She licked her lips, “My mouth is watering already.”
“I suggest not doing that,” he said.
“Doing what?”
He leaned over so that he was only inches away from her. “Lick those lips again and we won’t be having lobster tonight,” he warned playfully.
Although she was tempted to test whether or not he would follow through, the look in his eyes said he wasn’t really joking.
“Maybe we better talk about this later because I haven’t even had lunch yet, and lobster is sounding really good,” she smiled innocently.
Ethan leaned back in the rocker and said, “I’m going to hold you to that.”
I hope you do.
Even though she was enjoying how comfortable they were together right now, she needed to be upfront with him. They got past it once, but she didn’t want to make the same mistake again.
“Ethan, before you go, there’s something I need to tell you,” she said.
“Can it wait till dinner?” he asked.
She shook her head. “Actually, you might not want to have dinner with me after this. It has to do with the Potters.”
Ethan sat back and said, “I’m listening.”
This was hard. Part of her felt like she was betraying her father. “I was sent to do research but as you know, I ended up at the wrong place. I was supposed to be at Potters Peak.”
“I know the place.”
“My father was looking to purchase it and make it an upscale mountain resort.”
“I assumed as much based on what I know of your father’s business. Has he decided to move forward with his plan?” Ethan asked.
“Unfortunately, no.”
“That’s good for Potters Peak,” he said.
“Yes, but not for Roy and Mabel. He’s going to go after their property. I had no idea how much of that mountain that they owned. Their property triples what Potters Peak is on. He wants to make a luxury lodge with a rustic atmosphere.” Ethan just stared at her. “I tried telling him all the reasons why that place wasn’t for him, but instead it just seemed to make him want it even more.”
“What did you tell him Kollette?” he asked
“Mostly about how I felt when I was there. Welcomed, and relaxed and…happy.”
“I can’t picture that being enough for a businessman to decide to make such a purchase There has to be more to it.”
“I’m not sure what else there could be. It isn’t like there is any financial documents to back up his decision. But once he has his mind set on something, there’s no talking him out of it. He’s going to acquire that property and there’s nothing we can do to prevent it.”
“Why do you think that?” Ethan asked.
Kollette said, “I might carry the Sommers last name, but I don’t have access to the family money. I do have enough to help them get a good lawyer, but even that won’t be enough. And from what I’ve seen, the Potters are not the fighting kind. And my father will send people to do the negotiating for him. Let’s just say, they aren’t always the nicest people.”
“Are you saying they will hurt the Potters?” Ethan asked, his jaw tense.
“No. Not physically. But there are other ways of intimidation that is not physical. They are very good at putting pressure on to pressure someone into agreeing to what they normally wouldn’t.”
“And how do you feel about this?” he asked in a serious tone.
She closed her eyes for a second, fighting back the tears. Kollette felt sick even talking about it. “Angry. Hurt. And really worried about the Potters. That place is so much more to them than what I could make my father understand. He thinks that throwing money at them will make it all better. It won’t. I saw how they were there. They might be able to move and start again, but it won’t ever be the same. Not for them and not for any of…us… who visit.”