“That he’d break your heart, too.”
Emily felt tears sting at her eyes, completely without warning. She turned away, keeping her eyes wide to keep them from spilling over.
“He cares about you,” Ava said, and now she was the one offering comfort. “I think he may really love you. But he’s never coming home to Tall Pines, dear. I’ve finally accepted that.”
The cold felt insubstantial now. Emily had lost all feeling in her body, and it had nothing to do with the weather. “You think he’s staying away because he hates the town?”
Ava looked startled. “He’s hated Tall Pines since high school. He wouldn’t change his opinion of it for his family, so I thought…”
“He’s not coming back because of what the town did to me,” Emily said with a slightly hysterical laugh.
Now Ava looked shocked. “I know that the decision to make the hotel a historical landmark was a disappointment, but I didn’t think it would bother you that much,” she said, sounding puzzled. “You love it here. Besides, it was in the best interest of the town.”
“I know.” Emily wiped at tears with the backs of her hands. “But the town didn’t care what it did to me. I was expected to fall into line, no questions. When I tried to do something for myself, you all called me a traitor.”
“Now, now, that was just in the heat of the moment,” Ava said quickly. “You know how Martha Rutledge is during a town meeting. She’s incorrigible.”
“I don’t care.” Emily raised her voice. “All I know is I’m drowning under the obligations of the inn. I’ve been able to keep it afloat and I’m not hurting for money, but at the same time, I can’t rest. When the inn was all I had, I didn’t care. But now I’ve found someone I love and a life I want to pursue…and I can’t. Because of Tall Pines.” She sniffled loudly, cursing herself for losing it.
Ava looked stricken. “I didn’t know,” she murmured. “None of us knew. Why didn’t you say you were in trouble?”
“Because I don’t see it as being in trouble,” Emily said. “Or at least I didn’t. I don’t want to complain and I’m not expecting anybody to save me. But when I tried to take care of myself, all I got were accusations, and then you went behind my back and forced me to do what you wanted. Did it ever occur to any of you that I’d never betray this town?”
Ava shook her head.
“Why didn’t you trust me?” Emily’s throat hurt. “Why didn’t you…oh, why am I bothering? It doesn’t matter.”
“And Colin…?” Ava said slowly before Emily could walk away.
“Colin is sick of all of you.” Ava winced at the comment. “He can’t believe I’ll still defend you and that I’ll stay here after how Tall Pines treated me. So instead of helping me or comforting me, we wound up breaking up because I can’t do what he wants, either.”
Ava looked green.
Emily closed her eyes. All the emotions she thought she’d successfully walled off were now bubbling out of her like lava from a volcano. “I have to go,” she said, going back into the house.
Janet stared at her. “Why, Em, honey, what’s wrong?”
Emily didn’t say a word. She grabbed her jacket and her purse, ignoring the other women’s words of concern, and left the house. She stumbled through the snow blindly, heading for the inn.
“Emily?” Sue asked, bewildered, when she stumbled past her in the lobby.
Emily kept walking, heading straight for her apartment. When she locked the door behind her, she sank onto her couch, feeling the floodgates of emotion start to break.
It’ll get better. It’ll get better. She chanted it in her head. But she kept on crying.
“HI, EMILY,” Joy said a few days later, standing in Emily’s apartment doorway. “What did you want to talk to me about?”
“Come on in,” she said, gesturing to her couch.Joy came in, sitting down, then studying Emily’s face carefully. “You okay?”
“I am now,” Emily answered with determination. “I see you’re going to be leaving tomorrow.”
“It’s been a long vacation,” Joy answered. “Longest I’ve taken in my life. I was hoping to get a few things figured out.”
“And did you?’
Joy nodded thoughtfully. “I know I don’t want to go back to my family’s business. That’s for sure.”
“Uh-huh.” Emily poured them both a cup of coffee.
“At the same time, I don’t want to go back to teaching,” she said, sipping from her cup. Joy shrugged. “Anyway, I’m sure I’ll figure out something. I’m just glad I stayed here. It’s been wonderful.”
“We’re happy to have you. And I can’t thank you enough for pitching in.”
Joy smiled. “Don’t worry. That wasn’t work—that was fun. So how about you? Have you figured out what you’re going to do?”
Emily’s responding smile faltered. “I think so,” she murmured. “But it depends on a few things.” She took a depp breath. “I’ve been looking at that piece of paper you gave me. The ideas. for building up the inn’s business.”
Joy looked embarrassed. “Oh, that was before, you know, everything happened,” she said. “I wouldn’t expect you to do all that by yourself. Especially not now.”
“I think you’re right,” Emily agreed. “I think it could work.”
“It would mean added money,” Joy protested. “And more managers.”
“I know,” Emily said. “But I’ve got an idea…”
THE WALK ALONG THE left bank of the Seine River was like something out of a movie: the sky gently overcast, the water rippling with the gusts of wind, the ancient stones beneath his feet all picturesque. In fact, it was like living in a black-and-white French film, complete with lovers kissing under bridges and monuments like Notre Dame popping into the frame every time you turned around. Ordinarily Colin liked Paris. He’d chosen this project with his fondness for the city in mind, hadn’t he? The place he was going to spend the next two years? He loved the food, the architecture, the style, the flair.
