Page 21 of Luke

"I'll think about tomorrow—tomorrow."

"One of your favorite lines," she said.

He gave her a small smile. "It's worked for me so far."

"So I'll see you later."

"Most likely."

She hesitated at that cryptic answer. "Just don't leave without saying good-bye, Luke."

"I never just disappear," he said. "That's you, Lizzie, not me."

She sighed. "We can't get away from that day, can we? I told you why I didn't show up. And I apologized."

"It was a half-ass apology ten years ago and only slightly better now, and that's because you need something from me. Hell of a twist, isn't it?"

"I don't know what you want from me, Luke."

"That's the problem. I don't know, either, Lizzie, but I think we're both going to find out."

* * *

Luke's cryptic words ran around her head as she entered the lodge. She stopped at the front desk to check with Tina, an attractive twenty-three-year-old who was thrilled to work at the lodge since her boyfriend David worked with Tom at the stables.

"Everything good here?" she asked.

"Quiet today," Tina replied with a happy smile. "Tomorrow will be a different story with everyone checking in for the holiday weekend."

Liz nodded, not at all put out by that thought. She'd enjoyed the busy summer, the constant flow of cash and guests. The fall would be quieter, which would have made it a great time to do some of the cabin remodeling that was needed, but now she didn't know what would happen. Even if Luke agreed to keep the resort, would he want to put more money into it?

"How was your afternoon?" Tina asked, a curious gleam in her eyes. "And who was that gorgeous man you were with?"

"His name is Luke Brannigan."

"He's related to Colin?"

"Yes, he is." She didn't want to discuss Luke or Colin's death just yet. "I do have some news, and I'm sorry if I'm being cryptic, but I want to tell everyone at once. So I'll do it at four o'clock, at our staff meeting."

"Okay, that sounds a little ominous."

"Try not to worry," she said, offering a reassuring smile. "I'm going to check in with Shari. Do you need anything from me right now?"

"Nope, I'm good."

"Great." While Tina didn't need anything, Liz did—a big cup of coffee and a friend to go along with it. She knew where to find both.

When she entered the kitchen, Shari Jordan, the thirty-four-year-old chef, was engaged in massive dinner prep, a pile of chopped tomatoes in front of her, and her knife making quick work of the rest.

"I need coffee," she announced.

"Lucky for you, I just made a pot," Shari replied.

Liz poured herself a mug and took a grateful sip as she leaned against the counter. She watched Shari's skilled knife work for a few moments, in awe of how quickly she could dice tomatoes. She, on the other hand, had never had any talent in the kitchen. Fortunately, she didn't even have to try anymore.

Shari had put her long, dark-red hair into a braid, and she wore an apron over her maternity tank top and stretchy pants. Shari's cheeks were pink from the heated kitchen, or maybe it was from the internal glow that had arrived with her pregnancy eight months earlier.

Shari was married to Brad Jordan, who headed up their adventure programs. They'd been at the resort for six years and had taught Liz a lot about running the place. Fortunately, neither one had wanted her job. Shari only liked being in the kitchen, and Brad had an aversion to paperwork, so it was all good—even better now that they were expecting a baby. Although, she was reminded of the fact they really needed to get a temporary chef in place before the baby came. They only had four weeks to go.

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