Page 47 of The Sugar Maple Inn

“Promise?” She held out her pinkie.

Zach hooked hers with his. “Promise.”

“Good. Because I need you in one piece when we get this inn and you have to help renovate.”

“If we get it.”

“When. And look,” she said with a sigh, smoothing down his sheet, “if you don’t want to live here, really don’t want to, I’ll pull out. I mean it.”

And she did.

He thought about it then shook his head. “Nah. I actually kinda like it here and we’d own the island, right? Tyler can suck it!”

“Well, in theory we wouldn’t own the island…”

He shrugged. “That’s what I’ll tell people.”

Grace smiled. “You do that.”

“Izzy thinks the place is pretty cool too,” Zach added quietly.

“Izzy?”

“The girl from Germany.”

“Ah yes, she’s very pretty. Did you talk to her?”

“A bit. She wants to be an actress. And she likes the same music as me. She writes too. Scripts and stuff.”

Grace’s heart did that expansion thing where it hurt and felt good at the same time. Her boy, opening up about a girl. Letting her see past the surly exterior to the sweet kid who still got nervous around pretty girls and thought writing was cool.

“She sounds nice,” Grace said carefully. One wrong word and the shutters would slam down.

“Yeah. She is.” Then, like he’d just realized he’d been vulnerable: “Whatever. Not like I’ll see her again anyway.”

“You could get her number. Or ChatSnap her.”

“It’s Snapchat, Mom. Oh my God.” Pure teenage mortification. He settled back, that drowsy look creeping in, then he rolled to face the wall. Conversation over. “Night.”

Grace stood, smiling despite the brush-off. “Night, sweetheart. Love you.”

“Love you too,” came the muffled response.

She closed the door and stood in the hallway a moment, listening to the storm and the inn creaking as she felt a sense of contentment.

This could be their life soon. And Zach said he was happy with that idea.

She looked toward the room across from hers.

If only that goddamn billionaire wasn’t standing in her way.

She slipped into her room and changed into the white nightdress Margaret had left on the bed for her. When she climbed into bed, sleep was impossible. The storm was too loud, her thoughts too restless, her body too aware Reese was just across the hall. She thought of the way he’d looked at her during dinner like he wanted to—

Stop. It.

She needed air or a distraction or something that wasn’t lying here obsessing. The tower came to mind. She’d only been up there once in her life, when her mom had celebrated her fortieth at the inn. Grace had snuck away from the noise of the party with a few of the other kids, racing up the spiral stairs until they spilled out onto the top floor. The view had stolen her breath. Moonlight rippling across the lake, the whole town tucked close and small beneath her feet. For one dizzying moment she’d felt like anything was possible.

Now, years later, she wanted that feeling back.