“What? An alternative to Mermaid Island? There is no alternative to Mermaid Island! What the hell is this all about?” Kathryn shot to her feet. Her heels made sharp clicks on the linoleum floor as she marched toward the young men. She lectured them in harsh whispers, and stomped a spiked heel on the floor in aggravation.
“Ma’am, you’ll have to take it up with our chairman,” one of the men said. “We were told to bring this inside. We’re just doing our jobs.”
Polly leaned over and whispered in Mona’s ear, “Do you know what’s going on?”
Mona shook her head. “Not a clue.”
Just then, Mona saw Frasier and Clancy enter the meeting hall, Duncan right behind. Both her boys waved at her, though they looked puzzled. Frasier shook his head in disgust, and Mona thought, Isn’t that just like you? You automatically think the worst. Well, you’re in for the surprise of your life, you cranky old bastard.
Kathryn continued, her voice becoming louder. “You cannot and will not put that there!” She motioned for her suits to back her up, and the men from Jessop-Riley rushed to her aid. “Stop them!”
Kathryn’s underlings looked lost. Mona suspected they were more comfortable with tax codes than fistfights.
“Augh!” Kathryn’s face flushed with anger. “Never mind!” She shooed her team away. “Who do you work for? I assure you, whatever underhanded, sleazy kind of stunt this is will not be tolerated. This is a private meeting of landowners and Jessop-Riley Development, not some kind of game show! I will not stand for—”
Just then, Ash and Rowan appeared, and he gestured for another group of suits to enter the meeting hall. The air in the room became charged. Mona began to get a very bad feeling about this.
Kathryn gasped, glaring at Ash as if she knew him. “What the hell are you doing here?”
* * *
Wait.
What?
Ash slammed his eyes shut and reopened them. Yes, Kathryn Hilsom from J-R was here. But that couldn’t possibly be.
James leaned into him. “What the fuck? Who are those people?”
What the fuck, indeed.
Rowan gripped his arm. “I don’t understand,” she said. “Why are the resort people here? Do you know her? What’s going on?”
Ash squeezed Rowan’s hand and shook his head. “Not what I’d planned—that’s for sure. I’m sorry, sweetheart. Why don’t you take a seat for a minute while I figure this out? James?” The two men walked toward the front of the room.
Kathryn marched up to Ash. “Would you please tell me why you’re here, Wallace?”
“Why are you here?”
“I was invited by Mrs. Flynn. We are about to finalize the land sale for Mermaid Island—a job that was apparently too much for you to handle.” Kathryn gave him a satisfied smirk as a low rumbling went through the crowd and chairs scraped on the floor. Kathryn continued. “You resigned, Wallace! You’re not even working the deal anymore. What are you doing here?”
Ash realized all his plans were about to disintegrate and he had to do something to stop it. He addressed the crowd. “Everyone, have a seat. Please. There seems to be some confusion here.”
Sally the fairy stood up. “There should be no confusion. I called this meeting of the Haven Cove Landowner’s Coalition because Mona Flynn asked me to.”
“But this young man has a wonderful idea!” Hubie Krank pulled himself to a stand and began waving his fist around. “He’s going to buy the land so some people can study the fish! He offered me money for my property and he’ll do the same for all of you!”
“Daddy, sit down.” Hubie’s daughter cupped his elbow and tried to get him back in his chair. Hubie just swatted at her.
“And I told you that, Sally!” Hubie waved his arm around. “What’s all this nonsense about? Didn’t you hear me when I told you about somebody else wanting to buy the land?”
Kathryn gasped. Her head snapped around, and she narrowed her eyes at Ash. “What?”
Sally held up her hands. “I’m sorry. Honestly, Hubie, I thought you were confused. Mona called me right before you did, so I assumed you wanted a coalition meeting to meet with the developers.”
“No! I don’t like the developers anymore! I like the nice young man better!”
Ash appealed to the crowd. “Ladies and gentlemen, we have a complete breakdown in communication here. Please be patient while I try to unravel this mess.”
