
He'd given this so much thought. I was certain he had a million other things to do than be concerned with this.
I scooted closer to him, unconsciously, and then I got a whiff of his cologne. My entire body reacted to him. I instantly remembered how it felt to have his lips on mine. I crossed my arms over my chest to keep from shuddering.
“The last point is about some grants the local council is giving,” he said.
“Could you email me the link?” I asked. I’d already looked at them and the inn wasn’t eligible, but it didn’t hurt to double check.
“Sure.”
I scooted back from him because I swear to God, I could get drunk on his smell alone. The fire crackled between us. Somehow, he seemed even sexier here than at the wedding.
“I do have a plan, though," I told him. "I looked at jobs today.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. I want to close this place for a while. I’ll only have to pay property tax and insurance. I’ll save as much as possible, and I estimate that in about a year, I can start renovations.”
"Josh told me this place means a lot to you."
"It does. Being here makes me feel closer to my grandmother. I know it sounds silly," I said quickly because he was completely silent, probably thinking I was a lunatic.
“No, it doesn't. I just haven't heard someone speak with so much passion before.”
Don’t get closer to him, Hannah. You'll lose your wits again, and who knows what can happen? One kiss was enough. He's Josh's best friend and not into relationships. He's not for you.
"What kind of jobs are you applying for?" he asked.
“A stockbroker, of course. I haven’t been out of the loop for that long, and I was very good at it. Plus, I enjoy it.”
“Then why did you leave?”
“Because I love the inn. I like finance, but I feel like it’s not what I’m meant to do, you know?”
The grin he gave me was enormous . It took up his whole face.
He managed to tone it down enough to talk. "Funny, I happen to own one of the largest brokerage and finance companies in the country. What a coincidence, right?"
My heart rate accelerated. "That's right. You do. I didn't even think about it."
"Lucky I came by with marshmallows, then."
"Lucky why?"
"Listen, Hannah, we're always looking for talented brokers.”
I raised a brow. "How do you know I'm talented?"
"One of the first things Josh told me about you was that he was impressed by you at that finance conference where you met.”
I’d made a few contacts there. I could inquire about jobs with them too. Four months ago, I was starting to doubt that this would work, hence why I’d gone to the conference.
“And I saw you in action this weekend. You’re thorough, determined, and can work under pressure. That’s an asset in every job."
Oh my God. Maybe this truly is a sign that things will turn around. Today, I was thinking about getting back into finance, and now he's offering me a job.
"Chase... I don't want you to offer me a job out of pity."
"I'm not. If it makes you feel better, I'll simply forward your résumé to HR. They’ll make you jump through all the hoops and tests we use for all brokers."
I rolled back my shoulders. "Yes, that would make me feel much better. I'm great at those tests."
"I bet you are." He toned his grin way down, but it was still there. It was an amazing look on him. He glanced at my mouth again. I licked my lips but scooted even farther back on the log.
"Chase," I said slowly.
"Yes?"
"If your company ends up hiring me, we need to start with a clean slate."
He finally lifted his gaze, making eye contact. "What do you mean?"
"You know what happened at the wedding.”
He tilted forward. I didn't have it in me to move even farther away.
"Josh all but threatened me today, instructing me to stay away from you."
"What?" I exclaimed. "You told him we kissed?"
“I promised to behave.”
That didn’t answer my question, but I had more important things to focus on.
“Okay. So we have a deal?”
His eyes glinted. "Why don't you apply first, and then we'll see what happens?"
"Nope. That's not how it works.”
Somehow, we'd ended up even closer. I was lost in his fragrance again.
"I need your word, Chase," I insisted.
"I promise," he said.
The glint in his eyes made me suspicious, but I'd gotten him to promise, and I wouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth. I couldn’t understand how I was so attracted to him, especially when I knew so very few things about him. He was a great dancer and an excellent kisser. He’d helped salvage my sister’s wedding.
And he’d come here tonight.
“Now, let’s focus on the marshmallows,” I said, making him laugh. “Wouldn’t want to let them go to waste.”
He ran a hand through his hair. The motion took me back to the beach. He’d done the exact same thing then after I’d tugged at his hair during our kiss. I remembered how it felt between my fingers.
Great. I asked him for a clean slate, and now I'm fantasizing about our kiss.
Way to go, Hannah.