#Resort Crush (Lakeview Harbor #4)

Chapter 1

Chapter One

Early morning walks were sort of becoming the norm.

It was peaceful, the scenery was breathtaking, and more than anything, it gave him the solitude he so fiercely craved.

Moving into his cabin at the Lakeview Harbor Resort seemed like a good idea to Milo Keene.

After all, his buddies had all done it and seemingly thrived from it.

They were all more hands-on with the rebuilding of the resort, so it made sense for them all to be here.

But he was the guy who did better when he was sitting behind a desk and not touching anything building-related.

He was a tech guy.

Correction: a brilliant tech guy.

And that wasn’t his ego talking; it was a fact.

While all his friends were playing baseball or football, he was teaching himself how to code. It felt natural to him in a way that nothing else had. And the older he got, the more he learned until he founded his own cybersecurity company while still in college.

Now, as a self-made millionaire, he was still learning and growing his business on a global level, and it kept him incredibly busy.

And lonely.

He was so used to commanding his company back in Seattle and spending his days in front of multiple computer screens that he had forgotten what it was like to relax a little, breathe fresh air, and have free time on his hands.

Being here with his best friends was fun, but sometimes he just needed time alone.

Like now.

The resort was open and fully functioning, which meant there were guests everywhere.

The section they had designated for the owners—himself, Walker, Connor, Slater, and Axel—was off-limits to guests, and it allowed him the opportunity to walk along some paths without having to smile or make small talk with strangers.

He despised small talk.

Mainly because he sucked at it.

But he was here for the next three months to make sure everything digital—the computer systems, Wi-Fi, security cameras…pretty much anything with a digital footprint—was functioning the best that it possibly could.

Did he need three months? Probably not. He chose to take that time away from his company as a bit of a sabbatical. Apparently he’d been getting a little too tense and snappish with his staff.

His head of HR had the misfortune of having to come and reprimand him.

That had been the kick in the ass he needed to know it was time for a break.

It had been far too long since he’d taken any real time off.

Sure, he’d come to the resort during the renovation phase and hung out for a few days here and there—a week at most—but it had been years since he’d taken any serious time for himself.

He couldn’t even remember the last time he’d gone on a date or had sex.

Maybe that’s why I was getting snappish…

It was definitely the reason.

And while he could have easily gone out somewhere and hooked up with someone, that wasn’t even remotely appealing.

Not anymore.

Now that his friends were all getting engaged and married, Milo found that he was a little…envious.

Fine, he was full-on jealous, and he hated it.

Walker and Harlow were planning a New Year’s wedding, Connor and Lexi were still trying to pick a date for their wedding but he knew it would be soon, and there wasn’t a doubt in his mind that Axel and Maisie were going to get engaged any day now.

He knew it was coming because Axel asked him to help pick out a ring, so…yeah, any day now.

It wasn’t like he felt like he had to be in a relationship, but he’d been a little…disenchanted with his life lately. He was bored and lonely and…really thought he’d be married with kids by this point in his life.

Although it’s hard for that to happen when he was working eighteen hours a day, seven days a week.

“What am I doing with my life?” he murmured wearily. He had money, a beautiful home back in Seattle, part-ownership in the resort, and he could do anything he wanted.

I want to be happy.

Unfortunately, he had no idea how to be.

He spent so much of his life focusing on his ambition that happiness had fallen way down on the list. Creating a new product or a new code brought him satisfaction, but it didn’t make him happy.

On some level, he thought being here with his friends and surrounded by happy people would rub off on him.

So far, it hadn’t.

But he was only three weeks in. There was still time for that to change. It was all in the mindset.

So right now, with the sun freshly up, he pushed all negative thoughts aside as he embraced the peace and beauty of mother nature.

The morning air carried a kind of hush that Milo wasn’t used to.

Back in Seattle, mornings came alive with sound—the low rumble of traffic, someone’s playlist blasting, the hiss of espresso machines from the café next to his office.

