Total pages in book: 62
Estimated words: 57853 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 289(@200wpm)___ 231(@250wpm)___ 193(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57853 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 289(@200wpm)___ 231(@250wpm)___ 193(@300wpm)
“Would you rather we talk about yours?”
Katherine grabs her boobs. “What’s wrong with mine?”
“Nothing.” I laugh. Brandon walks by, placing the cookie down on the table before slipping out of the bakery. I pick it up and break it, giving half to Katherine.
"Thanks, I need this after what I overheard."
"Overheard?"
"All right, I might have been listening extra hard to the mayor and sheriff talking. It's not my fault their voices carry."
"You're right. It's not your fault." I nod in agreement. "What's going on? Did someone steal Mittens again?" Mittens is the local town cat that everyone is always trying to adopt.
Mittens is from the streets, but if she goes missing for a few days, people start to panic. There is a search party for her every other month. I'm pretty sure she does it on purpose because she's dramatic. She wants to keep everyone on their toes and remind us she's in charge.
Katherine leans towards me, dropping her voice. I lean in too. “There are talks about a ski resort being built.”
“What?” I jerk back, already shaking my head no.
New Hope has gone to great lengths to keep any big companies out of here. If we wanted a ski resort, there would be one because we would have done it ourselves, and there would have been a giant-ass town meeting and a vote. That means it's an outsider who’s trying to commercialize our town.
"I know, I wouldn't believe it either if I hadn't heard it for myself."
"All right." I take a breath, trying not to overreact. It's something I have been working on with my therapist, but she did quit on me, so maybe I don't need to work on it anymore. “Let me poke around.” My mind is already going in a million different directions.
“What?” Katherine asks, knowing me far too well. It’s annoying, and I have missed the hell out of it and her.
"It can't be Biff, right?"
"Whoa, you think he'd go that far?! That's insane." I might not have been too far off with my joke about him being obsessed with me if it is him.
"The man is mega rich. If I were at that wealthy level, a pettiness for revenge would be unstable." I don't want to think of things I might be able to do.
"Oh God." A gasp leaves her. "We'd end up in jail."
"Rich people don't go to jail." I wave that off. "Besides, you can do things the legal way. Like buy things they love and burn them down. Buy their favorite baseball team or—"
"All right, let's focus here." Katherine shoves the rest of her cookie into her mouth.
"Hey, a girl has to have dreams." I joke, but the reality is this isn’t funny at all, and I have a sense that I’m not wrong on who might be behind this.
Chapter Four
PIERCE
The town is rather quaint. It really does have that whole Hallmark made-for-TV feel to it. Which is why I am surprised that a few movies haven’t been shot here and that a resort hasn’t strong-armed its way in here. It would be a cash cow.
“You got a Valentine?” Betty asks. The older woman with giant red glasses really jumps from topic to topic. She’s been telling me about how this very inn housed a fugitive at one time.
Not so sure that’s a selling point, but with so few places to stay in this town, the place could be haunted, and it would still be booked out. I think the story might be a bit embellished, but if Betty wants to talk, I'm going to let her. What other information can I get from her? Hopefully, she’ll divulge some about my little sharp-tongued vixen. The whole reason I’m even in this town.
"I do." Betty's shoulders drop at that, and she wasn't asking for herself. I already heard about her husband and two sons.
"That's too bad. This town has a way of making you fall in love."
"You don't say."
"Yep, not one single divorce." Damn, that is rather impressive.
"You all must really love Valentine's Day." The whole town was lit up with red and pink lights. Did they switch them over right after Christmas? That's only the tip of the decor I've seen because pink balloons and bears are all over the entryway to Betty's bed and breakfast.
"This?" Betty's face scrunches like I've grown a second head. She glances around at all the pink decorations that I'm guessing she put out. "This is nothing." Betty waves it off. “You told me only one occupant.”
“Only me.”
“But what about your Valentine?” She lifts a very dark eyebrow at me, a stark contrast to her silver hair. Betty runs her finger along the giant calendar on the front desk, the size of a poster board. I didn't know they made those anymore, but it appears that's how she's tracking the guests.