Page 23 of #Resort Love (Lakeview Harbor #1)

“See! That’s exactly the kind of thing I’m talking about!

He’s going to try to turn it more into a couples’ resort instead of a family one.

Families will be relegated to the lodge or to their campers.

And unless he plans on bulldozing some of those cabins, there’s no way he can turn them into romantic little…

you know…tiny houses. If my boyfriend took me to some rustic cabin and told me it was a romantic weekend, I’d be wildly disappointed. ”

“I didn’t think you had a boyfriend. I thought you and Leo broke up.”

She let out a long, tired breath. “Okay, if my hypothetical boyfriend took me there. Is that more specific?”

Swati grinned and shrugged. “Some girls enjoy rustic cabins in the woods. Just because you don’t doesn’t mean no one else will. I hate to say it, but you’re being a little unreasonable, Harlow. You’re making this personal, and it’s not.”

Again, maybe.

And it didn’t help that it had been almost a full week since she’d seen Walker, and he was all she thought about. It was stupid to say she missed him because he made her absolutely furious when he wasn’t turning her on.

Ugh…talk about a rock and a hard place.

“When Ben says he wants to take me on a romantic getaway,” Swati said after a minute, “I don’t even care where we go. I’m just happy to be with him.”

“That’s because you’re newlyweds,” Harlow reminded her.

“No, it was always like that. It’s great if the place is nice and has a romantic atmosphere, but when you’re with the right person, you can make anyplace romantic.”

It was on the tip of Harlow’s tongue to ask her if she could make someplace like the Lakeview Inn romantic, but knew it was a lost cause. Maybe she was making this personal. Maybe…

No! Absolutely not! Other people agreed with me too!

That was true. Most people she mentioned Walker’s plans too were disappointed that he was going to change things.

Some even mentioned how disrespectful it was to his grandparents, but she didn’t comment on that.

She wished she knew who the other investors were and if she could talk to them without having to involve Walker.

That was completely doubtful, so she didn’t give it another thought.

Deciding to stop thinking about the resort, she checked her email. After responding to a few and scheduling several appointments to take clients to look at houses, she didn’t know what else to do with herself. Swati got up to meet her husband for lunch, and Harlow sat there feeling restless.

She did some busy work, played some solitaire on her phone, and straightened her desk. But she still couldn’t relax.

“For goodness’ sake, Harlow, go for a run or something,” Charlene said casually as she came out of her office. “I’ve been watching you fidget for the last twenty minutes. What is going on?”

“Honestly? I don’t even know. I’ve been out of sorts all week. Ever since I found out about Walker Bradshaw and his plans for the resort, everything’s just been…weird.”

Her boss smiled sympathetically at her. “I know you’re disappointed, and I completely understand. But you have to look at it like you’ve closed a chapter.”

“I get it, but…it wasn’t a chapter I wanted to close this way.”

Walking over, Charlene sat on the corner of Harlow’s desk.

“You put a lot of time and effort into trying to convince Dale and Peggy to sell, so I get why you wanted a different result. Unfortunately, that’s not going to happen and sitting here obsessing over it isn’t good for you.

It’s okay to mourn the loss of the deal, but you also need to move on.

In real estate, you always need to be out there trying to make the next sale.

If you allow yourself to keep sitting here like this, it’s not going to help you in any way, shape, or form. ”

“I know you’re right. I just don’t know how to just…you know…stop thinking about it. Especially because it’s all happening right here in front of me!”

“But it’s not, Harlow,” Charlene gently told her. “The resort is twenty miles away. It’s not like you have to look at it every day. You’re choosing to make yourself miserable.” She slowly got to her feet. “Do you have any showings today?”

She shook her head.

“Tomorrow?”

Another head shake. “I’ve got two appointments on Sunday and two more on Monday.”

“Perfect! I think you need to take a mental health day. Get your nails done, maybe get a massage, or go home and sit on the couch and eat a pint of ice cream. Whatever you need to do to make yourself feel better, do it. It’s a Friday afternoon, and you have the rest of today and all day tomorrow to do things that bring you joy.