Here, there was nothing like that. Just the muted crunch of his boots along the dirt path and the soft rhythm of his own breath.

He followed the narrow trail that curved through the woods, pine needles and damp leaves cushioning every step.

The scent of the forest was sharp and clean—pine, earth, and the faint sweetness of something blooming unseen.

A thin veil of fog hovered over the lake ahead, the surface smooth and still, reflecting the pale blush of early light.

It struck him how strange it felt to have nowhere he needed to be. No calendar reminders buzzing in his pocket, no emails waiting, no city hum in the background, just… space and time. The kind he’d always said he wanted but never really knew what to do with.

He slowed near the water’s edge, watching a single ripple move outward until it disappeared. The quiet wasn’t just around him; it seemed to seep into him, pressing against the restless noise that usually filled his head. For once, he didn’t try to push it away.

He thought about how long it had been since he’d allowed himself to be still. Not productive, not efficient—just still. Out here, the world didn’t ask anything of him. It didn’t care who he was or what he hadn’t figured out yet. It just existed—peaceful, steady, certain in a way he envied.

When the sun finally broke through the trees, spilling light across the lake, he stood there and let it warm his face. Maybe this was what he’d been chasing without realizing it—not escape, but quiet. The kind that lets you hear yourself again.

The roar of a jet ski ruined everything.

Groaning, he stomped along the water’s edge to see why anyone was out on the lake this early. Guests weren’t allowed to access the equipment without one of the employees being there, and no one was scheduled to be out here until after eight.

Maybe it was one of the staff testing the equipment or just getting a jump on the day, but it was just barely seven a.m. Weren’t there rules about this sort of thing?

He squinted into the fog and saw it: a streak of red cutting through the water like a comet. It was definitely a jet ski. And on it, the only person he seemed to always run into when no one was around, Nora Wilder.

Just then, she went speeding by, splashing him as she went.

“Son of a bitch!”

It wasn’t like he got soaked, but his clothes still got sprayed, and it pissed him off to no end.

Muttering another curse, Milo had to figure out what to do next.

Storming over to the dock, he stood, hands on his hips, and had no idea what to do.

Did he wait here until she rode back, or did he go straight to Slater, her boss?

Before he could even think, she angled the machine closer, slicing through the mist with effortless control. Water sprayed over the dock, drenching the tips of his shoes.

“Seriously?” Milo muttered under his breath, brushing off the droplets.

Her grin was wicked, the kind that made him groan and smile at the same time. “Morning, city boy,” she called, voice loud and teasing, carrying across the lake like she knew exactly how to get under his skin.

He opened his mouth to reply—something calm, logical, maybe a polite rebuke—but the words got stuck in his throat. God, she was stunning.

And that just pissed him off.

From the moment he first saw her, he was intrigued. She moved with confidence, and she had a body that typically kept him staring way too long. And that’s what always got him in trouble, because she usually caught him.

The first time, he had been out on one of the docks using one of his top-of-the-line drones to survey the area.

They were planning on building an amphitheater, and being out on the dock meant he could launch without a lot of trees around.

The plan had been simple. All he expected to see were areas on the resort property that would make the most sense to build where it wouldn’t overly disturb guests who were either in their cabins or up in the lodge.

What he hadn’t expected to see was a gorgeous, topless brunette sunbathing in one of their canoes in the middle of the lake.

In all his life, Milo had never seen anyone move so fast or furiously.

Her lithe body just sprang into action to first cover herself and then get to shore.

He figured that would be the end of it. But once on land, she hauled several rocks at the drone and knocked it right out of the sky and down into the water.

At the time, he had no idea she was an employee of the resort.

Yeah, he awkwardly found that out later on, in the middle of Jayce and Kelsey’s wedding reception.

But even as furious as he was about the drone, seeing her up close and in person had kind of knocked him on his ass. She took zero responsibility for destroying his drone and confidently put the blame on him before walking away.

And what did he do?

Nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

Well, he’d walked away—stormed off, actually—like a damn child who didn’t get his way.