He stuck out his tongue at me.
Noel smacked him upside the head. “Let’s get these gear bags in the vans.”
Eddie begrudgingly followed as Jordan headed back down the hall to his office.
I lost myself in a sea of paperwork until the screen door slapped against the frame.
Noel shook his head. “Eddie puked in the bushes.”
I made a face. “I did not need to know that.”
A second later, Eddie appeared. “Today is going to be brutal.”
I pushed to my feet and grabbed a ginger ale from the fridge. “Drink this. It’ll help settle your stomach.”
Eddie lowered himself to the couch and took the offered soda. “Angel on Earth.”
I snorted. “Hardly.”
Shouts sounded from outside that had us all clambering to our feet and Jordan running out from the back office. We hurried outside and stopped dead in the parking lot. There, in the back corner, where I always parked so I could be in the shade, was my SUV. And it was engulfed in flames.
16
CADEN
The phoneon my desk rang, and I picked up the receiver. “Caden Shaw.”
“Good to see you’re at your desk early.”
The sound of my father’s voice wasn’t ever something I wanted to start my day with, but at least he wasn’t reaming me out.
“Morning, Dad.”
“I spoke to Clive last night.”
Of course, there was no greeting back. No asking how I was. Business and nothing else.
“Did he get home smoothly?” I asked.
“He did, and he was very impressed with your out-of-the-box thinking.”
I stayed quiet, sensing abutcoming.
“That was a risky move.”
I slid my hand into my pocket, my fingers finding the smooth metal disc. It was a miracle the charm hadn’t faded away into nothing. “I know, but he needed something new. I had an idea.”
“You’re lucky it paid off. He wants to go with your plan.”
I grinned, but the win didn’t feel as good as it should’ve because all I could think about was how pissed Gabe would be. “I’m glad he liked it.”
Dad grunted.
“While I have you, I’m going to need some additional staff and funding for the stables. There’s been a shift away from that part of the resort, and I think it’s a mistake.”
My father was quiet for a moment. “Why?”
“People don’t come to the rugged mountains for polo; they come for a ranch-like experience. At The Peaks, they can have that but still go to a five-star spa and a Michelin-starred restaurant at the end of the day. We need to give them both.”
