Page 26 of Billionaire's Coastal Haven

She sips it and purses her lips. “Not hot enough, but I guess you’re still learning this whole working-class-girl thing.” She wiggles her nose. “It will have to do. Greyson and I have a meeting with Pine Ridge’s town council. Don’t want to keep them waiting.” She wiggles her fingers as she swishes through the door.

Francesca dries her hands on a rag and chucks it against the counter with more effort than is necessary. “That woman is so annoying. I wish my parents were part of the Italian mob and could make her disappear without a trace.” She grabs a cake pop and shoves it in her mouth. After she swallows, she clasps my hand. “Zoe, I’m amazed you haven’t punched her in the face yet. Your restraint is…yeah. I’m going to say it. I hate her with every fiber of my being.”

“Me too.” I shake my arms to dispel the desire to strangle Lucky. She’s the only person besides Landon I’ve ever wanted to physically harm. “She’s always been bitter. Ever since middle school when I beat her at the science fair.”

Ryan pushes through the swinging door to the kitchen carrying a rack of clean coffee mugs. “And for secretary freshman year. Then she won treasurer junior year and president senior year, but you were valedictorian, which always rubbed her the wrong way.” Ryan plants a soft kiss on Francesca’s cheek. “Hey, Ares.”

“I didn’t know you were back.” She snuggles into his side.

“Didn’t want to interrupt the drama.” His nose wrinkles like something smells bad.

“Lucky is only happy when she is leaving angry scowls in her wake. It’s better to ignore her.”

“Good luck with that because I don’t think she’s going to let you ignore her. Not about the Reeves estate project, at least. She’s telling everyone around town how she has big plans to revitalize our economy and how she single-handedly convinced Landon to build forty cabins.”

“He and I agreed on fifteen. No way will he build forty. That would destroy his aesthetic.”

Lucky’s delusional if she thinks she can boss Landon around.

Ryan pulls his phone from his back pocket and wiggles it. “Collin texted me the blueprints. They only show ten, and won’t be built until next year.”

“That is not what we agreed to. What is Prince doing?” I hug Francesca again and bolt out the door.

I toss my bag on the passenger seat of my Mini Cooper and slam the door harder than is necessary. I should have given Landon a shorter leash.

Ten cabins?

We agreed to fifteen. Minimum. Twenty would be better.

Twenty cabins by the end of the summer would be best.

Not by the end of next year.

Why did Collin and Archer agree to that? They know what the council wants.

I jam the car into reverse. Landon is going to get a piece of my mind, and we are going to redraw the blueprints.

My phone buzzes and connects to my car. Dad.

I press the button and answer. “Everything okay?”

“No. I need you to take Earl a copy of the Reeves renovation blueprints.”

“Why?” The mayor of Pine Ridge doesn’t have any reason to care.Unless this is Lucky’s doing.

“You know Earl.” Dad’s tone is more grizzly bear than happy politician.

I know Earl’s rivalry with Dad and Lucky’s desire to make my life impossible. The two are always related since Earl is Lucky’s uncle.

“I don’t have the blueprints.”

“Get them, Baby Girl, and bring me a copy too while you’re at it. I need to keep these out-of-towners in line.” He hangs up before I can tell him I have everything under control.

But this is the job, right? To be Dad’s right hand. The person who gets things done when he can’t do them himself.

I’m not the mayor.

Someday that won’t be the case, but for now, I do what Dad wants. That’s my place.