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“Do you think you’ll be ready?”

“I hope so.”

Harlow’s father appeared. He and Nigel shook hands, chatting briefly about the flight from Toronto. He offered their guest something to drink, to which the attorney politely declined.

“I have paperwork to go over.” He patted his briefcase. “I’ll need a spot for us to spread out.”

“In here.” David wheeled Harlow into the house. Mort, who had trotted out to greet their visitor, and Nigel followed behind.

“Thank you for making house calls, Mr. Beckworth,” Harlow said.

“Nigel. Please call me Nigel. As I mentioned before, I met with another client this morning, so I figured I might as well swing by.”

“And you can call me Harlow.” She paid him the retainer fee and then handed him the list of assets she’d assembled. “As I mentioned on the phone, there was a misunderstanding about the business bank accounts. The credit cards were tied to the old accounts and the new ones are on the way.”

“Splendid. It will be one less issue for us to tackle.” Nigel peered at her over the rim of his reading glasses. “You’ve asked me to have the papers drawn up. Are you ready to file?”

“I was thinking of maybe starting with a legal separation. Remain married for the sake of…my career.”

“And then what? Eventually you’ll file for divorce?”

To be honest, Harlow never envisioned her marriage ending. Divorce seemed so final. She wasn’t sure she was ready for such a serious step, or being the one to make the first move.

“It’s your call.” Nigel reviewed what Harlow had given him. “Unfortunately, splitting assets and liabilities during separation can get sticky.”

“The bills. How would they be split?” Harlow thought about Jillian’s Malibu townhometheyhad been paying for.

“The division would have to be agreed upon by both parties and by order of the court,” Nigel explained. “If you go that route, because assets and liabilities would already be divided, a divorce will go much more quickly, if you eventually ended the marriage.”

“None of this is going to go smoothly,” Harlow predicted.

The attorney shuffled through the papers. “I see no mention of children.”

“We don’t have any.”

“I see. This will enable the process to move more expeditiously. We won’t have to concern ourselves with a custody battle. Still, considering your assets and other factors, this may take some time.”

Harlow blew air through thinned lips. “Maybe I should bite the bullet and file for divorce instead of dragging it out.”

He cleared his throat. “Clearly, you’re struggling with the finality of this decision. Until you are a hundred percent certain about what direction you want to take, I suggest you hold off. Sleep on it. Give it some thought.”

“I am conflicted. You’re right. On the other hand, I’m not keen about going through this twice.”

“It’s something to consider. In the meantime, I’ll have my team on standby. When you’re ready to pull the trigger, give me a call.” Nigel gathered up the papers and placed them inside his briefcase. “It’s been quite some time since I visited Mackinac Island. I was thinking about having lunch in town. Would you care to join me? It will be off the clock.”

“Off the clock? Then you have yourself a lunch date.” Harlow headed to her room to grab her jacket and swap out her wheelchair for the scooter. She caught up with Nigel and herfather, who stood chatting on the porch. “Why don’t you have lunch with us, Dad?”

“Yes. Please join us, David. I spoke with Morgan Easton the other day on the phone. She reminded me she and Brett were partnering with you to restore Wynn Harbor Inn.”

“We are. On a smaller scale with renovations that will be much more manageable.”

“Morgan is excited about the project.” Nigel turned to Harlow. “Have you met Ms. Easton?”

“Not yet. I’ve done a little digging of my own,” Harlow said. “She’s had an interesting life.”

“I think you two would get along splendidly. She’s a lovely person. Warm, thoughtful, down-to-earth. She has a great deal of spunk and is a go-getter.”

“I’m sure we will,” Harlow said. “At least I hope I’m around long enough.”