What Hope Remembers

by Johnnie Alexander

  “Who in particular?”

  “Dylan Tapley.”

  “Um.” She nodded slowly, dispassionately, while her stomach roiled at the mention of Dylan’s name. He had blamed Amy when his grandiose plans for an upscale private retreat had failed, and they’d exchanged heated words the last time they spoke.

  She forced a smile. “I wish you luck with him.”

  “I told him you’d done everything you could for him. That it wasn’t your fault.”

  Maybe not. But neither was she entirely blameless. Dylan had hired her to get the necessary waivers and permits for his development before the passage of a controversial federal initiative to control runaway development in a geographical area southwest of Columbus. Dylan’s property was in that zone.

  Amy had taken Dylan’s money even though she knew what few others did—a secret coalition had worked to fast-track the initiative and approval was imminent. Once it went through, governmental restrictions protected most of the acreage from the type of development Dylan had planned.

  Neither Dylan nor Logan knew of Amy’s deceit. She meant to keep it that way.

  “He took a risk, and he lost money,” she said. “Hopefully he learned from his mistakes.” Just like she had. Or at least was trying to.

  “He said that when the initiative passed, you wanted him to buy land around here.”

  “I tried to pull together two or three local landowners, but the whole thing fizzled.” Not quite the whole truth, but close enough. Besides, Logan probably knew more details than he was letting on. “There’s plenty of land in central Ohio for what Dylan wants. I’m surprised he hasn’t already acquired something.”

  “He wants to build in Glade County. Not just a resort either, but a mixed-use development. Houses, condos, stores. Restaurants. Maybe even a movie theater.”

  “That is ambitious.”

  “It’s the silver lining of the federal initiative,” Logan said. “With all that land off-limits, developers need to look farther out. But this county is still within commuter distance to the capital. Dylan is getting a head start.

  “If you want, I can ask Brett if he knows what’s available. Though rural farmland isn’t his specialty.”

  “Dylan has already selected the land he wants.”

  “Then what do you want from me?”

  “A little history.” Logan took a deep breath, as if reluctant to continue the conversation. Amy braced herself, certain she didn’t want to either. “One of those local landowners you mentioned is your cousin, isn’t it? AJ Sullivan.”

  “Yes.” Her tone was brisk, professional. “But now that land is owned by a foundation with a name longer than your arm.”

  He chuckled. “I saw it in the public records. But here’s what I don’t understand. Since your cousin didn’t want the land anymore, why didn’t he let you take control of it? He’d have walked away with a lot more money than he got from that lease agreement he entered into.”

  “He wanted to protect it from people like Dylan.”

  “But you were the one who brought it to Dylan’s attention.”

  Amy carefully considered her response, trying to calculate three steps ahead to what Logan truly wanted, what she could say, and what she should keep to herself.

  Almost a year had passed since that whole debacle. Why couldn’t the past stay in the past?

  Finally she gave in to her exasperation. “If this was anyone but you, we would not be having this conversation.”

  “I know. But you have to understand how important this is to me. Having Dylan as a client is a game changer.” Logan paused, took a deep breath, and smiled broadly. “I’ve gone out on my own.”

  Amy widened her eyes. “You’re not with Kennedy and Gaines anymore?”

  “I hung out my shingle about three months ago. Right now, Dylan is my most important client. He’s ambitious, shrewd. Best of all, he has connections.”

  “You mean his uncle.”

  Logan nodded. “If Dylan pulls off the first phase, his uncle will help bankroll the rest. And probably give Dylan a vice-presidency in his company.”

  “And as Dylan rises, so do you.”

  “It never hurts to have a wealthy benefactor. I have a few dreams of my own, you know.”

  “Political office?”

  “When the time is right.”

  Amy sipped her drink, her gaze focused on the opposite storefronts. An insurance company, a florist, a bakery. The staples of any small town.