“Pardon me.” Kathryn’s voice was hoarse, and she strained to talk over the crowd. “There is no breakdown in communication. Jessop-Riley is here by invitation. Mona Flynn called me two days ago to tell me she’d changed her mind and wanted to sell. She now welcomes the idea of the Mermaid Island Resort.”
Loud shouts went up all over the room, and the loudest were from Mona’s own family.
Mona stood up, looking panicked. “I was going to tell everyone last night, but Duncan came home! I didn’t want to ruin our celebration!”
“What the hell?” Frasier’s huge voice vibrated off the walls. “You called the developer? After all the shit you’ve put us through?”
“Yes. I did!” Mona began to cry. “I did it for Rowan and Ash. Everyone can see they’re in love, and I didn’t want Rowan to be stuck with the Safe Haven anymore. I want her to be happy to live her life however she wants!”
“Oh, my flippin’ God.” One of the mermaid ladies, a large woman with a short haircut, had just moved out from where she’d been leaning against the wall. “I should have brought some wine.”
Kathryn took advantage of the stunned silence in the room. “We are prepared to sign cashier’s checks right now, on the spot.” She motioned toward a neatly organized row of documents on a table behind her. “Everyone who owns land on the cove is officially rich as of right this moment. All we need are your signatures.”
Ash stepped in front of her. “I am here to show you that there is another option! You don’t have to destroy the island!”
With that, everyone seemed to speak at once, and the decibel level nearly blew a hole in the hundred-year-old ceiling.
“Cut it out!” Clancy wandered toward the front of the room, hand on his gun belt. “Sit down. Be quiet. Everyone calm down!” Clancy motioned for people to sit, and, eventually, everyone did. He had their full attention. “I think we’re looking at a bidding war here, my friends. The tables have turned. So let’s just sit back and listen to what each of them has to say.”
“Well, there’s something that needs to be cleared up here first, I believe.” Kathryn crossed her arms over her chest and wobbled her head back and forth. “You’re all acting like Ash Wallace is an old friend. I don’t know what he’s been up to this week, but—”
“Kathryn. Stop.”
She laughed at Ash. “Oh? You don’t want all your new friends to know the truth? How about your new girlfriend? Does she know who you are?”
“This is not how I planned to tell her.”
“Tell me what?” That was Rowan.
Ash closed his eyes. This was a nightmare.
“Ash Wallace is nothing but a hired ‘closer,’ a mercenary sent to Bayberry Island to convince you to sell.”
A collective gasp rose up from the room. One of them was Rowan’s.
Ash lowered his chin and glared at Kathryn, coming even closer. “I said that’s enough. I’ve resigned from the project. I sent Jerrod Jessop a resignation letter Sunday night. I am no longer involved in the Mermaid Island project in any capacity.”
“Right.” Kathryn smiled. “But after you called us with the inside scoop on how to get Mona Flynn to sell. Ring any bells?
Ash closed his eyes and sighed. The environmental assessment.
“Is what she said true?”
Ash spun around. Rowan stood near the back of the room, her hands clasped in front of her body, all the color drained from her face. She appeared smaller. Her eyes had lost their sparkle. And she’d asked that question in a tiny, flat voice.
“Don’t give up on m
e, Rowan.” He locked his gaze on hers. “She’s right. I told them to soften the deal with a second environmental assessment. I apologize. But there is so much more to this story. Hang in there.”
She didn’t reply.
From the front of the room, Ash surveyed the faces of Bayberry Island. There was Sally the fairy, Sully the mechanic, and Darinda. He saw the girl from the tourist kiosk and Zophie and the other maids. He saw Hubie Krank, the DJ from the clambake, members of the marching band, and the chubby kid who’d dragged Ash to the mermaid fountain. He even saw the senior citizen nudists and the two party girls from the Safe Haven. It was as if this were just another official festival-week event they’d found listed in a brochure.
And every one of them shook their heads in disappointment—except for the dark-haired party girl. She’d just silently mouthed her room number and smiled at him.
