Love Walks In

by Samantha Chase

  “What do you mean?”

  “Hugh…when was the last time Dad went anywhere?”

  Too long ago. “Okay, stupid question. Sorry. So this is your way of forcing him to break out of his rut.”

  “He’s been making progress since Darcy left for school but…baby steps. He goes bowling with the guys once a week, he went fishing last weekend with the same group.”

  “For him, it’s huge. At least he’s spending time with friends.”

  “Yeah, but it’s still… He’s still sticking close to home. You travel. Riley travels. Hell, even Owen travels. But Dad?”

  “And you.”

  “Fine. I don’t travel either. So it will be good for a few of us. Happy?”

  Hugh laughed. “Extremely.”

  “Okay, so who do we need to talk to and what’s your schedule like? Zoe and I are open to flying to wherever you are so we can talk in person.”

  “Here’s the thing—I’m happy for you guys. I really am. You’ve just caught me at a bad time.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize you were busy. Why didn’t you cut me off? You can call me later or—”

  “No, no, no. That’s not what I mean. I mean it’s a bad time—my events coordinator just quit and I don’t have a replacement lined up.”

  “Is that all?”

  “Is that all?” Hugh repeated incredulously. “It’s huge! We have a lot of events scheduled and without someone overseeing them, it could be a disaster!”

  “She wasn’t your only event coordinator, Hugh. I mean that would be…”

  “Shut up.”

  “She was your only events person? You own twelve resorts, Hugh! How is that possible?”

  If there was one thing Hugh hated more than chaos, it was being questioned on how he managed his business. “Look, Aidan, you run a construction business. You have no idea how to do things in the hospitality business. I know I have twelve resorts, but they’re small. Intimate. We’re like a family. Each resort has someone who acts as an assistant to Heather, but she was the go-to on all events.”

  “That’s just weird. And probably not the smartest managerial decision you’ve ever made.”

  “And we’re done here.”

  “Okay, okay…I’m sorry. Look, give me a call when the smoke clears so we can set up a meeting. Like I said, Zoe and I aren’t in a huge rush and we’re willing to meet you wherever you are.”

  “I appreciate it, I do. But you’re going to have to give me something to go on here. Are you thinking beach? Mountains? Do you want to stay stateside? Or were you thinking of Australia?”

  “Get things settled where you are, Hugh, then we’ll talk. Trust me, Zoe and I can wait until you’re ready.”

  “Thanks, man. I’ll give you a call soon.”

  Hugh placed the phone back down on his desk and sighed. Yeah, maybe it wasn’t such a great idea to have one main events coordinator, but Heather had been the best. She oversaw her staff and managed to make every event unique. Now he had to figure out how to move forward and find a replacement.

  Fast.

  He looked up when Dorothy knocked and poked her head back through the door. He knew immediately the news wasn’t good. It was written all over her face. “What? What’s happened now?”

  “Your wine guy? William Bellows?”

  Hugh nodded.

  “He’s arriving today.”

  “No. He’s arriving tomorrow.”

  She shook her head. “His assistant just called. He’s on his way now. He wrapped up his other business early. She called to make sure we would have a suite ready for him.”

  Cursing, Hugh stood and kicked his chair out of the way. “This is unbelievable! I can’t catch a break today!”

  “I did manage to tell her you would be tied up in meetings and would have to stick to your original plans with him. She said it would be fine.”

  “Lucky me.”

  “Okay,” she began, stepping farther into the room. “Again, it’s not an ideal situation but it’s not a catastrophe either. We’ll make sure his suite is ready, we’ll arrange for spa services and dinner and keep him pampered like a VIP. In the meantime, we’ll continue to figure out who you’re going to use as a replacement for Heather.”

  “Where’s Josie? She’s worked as Heather’s assistant here. We’ll use her as a temp.”

  Dorothy shook her head.

  “What? Why not?”

  “She’s on vacation. Two weeks.”

  “So call her in. Tell her it’s an emergency.”

  “Already tried. She’s in Europe.”

  “Has everyone stopped working?” Hugh yelled. “How is it possible all of this fell into place like this?”

  “Bad timing?”

  He glared at her. “Not the time, Dotty.”

  “Can I ask you something?”

  He nodded even as he rubbed his temple to ward off the headache that was building.

  “Why are you freaking out so much about this meeting? I’ve never seen you like this before and you’ve done business with people from all over the world. What is it about this guy that has you so overwhelmed?”

  Hugh dropped his hands into his lap. “He’s a little…eccentric. Unconventional.”

  Dorothy quirked a brow at him. “Unconventional in what way?”

  “He’s not the kind of guy who follows any kind of plan. He tends to go with the flow and follow his gut instincts…that sort of thing. One time, he was on vacation in Italy and hired a guy to handle sales of a particular wine here in the U.S. just because he liked his shoes! And the guy didn’t even speak English!”

  “The guy he hired or Mr. Bellows?”

  “I’m glad you’re having fun with this,” he said in a near growl. “The guy he hired! Then Bellows hired a tutor to teach the guy English!”

  “And? How did it turn out?”