  Joseph Tapley, a bachelor with a handful of nephews, had a reputation for dangling his money and promises of power in front of each of them. The upscale resort had been Dylan’s first major project, and his failure had infuriated his uncle.

  “Why did you tell Tapley about your cousin’s property?” Logan asked.

  A straightforward question with a straightforward answer. “Dylan needed a Plan B. Property that could be quickly negotiated and settled. AJ had never wanted that land, so it should have been a win-win. But I was mistaken.”

  “He’d already signed the lease agreement?”

  “That’s right.”

  “But you thought the lease was illegal?”

  “It was AJ’s land. He could do what he wanted with it.”

  “Then why did you file the lawsuit?”

  Her building frustration threatened to blow. She focused on breathing, willing herself to stay calm. Logan was a friend, not a rival nor an enemy. And she’d shut the door on this part of her past. No one could force it open again unless she let them.

  “What I did was wrong, and AJ has forgiven me. It’s over.”

  “I think you were right to file the lawsuit. Your mistake was in withdrawing it.”

  Amy stared at him. His words were like the ripping of a bandage from a wound that hadn’t healed. During a family therapy session, she’d apologized to AJ and Shelby for what she’d done. They’d been gracious and forgiving. But Amy had threatened Shelby’s dream of raising her children in her grandparents’ home. Even though everything had worked out, could Shelby ever truly forgive Amy for making her life miserable during that time?

  “Winning the lawsuit wouldn’t have helped Dylan,” she said. “The Misty Willow acreage wasn’t enough for his project. The other owners wouldn’t have sold their farms no matter how much Dylan offered them. People around here”—she gestured widely—“they’re sentimental about their land. They don’t sell unless they’re backed in a corner.”

  Logan nodded in understanding. “I did a property search. AJ didn’t donate all of the Misty Willow land to the foundation.”

  “That may be. I don’t really know. He probably held on to acreage back by the creek, where the willow is located. Shelby’s ancestors carved their initials in the trunk, so it’s special to her.” Amy focused on a couple of squirrels playing among the bushes between the pathways. “They spend a lot of time back there. Picnics, fishing. That kind of thing.”

  “He also inherited land from your grandmother,” Logan said quietly, as if thinking aloud.

  “That’s right. I live in the cottage and he lives in the bungalow.”

  “Dylan wants it. All of it.”

  “Well, he can’t have it.” Indignation tightened Amy’s chest. “AJ wouldn’t sell Misty Willow, a property he cared nothing about till Shelby showed up. Do you really think he’d sell his inheritance from our grandmother?”

  Logan ignored her question. “Do you know Tess Marshall?”

  “Dylan wants her land too?”

  “He’s made her an offer.”

  “She won’t sell. The stables mean too much to her.”

  “Maybe. But she hasn’t said no. Besides, there are other ways to get land than through a sale.”

  “You mean by eminent domain? You can’t be serious. There aren’t any legitimate grounds for him to pursue that option.”

  “Your cousin would fight it?”

  “Of course he would.”

  “And what about Mrs. Marshall? Are her pocket
s as deep as yours?”

  These days, that was highly possible. Though from what Gabe said, the stables weren’t in very good condition. What if Dylan made Tess an offer she couldn’t refuse? Then he’d develop his project north of the cottage and across the road. What a nightmare.

  “Dylan won’t give up,” Logan said. “There seems to be something personal about all this—about his refusal to even consider any other properties.”

  “He was livid when his property ended up inside the boundaries of that protected zone. Then the plan to acquire Misty Willow fell through. I filed the lawsuit to prove to Dylan I was on his side.”

  “It’s too bad your cousin didn’t have your back.”

  That was what she thought, but she didn’t appreciate someone outside the family criticizing AJ.

  “He wanted to be a hero.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “It doesn’t matter.” But she couldn’t keep the frustration out of her voice. AJ had chosen Shelby over Amy, and though it still stung, she couldn’t dwell on old injuries. If he had leased the property to Shelby after he fell in love with her, Amy would have understood. But he hadn’t even met Shelby yet. She’d written him a letter, a sappy letter, and he’d fallen head-over-heels for a stranger.

