Page 38 of Save Me (The Wolf Hotel Mermaid Beach #2)

“And her friends, for a bachelorette party. Oh, perfect. Here they are.” I nod toward the approaching white limo. The sooner I can be done here, the sooner I can see Sloane again.

Everything after that … we’ll figure out.

The girls spill out in a fit of laughter but are quickly distracted by the hotel’s grandeur and a nearby tray of mimosas.

“At least they’ll photograph well for the hotel. If they can stay sober enough.” Belinda strolls forward to greet them.

“Ronan!” Carrie rushes in and ropes her arms around my neck, nearly choking me. If I had to guess, she’s had a few cocktails on the flight down.

With a chuckle, I peel her off. She looks the same as she did the last time I saw her. “Congratulations.” I tug on the bride sash hanging crookedly over her torso. Tasha and two girls I don’t recognize wear ones marking them as bridesmaids.

“Thank you!” she squeals. “Did you ever meet Hank?”

“Doesn’t ring a bell.”

“He went to Grayson High too, but he was a few years older. He played football. Wait, did you play football? You guys would have gotten along. Well, maybe you still will! God, you look good.” She pauses in her mile-a-minute rambling to ogle my face first before she moves on to my body.

“Tasha has been talking nonstop about you since you guys reconnected. It makes me so happy. Honestly, she was such an idiot for breaking up with you. I tell her that every day?— ”

“Okay!” Tasha rushes in, grabbing Carrie by the biceps and gently guiding her to face the hotel entrance. “Follow them so we can get checked in to our rooms. I’ll be there in a second.”

“Okey dokey. See you later, Ronan.” She skitters away.

“Oh my God, I’m so sorry.” Tasha hides her face under her palms for a beat. “We got no sleep last night and started the party early.”

“Give her some water. You don’t want to miss dinner tonight. It’ll be one of the best meals you’ve ever had.” I can give Wolf credit for that much, at least.

“I don’t doubt it. This place is even more incredible than the pictures.” Her eyes trail up the storied facade. “You’ll have to take me for a tour. When are you going to be done for the day?”

“Actually, I don’t work here anymore.”

Her jaw drops with shock. “What?”

“Yeah, as of this morning.”

“Seriously?” She pouts. “What happened?”

“It’s a long story. Don’t worry, it’s all good. But I’m losing the house. I’m on my way there now to pack up my shit. Which means I don’t have a place for you to crash this weekend.” I wince with apology. “Sorry.”

“Oh, right. Of course. Don’t worry about it. I’ll figure something out. But what are you going to do?”

Perfect segue … “Crash at my girlfriend’s until I can figure out my next move.”

Tasha’s mouth makes an “oh” shape. “That’s—a relief, that you have a place, I mean.” But the disappointment in her eyes says otherwise. “Does she live around here? ”

“Yeah, right next door.”

“Nice.” Her head bobs slowly. “Has it been long? I mean, did you know her before you moved here?”

“No, I met her when I got here.”

“So, it’s still new.”

I know that pitch in her voice. It’s hopeful. She’s hoping I’m going to say “nah” or “we’re just having fun” or any combination of words that means she still has a way in.

There might have been a time when I would have felt satisfaction with crushing that hope after the pain Tasha caused me. Now, I only wish her well.

“Yeah, but it’s serious.” At least it is for me.

“Well … I’m happy for you. Truly. Kinda shitty for me.” She smiles sheepishly. “But I guess I realized what a good thing we had too late.”

From the corner of my eye, I spot Olivia strolling toward a black sedan, dressed in a business suit, pulling her suitcase behind her. What the hell? She’s supposed to be on that fishing charter. Shit. “I gotta go.”

“Oh, yeah, go, do what you’ve gotta do. I hope I see you around so we can catch up.” Tasha takes off in a rush to rejoin her friends.

And I jog over to reach Olivia just as she’s about to climb into an airport taxi. “Hey.”

She stalls. “Ronan.”

“Why aren’t you out there reeling in a grouper or some shit like that?”

“Because I lost my fishing partner. Some man with a broom for a mustache showed up at my door to replace you. I turned him away. ”

“That’s Darian.” I chuckle. “Damn, has Belinda already promoted him into my position?”

“I have no idea. I stopped listening the moment I opened my door. So, that’s it for you here?”

“Looks like.”

She slides her sunglasses off to reveal concerned eyes. “How are you doing?”

“I’ll be fine. Sorry if the back half of your game wasn’t as much fun.”

“I wouldn’t say that. The eleventh hole was something . And then Henry triple bogeyed, twice . It was a spectacular fall from grace. I doubt he’s ever played such a terrible round in his life.”

“I guess he won’t be claiming that pot.”

“I’ll say.” She grins. I think I’ve finally met someone—other than Sloane—who truly dislikes Henry.

“That county commissioner and the mayor left their rounds and hunted down Henry to speak with him at length. Stalled our abysmal game, and then he drove off after the fifteen hole without so much as an apology. They were definitely no t happy. I noticed a few carts with people holding cameras whizzing by.”