  Hugh raked a hand through his hair. “He’s the top salesman in the company.”

  “Oh dear,” she murmured. “And you want to do business with him? You’re his complete opposite! How are you going to handle working without any structure? You know how much you hate that.”

  “I know, I know.” He sighed. “Honestly, I’m hoping if I present a completely well-thought-out plan to him, he’ll simply agree to go along with it. There won’t need to be any gut instinct or flowing because I’ll have it all covered.”

  She chuckled, and when Hugh glared at her, Dorothy quickly placed a hand over her mouth. Clearing her throat, she continued, “You’re not counting on that, are you?”

  Hugh straightened in his seat. “As a matter of fact, I am. That’s why this presentation has to be flawless!”

  “Oh, Hugh…”

  “Look, I’m getting it all worked out. It’s not the way I envisioned but…”

  “You’re just going to go with the flow?” she finished and then smirked.

  “Cute.”

  “Let’s take a walk. We’ll go over to the suite we’re preparing for Mr. Bellows, check on the grounds. Sometimes a change of scenery can help us brainstorm. What do you say?”

  “I’d say you’re talking to me like I’m a moron, and I don’t like it.”

  She smiled at him sweetly. “But are you coming with me?”

  Dammit. Without a word, he strode from his office and waited for his assistant to catch up.

  * * *

  An hour later, Hugh strolled back to his office. His mind was still scrambling for a solution to his current crisis, but his eyes were fixed on the immaculate landscaping along the path between the resort buildings.

  He had chosen every tree, every plant. He had worked with a team of electricians to ensure guests would be able to see at night without seeing the lights. There had been dozens of meetings to find the perfect combination of mulch and sto
ne and brick. He’d made every decision. He’d solved every crisis.

  But for the life of him, he didn’t have a clue how to solve this current one.

  A soft breeze blew as the sun was going down in Napa. It was a beautiful time of day—very peaceful. Very tranquil. And nothing pleased him more than seeing the beauty around him. The blue oaks were in full foliage, the lawn was perfectly manicured, the hot-pink suitcase accented the…

  Wait. What? The hot-pink suitcase? “What the hell?” Hugh muttered as he looked around to see if any guests were wandering around. “Who would leave a suitcase in the middle of the lawn?” Stepping closer to it, he continued to scan the area. Sometimes guests got caught up in the scenery and stopped to take pictures on the way to their room.

  It was a hideous piece of luggage. Neon pink with white polka dots, hard-shelled…it was an eyesore. There were no tags on it and while he knew he should be suspicious, his first thought was getting rid of it so the grounds could go back to looking like they normally did.

  Lush. Beautiful.

  Free of blinding pink baggage.

  There was no time to call a bellhop. He was on a schedule and there was still so much he had to do. With a huff, Hugh grabbed the suitcase and rolled it behind him to the main building, hoping whoever owned it would come looking for it.

  Soon.

  There were guests checking in at the front desk when he arrived, and rather than interrupt, he took the offensive luggage back to his office, making a note to call the concierge and let him handle it. Unfortunately, his phone started ringing as soon as he closed the door and for the next thirty minutes, he did his best to sort through the short list of assistants who might be able to fill in for Heather.

  By the time he put the phone down, it was after six and Dorothy had gone for the day. He’d managed to decide on flying one of Heather’s assistants in from Montana. With any luck, Marnie would arrive in the morning and they could have an hour to go over what he was going to need from her in great detail.

  He stared at the computer screen in front of him. The only special event going on tonight was a small wedding. Hugh frowned at the screen. Very small. Apparently it was a spur-of-the-moment thing and the concierge was handling all of the details. A bride, a groom, no guests.

  “Weird,” he said with a shake of his head. Why did people elope? Wasn’t part of the getting-married process having a big, obnoxious wedding? Hell if he knew. It didn’t seem to be the direction Aidan and Zoe were going in, but most of the weddings Hugh had attended had bordered on the ridiculous.

  Hugh knew—if given the chance—he’d opt for the low-key wedding himself. Not that he was looking to get married. At least not right now. Eventually he would. He’d find someone suitable—someone with common interests and morals—and settle down. He wanted kids—maybe three—and would maybe cut back on his traveling a bit. Deep down, he knew it sounded more like a business transaction than anything else, but it was basically what he wanted.

  After witnessing his own father’s devastation after losing Hugh’s mother, there was no way he was going to allow himself to experience the same thing. Ever. Loving someone as completely as Ian Shaughnessy had loved Lillian was not something Hugh ever intended to do. Love made you weak, and if there was one thing Hugh prided himself on, it was being strong. All the ridiculous wedding hoopla and messy feelings might be fine for some—like Aidan and Zoe—but not for him.

  This particular wedding happening tonight seemed to be under control—nothing about it should cause any issues. They’d have their ceremony in the garden, then they were having dinner delivered to their suite. Seemed like a no-brainer to him.

  And yet…

  “Dammit,” he muttered, knowing he’d want to walk by the gardens and make sure everything was up to his expectations. It was normally something Heather would do. Or Josie. Or Dorothy. But apparently tonight it was up to him to handle it personally. It was one more thing to add to his plate.

