Regardless, it didn’t matter. Having a new shopping center in Starlight Cove was going to be good for the community. I’d seen the plans and the proposal. On paper, it was exactly what we needed—something that would bring jobs and retain residents.
“That may be so, but this shopping center will only improve the town,” I said. “That outweighs any possible ramifications you’ve found.”
She shook her head, shooting me a look that could only be described as disappointed. “I shouldn’t be surprised you wouldn’t get it. Not everything is about money.”
Only a spoiled princess who could travel the country in a converted van without worrying about pesky things like a steady job would say something like that.
“It’s pretty apparent we’re not going to agree on this,” I said. “Though that’s not exactly a surprise.”
“Yeah, yeah, get on with the arrest already. The sooner you do, the sooner I’ll be gone and can get back there to protest again.”
I blew out a heavy sigh and sat forward, mirroring her position as I rested my forearms on the table. “That’s where the problem is. If you show up back there again, Holton Group is going to press charges.”
She snorted and rolled her eyes. “Sheriff, what about me makes you think I’m scared about someone pressing charges?” She leaned forward and met my gaze. “I don’t care. The whole point is to make sure they can’t move forward with the development. Whether or not I continue to be arrested is irrelevant.”
There was no reasoning with someone like Luna. Someone with their head in the clouds and no grasp on the real issues facing people down on their luck. Which meant I needed to flip to Plan B and negotiate. My family just needed her to lay low for a couple weeks. Then she could protest all she wanted for all I cared, and I’d be right there to keep arresting her. It wasn’t as if she’d be able to stop the corporation that’d set their sights on this land.
“What’s it going to take for you to stop going back there?”
“Death,” she answered with so much gravity, something hot and uncomfortable bubbled in my gut.
I ignored the foreign feeling and rolled my eyes. “Quit being dramatic, and let’s see about a deal.”
She raised a brow, clearly not having expected that. “That doesn’t sound very sheriff-like. Did you manage to get that stick pulled out from your ass when I wasn’t looking?”
“Spending a lot of time looking at my ass, are you, lawbreaker?”
She lifted a single shoulder. “I can admire a nice one when I see it. Doesn’t mean I have to like the human it’s attached to.”
I brushed off her words that were undoubtedly intended to goad me and instead focused on what needed to be done. Namely, making sure Luna didn’t screw up this opportunity for my family or this town.
“You need to lay off the protesting for the next couple weeks.”
She huffed out a laugh. “Weeks? Not gonna happen. In that time, they could have the whole thing cleared.”
“Doubtful. The forecast calls for storms the rest of this week.”
“That only buys me a little time, and it’s tumultuous at best.” With her hands folded on the table, she leaned toward me. “If you want me to lay off, then I want you to fast-track the motion for discovery paperwork I submitted yesterday.”
That paperwork was pointless and a waste of my resources, but if it’d get her to agree to this, then I’d do it. It wasn’t like they’d find anything anyway. It’d only halt the progress for a short time, but a short time was all we needed.
“Fine. I’ll handle it.” But I sure as hell wasn’t going to spare a lot of manpower for it. I’d send out one of my deputies with Mark, the high school biology teacher. Otherwise, we’d be waiting around for who knew how long to get someone down here, and Luna wouldn’t be satisfied with that, which would only mean trouble. “But that’s not all I need from you.”
She pursed her lips and hummed low in her throat, the sound sending a shock wave straight to my cock. “Getting awfully greedy, aren’t you?”
I clenched my jaw, forcing back all the unwelcome images that bombarded me featuring all the ways I could be greedy with her. Now wasn’t the time or the place, and she sure as hell wasn’t the woman.
“Can you be serious for two goddamn minutes?” I snapped.
She held up her hands in surrender, but the corners of her lips tipped up as if she was enjoying this back-and-forth. “Fine, fine. What else?”
“Harper, the journalist who was at the site this morning, is here doing recon for an article on getaways along the coast. If the resort gets featured, it would mean an influx of bookings, which would be good for everyone, the town included.”
“Uh-huh…” she said, unmoved. “And let me guess—a protester going up against an evil corporation isn’t exactly the wholesome, small-town vibe they’re going for.”
“Basically,” I confirmed with a nod. “Look. I know you’re new around here, but you genuinely seem to care about this town. That resort has been a part of Starlight Cove for over a hundred years. It was—” I stopped myself, clearing my throat as I broke off. She didn’t need to know it’d been my mom’s dream. That she’d loved it with her whole heart, which was whyweloved it and why my siblings and I fought tooth and nail to keep it afloat. Luna just needed the barest of facts. “It just matters, okay? And if I have the ability to help it succeed, I’m going to do everything in my power to make it so.”
Even if that meant getting creative with keeping Luna busy and out of the way.
