“You really think it’ll take months to sell?” Sophie asked, a slight quiver to her voice. Cadence made a mental note to call her tonight. Though the two talked on a semi-regular basis, Sophie lived on the opposite side of the country. They’d last seen each other in person for their dad’s funeral last summer, and before that? Cadence couldn’t remember. Caroline had been a baby, certainly.
“It’s not exactly a house, Soph.”
“Yeah, you’re right. I’ll talk to you tomorrow. Thank you, Mr. Jenkins.”
Cadence dangled the keys in her hand. The summer she spent at the Sunset Ridge Lodge had been one of her favorites. Selling it felt like a betrayal to its memory. But what other option did they have?
“You can keep it, too, Ms. Whitmore.”
“I don’t know . . .”
“Whatever you ladies decide, it must be unanimous. That was Patty’s term.”
Uneasiness twisted inside her stomach. She wondered why he waited to share that piece of information until now, when Cadence was the only one left. “What happens if we can’t agree what to do?”
“If you can’t reach a decision together within thirty days, then the property will be turned over to the historical society, per Patty’s wishes.”
“Oh.”
“Why don’t you grab yourself some lunch? Willamina’s Big Dipper is just a couple blocks down the street. She makes the best caribou chili in the state.”
She didn’t know how she felt aboutthat.But Cadence was hungry. Her grumbling stomach reminded her she’d only eaten a few pretzels for breakfast, left over from her day of traveling.
Mr. Jenkins wore a gentle smile across his thin lips. “And after lunch, why don’t you go see the lodge for yourself?”
Chapter Two
Ford
Ford Harris was a man of many trades. Landlord, handyman, groundskeeper, and most recently, chauffeur. He waited outside the library for his teenaged sister, Rilee, whose car was on the fritz again.Better add auto mechanic to that list. He suspected it was her alternator, but he wouldn’t know for sure until he had some time later to get under the hood.
He pulled his phone out of his shirt pocket to check the time. “What do you think of our new neighbor, Riggs?”
The shepherd appeared between the seats at the sound of his name, his long tail swishing across the back window. Ford gave him a good rub behind the ears. The gesture won him a lick on the hand, only because he was quick enough to avoid a sloppy tongue to the beard. Riggs was a ninja-kisser. It kept Ford on his toes.
“Cadence Whitmore.” Rilee should be about wrapped up with her paper. “You didn’t scare the city girl off, did you, boy?” He certainly considered Cadence’s pleasant reaction to his dog a plus. It would be hard to spend time with someone who didn’t like Riggs.
When Patty Whitmore first asked him the favor, he worried he’d end up around a spoiled city girl who couldn’t stand animals or the outdoors. It felt like a punishment. But the reward—
“Hey, Riggs!” Rilee hopped into the passenger seat, dropping her backpack on the floor before the door was even closed so she could hug the dog. Ford’s heart clenched a little tighter at the thought of Rilee going away to college on the other side of the country. The pair would be devastated to be split up.
“Get your paper finished?” Ford asked as he reversed the truck.
“Mostly.”
He gave her a stern look before switching gears. “Rilee, you can’t phone in this summer class.”
“I don’t know what I was thinking.” She let out a heavy sigh, which only caused Riggs to sneak-attack her with a lick to the cheek. “It’s mylastsummer here, Ford. I don’t want to spend it writing papers.”
“You still want to go to Boston, right?”
“Of course I do.” Her tone, as well as the exaggerated roll of her eyes, implied Ford was an idiot for asking. But he had to be sure her mind hadn’t changed. For the last few years, Rilee had set her sights on Boston University and their acclaimed forensic science program. After her discovery of—and obsession with—crime shows, nothing else would do.
It was just the two of them now. Had been that way for more years than Ford cared to remember since the passing of their parents first, then his wife. It was up to him to make Rilee’s dreams come true. “Then don’t do anything to jeopardize that scholarship.”
“The summer class was optional, remember? It’s just a gen-ed.”
“It’ll put you ahead.” The transferrable community college course was cheaper, too. Not that he would say that out loud. Her scholarship would cover half her tuition. It was the only reason Ford agreed to Patty’s crazy request. If he could convince Cadence to keep the lodge instead of selling it, he’d receive a sizeable bonus to help put Rilee through the expensive college of her dreams.
