Page 82 of Pinch of Love

I shrugged and took a sip of my Diet Coke. “I’d do it for anyone.”

“Except that you’ve been such a hermit for how many years? So you wouldn’t know anyone to do it for.”

“Point taken,” I grumbled.

“My point is that this girl is special.”

“She’s also a tourist.”

And hell, I’d love to give her some cute meet or cutesy meet or whatever she wanted. But why? Why did I care? Why did I want to impress her?

My dad wagged his finger at me. “She has roots here. She has a connection.”

“Why do you know more about her than I do?”

The lobby doors opened, and a family wandered inside, their cheeks flushed from whatever adventure they’d returned from.

I glanced at my dad. “One step at a time. The first thing we need to do is to get this guy to leave Maya alone.”

“And if he doesn’t?”

I clenched my jaw and shook my head, knowing if the message wasn’t received the first time, it most certainly would be the second.

The elevator dinged, but after sitting here for hours, I almost didn’t believe my eyes.

I straightened in the chair and pointed toward the lobby. “That’s him.”

Rob wore a black jacket, jeans, and a ball cap. He didn’t look scrawny, but he didn’t look overly fit, either.

“What a jerk,” I muttered, but my dad caught it.

“Okay, Cash. Don’t do anything stupid. I’ll come up behind you, but you’ve got to deal with this gentleman properly. Just get a sense of his intentions.”

“He’s no gentleman. You should see the texts he sends her.” I left some money on the table for our drinks and stood.

My dad gave a quick nod, and he followed behind me.

“Rob,” I called only about ten feet away.

He stopped and turned slowly. His gaze hardened as I approached. He glanced at my dad before returning his eyes to me.

“May I help you?” he asked with a smirk.

“Just wondering why you’re here in Buttercup Lake.”

“Am I not welcome?” His eyes cooled, and his phony smile widened, and I wanted to deck the guy.

“Depends on what your intentions are.”

Unbeknownst to Rob, my dad was filming us. I figured we couldn’t trust the guy, and I didn’t need anything to be taken out of context.

“Intentions?” He grinned. “My only intentions are to enjoy the incredible weather, the beautiful lakes and rivers, and speak with my fiancée.”

“She’s not your fiancée.”

He folded his arms and raised a brow. “But she is.”

“You dumped her at her wedding, and now you’re attempting to steal something that she worked to build.”

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