But now he seemed to walk endlessly, restlessly. And, yes, he wasn’t stupid enough to pretend he didn’t know why.I miss Emily.
He headed over to the temporary office that was right across from the future building site. He’d spent more time there than in his home, it seemed. Despite her brief stay, the apartment was now inextricably linked to Emily. In a fit of despair one night, he’d even considered moving in an effort to get away from the memories each stick of furniture seemed to evoke.
“Bonjour, Colin,” Francois, the owner, said, adding, in lightly accented English, “You’re here early, yet again.”
Colin was glad that Francois’s grasp of English was nearly flawless.
“You’re here, period,” Colin responded, grinning slightly.
“Oui, but then I am going to Germany, then Monte Carlo,” Francois countered. “Besides, I love when buildings are just starting. So much potential!”
Colin shrugged. “We’re off to a good start, but we’ve got a long way to go.”
“C’est bon,” Francois said easily, clapping him on the shoulder. “It is beyond good, in fact, my friend. Your reputation is well deserved. In fact, everything I heard about you was true and more…except for this rumor of your constant partying.” He laughed. “I expected to see you cavorting with some scantily clad women, dashing in front of the Moulin Rouge with a topless dancer. But, no, you come here early, you stay late and otherwise you wander around the streets with an expression like this.” Francois demonstrated an exaggerated dour face.
Colin smiled. “Maybe I’m a brooding poet.”
“Ha,” Francois scoffed. “You’re a man in love.”
“Really?” Colin tried to sound amused. “How can you tell?”
“I’m French.”
Colin waited, but Francois seemed to think that was all the answer required, so he let it drop.
“Who is she?”
Colin winced. “I like you, Francois,” he said hesitantly. “I mean, you�
��re a great guy. But you’re also my client, and…well, this is sort of personal….”
“Of course it is,” Francois said. “Which is why I asked now, before any of your crew got here.”
“No, I mean it doesn’t have to do with business.” Colin wondered if maybe there was a language problem after all.
“I know what you meant,” Francois said with a dismissive wave of the hand. “But I beg to differ. You are working far too hard, my friend. I know how you Americans are. You’re driven by the clock, shall we say?”
Colin shrugged. “I thought that was why you hired me.”
Francois grinned. “Oui, there is something to be said for someone who believes in pushing to get things accomplished. Not to disparage my countrymen,” he added hastily. “But while I appreciate your dedication, this is not mere work ethic. This is mania.” His forehead furrowed. “I am concerned, Colin.”
Colin fidgeted with his watchband. “Don’t worry,” he said. “I won’t let it affect work.”
“It affects you, Colin. It affects everything.”
Francois was a nice guy, affable, charming in the way that only Europeans seemed to pull off. But he was also a tank. Colin got the feeling that Francois would not budge on the issue until he had an answer.
“Yes, there is a woman,” he muttered, feeling foolish. He felt even more foolish when Francois nodded sagely.
“As I knew,” he said, rubbing his beard. “Where is she? What happened to make you so unhappy?”
“She…” He was about to say, She left me, but saying it would hurt too damned much. He opted for a classic instead. “We agreed that the relationship was not going to work, so we broke up.”
Francois looked puzzled. “Why wouldn’t it work? You love her, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
“She doesn’t love you, then?”
“She does love me,” Colin protested reflexively.
Francois nodded sympathetically. “She’s married, then?”
Colin choked. “No!”
Francois frowned. “So what is the problem?”
“She lives in the United States,” Colin said heavily.
“Ah.” Francois said the word with exquisite delicacy. His frown deepened and he gestured with his hands. “And…?”
Colin rubbed his face. “It’s complicated.”
“I would assume.” Francois paused. “Certainly we don’t know each other well enough to share confidences, but you must know me enough to realize I am going to give you advice whether you want me to or not.”
Colin let out a short, surprised bark of laughter. “Shoot.”
“Would you really rather have this job than the love of this woman?”
“Are you firing me?” Colin asked. The French were romantics and all, but this seemed excessive.
“Non, non, of course not. I did not mean to give you that impression,” Francois said hastily. “Your work is very much appreciated. But it’s obvious to me that if you’re willing to let an obstacle like an ocean get in the way of your love for this woman, then perhaps she was right to break up with you.”
“I didn’t say she broke up with me!”
Francois’ smile was condescending. “Colin, please.”
“Right. You’re French,” he said, fighting not to roll his eyes. “It’s not that easy, though.”
“It’s not that hard, either,” Francois countered. “At least it doesn’t need to be.”
“She’s living in a tiny town in Connecticut—the town I grew up in—and she won’t do what it takes to leave and be with me,” Colin said. “If she’s not willing to make the effort to defend herself or fight for us, then I can’t stand by and watch her get hurt.”
Francois’ expression turned sad. “It’s better, then, to let her suffer her hurt all alone?”
Colin fell silent, stunned as if Francois had hit him with a brick.
“Perhaps she needs your love and your understanding. If she is in a difficult situation, you might want to give her time.”
