Chapter 20
Landon
I’m walking around in a dream. There’s no way last night and this morning happened. Zoe didn’t let me into her house or into her heart. After all of our fights, all of her hesitation, there’s no way she finally agreed to be with me.
But she did.
She let me in, and now I need to make sure she realizes I am all in.
Because I have fallen in love with Zoe Winslow. There’s no going back to my life before. Board meetings and mergers are pointless when compared to the prospect of exploring this relationship with Zoe.
It sounds so sappy and cliché to think that way, but there’s no other explanation besides love for the warmth in my chest, the tingling in my fingers, in the single-minded certainty that the best use of my days is to help Zoe shine.
Zoe isn’t the kind of woman to do anything casually. She dives in with her whole heart. And I have to protect her heart.
That’s my burden and my honor.
I park my SUV outside the Reeves estate.
Collin’s team should be here any minute, but I want to walk the property in solitude before they arrive.
There’s a connection here to what makes Zoe so amazing, and I need to make sure everything we do to the estate makes it better.
I need to bring Zoe’s mom’s vision to life as a gift to show her my dedication.
My thoughts pull me to the library where we spent that fateful night together. This space has always felt a little off to me, like something is missing or misplaced, but I’m not sure what it is.
I run my fingers along the smooth wooden walls until I reach the closet along the western wall. I’ve never opened this door before, so I peek inside. Cobwebs coat a broom, dustpan, and empty bucket that have probably been here since the Reeveses moved out.
The plan is to demolish this entire wall and extend the library into a multipurpose room.
I pull the broom out and dust it clean, swiping away the remnants of disuse.
Arcing scratches in the wooden floor grab my attention.
I press my fingers into the grooves. Weird, but I’ve seen scratches like this before in other old homes.
Ones with secret passages and hidden rooms.
I press my fingers along the seam between the back wall of the closet and the floor, up the side of the wall, to the ceiling.
Nothing. My fingers slide across the top of the door.
A raised bump pushes back. I press it down and a soft hiss emanates from the wall behind me.
I dig my nails in and slide the bucket out of the way so I can open the back wall of the closet fully. Anticipation flutters in my gut.
What is this? Who was the last person to open this door?
An empty black hole meets me. I pull my phone from my pocket and turn on the flashlight. In the dim haze, rough stone steps appear and descend into the ground.
“What secrets are you hiding?” Adventure grabs me by the gut and tugs me toward the stairs. Everything about the Reeves house is a mystery, so it doesn’t surprise me that there is a hidden passage beneath the estate.
Did Zoe’s mom know?
The air chills as I descend the steps. The walls transform from light gray stone to roughhewn wood. The steps are jagged from disuse. The scent of stagnant air mixes with the salty tang of the ocean.
After approximately 150 steps, a medieval metal door blocks my path. Salt has corroded the hinges and lock. I need to know what’s on the other side of this door. Can I open it without breaking the antique hasp? Or will it be a casualty of my exploration?
I scramble back up the stairs and search the house for a sledgehammer, a crowbar—anything to leverage the door open, but I come away empty handed. Collin’s team cleans up after themselves too well. They never leave a toolbox unattended.
I need to find Zoe anyway. We need to share this discovery. It will bring her closer to her mom.
I open my phone and navigate to her contact. The phone rings four times before she picks up. “I can’t talk right now.” Her voice is thick and stilted like she’s been crying.
Fuck. Anticipation transforms into a boulder sitting on my chest. “What happened?”
“Lucky. Elsbeth. My dad.” The words wobble like she’s trying to hold everything together.
I shouldn’t have left her. My place is by her side, protecting her. “What did they do?” Rage pulses from my hands.
“I’m facing the consequences.”
What the hell does that mean? The consequences of what? What would her dad have to do with Lucky and Elsbeth?
The background noise changes. Something like the sound of an ambulance whizzing by. “Where are you?”
“Headed to Town Hall for my reckoning.”
“You’re scaring me, Comet. What is going on? Tell me how I can help you.”
She sucks in a deep breath. “This is my fight.” There’s a resolve in her voice that wasn’t there a moment ago. “But I would really like you to be there to hold my hand.”
“On my way.”
Zoe
Charlotte bangs her gavel. “I call this emergency meeting to order.”
The rest of the council plus Collin sit around the conference table in Town Hall. Elsbeth whispers in Lucky’s ear, and they send vicious glances in my direction. I roll my shoulders back to portray a confidence that is not coursing through my system.
At the other end of the table, Dad won’t even look at me.
Everything is fine. You are an amazing mayor’s assistant. No one found out about dad’s health. You filled his shoes perfectly. Your private life isn’t any of their business, so this will all blow over once you explain the truth.
But the pep talk doesn’t have the same effect as the one outside the bookstore back in March.
Landon leans against the wall behind me silently fuming. I want him next to me, holding my hand, but that’s not an option. His silent support will have to be enough.
He barged through the front doors demanding to know who hurt me, what happened, who he needed to pay off, buy out, get rid of.