  He said Gran encouraged him to circumvent Sully’s will and lease Shelby the acreage. Maybe she did. Gran seemed to feel guilty about the way Shelby’s grandparents had lost their farm, about their premature deaths.

  It’s in the past, she repeated to herself. And the door is closed on the past.

  She needed to be thinking about today. And about tomorrow.

  A tomorrow that might include houses and stores around Gran’s beloved cottage.

  “You’d be doing Dylan a favor,” Logan said, “and me, too, if you talked to your cousin. Help us negotiate the sale.” His ingratiating smile sparked her ire. “Not that you need the money, but I’ll see you get a referral fee.”

  “Dylan needs to find someplace else to build his project. We don’t want it around here.” Her heart pounded against her chest, and she took a deep breath to calm her rising anger. “And I’d . . . I’d clean toilets before I accepted a dime that passed through his hands.”

  13

  Gabe returned to the truck so Amy wouldn’t see him crossing the square, then drove to the library for Tess’s books. Afterward, on the way to the auto parts store, he spied Amy’s BMW outside a coffee shop. He immediately turned into the next side street and parked in the first empty space. As if his mind was on autopilot, he entered the coffee shop, ordered an iced tea and a Danish he didn’t want, and took a seat by the window.

  He shouldn’t be doing this. Amy wasn’t his girlfriend, not now, not ever. She was only his first crush, his first kiss. His first broken heart.

  Most men got over their first. They grew up, found the woman of their dreams, and no longer thought about their teenage romances.

  For some reason, Gabe had never done that.

  Maybe because the grief over losing his mom was still so new when Amy entered his life. Maybe because Amy lost her parents too, and that had somehow joined them together in a way that could not be broken.

  That theory would make more sense if Amy still felt about him the way he did about her.

  He should get in the truck, finish his errands, and get back to the stables. Instead, he sipped the tea without tasting it.

  Amy sucked on the straw and pretended to savor the chilled sweetness of her iced mocha. Concentrating on the rich flavor kept her from thinking about the calories. The icy coldness helped her focus on the drink instead of the anger she wanted to unleash on Dylan.

  At least he couldn’t initiate his own lawsuit. He had no standing to do so. But what hubris the man had to think, even for a minute, that Amy would try to persuade AJ to sell Gran’s property in exchange for a referral fee. The land might belong to AJ, but it meant something to Amy too.

  Logan sat quietly beside her, wisely not saying a word while she calmed herself.

  “What exactly is your role in all this?” she finally asked.

  “Same as always. Cut through any bureaucratic red tape to get the project approved. Jump through hurdles to change the agricultural zoning.”

  “Who on the Glade County commission is in Dylan’s pocket?”

  Logan pressed his lips together in a tight smile. She hadn’t expected him to answer. In his shoes, she certainly wouldn’t have. But his silence told her that at least one commissioner was willing to change the zoning designation. It shouldn’t be too hard to find out which one.

  “Maybe I should talk to Dylan,” she said.

  “I’d rather he didn’t know I talked to you.” He gave her a conspiratorial grin. “A little question of breaching client confidentiality.”

  “Then what was all that about offering me a referral fee?”

  He leaned back on the bench, staring at the sky as if he could find the answer in the clouds.

  “Logan?”

  “We’d work that out in final negotiations. He wouldn’t have to know.”

  “I can’t help you, Logan. I’m not even sure why you told me any of this.”

  “Maybe I just wanted an excuse to see you again. It’s been too long.” He caressed her neck again.

  “And?”

  “And I wanted to see where things stood between you and your cousin. Forget about Dylan, Amy. I’ll see what I can do to steer him elsewhere.”

  “You mean it?”

  “For you? Anything.”