Ash made the mistake of searching out all of the Flynns. He was greeted with every shade of confusion and anger possible. Mona looked stunned and baffled. Frasier looked like a kid at Christmas, since chances were good he’d finally be getting his money from someone. But when his eyes met Ash’s, he glowered like a bull about to charge. Duncan had clearly decided to kill Ash but hadn’t yet chosen a method, since he had so many options available to him. Nat just shook his head in disgust. And Annie’s face was stained with tears, her fists balled up at her sides like she wanted to hit him.
Betrayal. That was the common emotion that radiated off these people, his friends. They felt betrayed. They believed Ash had betrayed Rowan.
Interestingly enough, Clancy hung back alone, away from his family, almost as if he wanted a better perspective on the cluster-fuck. His eyes flashed at Ash and he gave a lightning-quick toss of his chin. It was a sign that there was at least one person in the room who wasn’t quite ready to convict him.
“May I have a word, Ash?”
Ash turned to his best friend’s brother. He had never seen James Martin so furious. “I’m so sorry. I had no idea—” he began.
“This isn’t our style, Ash. You know that. We’re a small, nonprofit foundation, not contestants on a reality show.”
“I know. Please bear with me. I didn’t intend for this to happen.”
Kathryn pointed at Ash. “This man is a professional liar. Do not believe anything he is about to tell you.”
“She’s right, to a point.” The room went silent. Ash continued. “I was hired to close the Mermaid Island deal for Jessop-Riley, and I was working for them when I arrived on the island. I’ve done a lot of similar jobs in the last ten years, jobs where I’d do whatever I had to do to convince people to sell their land to developers, but I’ve had enough. My plan was to fulfill my obligation to Jessop-Riley and then quit. So, yes, I came to the island to buy land for the resort.”
He heard a soft cry of anguish from Rowan. He couldn’t look at her, but Annie ran to her side.
“So you staged your breakdown?” That was from the tugboat captain.
“I did.”
“I knew it!” That outburst was from Sully.
Ash continued. “I had done a lot of research in preparation for this job. I knew all about the Flynns and their money troubles and what had happened with Rowan’s fiancé. My plan was to get her to convince Mona to drop her opposition.”
“Oh my God, no.” Rowan began crying, and Annie comforted her.
“Girl, that’s what you get for thinking with your va-jay-jay instead of your brain.”
The room went silent. Everyone turned to stare at the party girl. “What?” she asked, shrugging her shoulders. “It’s the truth!”
Ash heard Rowan groan and he dared to look at her. She stood perfectly still, sadness and humiliation in her eyes. “Hang in there, sweetheart. Please.” He addressed the crowd again. “As I was saying, I came here to convince the Flynns to sell, but soon after I arrived on Bayberry, I realized the island would be irrevocably damaged by the resort. I saw how the crowds and traffic and noise would destroy everything that makes this place unique. And”—Ash made eye contact with Rowan again—“I had already started falling in love with Rowan Flynn. So I put my obligation to Jessop aside, and I sent in my letter of resignation last Sunday.”
“Ladies and gentlemen, you can’t trust this man.” Kathryn began to stroll around the room. “From what I can tell, he’s been hanging around Bayberry Island all week, schmoozing every one of you. But did he ever once tell you who he really was? Why he came here in the first place? That he had faked his breakdown and had been doing background research on all of you so he would know how best to make the sale?”
“Kathryn, don’t do this. This is none of your affair.”
“Oh, but it is! I’m here to do real business, offer these people real money for their valuable land. You’re a joke, Wallace.” Kathryn smiled at the crowd. “All you have to do is sign. You’re rich.”
“Wait.” Ash held up a hand. “We will match whatever Jessop-Riley offers.”
“Wallace.” James spoke firmly.
He turned to James. “Do you agree that this is the right place for Oceanaire?”
James nodded. “After seeing what we saw today, we all think it is.”
“Fine. Then whatever this costs, I’ll put up my own capital to make it happen. You know my grandfather made me a rich man, and this is how I’d like to spend the money. I will not bankrupt Oceanaire. Do you hear me?”
He saw James’s eyes soften. “You love her that much?”
“I do.”
