Up to Snow Good: A Small Town Holiday Romance Read online

  Once at the local branch of Peak Trust and Savings, it was a simple matter to take a meeting with the loan manager, a smiling fellow called Calvin Chen, who was happy enough to discuss a line of credit against Hunter Properties, Inc.

  “Sounds like an exciting project,” he said as Max signed the papers.

  “It’ll be some work to pull it together in time, but we’ll manage.” He reached over and took her hand in his. It felt warm and right. The sizzle of the past hadn’t left but laid dormant for all these years. There was still something unresolved between them.

  She looked at his hand in hers, then lifted her chin to look in his eyes.

  “With Mr. Hunter being so helpful and generous, the lodge will do all the heavy lifting.” Lauren gave Max a smile that was too genuine to disguise and a worry that was too real to ignore. “Are you sure about this?”

  There was some certainty in Max’s skeptical brain. He was positive she needed his help, and this was the best way to do that. The lodge needed resuscitation, and this was a way to give it new life.

  The more Max looked at that beautiful face, the more he basked in the gentle strength she radiated, and the more he felt this was the right move.

  In contrast, his father was all bluster and bloat, volume in every regard, overstated and overblown. He’d never doubted his father’s desires, but he found them more and more repulsive and impossible to satisfy. Eaton Hunter would be furious.

  Good, Max thought, let him be mad.

  He had skills his father lacked; he had charm, and the ability to navigate fury through reason. It had always been their business’s saving grace. They were black and white, night and day, hard and soft. Whatever fires his father ignited, Max put out. The chasms he created were mended by the bridges Max constructed.

  His biggest concern was, if he couldn’t turn his father around, this situation would tear them apart. Lauren was an orphan by chance. He didn’t want to be one by choice.

  Chapter Twelve

  Lauren

  Sam kept a straight face, nodding from behind his desk. Lauren could already sense the doubt and worry.

  He looked over the documents, shrugging. “Seems straight up enough,” he said, “but I wish you’d have brought it to me before you signed the contract.”

  “What was I going to do, turn down a loan?”

  “Yes, Lauren, depending on the terms.”

  “These terms aren’t unfair.” Hot anger rose in her blood, rushing through her veins. She was an educated woman and didn’t feel the need to consult with a man at every turn. “I made sure of that. I’m not an idiot.”

  He held up his hands in surrender. “I know you’re not.”

  “I’m not some waif in the woods who needs you to sweep in and protect me.”

  He broke an awkward smile. “Lauren, look, about the other day, I apologize if I made you uncomfortable.”

  “No, it’s okay, I understand, but it’s a weird time.”

  “It is,” he said. “We shouldn’t be mixing our professional and personal lives. Let’s just deal with the lodge for now and put the rest away. I should never have brought it up.”

  She smiled but knew there was no glee in her expression, just a bizarre cocktail of relief and lingering confusion. “I just want to focus on this winter village thing and get through the holidays.”

  “Excellent.” With another glance at the documents, he went on, “This new partner of yours is Max Hunter?” He said the name like it tasted bad on his tongue.

  “Oh no, not you too.”

  “Me too? You mean your father didn’t like him either?”

  “Not my father, but Ruthie isn’t a fan. I’d bet Speckles the mare has something to say about things too, but it’s not anyone’s business.”

  “I’m looking out for your best interests. Don’t you find it odd that he came around now, considering your family history with the Hunters.”

  Sam’s recent personal advances, gave her good reason to believe he had more in mind than securing her financial stability. The lodge was a lump of coal just waiting for its chance to become a diamond. “Maybe it’s not so odd. Look, we were childhood friends. The problem was with our parents, not us. It’s years in the past.”

  “What about his father? He’s the most powerful man in Moss Creek. You know, he’s a man who carries a grudge. My God, he sued me once over a parking spot.”

  She sighed and shrugged. “You think he sent his son over to loan me money so I could save the lodge?” The very idea was preposterous.

  Sam glanced back at the documents on his desk. “Not based on this, no, but I want you to be careful.”

  She leaned back and considered the possibilities. There was no doubt she needed to be careful with Max, for more reasons than the loan and his father. There was the issue of her heart as well, but the health of the lodge was the most pressing matter.

  On her drive back home, she wondered if the loan could be a trick? The more she thought about it, the more she could justify her original opinion. He was simply a friend trying to help.

  Lauren drove up the road to Sunshine, thinking about the new possibilities opening in front of her. She considered Sam’s position regarding Max and understood his concerns. He wasn’t the only one to worry about the Hunters because they were a considerable power in town. It was common knowledge to never underestimate a Hunter. They always got what they were hunting for.

  Could it be the lodge? A chill ran down Lauren’s spine. Would Eaton Hunter stoop so low as to have his son help me to get the property? Would he have Max date me and marry me? That would be the man’s greatest victory over my family. Through marriage, he could eradicate the last remaining Moss Creek Matthews.

