Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 92708 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 464(@200wpm)___ 371(@250wpm)___ 309(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92708 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 464(@200wpm)___ 371(@250wpm)___ 309(@300wpm)
“Your premiere destination for luxury and relaxation, offering services for hair, skin, and nails,” added the taller one, who had her dad’s dark hair and eyes. Her name tag said Hallie. “May we take your coat?”
“Sure.” I laughed as I shrugged out of my jacket, suddenly glad I’d come. I’d been feeling so down since Devlin left, I’d almost canceled.
“Hey,” Winnie said, coming from the kitchen into the front hall to give me a hug. “Sorry about the change in plans. The girls’ mom had some kind of work function, so they’re with us tonight. And Ellie’s morning sickness was really bad all day, so she’s out. But Michael is with my parents, thank goodness, and Dex is at the firehouse tonight. So it’s still girl time.”
“No problem,” I said, smiling at Dex’s daughters. “I can always head home after a spa treatment or two.”
“Actually, the girls are all excited about camping out in the family room,” Winnie said. “So you’ve still got a room here for the night.”
“Yes,” said Luna. “The spa area is going to transform into a fairy tale woods after dark.”
“That sounds so fun.” I smiled at them. “So tell me about Halluna Day Spa.”
“We’ve got a menu for you to look at,” said Hallie, handing me a folded piece of paper with a logo drawn on the front. “Come right this way. Can we offer you some lemon water?”
“Don’t worry, I have wine for after the lemon water,” mumbled Winnie as we followed the girls into the family room. There were two spa stations set up, with buckets of water for our feet, thick terrycloth headbands, and plates of cucumber slices for our eyes. Fragrant candles were burning on the coffee table, filling the room with the scent of lemongrass.
“Please sit here, Miss, um . . .” Luna paused. “Wait, what’s your last name?”
“McInt—actually, it’s Buckley,” I said, lowering myself onto the couch where Luna indicated. “I’m Mrs. Buckley.”
“Did you really change your name?” Winnie asked, dropping down next to me.
I nodded. “I did.”
Winnie eyeballed the girls, who were testing the water in the buckets to make sure it was warm enough. “After the spa portion of the evening concludes, I need to hear everything.”
The girls pampered Winnie and me with a fizzy foot soak, a face mask, a lip scrub, manicures, and aromatherapy. When they were done, we helped them clean up, tipped them generously, and moved into the kitchen for wine and a charcuterie board Winnie had prepared.
“So how’s it going?” she asked, pouring me a glass of pinot noir.
“Which part?”
“Let’s start with Snowberry.” Winnie sat down across from me and reached for a cracker.
“Everything is going really well at Snowberry. Want to see photos?”
“Yes!” Winnie topped her cracker with cheese and took a bite.
Bringing out my phone, I showed her the renderings for the new lobby, the restaurant and bar, the guest rooms, and the spa. Then I showed her the current state of the construction area. “That’s all phase one. Phase two is the mountaintop bar, which won’t be done until next spring after the snow melts and the ground thaws.” I set my phone aside and reached for my wine.
“It’s so exciting! Is Gran happy?”
“Yes. Everyone is, except for Tabitha.”
Winnie rolled her eyes. “What’s with her?”
“A lot of things, but mostly she wanted to sell because Gran evidently promised her a chunk of money once the sale went through. Now she’s just being weird.” I picked up a piece of prosciutto and popped it into my mouth.
“Weird how?”
“Secretive and smug. Like she knows something I don’t. It’s hard to explain.”
“What could she know?”
I lifted my shoulders. “I have no idea. Devlin’s former company, the one trying to push the sale, reached out to her, like maybe they thought she’d have influence over Gran, but nothing ever came of it.”
“And now you’re the owner, right?”
“Yes. Devlin and I own it together.”
She grinned. “I can’t wait to see it.”
“I’d love it if you and Ellie could drive up and help me brainstorm some events to bring guests in. Maybe a wine tasting? Or an opening party?”
“Of course! We’d love that!” She munched on another cracker. “Now tell me about married life.”
“Married life is . . . good.” I sipped my wine. “Better than I expected. Maybe too good.”
“Yeah?” Her eyebrows went up.
“Yeah.” I stared into my pinot noir. “I’m actually kind of concerned.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m not really pretending anymore, Win.” I met her eyes. “I have feelings for him. Big fat feelings that aren’t just going to go away when this marriage is no longer necessary.”
“Seriously?”
“Yes.” I took a deep breath and forced myself to admit the truth. “I think I might actually be in love with him.”
She gasped. “Whoa.”
“I know. It’s bad.” I tried to blink away tears. “And it’s dumb. Like, I knew what this was.”