The Lure of Love Read Online Free PDF Page B

quickly down the dock before she
could reply.
    “See?” He returned
holding a chair aloft. “Now we have two chairs.” He waited until she was seated
and then sat down.
    “So. Now that
I’ve hijacked you, what shall we talk about?” She could see him watching her
expectantly in the dim light. He looked like a young kid who’d managed to win a
prize at the fall fair.
    She couldn’t
help but smile. “I don’t know. It’s your hijacking.”
    “Okay, then.
Tell me what you usually think about when you come out here at night.” The
teasing tone had disappeared from his voice; she sensed that he really wanted
to know.
    “I’ll tell
you mine if you tell me yours.”
    “It’s a
deal.” He smiled, teeth flashing in the darkness.
    She took a
deep breath. Would it be easier to share her dreams with someone she didn’t
know? She hoped he wouldn’t laugh at her ideas.
    “For several
years now, I’ve wanted to start a spa.”
    “Just women,
or will men be welcome as well?”
    At first she
thought he was kidding, making fun of her. Then she realized he was serious.
She thought for a moment.
    “In my dream,
it was for women, but now that you mention it, men are buying spa services
these days as well.” She thought back to the job she’d held for several years
before coming here. She’d been surprised at the number of men who had facials
as well as manicures and pedicures.
    “I worked at
an exclusive fishing lodge and spa on the West Coast of Vancouver Island for a
few years. The spa was famous for its atmosphere as much as their treatments
and I think I could create something just as beautiful.”
    “Where?”
    “Here, on
Long Lake. I only started working here in May of this year, but I think Jamie
could increase her business if she offered spa services for the women while the
men are fishing.”
    “Quite a few
of the women fish as well, but you’ve seen that for yourself.”
    “True. But a
top quality Spa would attract the ones who don’t come at all, plus the men
might stay longer if the women are happy.”
    “What about
the men who don’t want their wives to come with them?”
    She gave a
short laugh. “I’ve thought about that. They do exist, but I can’t worry about
their personal lives. I think it could be a winner. Leeza could even offer a
special menu for women who are watching what they eat.”
    Billy nodded
thoughtfully. “How would you reconcile the spa concept with the campground?
They’re polar opposites, wouldn’t you say?”
    He was taking
her seriously; she liked that. She looked past him, to the south. “I’d build it
on the other side of the lodge, buffered by a couple of hundred feet of trees.
There’d be winding paths through the trees leading to the treatment rooms. Even
if they didn’t need it, the clients would feel like they’re decompressing along
the way.”
    Billy was
silent for a few minutes. “You’re talking about a lot of land.”
    Brooke
nodded. She wasn’t sure if he could see her in the dark, but she was on a roll.
“True, but that’s not a problem. Jamie owns well over a mile of waterfront
along this side of the lake.”
    He came
forward in his chair. “No fair.”
    “What do you
mean?”
    “I’ve been
coming here for five years and I didn’t know that.”
    “I only
learned about it when we were talking about men.”
    “Now I’m
really confused.”
    Brooke decided
to trust him. “Some local guy made a play for her but in the end he was only
interested in her land, and if you let on I told you that, I’ll never forgive
you.”
    His voice
softened. “I like Jamie too much to bring that up.” He swatted absent-mindedly at
a mosquito. “You know, I don’t like to rain on your parade, but where is the
money going to come from for this development? I’ve been associated with a few
businesses over the years and I can see Jamie’s having a hard time since the
mortgage fiasco turned everything upside down.”
    “I have
money.” There, she’d said