  That scenario didn’t feel right. The ring of truth was absent in the conflicting core of her conscience. She wanted to laugh at herself for moving from being nice to proposing marriage. Still, she had to be on high alert. Things were changing too fast, and everything was at stake.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Max

  “You did what?” Pop’s voice bellowed through the room from his place at the head of the table.

  Jane glanced over, pretty in her white nurse’s uniform, picking at her dinner quietly as always. Everybody in his father’s universe observed the same rules of behavior. Everyone but Pops was to be seen and not heard.

  She couldn’t seem to stop glancing at Max in a way that made him increasingly uneasy. As always, his grandmother sat staring off. She sat at the dinner table as a matter of habit, but they did her feeding through tubes.

  “Just a line of equity,” Max said. “We won’t even feel it.”

  His father looked around the big dining room as if he’d been presented with the greatest riddle of all times, his son’s stupidity. “I didn’t send you out to extend her a line of credit.”

  “I know you didn’t, but things took a turn.”

  “They took a turn?”

  “That’s right, business is like that. You always taught me things are fluid, and you have to do what you can to close the deal, right?” Having secured his father’s attention, Max went on, “This will pay off.”

  “For her,” he said. “But that’s just what we don’t want. Think about it. If this crap is a hit, she’ll be less likely to sell. If it’s a bomb, we look like two jerks who can’t pull off a half-assed amusement park.”

  “Or, it establishes us as the company that does more than builds strip malls. You want to build a water park? This is the perfect way to warm up to that, get the right mechanisms in place like management, and logistics. Think of this as an experiment—a transitional move. She’ll have to sell, Pop. Better to get her to do it on good terms than force her hand because of some deal you made with her father.”

  “Yeah,” his father spat back, “I know the transition you’re making, and it’s horizontal and straight into that girl’s bed!”

  That grabbed Jane’s attention, and she turned to look at his father.

  �
��Look, this whole Santa’s Village thing won’t save her, but it’ll give us a chance to reintroduce ourselves as caring members of the community. If she doesn’t want to sell, well, we’ll need the goodwill during the potential fallout.”

  “Is it the public relations nightmare you’re so worried about?”

  “Yes, and rightfully so,” Max said, his voice louder and stronger. “The way things are out there with the internet, memes, and all that. We have to be careful about what we do now. Today’s news is tomorrow’s social fodder.” He let a dramatic moment pass before he went on, “Let me do it my way, and you’ll get the lodge.”

  His father glared at him in a way that made his skin crawl. “What I want is to see the last vestige of that family ground into dust.” He leaned back and smiled. “But I’ll have both.”

  After dinner, Max strolled through the backyard, taking in some fresh air. The eternal spring would be paradise to some, but to Lauren, it was a dead end, one his father would exploit to the hilt unless Max could stop him, and he couldn’t.

  “Max,” Jane said, attracting his attention from behind as she walked up to him. “Your father’s in some state,” she added.

  This wasn’t news to him. “He always is.”

  Jane hovered closer. “The way you want to do things isn’t wrong, but don’t forget, he’s got the power.”

  He heard the seductive slide in her voice; the way she said that last word with special attention. “Aren’t you supposed to be taking care of my grandmother?”

  “I am,” she said, “and I take care of your father.” He couldn’t misinterpret her meaning. “I could help you, Max. Think about it. I can make your father see reason. Let’s just say that I have his ear.”

  “Yeah, I get that.”

  She chuckled. “I know you do. You’re not a dummy. You know what we’re up to, your father and me.” Max knew what she was angling at. She wanted to upgrade her status by having a life with the great Eaton Hunter.

  Max fell back into his typical reaction, which was to say nothing and simply listen.

  “I know you’re into that girl,” Jane said. “We can use that.” Lacking a response, Jane went on, “Do what you must to get the lodge, marry her if that's what it takes. Once the dust settles, we’ll still have all of your daddy’s money along with that girl’s property.”

  Max pushed down the lump that rose in his throat. “What about my father?”

  She let a little giggle leak out of her mouth. “He’ll go on thinking he runs things. I’ll see to that, but believe me, he’s not half as smart as he thinks he is—no man is.”

  He should have been angry at Jane for manipulating his father, but Pops deserved no less than to be as miserable as he made Max’s mother. You couldn’t attract love if you couldn’t give love, and Eaton Hunter’s heart had seemed to hollow out years ago.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Lauren

  Mayor Shipley glanced at his deputy mayor, both men returning their attention to Lauren, who stood with them in the reception area of their offices. Miniature desktop Christmas trees and the obligatory red-leafed poinsettia decorated the room. A symphonic version of O Come, All Ye Faithful floated in over the stereo.

  “A winter attraction?” Mayor Shipley said with a nod. “That’s an interesting idea.”

  “It’s a good way to celebrate the holiday in our little corner of Colorado,” Lauren said.

  Deputy Mayor Roberts shook his bald head. “That will bring good coverage on the local news too.”

  Mayor Shipley nodded. “Election year coming up.”

  “Exactly,” She hadn’t thought about the election year, but if that got them on board, she’d go with it.

  Deputy Mayor Roberts said, “Could bring some tourists in, sir.”

  The mayor nodded as he considered the possibility. “We could sure use that.”

