Return to Pelican Inn (Love by Design) by Dana Mentink Page A

That’s why she entered us in the contest.”
    “I know she doesn’t want to, but it’s going to happen anyway. I’m just waiting for word from the Realtor that the buyer is committed.”
    “Why are you so convinced selling is the only option?” Rosa demanded. “If it’s too much for her to run the inn on her own, she can hire help.”
    “That’s not going to cut it.”
    His alluring brown eyes lost their appeal. “Aunt Bitsy does not want to be put out to pasture, and I’m not going to let you force her,” Rosa said.
    He glowered. “Force her? How exactly would I do that?”
    “You’ll make a hefty sum as her lawyer, won’t you, when the Pelican is sold?”
    He flinched, and something like hurt glimmered on his face. Had she misjudged?
    “So let me get this straight,” he hissed. “You think I’m forcing my aunt to sell so I can profit?”
    Rosa wrapped her arms around herself. “You’re determined to bulldoze her toward a sale. I have to wonder why. And yes, I do have a low opinion of lawyers in general.”
    He laughed, the harsh sound snatched away by the wind. “Your father loved making groundless accusations, too. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.”
    She did not know how to respond to the bitter, disappointed tone that underscored his words. Had she miscalculated? Or was Pike a better actor than he’d been in their high school production of Our Town?
    He marched away over the gravel, his heels grinding into the unforgiving ground.
    * * *
    A FTER ESCAPING FROM Dragon, Baggy apparently felt the possible danger from a sledgehammer was a mere trifle. He scooted under the settee when Rosa set him down, shivering and drooling, at the Pelican.
    Cy and Manny looked up from their work on the window seat. “What’s wrong with Baggy?” Cy asked.
    “Almost got eaten by a dragon. Eva Lassiter’s dog.”
    Cy broke into a wide smile. “Eva Lassiter? Boy, I had it bad for her.”
    “She remembers you fondly. You should call her up.”
    His mouth tightened and he looked away. “No time for that right now.”
    She knew. Cy’s heart belonged to a girl named Piper who not only broke his heart, but committed grand theft auto in the process, a scenario that could only happen to Cy Franco. Still, he could not cleave Piper from his soul. Poor Cy. She came closer to examine the window seat.
    Manny peered through his safety glasses, crowbar in hand. “Wood’s rotted on the interior. Going to need to remove the top boards. Don’t worry. We’re being real careful.”
    There were signs that he was telling the truth. Plastic sheeting covered the old wood floor and the trim boards had been removed and neatly piled. She chewed her lip. Though the work was progressing without major damage, they simply did not have hours to devote to Cy’s window seat project, not with time ticking away and Pike threatening to sell at any moment. She remembered the hurt in his eyes when she’d accused him of pressuring Bitsy to sell for his own gain. She knew she’d been wrong.
    Pike loved Bitsy, that much was sincere. Maybe she could shift Pike from his current “evil villain” status into “misguided yet still horrible.” It was easier when he was a flat-out villain. Now the uncomfortable feeling that she might have made a misjudgment stuck in her gut, followed by the cold trickle that had gone through her when Eva had kissed him and called him honey. The stress was getting to her. She shook the insane feelings away. To work. “I’ll start prepping the sitting room for painting.”
    Rosa left Cy and her father and popped her head into the kitchen, searching for Bitsy. Instead, she found Rocky filling a basket with supplies from the fridge. He gave her a chin bob and continued loading up, putting an apple into each side pocket of his faded blue overalls.
    “Going on a picnic?” she asked.
    He smiled and shook his head. “Lunch.” He picked up the basket and left, graying ponytail swishing behind him.
    Lunch? Did