“What are you, France’s answer to Dr. Phil?”
Francois frowned. “Who is this Dr. Phil?”
“Nothing. Bad joke. Never mind.” He rubbed at his temples with his fingertips. “Aren’t you a little tall to play cupid?”
“Aren’t you a little old to be so obstinate?”
Colin grimaced. “Point taken.”
“You’ve been moping around here for two weeks, working like a demon, and I was beginning to wonder when you would burn out,” Francois said briskly. “I thought I would find out what was happening. Love is a specialty of mine, incidentally. This is my city, after all.”
“Huh?”
“Paris. The city of love, oui?”
“I thought that was just for the travel brochures.”
“We do get a good number of tourists,” Francois admitted. “Listen now. I would not say this to anyone else. I hired you because I knew that you were the best. I am selfish enough to want to keep you that way rather than lose you to overwork and stress halfway through the project. If this woman makes you happy, then we must do what we can to keep you happy. You see?” He grinned mischievously. “It’s completely practical.”
Colin shook his head. “I don’t know how to fix things.”
“Don’t you have the saying ‘Love will find a way’?” Francois grinned broadly, leaning back in his chair. “So. We find a way.”
He grimaced. He was still angry with the town of Tall Pines for how it had treated her—how it had treated him. “I swore I’d never go back there,” he found himself saying.
“What, to the town this woman lives in? Why?”
“Because they don’t accept me.”
“Does she accept you?”
Colin thought about it. “Completely.”
“Then who gives a damn?” Francois shook his head. “If this is all that’s been keeping you from this woman, I will be very disappointed in you, my friend. Old ladies and nosy neighbors are no reason to break up a perfectly good love affair.”
Put that way, Colin felt like an ass. “The commute’s a bitch,” he said.
“Computers, phone and fax. Come into the office as often as you can, but you’re in charge of this project,” Francois pointed out. “You can be here or not, as you like. I trust you.”
Colin tapped his fingertips together, something he normally did only when working on a particularly difficult design.
“It’ll take some planning,” he muttered, reaching for a piece of paper. “The logistics…”
“There you are,” Francois said, his tone imminently satisfied. “You see? Love finds a way when you let it.”
“And when I stop being a butthead,” Colin muttered, glancing at his calendar.
“Yes,” Francois agreed, stepping out the door. “That, also.”
“SETTLE DOWN, SETTLE down,” Mayor Tim said plaintively at the next town meeting. “Do we really have to do this every single time? Really?”
The crowd reluctantly hushed, slowly coming to order, with pockets of rebellious chatter here and there. Emily didn’t sit in her usual seat but, rather, sat hunched in the back. She didn’t want to be there in the first place, but Sue had cajoled her.“Don’t give ’em the satisfaction,” Sue had said, and after everything, Emily realized she was right. She was tired of being a wounded duck about all of this. If they were going to box her into a corner, then she was still going to come out swinging.
It was going to be a town meeting to remember, that was for sure.
“So,” Mayor Tim said, straightening his tie. “Any new business before I go through the agenda?”
Emily stood up. “I have some new business.”
There was an expectant rustle through the crowd, which fell silent far more quickly than when Tim pounded his gavel. All eyes turned toward her.
“We’re here to listen,” Tim said. “What’s on your mind, Emily?”
“While I was away on vacation, the town council saw fit to declare my bu
ilding a historical landmark. Without consulting me. They somehow thought they had the right to dictate what I did with my family property.”
Tim reddened. “Now, Em…”
“I love this town,” Emily said, her voice throaty with emotion. “But I have to say I was very disappointed by the lack of trust that action showed.”
There was a rumble of throat clearing and embarrassed coughing, but otherwise the room remained silent.
“I still love this town,” Emily continued. “But it’s not fair for you to dictate what I’m supposed to do with my building without giving me any funds to take care of it.”
Tim’s eyes bulged. “Give you…funds?” He looked at the council sitting in the front row. “We don’t have the budget….”
“Barring that,” she said, “I do not need the town’s approval to get investors. I have other interests and I no longer wish to be sole owner of the Stanfield Arms. I may need your permission to sell the place outright, but you can’t dictate my choice in partners.”
“No, we can’t,” Tim agreed.
“So I’m taking on as a partner…” She gestured, and Joy stood up. “Joy Webster.”
There was a low outcry. “You’re partnering with the group that would’ve flattened your house?” Evelyn Albee said, sounding scandalized.
“No, she’s partnering with me,” Joy said, and her smile was like sunshine. “I’m not working with my family on this one.”
“Joy is going to be a hands-on partner from now on,” Emily explained. “She’ll be taking over the management duties for a while, then we’ll be hiring more people as we get some more cash inflow.” She crossed her arms. “And when we finally get enough money…I am leaving.”
“No,” Mrs. Rutledge said, her voice sad.
“I’ve stayed here long enough,” Emily continued. “I love you all, but…it’s…” She choked up and pressed her hand to her lips.
“It’s time for you to move on,” Ava Reese said, surprising her. “Try new things. Have an adventure or two.”
Emily nodded, smiling a little even though tears threatened at the corners of her eyes. “Exactly.”
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