Arlo shook his head. “You don’t really think it will be that simple, do you?”
“I know.” Harrison started out the door, following the path Lainie had fled. “But I have to do something.”
***
“She doesn’t want to see you.” Mrs. Hanson barred the front door to her B&B with her small, bird-like frame. “She doesn’t want to see anyone. I don’t know what you did—”
“It was Mrs. Sweets and her lot,” Harrison explained. “They jumped her with this harebrained plan to buy the Eaves property off her, and said they would run her out of town if she didn’t sell to them.” He tried to duck around Mrs. Hanson, but she stood firm.
“Oh dear, oh dear,” she murmured. “I hoped it wouldn’t come to that. Did she accept their offer, at least?”
Harrison stared at her. “You knew about this?” Mrs. Hanson hadn’t been at the meeting. Harrison was starting to get the unpleasant feeling he was being kept in the dark, and Mrs. Hanson’s next words only confirmed his fears.
“I’m so sorry, love, but no one wanted to involve you, given the circumstances.”
“You mean because she’s my mate.”
Mrs. Hanson looked pained. “That, and… well, because of the history there. It all happened long before your time, of course.”
Harrison was growing impatient. “If you want to make excuses about hurting Lainie now because of something that happened years ago, that’s your problem,” he growled. “I want to talk to her.”
Mrs. Hanson sighed. “Go ahead, Romeo. She’s in the front room, first floor.”
Before Harrison could react, she’d nipped back behind the door and slammed it shut. He raised his hand to knock, and heard the lock turn.
Harrison rested his open palm on the closed door. There was no point yelling to Mrs. Hanson to open up. Instead, he stepped back, looking up at the house.
Front room, first floor…
A flicker of movement in the large first-floor window caught his attention.
/> “Lainie?” he called, shading his eyes. “Is that you?”
There was no answer. Harrison concentrated. Lainie was there, he was sure of it. The curtain moved slightly—was that her?
“Lainie, please talk to me. There’s something you have to know. If you just let me up there, I’ll explain—”
The curtain was flicked aside and Lainie appeared, glaring down at him. Harrison’s heart wrenched. Her eyes were red and puffy, but her mouth was set in a firm line as she tugged the window open.
“I don’t want to talk to you! Just go away!” she yelled, her voice catching on a sob.
“Lainie, please—”
“Just leave me alone! Can’t you see you’ve just made this all worse?”
She slid the window shut and pulled the curtains across. Harrison stared up, still trying to find the words, any words, to convince her to listen to him.
There was no point. She didn’t come back to the window.
Harrison stood there, waiting. The curtains didn’t flicker. She wasn’t standing on the other side, waiting and wondering whether he was still there.
But her words still echoed through his head. Can’t you see you’ve just made this all worse?
It was true. He could see that. Whatever was happening here, whatever the reasons behind Mrs. Sweets’ cruel treatment of Lainie, his actions in drawing her into his life had only made things more difficult for her.
He’d swept her off her feet, when he should have been finding out the best way to protect her.
CHAPTER NINE