“Yes, sir. I received word from Drew in the Las Vegas executive office that he was admitted to the hospital for observation this morning. I called you the minute I heard and wondered—”
“If I’d like to fly to Vegas instead? Yes. The answer is yes.”
“I’ll take care of it, sir.”
“Thank you. Text me the phone number of the hospital, too.”
“Certainly.”
He hung up and dialed his brother, hoping Adrian had brought his phone with him and would be able to answer it. Calling the hospital was Plan B. His call went to voicemail so he hung up and punched in the number Helene had texted to him.
“Valley Hospital.”
“This is Finn Hastings. I would like to speak to a patient who has been admitted. His name is Adrian Hastings.”
“One moment, sir.”
The call rang for almost a minute. “Nurse’s station.”
He repeated his request to speak to his brother.
“I’m sorry, sir, but he is out of his room right now to undergo tests.”
“May I have an update?”
“Hm. Yes. He may have had a mild heart attack. We have administered oxygen and the doctor is considering options while waiting for results of testing. If you would like to speak to him, please try back in about an hour or so.”
He hung up and a new text appeared on his phone:
Flight delayed. Lightning storm on the east coast. Urgency communicated. Will alert you with arrival details when they are available.
“Great.” He dropped his phone onto the bed and stalked across the room, leaning his arms onto the window frame. Outside, the sun burned. Beachgoers moseyed by as if his life hadn’t been upended in the past twenty-four hours. His mind wandered and he frowned. Lacy. If only he could call her right now. Tell her about Adrian’s relapse.
What was he thinking? She made it quite clear last night that she didn’t care to speak to him. Maybe he should take that as a warning sign.
Well. He couldn’t stay here while he waited. Especially knowing she—and several family members—were right next door. Finn drew in another harsh breath, grabbed his keys, and darted outside. He hopped into the rental car and drove—to where he wasn’t yet sure.
Minutes later, Finn found his way to the narrow driveway that he had almost missed the past two times he had come upon it. He put his car in a lower gear and made the climb. As he crested the top of the hill, the ghost house came into view. He smiled involuntarily at the moniker he had given the place after Lacy’s revelations about it.
He parked, not sure exactly why he had come here—other than the obvious. Lacy had been right. He had been contemplating plans for this property, should it be available for consideration.
Finn ran a hand roughly through his hair, feeling the crunch of gravel beneath his shoes as he traversed the property. In some ways, he regretted coming up here with Lillian. Not that he thought as poorly of her as the town seemed to—her shark-like reputation was mild compared to what he had witnessed over the last twenty years as he built his empire. But he wished … well, he wished that his memory of the last time he had been here had been with Lacy.
Not that it would matter now anyway.
A flurry of something caught Finn’s attention. A commotion of birds flapped their wings simultaneously near the end of the lot, the cliff where Lacy had shown him the tree with her initials carved into it. His mouth twisted. Surely a woman as beautiful as Lacy would have been sought after more than she indicated she was. He’d seen her photograph as a teen and she had not been an ugly duckling. Not by any means.
He found a rock and made himself comfortable. To contemplate. Truthfully, he was angry at himself. His last call with Adrian had turned unpleasant, the exact opposite of what he had been going for that day. His brother had been somewhat of a mystery to him over the years, though he had tried to make up for their relationship shortcomings in myriad ways. His job, for instance.
Not that he would ever say as much. The last thing his brother needed was to hear that Finn considered him a charity case. Mainly because it wasn’t true. Adrian did an excellent job, proving himself as a formidable sales and marketing professional early on in the development of Hastings Resorts. The problem was and is—his health. Thankfully, their mother was well and active in her older years, but the loss of their father had been a blow to all three of them. He couldn’t bear the thought of losing either one of them prematurely.
Finn felt his hip, making sure his phone was close, and tried to relax. “Better clear your mind before you lose it, Hastings.”
“Do those admonishments help?”