“Rushing to get their shot before the evidence vanishes.” I don’t know what it is about Henry Wolf, but he attracts headlines like flies to shit.

“Those bed sheet banners will be on the front page of state and local news by Saturday.” Olivia nods in agreement.

“That’s what we’re hoping for.” Because a lot of questions will inevitably follow.

She studies me intently. “Was it worth it? ”

“I guess we’ll find out soon enough.” Breaking a confidentiality agreement is the least of my worries now. I give her the thirty-second rundown about Henry’s plans.

She hums when I’m finished. “You must really like this woman to go to all this trouble.”

“I do. But I also don’t like Henry demolishing people’s lives so he can get richer. How much money does one person need?”

“You do know which industry I play in, don’t you?” Her laughter is soft.

I shrug. “What can I say, Gayle’s lips flapped like a flag in the wind after a glass of champagne, and she gave me ammo. I decided to use it. Nothing else has been working.”

“Some people really shouldn’t drink.” Olivia shakes her head. “To be fair, though, I was dead sober when I admitted my unhealthy fear of horses. I suspect you have an unusual skill for getting people to say and do things they normally wouldn’t.”

“Yeah, I’ve heard that once or twice.” I jut my chin at the open trunk, where the driver patiently waits for Olivia to release her grip on her bag. “So? You going home early?”

“Yes. A few issues have come up that I need to deal with in person. Plus, I miss my girls.”

“Belinda will be displeased .”

Olivia snorts. “She’s been circling. I told her that the only interesting person at Wolf abandoned me. Let her stew in that.” She reaches into a pocket in her purse and produces a business card. “If you need help, you give me a call. Henry’s not the only one with friends in high places.”

I stare at it blankly for a beat before accepting it. “I might take you up on that.”

“I hope you do. And if you’re ever interested in working for me, I’m sure I can find you something.”

“I don’t know shit about oil and gas.”

“You’re smart. You can learn.” She nods to somewhere beyond me. “Henry Wolf’s wife is not waiting for me .”

I peer over my shoulder to see Abbi standing by the Bronco, wearing a short tan sundress and a pained expression. Clearly, she’s heard the news. A heavy sigh escapes me. This is going to be an uncomfortable conversation.

Olivia pats my arm. “Take care of yourself, Ronan.”

“You too, Olivia.”

“Ollie to my friends.” She winks and then climbs into the back seat of the car.

I ease the door shut and then head over to where Abbi waits, my chest tight with anxiety. “Hey, Red.”

She cocks her head as she peers up at me through a lens of sadness and disappointment and something else I can’t discern.

“I’m sorry. I had no other choice. I can’t sit by and let him do this to her.

At least now, maybe she’ll have a fighting chance.

” If people start poking around to see how much truth there is to these claims that Henry’s buying votes, what are they going to find?

How many trips and projects have been funded by “the foundation”?

And is it enough to reverse whatever plans he’s shoehorned into the city development agenda?

Or maybe I’m deluding myself.

“I wish you’d talked to me about it first.”

“Why? So you could talk me out of it?” I scoff. “It was a spontaneous, late-night decision. And don’t worry, he’ll be fine. Henry’s not stupid enough to leave incriminating evidence.” He probably has something on every single one of them in his back pocket, courtesy of his PI.

“You really disappointed him.”

“Yeah, well, I wish I could say the same, but Henry is exactly who I knew he was. A callous prick that I should never have risked my life to save.”

She winces. “I tried. Honestly, I did. I talked to him after dinner on Tuesday and then again last night. I even brought up Wolf Cove and his grandparents’ history and all that. But you know how he can be about business.”

“This isn’t on you.” I smooth my hands over her biceps—delicate but deceptively strong, thanks to all those years on the family farm.

“Look, I’m not trying to make your life difficult.

And I had every intention of staying here.

I was actually starting to enjoy the job, I think.

But there’s no fucking way I can work my ass off every day for a guy who says he’s doing all this in memory of his father, who built an entire resort in Alaska to honor his grandparents and personal connection there, but then fucking destroys everyone else’s lives. ” I take a deep, calming breath.

“I think that’s the most number of words I’ve ever heard you speak in one string,” she muses.

It earns my laugh, despite my anger .

“Is it just about protecting Sloane’s property and business?” Abbi asks gently. “Or … is there another reason you’re doing all this?”

“Well, yeah, it’s because I care about her.”

“But is there any other reason?”

“I don’t understand what you mean.” She’s fishing for something.

“So, you don’t know?” She studies me intently, as if searching for my lie.

“I don’t know what , Abbi?” I can’t remember the last time I used her actual name, but I’m not in the mood for games.

She lets out a frustrated groan and glances around us. “Okay. I have to tell you something. I promised her I wouldn’t say anything, but I think you need to see the whole picture. You have a right to know.”

Unease slips down my spine. “Know what ?”