Free Sweetheart Cottage (Cranberry Bay #1) by Mindy Hardwick Page B

truth.”
    “You’ve got my vote,” Mitch said. “And I can talk to some of the others and give them a heads-up. But the council will want to know you’ve secured funding. No one wants another replay of what happened last time.”
    “I promise it won’t be a repeat of last time.” Bryan remembered how he’d gotten caught up in the plans for an amusement park with an investor. He’d met the man on a ski trip to Mount Baker, and, after a couple nights in the ski lodge bar, the man had pledged his support for the multimillion-dollar idea. The idea quickly fell apart after the investor saw the statistics on Cranberry Bay, and he backed out of the whole deal at the last second, just before Bryan had been scheduled to take it to a council vote. “Sawyer and I have a deal for some investment monies on this project.”
    Mitch leaned closer. “Spill it. What’s the deal?”
    “There’s a little bet on the table.” Bryan averted his eyes from his friends.
    “What’s the bet?” Cole leaned forward.
    Bryan cleared his throat. “If I can convince Rylee Harper to move to Cranberry Bay, Sawyer will fund the boats.”
    “Rylee Harper?” Mitch said. “You planned to marry her about ten years ago, right?”
    “Yea.” Bryan shifted away from his friends and gazed toward the blazing fire in the fireplace. “She’s selling her grandmother’s home and staying in Cranberry Bay for a few weeks.”
    “Ah,” Mitch said, and shook his head. “The riverboats were a good idea. But, that bet, I don’t know…”
    “Thanks for the vote of confidence.” Bryan punched Mitch in the arm.
    “I don’t mean to dampen this flame,” Cole said. “But what’s going to make Rylee move to Cranberry Bay? Didn’t she go running out of here last time? And you were practically engaged, right? So, how come it’s going to be different?”
    “She needs a job,” Josh said. He took a long drink of his beer. “I heard she was wandering all over town looking for work the other day. She stopped by the train depot and asked if we needed any help.”
    “She needs work?” Bryan quickly turned to face Josh. If Rylee needed work, that was a good sign. If she had a job she liked, that was the first step toward convincing her Cranberry Bay could be home.
    “Something about repairs on her grandmother’s house costing too much and taking longer.” Josh shrugged. “Don’t tell her you heard it from me.”
    The river cottages and his conversation with Dennis flashed across Bryan’s mind. Excitement pooled in his stomach. It was perfect. Rylee had a background in design. But he doubted the beach towns had looked twice at her. The small towns thrived on using locals, not someone who breezed in from Vegas for a few weeks. The cottage staging would fit what she was looking for to help pay for her grandmother’s repairs. And once word got out about her abilities, he suspected the beach hotels would be more interested in her and offer her more work, something she might not be able to refuse. That would ensure him a chance for her to see if Cranberry Bay could be home.
    “Excuse me, boys.” Bryan slipped his computer and notes into his bag and pushed his unfinished beer toward Josh. “You’ll have to finish this for me.”
    “Where are you going?” Cole asked. “We just got here.”
    “I’ve got a job to offer someone,” Bryan said. “And,” he winked at Mitch. “a bet to win.”

Chapter Seven
    Rylee wiped her gloved hand over the park bench and brushed away a handful of wet pine needles. She sank down as Raisin plopped by her feet. He tucked his tail around him and leaned his head on her scuffed rain boot. She’d picked up the boots along with a couple of heavy flannel shirts, a thick down jacket, and a pair of jeans at the Goodwill outlet just north of Cranberry Bay. Rylee shivered and wrapped her coat tighter around her.
    She stared into the rushing river running below the park and tried to push away the headache forming between