Last Resort

by Amber Malloy

  EVERNIGHT PUBLISHING ®

  www.evernightpublishing.com

  Copyright© 2017 Amber Malloy

  ISBN: 978-1-77339-461-9

  Cover Artist: Jay Aheer

  Editor: Audrey Bobak

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.

  This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, and places are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  LAST RESORT

  Amber Malloy

  Copyright © 2017

  Chapter One

  Goosebay Lake’s main resort could be seen five miles out in any given direction. Lights from the surrounding cabins twinkled off the freshwater. Levi Scott popped the top to his second can of beer and turned away from the window.

  “Considering you own one of the most lucrative establishments in three counties, it would only serve in your best interest to grab a seat on the business board.”

  Plastering on his most tolerant expression, he pretended to listen to them wax poetic about the benefits of public service. Nodding his head in all the appropriate places, Levi wanted to catch the rest of the White Sox vs. Cardinals game. Every couple of years, St. Geneva’s top officials knocked at his door in a half-assed attempt to recruit him.

  “I’ll give it some thought,” Levi lied. A friend since childhood, he decided to at least hear Greg out.

  “Not positive, but I think I saw the life die in your eyes about an hour out.”

  Counting down the minutes until they left, he grabbed the open wine bottle off the dining room table to refresh his guests’ glasses.

  “Come on, brother. Taylor is on the board. Maybe you two can spend a little more time together.”

  “No thanks,” Levi muttered. A newbie in town, on the fast track in the DA’s office. He may have slipped up once or twice with the cheeky brunette, but he felt a third time wasn’t in the cards.

  “I thought you two hit it off?”

  Levi ignored Greg’s question.

  “Game of Thrones this bitch and bring in the new blood!” the fire chief shouted from his comfy spot on the couch.

  Pretty sure the board wanted to make him the fall guy for all their bad decisions, Levi needed this meeting over sooner rather than later. Before he gave the council a definitive “no” to speed this crappy get-together along, red and blue lights flashed through his living room window.

  “Uh-oh, a delinquent guest is on the loose!” one of the board members slurred.

  Warm chuckles made the rounds while resort security pulled up to his driveway. The resident cabins were located down the road from the main resort, and even farther away were the private guest bungalows. Security rarely needed to be near this section of the lake.

  Levi headed to the front door.

  “Should we get the sheriff? You never know, those drunk fishermen can get pretty belligerent,” Greg stated.

  “It’s probably just one of the moms’ groups. The knitting club certainly knows how to turn up.” Opening the door, Levi stepped onto his porch, followed by the laughter at his lame joke. “What’s going on, Dickie?” Levi used his hand to block the bright lights

  “We-we-we have a trespasser,” Security stuttered nervously.

  “Dude, lights!” Levi told him.

  “Oh, sorry.” The security guard ducked back into his car and turned them off. “I caught her trying to break into one of the cabins.”

  Levi’s heart sped up. “Which one?”

  “The last one at the edge of the forest. She wasn’t very compliant at first. I was tempted to get the sheriff on the horn, but you told me to pass everything by you first…” Dickie opened the backdoor. Levi didn’t hear anything else the deputy said before he pulled out the stunning Cayden Young. “So, what do you want me to do with her?”

  Taking a slow swig from his beer, he stalled answering. “First, I would strongly suggest un-cuffing your boss.”

  “My what?”

  “That’s okay, I got it,” the chocolate-skinned beauty said before she wiggled loose and held the bracelets up to the security guard. “Someone changed the locks on my cabin. You wouldn’t know anything about that would you, Levi?” She rubbed her wrist while he drank in the sight of her. A messy braid hung over the side of her cocoa-colored shoulder. She seemed to challenge him with the dark pools of her eyes.

  “Had you stopped by and not tried to sneak into town, you could have picked up your keys.” Levi stepped back into the house to grab her set off the hook by the door.

  “Didn’t want to disturb your…” She gestured toward the house. “Get-together.”