But when you come back to the office on Monday, I don’t want to see you moping around anymore, okay? ”

She nodded. “Okay.”

Now she just needed to figure out what to do with herself.

A manicure could be nice, but a massage sounded good too. It had been a long time since she’d treated herself to something frivolous, but…ice cream on the couch really sounded the most appealing.

Standing, Harlow gathered things—keys, phone, purse—and was about to step around her desk when Charlene walked over and put an envelope down on it.

“What’s this?”

“It’s a gift certificate for a massage. I bought it when I thought you were going to…you know…close the resort deal and it was going to be a reward.”

“Charlene…” she whined.

“I know. I know. I considered holding on to it and giving it to you when you sold your next house or whatever milestone came along, but I know you, Harlow. You weren’t going to treat yourself to anything other than maybe a pint of ice cream and then you’d just be sitting home alone.”

“You said I could!”

“I did, but…I kind of hate thinking of you doing that. You can do it after the massage. I’ll call the spa and let Pat know that you’re coming over. You know they’re never fully booked, so I’m sure they can take you right away.”

Picking up the envelope, she stared at it before looking back up. “Thank you. This means a lot.”

And in a very un-Charlene-like move, her boss hugged her. “You’re a good person, Harlow, and I know that good things are going to come your way.”

When? She wanted to ask.

But didn’t.

When they separated, Harlow smiled. “I’m going to enjoy this more than you know.”

“I know you will. You just needed something to force you to relax.”

Walker did while giving me multiple orgasms last weekend. And the weekend before…

Ugh. She needed to stop thinking like that!

“Thanks again, Char. I’ll see you Monday. Have a good weekend.”

“You too! And I expect to see you walk in here Monday with a big smile on your face, ready to take on the world!”

That made her laugh. “I’ll do my best!”

So, she left and drove across town to the Blissful Body spa. And, as Charlene predicted, they could take her right away.

“Thanks, Pat. I appreciate you finding a therapist to see me,” she said with a smile.

“You came in at the perfect time. We’re booked solid after three today and throughout the weekend. Anything in particular you need the therapist to know? Any areas that need attention?”

She laughed softly. “I think I’m tense from the roots of my hair to the tips of my toes.”

“Ah. So this is all about relaxation. Got it.” She typed up some notes on her tablet. “Deep tissue or Swedish massage?”

“Um…”

“I think if you really need to relax, Swedish is definitely the way to go.” She made a few more notes before stepping around the desk.

“I’ll take you back to our locker room so you can change into one of our robes.

Claudia will meet you in the quiet room in ten minutes.

Help yourself to some cucumber water while you wait. ”

“Oh, okay. Thank you.” It felt weird to be doing any of this. Mainly because she’d never done it before. But it was so tranquil, she couldn’t help but relax.

Ten minutes later, she was almost naked—she’d kept her panties on—and lying on a heated table, with her face in some sort of donut pillow, and her body covered in a sheet and blanket.

It felt a little weird, but once Claudia put on the sounds of the ocean and began massaging her, Harlow swore it was one of the most relaxing moments of her life.

It didn’t take long for her to just let her mind go blank as all the tension left her body.

I need to do this more often…

She wasn’t sure how she’d make it happen, but now that she’d tried it, she was going to find a way to do it again.

Her hour was up way too soon, and she felt practically boneless when she got off the table. Hell, she practically felt drunk she was so relaxed. But…by the time she was dressed and back up at the front desk, she was more alert and ready to drive.

“Was it good?” Pat asked.

“Oh my God. It was amazing. You’ll be seeing me again soon. I promise.”

Instead of stopping at the grocery store and getting ice cream, she opted to do an online grocery order while she was still sitting in the parking lot of the spa so she could go home while in this peaceful zone.

Not once for the rest of the day did she think about Walker or the resort.

And it was glorious.