“All right.” James motioned for the young men to bring the architect’s model forward, and Ash took a few minutes to describe to the landowners how they envisioned the small marine research facility, an educational building with exhibits open to the public, and a dormitory for the summer students. Everyone gathered around the model, and there were gasps of delight from the crowd.
“The design specifics might change because of the topography, but I wanted you to see that we are serious. Our mission is to preserve marine biodiversity and educate the next generation in conservation. Bayberry is the ideal place for this kind of learning and exploration to occur.”
“They can’t possibly be ready to offer you a deal today. This is ridiculous.” Kathryn sniffed the air.
Just then Ash saw Annie escorting Rowan toward the front door.
“Please stay, Rowan,” he said.
Annie glared at Ash. “Leave her alone.”
He began to jog toward the women when he felt a hand on his shoulder.
“Don’t.” It was Duncan.
Ash faced him. “I never meant to hurt her. I’d rather die than hurt her.”
The rest of the Flynns joined Duncan and Ash where they stood, right in the middle of the meeting room aisle.
Mona spoke first. “When did you know you loved her?”
“I don’t believe in love at first sight—well, I didn’t, anyway. But by Sunday night, I knew there was something undeniably wonderful between us.”
Frasier scowled. “Is that when you came up with the idea to bring Oceanaire’s institute here?”
“No.” Ash smiled at Nat. “Nat gave me the idea at the clambake. It was a stroke of genius. I started moving on it the next morning.”
“This is true,” Nat said, a hint of pride in his voice.
Duncan turned to James. “Is this a serious offer?”
James nodded thoughtfully. “I will admit it’s sudden, but, yes. Ash is our chairman of the board. This is his choice of location. There is a lot of work to be done, but we are prepared to negotiate for the land along Haven Cove.”
“It’s going to be a hard sell, Ash.” Frasier looked pensive.
“The institute?”
“No. That’ll be a piece of cake. I’m talking about my daughter. She may never want to speak to you again. You lied to her. You lied to all of us.”
“It’s got to feel like déjà vu for her.” Clancy shook his head. “You should probably just hit the road and save yourself
the grief.”
“It’s likely you’ll go to all the trouble of building your institute here and Rowan will never speak to you again,” Frasier added.
Ash smiled at that. “I’m not giving up, Mayor.”
Duncan laughed. “Why not?”
“Because she’s worth fighting for.”
Just then, Ash realized the entire assembly had gathered around them, straining to hear what was being said.
“Excuse me. Pardon me.” A soft female voice made its way through the crowd. Brenda Paulson emerged, smiling at Ash.
“Brenda! How nice to see you.” Ash gave her a hug.
“You too. Hi, everyone.” Brenda glanced shyly at all the Flynns. “Um, I don’t mean to intrude, but I wanted to say something to you all.” She quickly glanced at Ash and looked away, embarrassed. “Despite what all this must look like, I know Mr. Wallace, and I can tell you he’s always treated people with respect and decency. He has been very kind to me and my daughter over the years, even though we’re just work colleagues. What’s being said today makes him look bad, but I want you to think before you judge him. If you’ve spent time with him this week, you know the kind of man he is. I hope you rely on what you’ve personally observed about Mr. Wallace and not what Kathryn says.”
Brenda lowered her voice to a whisper. “She hates Ash and has been out to get him. But that’s because they’re professional rivals and she’s jealous of him. And just between us . . .” Brenda looked behind her to make sure Kathryn wasn’t nearby. “I can’t stand that woman. I’ve been offered a job at another company and I can’t wait to get out of there.” She broke out into a huge smile.
“Brenda!”
“That’s her. I need to go back. Good luck with everything!” She popped up on her toes and kissed Ash’s cheek.
The Flynns stayed quiet for a long moment. Finally, Mona spoke. “How do you plan to win her back, Ashton?”
“I’ll have to figure that out. Any suggestions?”
“Whatever you do, don’t let her stew,” Mona said. “Do it now. And make sure she knows you’re serious.”
“Make it something big, something grand.” That came from one of the mermaid ladies who had pushed her way into the circle.