Holiday Reunion (Hollyberry Harbor #1)

Chapter 8

EIGHT

One week had gone by since the tree lighting event and James still couldn’t believe just how well everything was going with Sarah. He saw her nearly every single day at her bakery and then when she got off work. They wandered the street during festival hours, pleased with how busy it continued to be.

The folks in town really seemed to enjoy the taste of their history mingled with a few of the things that made the festival different.

Sarah was opening up to him more, sharing stories from her childhood and telling him what she loved about the bakery. She was really rather good at the sweets she concocted, and it made him wonder if his idea for a café was really necessary. From a business perspective, the harbor could use somewhere to purchase a drink, but they could also bring in a to-go shack that served the same stuff.

His mind whirled with solutions to that particular problem. One thing was for certain, he wanted Sarah to have everything she needed to continue doing what she loved. If that meant staying out of her business decisions, he’d do it.

They continued to connect over their love of their town and often found that they shared similar memories from Christmas festivals in time’s past. This evening, he planned on taking her to a quaint Christmas shop that was in the next town over. He just had to slog through his meetings first.

James settled into a seat at the head of a long rectangular table as his advisors and other board members entered the office. Every so often, James would glance at the time. If he could get out of here early enough, he might have time to take Sarah to dinner as well.

He grew more antsy as the men chatted with one another and pulled out their documents to give him updates on the progress of the Lake Harbor project.

“All right, folks. Let’s make this one quick. This is just an update. There shouldn’t be too much to go over if we can stay on task.” He gave a meaningful look to the board member who liked to take tangents when it was his turn to speak, to which the man chuckled.

James turned to his financial expert. “Where are we on the budget and the latest projections for profitability.”

“As we all know, the last time we ran the numbers was in the beginning of November. That was before we acquired two more businesses on Lake Harbor. We’re still within an appropriate range for our budget, and we’re expected to be profitable by the end of the first quarter.”

Murmurs of contentment filled the room.

“The business that was struggling to make ends meet—” His financial expert paused, and James glanced at him once more. “It turns out all we might have to do is wait her out.”

He sat straighter in his seat. “What do you mean? I thought the last time we went over what the bank provided, she was still capable of turning things around with some minor changes.”

“You’re correct, sir. Unfortunately, she didn’t have much improvement in November. I checked with the bank last weekend and found out that she hasn’t made any payments for December yet, either. If you want my opinion, it appeared to me that the bank is getting tired. They’re more interested in dropping her as a client and short-selling the property.”

While the others in the room were pleased with this announcement, James only felt sick. She hadn’t told him any of this. Granted, they didn’t discuss business. That was the promise. Apparently, that meant she wasn’t going to tell him anything about her struggles.

The head of the board leaned back in his seat with a smile. “Looks like we can just let her flounder a bit, then when she finally kicks it, we’ll scoop up the building in the aftermath. I’m sure the bank would be interested if we told them how much we’re willing to pay and that is with a steep discount of course.”

“No,” James blurted. He’d said the word without realizing what he would do next. Several surprised eyes landed on him, expecting more. What more could he say? They wouldn’t entertain a bailout. That wasn’t what his company was built for.

“Sir,” the head of the board leaned close with a whisper. “What are you suggesting?”

“I think we should help,” he murmured.

The man lifted his brows. “You can’t be serious.”

James nodded. “I’ve been spending a lot of time there with the festival in full swing. She’s got something great. We should save it, not steal it.”

“Mr. Stetson, what you’re suggesting. It’s not appropriate.” The way he said it made James wonder if the man was aware of his romantic connections to Sarah. “What would you have advised if this business was one of the others we’d already acquired? Or one of the businesses we took over in the city?”

He was right. James wouldn’t have let his heart get in the way of a good business deal. This news about Sarah’s bakery should only be viewed for what it was—an investment. His feelings for Sarah shouldn’t get in the way of a good business decision and that was exactly what they were doing.

James remained quiet for the rest of the meeting, his thoughts whirling with concerns for Sarah and her bakery.

“I can’t believe I’ve never been to that store before.” Sarah glanced up at James, delight in her eyes. “Did you hear the shop owner? She said they stay open all year around. Can you believe it? And they’re actually profitable. I wouldn’t have thought people would be interested in Christmas ornaments and other decorations in the summer. I wonder how they do it.”

James made a few noncommittal noises. He burned to tell Sarah what he’d found out in his meeting. He wanted to offer his help or force it on her. She was so close to losing everything she loved.

“You okay?”

He stiffened and then glanced at her. “What?”

“It’s like you’re in another world.”

Maybe because he was. He opened his mouth, tempted to break the promise he’d made when they’d started seeing each other, but then thought better of it. There had to be another way. “Do you know why I made the harbor my project?”

She glanced at him warily. “James, I thought we agreed?—”

“This isn’t about business, I promise.” He swallowed audibly. “I know you love this place. Interestingly enough, I might love it more. Out of all of Hollyberry Harbor, the harbor is the place I refuse to see disappear.”

That caught her attention.

“I used to spend my summers by the lake. I used to get snow cones from the little stand by the pier. It was an escape for me— one that made me want to travel more. I know it sounds strange, but I used to look out over that lake and pretend it was a vast ocean. It gave me courage to move out and see what else was out there.”

“Ironically, it did something completely different for me,” she murmured.

“I know. And isn’t that part of what makes Lake Harbor great? No matter who you are, it is a place to escape reality for a moment. You can go to the harbor to relax and enjoy yourself or take a boat and go on an adventure. The problem is, not enough people are coming to the harbor and something needed to be done—” he cut himself off. He’d been getting dangerously close to talking about saving the harbor his way and by proxy, telling her she needed to do something to save her bakery.

James sighed, letting the conversation die.

“As much as I don’t agree with the way you’re doing things, I can appreciate what you’re doing for the others on Lake Harbor Avenue.”

Her confession surprised him. He glanced at her sharply. Perhaps it wasn’t too late to help her. She just needed to come to the conclusion before the bank completely gave up on her. One step at a time. That’s all he could do. James slipped his hand around her waist and pulled her close.

Sarah leaned into him, and they walked in comfortable silence for the next little while. James had hope that she’d finally understand that her stubbornness was going to get her in trouble. And he knew he would be there to help her pick up the pieces when it all came crumbling down. She cared far too much to let something slip away from her without a fight.