Paradise Cove. Stephanie Haefner

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СКАЧАТЬ he surveyed the damage to her legs, which were riddled with cuts and scrapes. “I don’t think any of these are too bad.” He rummaged through the rusty metal box. “How is your head?”

      “It’s fine.” Shelby ignored the throb at the back of her skull. “Um, thank you, again. For helping me out there. And for getting all this.” She motioned to the kit. “I didn’t even realize there was a first aid kit behind the counter.”

      “Well, I’ve spent nearly my entire life at this resort. I know everything about The Paradise Cove.”

      “I hope to learn.” She took the antibiotic wipe he’d offered and tore it open. He then handed her a few large bandages.

      “You sure you know what you’ve gotten yourself into?” He took out a long stretchy bandage and wrapped her ankle with it.

      “I think so. I’m putting everything I’ve got into this place.”

      “You better. This resort is very special to my family and I’m not happy about it being owned by an outsider.”

      Shelby sat quiet as she cleaned her wounds, Gabriel’s eyes burning her skin. If this place was so special to his family, why were Mr. and Mrs. Espinoza here all alone? Surely they’d needed help taking care of guests and doing repairs. Where was the family when the resort fell into despair? And if this place meant so much to Gabriel, why was he in San Antonio instead of Cancun?

      “Well, I care about this place enough to give it the attention it deserves, even if I’m not an Espinoza.”

      “Are you implying that I don’t care?”

      “If you did, why weren’t you here years ago, helping your grandparents take care of the place?”

      His top lip curled and his voice rose a few decibels. “I was making a career for myself.”

      Apparently she had nicked a nerve.

      “If I had the sweetest grandparents on the planet, I would have dropped everything to be at their side when they needed me.”

      “I was doing what I had to do. You have no idea what you’re talking about.” He slammed the first aid kit onto the table and the sweat beads on his forehead began streaming down. The constraints of a suit, dress shirt and snugly fitted tie had to be excruciating. “If you had minded your own business and left my grandparents alone, none of this would be happening right now. I’ll be shocked if you don’t run this place completely into the ground.” He stood up.

      Shelby stood too, matching the fire in his ocean blue eyes, set off by his bronzed skin and onyx black hair. “You just wait. I’ll make your grandparents proud.”

      He marched past her, got into his rental car and sped away.

      * * * *

      Damn that woman! Gabriel punched the gas, probably a bit harder than he should have. Dust and rocks sputtered from the back tires of the rental. That woman infuriated every last cell in his body. The Paradise Cove was supposed to be his someday, not sold off to some city transplant who had no idea how to run a business, let alone one in a completely different country. Why did this have to happen now?

      In another year or two, he would have been able to take over and make sure his grandparents’ legacy flourished. He’d been planning it for years. But now it was too late. The resort had a new owner and he was not in a position to change it. He’d have to sit back and watch his birthright sink into the sand with Shelby at the helm. It was inevitable. She would destroy The Paradise Cove.

      And the fact that she looked amazingly beautiful while doing it made it a hundred times worse.

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