Total pages in book: 136
Estimated words: 137131 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 686(@200wpm)___ 549(@250wpm)___ 457(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 137131 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 686(@200wpm)___ 549(@250wpm)___ 457(@300wpm)
“Sorry, honeys,” I whisper as I swipe the tiniest dab on my index finger and slide the frame back into place.
Once it’s secure and the bees are safe, I close my eyes in bliss and try it.
Holy nectar.
Okay, forget The Sugar Bowl. That place might have some of the best sweets I’ve ever devoured—but it has nothing on this honey.
It’s a shot of pure sugar to the soul.
Rich. Magnificently sweet. Faintly floral like wine.
I’ve never tasted anything like it.
“Easy, easy. Don’t freak out,” I tell myself like the bee crazy spaz I am.
Trembling, I back away from the hive slowly until there’s plenty of space between me and the bees.
Then I squeal.
I start dancing on the spot.
This is insane!
A surprise miracle that feels like it was planted here just for me to find.
I throw my fist up and whoop, listening to the way my voice echoes back from the forest.
So maybe I have issues.
But I also need to investigate. If this is what I think it is—
No. No, I need to check first. Don’t get too excited.
I can’t go popping off, making big claims without hard facts. If there’s anything Dad taught me, it’s that.
I don’t even bother getting my phone before I go vaulting over the fence at the edge of the garden and head straight to the woods, looking for—well, I don’t know what. Something out of the ordinary.
Something the bees have been using to craft this magic honey.
I rush forward, holding my hands out to the dappled sunlight making its way through the trees. The whole runaway bride thing feels like a bad dream now.
Who cares what’s happening back home—this is why I’m here.
Bees. Honey. Something important that doesn’t mean pleasing everybody else.
Go ahead and call it stupid, but I haven’t been this thrilled in ages.
But these aren’t technically my bees. I have no earthly right to get this attached.
For all I know, I might be breaking some rule in the fine print that will have Mr. Gruff Stuff throwing me out tomorrow.
Still, less than an hour later, I’m dirty and smiling deliriously as I stagger back inside the house.
First things first—water.
I guzzle down a full glass to rehydrate after being in the hot sun and then start on one more. I’m pretty sure I’ve burned myself despite the sunscreen I slathered on this morning, but there’s no helping that.
I don’t even care.
I’m bouncing on the balls of my feet when I grab my phone, swiping past all the notifications—how can they just keep coming?—and find Archer’s number.
I can’t sit on this, consequences be damned.
This man has a right to know he’s sitting on bee-made gold.
6
TOTALLY BEE-GUILED (ARCHER)
Ishould’ve known it would be impossible for me to get a little quiet.
Working in the home office doesn’t mean I don’t have distractions. It just means whoever wants to hound me does it through my phone.
First Dexter, who doesn’t even bother with a greeting when I pick up.
“I have an idea,” he says.
“Hello to you too.”
He makes an impatient sound. “Yes, hi. Anyway, I was thinking… The Cardinal has been one of our most successful ventures, right?”
“Yeah.”
The Cardinal is Patton’s baby, mostly. There’s no denying the hotel that really isn’t a hotel has outperformed our loftiest expectations with minimal problems. Better than anything I thought Pat would ever do, even if he had some major help from his now-wife.
Don’t get me wrong, he’s a good businessman.
He has good instincts. But Salem’s management took a serious investment with long-term potential and spun it into one of our best moneymakers ever in record time.
“Of course,” I tell him. “What’s your point?”
“Why did we stop at one?”
That’s what I thought he might say. I press my phone closer to my ear. “Because buildings like that are unicorns and they require monster capital.”
“We have the money.”
“Still a gamble,” I growl back, although he might have a point. “Did you have a where in mind?”
“Saint Louis.”
Still in Missouri, then. It’s a logical step—the second biggest city in the state, and it would be like a stepping stone for future expansions. We could even spin off the same Cardinal branding, considering how much attention that property keeps getting in travel blogs and video reviews.
“And what brought this on?” I ask.
“I was thinking about Junie’s bakery expansion. My brain just went there,” he admits slowly. “We could time ours to match and bring the best of Kansas City east.”
“She’s thinking of opening a bakery in St. Louis?”
“I mean, it makes sense. It’s a big place, plenty of opportunities. Plus, I’ve checked, and I think there could be a gap in the market for another luxury high-rise with our model.”
Hmph.
If there’s one thing I trust Dexter to do, it’s research. Especially after the whole Haute affair that almost sunk us, he’s insanely diligent, even if he doesn’t burn himself out working like he used to.