  “We’ve got funding, but an appearance of the most respected men in Moss Creek would help attract the right kind of attention.” Lauren tried selling him on the idea.

  Mayor Shipley sighed. “Therein, however, lies the rub.”

  Worry replaced Lauren’s warm rush of hope.

  “It’s the wrong kind of attention I’m worried about,” the mayor said.

  Deputy Mayor Roberts asked, “Sir?”

  “Think about it,” he explained. “We have a Christmas event, and some other group is liable to get testy. If we cater to one, we have to cater to all.”

  “The people of Moss Creek won’t get upset,” Lauren said. “You know these people, they’re good-natured and not contentious like that. It’s a Holiday Village, and people can celebrate whatever holiday they choose.” She considered that for a moment and thought it wise to celebrate all people.

  “You’re right, they’re good folks, friends, and neighbors, but it’s not good politics to alienate people. Besides, how do you call it a winter festival without snow? What you’re talking about is a Christmas Village, which alienates those who don’t celebrate the holiday. If you call it Santa’s Village, then you have the religious group after you.”

  Lauren and the deputy mayor shared a glance, both returning their attention to Mayor Shipley.

  “I can’t stop you from doing what you want with your private property. I’m assuming your permits are all in order?”

  Lauren nodded, reasonably certain the answer was yes.

  “We can call it a Holiday Village to include all celebrants.”

  He shook his head. “Well, I’ll wish you luck with it, Miss Matthews, but I think the mayor’s office will have to take a pass.”

  Her hope dimmed until the last flicker remained. This wasn’t about politics, this was about saving her legacy, and she was no closer to a solution than she was that first day she walked into Sam’s office and he told her to sell.

  She forced a smile. “Thank you for hearing me out.”

  “Certainly.” She turned, and Mayor Shipley added, “I’m sure your affairs at the lodge are in order. However, we must see the permits and inspections for the project.”

  She could only hope she didn’t create a bigger mess that would take down the lodge altogether.

  Nerves forced the lump in her throat to nearly choke her. She hadn’t expected the mayor to be so prickly. Her father was a responsible man, so she wasn’t as worried about the state of Sunshine Lodge’s permits and inspections, but the fact that the mayor seemed so interested in them set off warning signals in the back of her conscience, making the hairs on her arms stand up.

  People tended not to trust politicians, and in a town as small as Moss Creek, the influence of private citizens over the political parties, particularly the wealthiest private citizens, couldn’t be underestimated.

  Can it be that Eaton Hunter is already working against me? Did he make a call to the mayor to shut me down? It didn’t ring true, but the warnings about Max, about the loan, suddenly collected in the back of her brain.

  Her stomach turned, and nervous nausea roiled in her gut.

  It was too easy for her to fall into a trap. Being eager to rekindle her friendship with Max made her vulnerable.

  They knew that—they both knew that. But I have to believe they couldn’t be so heartless and manipulative, could they?

  Her mouth went dry, acid rising in her throat. She’d taken steps, and there was no turning back. Everything was on the line, and it seemed suddenly certain that she had blown it. After only a week as the principal caretaker of the lodge, she had lost it all.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Max

  Max sensed his father’s displeasure and knew it had been stoked by a private consultation with his grandmother’s nurse. She was eager to work every angle, and Max had to assume that she was playing them all.

  Either way, his relationship with his father was only becoming more strained. The matter of the lodge felt increasingly beside the point. Max and his father didn’t see the world or deal with it in the same way, and that would be a problem for the future o
f Hunter Properties, and the millions of dollars in its portfolio.

  It was different when he was away, but now that he’d been called home to run the local part of the business, he seemed to be caught in his father’s crosshairs.

  “I’m pulling the plug on this Christmas Village crap at the lodge,” he said.

  Max was ready to argue with the decision.

  His father went on, “It will complicate things.”

  “Complicate things? You know what’s making things complicated, and it’s not some winter promotion.”

  Pop’s meaty palms hit the desk with a thud. “It’ll drive up the price of the lodge.”

  “By a few pennies, but the goodwill you’ll garner is priceless.”

  “The goodwill,” his father repeated with disdain in his booming, baritone voice. “You have to be tough in this business, Max. You go around worrying about goodwill, and you’ll be roasted by the competition and fleeced by your tenants. Goodwill? We need timely rent payments. Did you forget everything I’ve ever taught you? It’s better to be feared than loved.”

  “That is what you’ve always taught me,” Max said, “but you were wrong. We’re not tyrants.”

  “We’re businessmen.”

  Max spread out his arms with his palms up. “And this is good business? Maybe that cutthroat approach works in Boston, but these people talk, and they care about things like the environment, their community, and their neighbors.”

  “That’s their problem.” Slipping his Cuban into his mouth, he puffed up a fresh cloud of white smoke. “I don’t like it.”

  Max let a moment pass, knowing it would do little good to argue. “Well, I’m not sure there’s anything you can do to stop it.”

  He looked at Max with contempt flashing in his graying eyes. “I’m pulling the loan, which I never allowed.”