  “Hey, Cayden.” If Greg hadn’t stepped out to the porch, Levi would have nearly forgotten about his house full of guests altogether. “What’s it been, eleven years?”

  “Good to see you.” She smiled easily. “Congratulations on the promotion. Levi’s mom told me about your new DA status.”

  “Thanks. I would love to catch up. Are you going to be around for a while?”

  “Not sure yet, but I’ll give you a call if I am,” Cayden told him.

  Levi almost believed her lie. However, the twitch of her right eyebrow told him the truth. Taking mercy upon the goddess, he tossed over her keys.

  “I-I-I’m really s-so sorry,” Dickie stuttered.

  She easily snagged the set out of the air. “No worries,” Cayden said while she gave everyone a wave good-bye. “Just pick up your last check in the office.”

  “Oh my God, oh my God!” The security guard grabbed the sides of head and pulled at his cap.

  “She’s kidding.” Levi chuckled. “Tell Dickie you’re kidding.”

  Already halfway down the path that led past his parents’ house, she slipped from his sight. “Cayden’s kidding,” she repeated.

  “Now go make sure she gets home safe.”

  “Don’t follow me, Dickie!” she yelled.

  Hoping the kid wouldn’t mess things up further, Levi nodded in Cayden’s direction. With the good sense to keep a healthy distance, the security guard hurried after her. Levi waited until they rounded the bend in the path before he turned back to his guests.

  “Maybe Cayden’s the one we should ask to join business board,” the fire chief yelled, already three sheets to the wind.

  “She would have to be a resident over five years.” Greg recited the rules. “And since she never sticks around more than a day or two…”

  “So that’s the infamous Cayden Young. Socialite, philanthropist, and what … Instagram model? Nice life, I guess,” an older lady whose name he couldn’t remember said before she grabbed the bottle of wine out of his hand. “I heard you two grew up like brother and sister.”

  “Is that right?” At a loss of anything better to say, Levi finished the rest of his beer. Sister never crossed his mind once he laid eyes on her fourteen years ago, and he didn’t believe it ever would.

  ****

  August 2, 2003—First Day

  Only weeks away from the beginning of his senior year, Levi could already call his summer a wash. Determined to get his truck fixed before class registration, he worked under his pickup.

  Better than listening to his parents yell all day. He almost didn’t mind the stifling conditions that put him in the sun’s path. Goosebay Lake Resorts had taken a hit due to the recession, and they were on the brink of losing it all. His mom believed that Dad mismanaged the funds.

  “We can wait this out.” Mom’s voice carried through their open bedroom window. Every time a
potential investor planned to visit, it kicked off the same argument. Levi worked on his spark plugs and tried to tune them out.

  “Unless you want to live in a double wide, trust me, this is our only option.”

  “Goosebay is my legacy, Levi’s legacy!” Mom cried.

  “Your dad didn’t leave it to us in the best condition, Lydia. This is our only shot.”

  The sound of tires rolling over the gravel road drew his attention away from their fight. Once he finished with the last plug, he wiggled from underneath the truck. A well-dressed man who closely resembled Col. Sanders stepped out of the driver’s side of the sedan. Similar to everyone else who had come by to scout out the resort, Levi’s interest didn’t pique until he laid eyes on her. A blast of cold washed over him at the sight of the teenager who got out of the passenger’s side.

  Sporting the perfect face, a tall and lanky black girl stood inside the open door. She wore one of those fancy uniforms from the boarding school up the hill. Levi couldn’t look away.

  “Mr. Abrams.” His dad stepped out of the front door. “Welcome to Goosebay Lake. I’m Trent, this is my wife, Lydia, and that’s my son, Levi.”

  Levi wordlessly nodded in their direction while his mom gave a weak wave from her spot on the porch. She must have wanted to keep her distance since her eyes were puffy from crying.