  “Be serious, Logan.”

  He chuckled and took her hand. “May I walk you to your car?”

  Instead of answering, she let him pull her to her feet. When they reached her BMW, Logan maneuvered her between him and the door. “I meant what I said earlier. I’d like to give us a chance.”

  His directness scattered butterflies in her stomach and flattered her ego. The only male attention she’d had lately was from Brett and AJ. Brothers and cousins didn’t count. Gabe counted, but he didn’t look at her like most men did. Maybe he held a grudge because she said she didn’t remember him.

  Why couldn’t he see through her lie?

  “There’s a benefit at the governor’s mansion on Friday night,” Logan said. “I forget the cause, but I could use a gorgeous plus-one. Come with me?”

  A year ago she would have accepted any invitation to spend an evening at the mansion. Especially with someone as handsome and self-assured as Logan.

  But now the thought almost made her ill.

  “I can’t,” she murmured.

  “Then how about something less formal? Dinner and a movie?”

  “You’d give up going to the governor’s mansion for a movie?”

  “You bet I would.”

  For a moment she let herself get lost in his eyes, appreciative of his obvious admiration.

  He leaned closer and whispered in her ear. “Just say yes.”

  The butterflies stirred again, and a slight smile eased the tension in her jaw. She needed this. She deserved this.

  “Yes,” she said softly.

  Gabe clenched the sweating cup as he stared through the window. The man bent toward Amy, and a sweet smile curved her lips.

  Forcing himself to look away, Gabe balled up a paper napkin, then gulped his drink.

  He should be happy for her. If she’d found someone to make her happy . . . wasn’t that what he wanted for her? Besides, he wasn’t the guy for her. Not after what he’d done.

  At least now he knew she had someone in her life. And he was free to do what he needed to do.

  Sunday afternoon he would go see Ellen.

  Amy set the canvas totebag on the ground and stepped onto the bottom rail of the arena’s wooden fence. Tess stood in the middle of the corral, a lead rope in one hand and a training stick in the other, as a glossy black quarter horse went through his paces. He lunged, his ear cocked toward Tess, waiting for her next instruction as he circled her.

  Tess a
cknowledged Amy’s presence with a quick nod but otherwise stayed focused on the horse.

  As he trotted over a series of low jumps, Amy felt herself being drawn back into this world she had once loved so much. If things had turned out differently, if she hadn’t given up riding, this might be her life. Stables of her own, training a horse that belonged only to her, riding whenever she wanted.

  She took a deep breath, inhaling the sun-soaked breezes as they puffed wisps of her hair across her cheek. On a day like today, when the sun played peekaboo behind giant cotton clouds, it was so easy to forget the heartaches of her past.

  If only.

  The saddest words in the English language.

  Several more moments passed, then Tess had the horse change direction. He nodded his sleek head, whinnied, then decided to do what she asked.

  To the untrained eye, it might have appeared that the horse was behaving perfectly. But Amy detected the arch of the neck, the slant of the ears that indicated he wasn’t as placid as the casual onlooker might think. Even so, Tess handled him with skill and precision.

  Eventually Tess halted the horse and shortened the lead. When he reached her, he lowered his head and she gave him a treat while stroking his smooth nose. After a moment of affection and praise, she led him toward the fence.

  Amy stepped back.

  “Hello, neighbor,” Tess said cheerily, but Amy caught a wariness in her dark eyes. “How are you settling in at the hideaway?”

  “I still need to paint the bathroom. Gabe helped me with the cabinet doors a couple of days ago.”

  “So he said.”

  “Who’s your friend?” Amy gestured at the horse. “He’s beautiful.”

  “This is Knight Starr. He’s definitely my pride and joy.”

  “You handle him well. I’m guessing he can be ornery.”

  “You’ve got a good eye,” Tess said approvingly. “Would you like to go through an exercise with him?”

  “No, but thanks.” Amy took another step backward. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been around horses.”