I showed him the picture. His granite jaw cracked, and his eyes attacked the room looking for Elsbeth and Lucky, for my dad.
But he can’t get rid of any of them. Especially not my dad.
Dad’s words echo in my mind. I saw the picture. To say I’m disappointed is an understatement. Meet me at Town Hall in twenty minutes.
Then he hung up. He didn’t give me a chance to explain myself or tell him my side of the story.
Decision made.
Judgment passed.
But why are we here?
What does his disappointment have to do with the council?
When he arrived, he settled into his seat and refused to speak with me.
He’s acting like a child, but he can’t ignore me forever. We’ll sort out whatever he called this meeting about, then I’ll force him to talk to me.
Charlotte settles the gavel on the table and pinches the bridge of her nose. “Mayor Winslow, you have something that can’t wait until our next meeting?”
“Thank you for coming.” Dad leans his elbows on the table and meets the eyes of every member of the council, conveniently skipping over mine.
Landon growls subtly behind me. I bite my lip to keep from smiling at his protectiveness. The pain also keeps me from crying again.
Why won’t Dad even look at me? Why does he think me kissing Landon is such a breach of his trust?
“Ladies and gentlemen, I’ve been away too long. I know that. This office isn’t conducting business up to my standards, and I want to apologize. I’m here to remedy the situation.”
Not up to standards? I bust my ass for him every day, running around talking to citizens, solving disagreements, planning town activities. I’ve done everything he’s ever asked me to do. I gave up my life for his dreams.
I decide to start dating and now I’m not meeting his standards? This is bullshit.
Dad’s eyes finally settle on me. “Zoe, you tried, but this isn’t working. I would like the council’s permission to fire Zoe for unprofessional conduct and start the search for a new assistant.”
“What?” I yell.
Landon surges forward and jams his finger into the table.
“Zoe has done an amazing job coordinating the estate renovation and meeting this town’s needs while you’ve been ill.
” His voice overpowers every other sound in the room with the command I imagine he frequently uses in boardrooms around the world.
“Every action has been professional and above board. You have no grounds to fire her.”
“I didn’t ask for your opinion, young man. Step back.”
“Zoe should be mayor, not you.” Landon’s voice carries a threat I’ve never heard before, but the ease with which the words slide from his mouth tells me he’s an expert.
Dad scoffs. “That will never happen.”
I bolt to my feet. “Dad!”
I spent my entire life preparing for this future. And now after one date, he’s disqualifying me? I don’t understand. Nothing makes sense.
Is this specifically because of Landon, or would he have reacted this way if I’d dated anyone seriously?
“Baby Girl, you’re a kid.” Dad’s shoulders fall. “You don’t have the skills to run this town. You’re too easily manipulated and distracted. I thought you could handle it, but you can’t, so we’re fixing things.”
“The house is going to be perfect. Just like Mom wanted.”
“Your mother isn’t here. That house is…” He clears his throat.
“You shouldn’t have let the council bully you into accepting the purchase.
” Dad stands. “I know you all thought you were acting in the town’s best interests, but this resort isn’t our answer.
Tourism will destroy our cultural heritage.
Increased visibility drives crime, drugs, gangs.
This town won’t be a safe place to raise our children if we invite outsiders to our doors. ”
“No gang is moving into Rainwater Bay,” Jack says. “There’s nothing here.”
“Exactly. And that’s how we need to keep it.
” Dad paces behind the chairs. “Folks, our traditions make us like family. We’ve forgotten that, but I promise to get us back on the correct footing.
We’ll start by canceling building permits for the Reeves restoration project.
Collin, Archer, I’m sorry we got your hopes up and wasted your time.
Mr. Prince, your presence is no longer welcome. Goodbye.”
Landon’s chin ticks up with Dad’s dismissal. “Even if you shutter the project, I’m not leaving. I’m in love with your daughter, and if she’s here, so am I.”
My hand flies to my mouth. “You can’t mean that.”
Landon tugs my fingers free. “Why not?”
“One night?” I whisper. This isn’t the time or the place for this conversation. Declarations of love don’t happen over laminate conference tables with busybodies licking their chops to spread the gossip. But…love?
“I started falling the moment I saw you.” He kisses the inside of my wrist. “You’re mine. We’ll make this work.”
“I forbid it.” Dad’s face flashes red and sweat peppers his hairline. “My daughter isn’t property. She isn’t yours. She’s not going anywhere.” He grabs his arm and sinks to his knees. “I…forbid…” His eyes slam shut.
“Dad!” I fall on my knees next to him. “Dad, what’s wrong?” No, no, no, no, no, no.
“You can’t—” His face squeezes into a tight grimace, and his eyes roll into the back of his skull. He collapses to the dirty carpet
“Call an ambulance,” I scream at Elsbeth, but she just stands there, slack-jawed. I shake my dad’s shoulder. “Dad! Wake up! Dad!”
Landon presses his phone to his ear and speaks in a low voice. “They’re on their way.”
“Dad, I can’t lose you too. Wake up.”
But he doesn’t respond.
What have I done?