  The men shook hands. After a few moments of awkward silence, his dad cleared his throat. “Is this your granddaughter?” he asked about the girl who wandered toward the lake.

  “No.” Mr. Abrams laughed. “That’s Ms. Young. Cayden Young.”

  Apparently, the name didn’t register with his dad because he shook his head.

  “I’m sorry, I thought you knew… She’s your potential investor. I’m just her financial advisor. Her grandfather owns Sabi Star Kudu Shipping.”

  “Uh, I don’t understand.” Obviously still confused, his dad glanced back and forth between them. “Well, then, how about I take you guys on a tour of the property?”

  “No need, we already poked around.” Mr. Abrams handed him a file. “These are Ms. Young’s terms. If you would like to go over them now, we can take a moment. Otherwise, please give us a call.”

  Stepping forward, his mom tugged at the sleeve of his dad’s shirt. She probably hoped to stop him from putting his foot in his mouth further. “Would you like some tea or lemonade, dear?”

  When the girl finally faced them, long tendrils of hair fell out of her bun and whipped around her head. “Lemonade, please.”

  “We may have some fresh-baked cookies, if I didn’t ruin them already.” Mom gestured for Cayden to follow her into the house.

  “After you.” Dad invited Mr. Abrams into the house.

  Curious to see this strange exchange, Levi hurried to put up his tools. In thirty minutes, he had a date with head cheerleader Meghan Reid. Stoked about it short of an hour ago, he couldn’t care less after laying eyes on the mysterious teenage girl. It seemed fickle on his part, but he didn’t feel that bad.

  “This is beautiful, did you make it?” Cayden asked about the mosaic designs on the wall.

  Levi slipped into the den of their three-story Cape Cod cabin.

  “Cayden, is it?”

  The girl nodded.

  “I bust old plates and glue them back into pictures. I get a lot of my materials from second-hand shops.” Mom joined Cayden at the wall where she displayed her mosaic art.

  “Will you show me?”

  “I, uh…” Mom glanced around, probably for an assist, but Dad seemed intent on the contracts. Levi wiped the grease from his hands onto his jeans and moved deeper into the room. “…would love to.” She lowered her voice to a whisper. “No one around here is interested. I’m surrounded by all boys.”

  While Mom hit him with the stink eye, he reached for the plate of cookies on the desk. He hurried to pop the treat in his mouth before she could stop him.

  “Mr. Abrams, there’s no way we can sell you over fifty percent of the property,” Dad stated. “That gives us less than majority shares.”

  “There’s a lot of work that needs to be done to the existing cabins.” Cayden cut off Mr. Abrams before he could answer. “Over the next ten years you can purchase back percentage points, but as it stands, I’ll have to invest a lot of money just to the main house alone. The Scott family will have run of the day-to-day operation, but I’ll have majority stake in the resort.”

  “I’m sorry.” Dad sighed. “Is there an adult we can talk to about this?”

  “Afraid Ms. Young is the best adult you’re going to get.” Mr. Abrams chuckled.

  “But she’s a child.”

  “Cayden has a stellar portfolio. Goosebay Lake is the only investment I haven’t agreed with her on. To be honest, it’s simply more money than its worth.” Mr. Abrams turned away from the bookshelf. “If you accept her terms, she will need to be furnished with a cabin for holidays and vacations.”

  “You wouldn’t be going home for breaks?” Mom asked.

  “Ma!” He hoped to stop her from meddling.

  “My parents aren’t available and my grandfather is … ill. Something close to school would be nice.” Cayden crossed the room toward him.

  “We’re going to have put some thought into your contract,” his dad muttered as he stood up. “To tell you the truth, this is not at all acceptable.”

  Cayden reached for a cookie at the same time Levi did. He nearly jumped from the shock her touch sent through his body. The girl took a bite out of the dessert and gave him a sly smile.

  “Take your time.” Abrams grabbed the teenager’s arm and ushered her out of the room. “I’m sure you have plenty of offers.” Even Levi could detect his condescending tone.