  So much for relaxing tonight.

  Besides checking on the garden, there was no way Hugh could possibly go to his suite and relax when there was so much to do to prepare for his meeting with Bellows and making sure Marnie came off as professional and knowledgeable. Luckily he’d been keeping detailed records and files and already had his own pitch ready. He just hoped Marnie would be able to come up with something on the fly to persuade Bellows to give them a chance.

  Scanning his files, he quickly composed an email and sent it off to Marnie for her to read in preparation for tomorrow. He’d rather send her as much information as humanly possible—even if it overwhelmed her—rather than have her come off sounding ill-prepared. There was nothing more irritating to Hugh than feeling like he was wasting his time with a client or customer because one of them didn’t have all the necessary information.

  Some would call it obsessive. Hugh preferred to think of it as being considerate.

  Standing and stretching, he caught sight of the ugly suitcase. “Shit,” he muttered. Yet another thing to add to his list—dealing with the mystery luggage. Not wanting to waste any more time, he shut down his computer, collected the rest of the files he was going to need for the night along with his phone, and walked out of the office, locking the door behind him.

  At the front desk he stopped and left instructions with the concierge regarding the suitcase.

  “I’m sorry, Mr. Shaughnessy, but there hasn’t been any inquiry regarding it. I’ve asked around and no one remembers checking anyone in with that color luggage.” Tim had been with the resort since the beginning, and Hugh knew the man paid special attention to just about everything that went on. Guests loved him because he had a knack for listening to everything they had to say and then making sure their stay was everything they wanted it to be. So if Tim didn’t know who the luggage belonged to, Hugh wasn’t sure what to do.

  “Well, if anyone does come for it, I’ve left it in my office. I trust you—and only you—to go in and get it. If you’re not here, have someone call me and I’ll be here in a matter of minutes.”

  “Yes, Mr. Shaughnessy. I’ll make sure it’s handled. Thank you.”

  “Have a good night, Tim.”

  “You as well, sir,” the man said with a smile.

  Hugh smiled back but his mind was already spinning. It seemed odd that no one had come looking for it and for a minute, paranoia got the better of him and he considered calling in the local police and having the bag scanned for a bomb.

  “I’m seriously losing my mind,” he grumbled as he walked away from the desk and out the front door.

  At each of the dozen resorts Hugh owned, he kept an apartment. It made life easier. Each was designed and decorated to his exact specifications and it gave him a sense of continuity—a sense of home. This particular resort had only one building with more than three floors and he had taken the top-floor suite as his own.

  Stepping out into the evening air, he looked around and couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride again. It never got old. This was his. All of it. He’d worked hard, invested well, ran a tight ship, and knew his limitations. Sure, he could have expanded on most of his properties, but Hugh liked a more intimate atmosphere—a place where couples could come and relax. Let the bigger names compete for acreage and the most amenities. What he had accomplished with his resorts was in a class by itself.

  The walk to his suite normally would have him turning to the left, but Hugh took the path to the right, toward the gardens. He was restless. Within the hour he’d have dinner brought to his suite and he’d be alone with his thoughts. Not that it was an unusual scenario, but tonight it felt a little more…lonely.

  Luckily he had a trip home coming up. It had been almost six months since he’d been back. The last time had been for Darcy’s birthday and even that had been nothing more than a quick weekend.

  Or maybe he needed a date.

  It h
ad been about three months since he’d last spent a weekend with a woman, and while it certainly wasn’t a record for him, it was amazing how fast the time had gone and how it hadn’t occurred to him until right this minute. As he strolled toward the back of the main building, Hugh tried to picture his date’s face in his mind and couldn’t.

  That couldn’t be a good sign. No matter. It was what it was. Note to self—after closing this deal with Bellows and finding a replacement for Heather, he needed to relax with the family. Then it hit him—maybe he should call Riley. Hell, his little brother was one of the biggest rock stars in the world. If anyone could hook him up with someone for a weekend fling, it would be Riley.

  Problem solved. With a renewed pep in his step, he turned the corner and saw some movement up ahead. Guests didn’t usually come around to this part of the resort. It was the back of the main building—there weren’t any signs to stop them or warn them away, but it was mainly parking spaces, a couple of small storage buildings, and trees. Nothing to see.

  Slowing his pace, he saw someone peeking into one of the windows. Odd. Doing his best to stay out of sight, without losing sight of what was going on, he heard some rustling in the bushes lining the back of the building. Some were taller than others, and now from where he was standing, he couldn’t tell what was going on.

  With no other choice, he stepped back out into the open and walked toward this potential…what? Peeper? Perpetrator? Seriously, he had no idea what it was he was about to confront.

  “Dammit,” came a muttered voice, and Hugh decided it was definitely female. That piqued his interest. He stopped just on the other side of the tall bush shielding her from his view and realized the woman was looking in his window! The window to his office! What in the world?

  Not a minute later, he was appalled to see she was sliding the window open! How had he managed to lock the door to his office and not the window? Dammit, he’d opened it earlier in the day because the temperatures had been so mild and sometimes he just needed to smell the fresh air when he was cooped up in his office.