Finn jerked his chin to the side at the sound of Lacy’s voice. She held her phone in landscape mode, as if she were poised to take a photo of the expansive view. The warning sign he’d heard in his head earlier shrank to a whisper.
“Heard that, did you?”
She looked at him for a beat before looking off into the distance. “I’ve noticed you talking to yourself on occasion.”
“A habit I picked up as a kid and never outgrew.”
“We all have those, I suppose.”
Finn’s phone rang and abruptly he stood. “Excuse me.” He answered the call, striding toward the porch of the old house.
“Finn, it’s Adrian. I’m not dead.”
He exhaled. “I am very glad to hear it. What are your symptoms?”
“Racing heart. Sour stomach. They’re checking my enzymes and some other things, but there is no imminent sign of a heart attack, I’m told.”
“Beautiful.”
“I’ll be back to work tomorrow.”
Finn shook his head. “Hold on, Adrian. I think we need to have a long talk about this—it’s long overdue.”
Adrian sputtered. “I’m fine. I already told you more than I was comfortable divulging, but that should have satisfied you.”
That familiar edge to Adrian’s voice had returned. This time, though, Finn wouldn’t stand for it. If he were speaking to any other employee, he would have put a stop to the evasiveness long ago.
“Don’t tell me what should satisfy me, Adrian.” He licked his teeth. “Your health is of utmost importance. Much more than the resort.”
“And yet that’s the first thing you try to take away from me whenever I have a small setback.”
Finn raked his hand roughly through his hair. He cast a glance over his shoulder. Lacy was still at the edge of the property. She stood there, peering at her phone, as if examining a photograph.
“You indicated more than a year ago that you were ready to step aside, to take care of yourself and enjoy the freedom of retirement.” Finn spoke in a hushed tone. “I sent you Lacy.”
Adrian swore. “And I sent her back.”
“Excuse me?”
“Why do you think I set you up to meet her in that old beach town?”
Finn darted a glance at Lacy, who still seemed preoccupied. “I still have no idea what you’re talking about. Unless … you were trying to get rid of her?”
Adrian laughed. “Bingo. For a billionaire, you can be so dense.”
If he weren’t his brother …
“She stresses me out. There. I said it.” Adrian spoke freely, as if meds had overtaken his mouth. “Lacy Morelli is annoying. Always has a million wild ideas about the resort, and even when I shut her down she won’t take no for an answer. She would be better off spearheading a new resort out west.”
Finn cracked a smile.
Adrian continued. “She’s cutthroat and … well, she’s bad for my health.”
A million tiny violins began to play in Finn’s head and he had to force himself not to throw his head back and laugh derisively to the heavens. His brother was in the hospital—with Lacy nowhere in sight—but somehow his illness was all her fault?
Finn frowned. “Are you saying you sent me out here on false pretenses?”
“I hoped you’d see what I see.”
Finn’s temper flared
. He had been trying to get rid of Lacy? “Take hold, man. Take hold,” he muttered.
“What was that?” Adrian interrupted.
Finn swallowed. “I’m ordering you on a sabbatical. Starting now.”
“You can’t do that.”
Silence. Of course he could. Adrian just never thought he would. He held his ground, the tension growing with each tick of silence between them. Finn slid another look toward Lacy again and saw … nothing. He whipped a look around, the phone still jammed against his head. He could see the top of her ponytail as she made her way down the steep driveway.
He swallowed. “I have to go now, but I meant what I said. You are officially on sabbatical until … further notice.”
“But what about the resort?!”
“Stay calm, little brother. I’ve got it all under control.” He clicked off the line and jogged toward the edge of the road. “Lacy?”
She turned around, her expression unreadable.
“Sorry about the interruption. That was Adrian.”
She frowned.
He shifted. “I guess you haven’t heard.”
“Heard?”
“He had to take a trip to the hospital.”