  “Hold on—”

  “Dammit, Lydia—” Dad hissed.

  Levi swallowed hard at the quelling glance his mom gave his dad. “We’ll negotiate the terms of anything we don’t agree with, but if everything pans, out you have a deal.” She held out her hand to Cayden, who gave her a full-wattage smile.

  The beautiful way her face morphed it into a work of art stirred his insides.

  “You won’t regret this,” Cayden said before she rushed across the room to embrace his tiny mother. Never the touchy-feely sort, Levi nearly choked on the remains of cookie crumbs when his mom hugged the girl back.

  Chapter Two

  Present Day

  Goosebay Lake Resort covered over eighteen acres. The resident portion took up less than six hundred yards of land. Three houses were lined in a row, and the Scotts’ family cabin sat closest to the lake. Insulated from the rest of the resort, Cayden’s little spot snuggled next to the dense forest.

  When she first arrived, the Scotts wanted her to pick a closer cabin, but she snagged the one-floor bungalow for its privacy.

  Too lazy to unpack her clothes, she decided to put away her groceries instead and clean off her prized cappuccino maker.

  The expected knock at her back door came sooner than she thought. As his steel-toed boots clunked against the hardwood floor in the mud room, she waited for his list of complaints.

  “How the hell did Dickie get the drop on you?” Levi asked from the doorway.

  Cayden dried the monster of a machine before she plugged it in, waiting for it to warm up. “Your security guard doesn’t appear to be the brightest bulb. Reasoning seemed to be off the table.” Once she stole a glance over her shoulder at him, she knew her insides would go to mush. In a matter of minutes, years of hardening her heart toward the gorgeous man disintegrated. Hornier than she thought she could be, Cayden turned her thoughts to the show Dexter to help get her mind out of the gutter.

  All six-five of the sexy man stepped into the kitchen before he leaned against the counter. Blond and rugged, his bad-boy good looks were put on display with a taunting smirk. Cayden noted his new beard stubbles, but like everything else with Levi Scott, it worked in his favor.

  “Mighty fancy way to say ‘stupid.’”

/>   “Fine, then settle for ‘I’m opposed to being shot in general.’”

  “I would never give Dickie a gun.”

  The air seemed heavy since he came into the house. They stared at one another until she finally broke eye contact. “There’s a lot of things Dickie probably shouldn’t have, and a security job is one of them… Why did you change my locks?”

  “Don’t tell me you forgot,” he muttered. “Well, let’s see … a few years back no one knew you came home and you went into some weird sleep coma for about three days. If it wasn’t for the groundskeeper seeing your porch light on, who knows what would have happened.”

  “I was sick, but thanks for making it sound worse than it actually was,” she replied.

  Levi pushed off the counter and approached her, stopping mere inches from her face. “It was pneumonia, but thank you for minimizing the fact that you almost died.”

  His blue eyes bore into hers. This time, Cayden refused to look away first. After what felt like eternity, he gave up.

  “I have a good idea why you’re here.” He went straight past her and for the wall sconces in the living room. Levi tugged the metal leaf down. The latch clicked on the bookcase before he pushed in the shelf that led to her hidden office.

  “Are you sure you want to do this?”

  Crime scene photos lined her walls. Immortalized in photographs, her Chesterfield classmate Shana Waters’s lifeless body lay in a field. Cayden stepped next to him and stared at the inspiration behind her writing career.

  “I think it’s time.” Cayden penned her crime novels under the pseudonym E.G. Leighton. Where the rest of the world saw her as a spoiled socialite, The New York Times bestseller list ranked her number one in non-fiction six times.

  Thus far, five cases were closed under her titles with only one unknown. While the world foolishly believed she cared about Instagram, she actually solved murders. Since most people assumed bunnies and rainbows took up any available space in her head, it made her secret life easier to juggle. Regardless of her success in running her grandfather’s dynasty, she never got the credit.