Her expression didn’t change. Still very serious, but she began to hike back up the hill. She reached him, her lips slightly downturned. He fought off the urge to kiss them into a smile. Funny how she could change his mind about anything and everything so quickly.
“Finn, is it Adrian’s heart?”
“There seems to be a connection.”
“I’m sorry. Is he going to be okay?”
“Yes. I believe so. Thankfully.”
She exhaled.
“But I’ve made the decision to send him on a forced sabbatical.”
She nodded. “Perhaps the time away will be good for him, will give him time to see his health restored fully. He’s, uh, well, he can be quite high-strung at times.”
“You’ve noticed.”
She shrugged. “Hard to miss.”
Finn took a step toward her. “I know you have been waiting a long while to take over his position. And I don’t mind telling you, if and when Adrian is feeling well enough to return to work, it won’t be as Director of Sales and Marketing.” He paused. “I’d like to offer that to you, Lacy.”
She tilted her chin up, those lashes of hers framing gorgeous eyes. He wanted to say so much more, to tell her how these past few weeks had changed him, had given him happiness he hadn’t experienced in a very long time. If ever. But his heart wrestled with his tongue. So unlike him. He had never felt this way with Paige, and for the first time, he realized that his ex-best friend had actually done him a favor.
“Thank you for the offer, Finn. I appreciate that, especially during this difficult time.”
Her tone was measured, even. She spoke to him like a colleague and nothing more.
“But I will have to decline.” Her expression continued in its unreadable state. “I have decided to give my notice.”
“Lacy, no.”
“I’m leaving Hastings Resorts. Effective immediately.”
Nine
She had been up since dawn, the slam of a car door followed by the whir of an engine drawing her out of an already fitful night’s sleep. One look out the southern-facing window confirmed what she already suspected: Finn had left Colibri.
Lacy knelt beside the bookcase of knickknacks and old magazines in her parents’ bedroom. She had already pulled out a huge stack of Entertainment Weekly from the 70s and another of Highlights for Children covering more than a decade and dusted them all off with a rag.
She had hoped that throwing herself into the work of the house, the thinning of old memories, the dusting of hidden spaces, would help her feel better somehow. She waited for relief to come, but it proved itself elusive.
Seabiscuit snuffled about, distracting her. She’d never wanted an animal in her life, the thought of having a constant furry companion underfoot less than appealing. But maybe she had been wrong about that. The dog put her front two paws on Lacy’s quads and sniffed her face. Seabiscuit sneezed, spraying Lacy with who-knew-what.
“You think you’re funny, don’t you?” Lacy said, peering back at the dog’s marble-like eyes. “Now I need a shower, buddy.”
The dog collapsed onto her lap, making it nearly impossible for her to continue. She rested her hand on the little gal and sighed. Bella had decided to stick around for a few days after the others had left and Lacy welcomed the company, for once.
“Hi, Lacy.”
“Hey.” Bella’s appearance in the doorway drew Seabiscuit away in a hurry, Lacy’s knees suddenly cold.
“I’m going to make some breakfast. Hungry?”
“Well, I don’t know. Are you going to make something edible or will breakfast consist of a radish sprinkled with CBD oil?”
Bella scooped up her dog and momentarily buried her face in the dog’s fur. “What’re we going to do with Lacy, hmm, Seabiscuit? She is so ornery sometimes.”
“I am never ornery. I just like my breakfast to be, you know, edible. And real food.”
Bella giggled. “I went to the store yesterday and just you wait. I’m going to make you a tofu scramble that will make your stomach grumble.”
“I hope that’s all it makes my stomach do,” she muttered, but it was too late. Bella, with Seabiscuit clacking along behind her, was already descending the stairs.
Alone again, Lacy began shoving stacks of magazines into bags. One by one, she hauled them downstairs to the recycle bin in the garage, hoping her back would tolerate each trip. By the time she was done, the aroma of sautéed onion greeted her.
“Wash up, you. Breakfast is ready.”
Dutifully, Lacy did as she was told, secretly hating to admit how really good Bella’s cooking smelled. She took a seat at the counter, but Bella, who was holding two plates, shook her head. “I thought we could eat at the dining table, for old times’ sake. I’ve already set us up.”
Lacy followed her over to the table with its years of scars and took a seat. Bella set a colorful plate of food in front of her. “It’s gorgeous,” Lacy said.
“Coming from you, that’s a high compliment!”
“What does that mean—coming from me?”
Bella shrugged a little, her eyes slightly hooded. “You can be a little over-honest sometimes.”
“Either a person is honest or they’re not.”
“All I meant is that you sometimes tell me the truth when I don’t really care to know.”
“Oh.”
Bella giggled. “That’s the most honest I think I’ve ever been with you.”
“Well, then. Congratulations, Bella-boo.”
Bella wrinkled her nose. “That nickname always made me sound like an accident.”
Lacy laughed for the first time since she’d quit her job yesterday, a fact she had not yet made known. “You, my dear, were no accident.” She took another bite of breakfast and washed it down with a glass of juice. “I remember Mom carrying on about how you were her little blessing number five.”
“Ah, that’s so sweet.” Bella forked a bite of the colorful tofu and vegetables, her chin turned toward the old map on the wall. “We traveled so many places, didn’t we?”
Lacy nodded. The map marked all of those places and had been a fun distraction when they were kids. She always thought her mother was brilliant for hanging it there as a way to keep her motley group of children from arguing during dinner. She could hear her mother’s voice in her head. Whenever a fight looked like it might erupt, she’d say, “Children, who can show me where New York City is?” Or Denver. Or Nashville. Didn’t matter what locale she uttered—it always did the trick, which was, to stop the chaos.
Now, as Bella and Lacy ate breakfast, the sun pouring in through the windows, the quiet dining room unnerved her.
“You haven’t said anything about Finn this morning,” Bella said.
“That’s because there’s no
thing to say.” Lacy sat back, taking a break. She fiddled with her napkin. “As far as I know, he is back in Las Vegas now.”
Bella dipped her chin in sympathy. A knock on the door startled them both.
“I’ll get it.” Lacy dropped her napkin on her chair.
Wren stood on the porch, leaning on her cane. “I hope I haven’t bothered you ladies this morning.”
“Not at all.” She unlatched the screen door and held it open for Wren, who hobbled inside.
“Thank you, dear. I decided to try walking with only my cane and it took me a little longer than I had hoped.”
Seabiscuit scampered over, snuffling around Wren’s feet. Lacy picked her up quickly, not wanting her to trip their neighbor.
“Would you like to join us in the dining room? We’re just finishing breakfast.”
“That would be lovely.”
Bella hopped up. “Can I get you a plate?”
“Oh no, no. But I would love some water.”
Wren took a seat and Bella delivered a glass full of ice water to her. A silent glance passed between Bella and Lacy right before they took their own seats.
“To what do we owe this pleasure, Wren?”
The old woman sipped her water, her hand shaking slightly, her eyes downcast. Lacy gently helped her put the water glass back on the table.
“I have an apology to make to you, Lacy.”
“To me? I can’t imagine anything that you would need to apologize for.”
Wren sighed. “It has to do with that handsome man you are dating. I-I hope that my decision will not cause you any trouble.”
“Decision?”
“Not to sell my home.”
Bella swiveled a wide-eyed, questioning gaze at Lacy.
Lacy let out a scoff. She reached for Wren’s hand, her skin nearly translucent, and laid her own fingers upon it. “I heard about Lillian Madsen’s plans. Is that what you are referring to?”
Wren nodded.
“She was way out of line suggesting that your home—and ours—would be available anytime soon.”
Bella frowned.
Lacy continued. “I told Finn as much. So don’t you worry one more second about any of that. He understands completely!” She squeezed Wren’s hand briefly and sat back.
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