She decided to share the conversation with Michael and put Reid on speaker.
“You don’t want to miss out on this fantastic opportunity, Miss MacKenna. Really, you don’t. The price the Patterson Group will pay is quite high.” He added, “Yes, it is. You won’t get that much from anyone else, but you must act now. The deal could go away,” he warned. “And we don’t want that to happen.”
Isabel thought Mr. Reid sounded like a spokesman in a late-night television infomercial.
“I can’t make a decision yet. I’d like to see the land first.”
His tone suddenly changed, and now he sounded sincerely concerned. “Miss MacKenna, it would be most awkward if you were to come. Most awkward.”
She looked at Michael and rolled her eyes. James Reid was given to drama, she decided.
“And why is that?”
“You won’t be welcome. To most of the people around Glen MacKenna you’re a pretender and don’t deserve the land. They’ll be hostile. Why would you want to be put in that situation? It could be dangerous for you. Sell it now and be rid of the worry.”
She kept her voice pleasant. “You’ve given me quite a lot to think about. As soon as I make a decision, I’ll let you know.”
“When? When will that be?”
“As soon as I make a decision, I’ll let you know. Bye now.”
He was blabbering when she disconnected the call.
Arriving back at Nathan’s Bay, Michael parked the car and rushed around to open the door for Isabel, but she was already heading to the house.
“See you later,” she called over her shoulder.
Isabel had to get away from him. One minute she was arguing with him, and the next she was sharing her personal thoughts. She was suddenly feeling overwhelmed with frustration and confusion.
She never should have come to Nathan’s Bay. If she had had an inkling of how she would react to Michael, she would have gone home after graduation and flown to Scotland from there. Lust, she decided, was a terrible affliction, and she wanted no part of it.
Needing to get rid of some of her nervous energy, she changed into her workout clothes to go for a run. Unfortunately, she didn’t realize how hot the weather was until she was out in it. The sun beat down on her, and she was drenched with sweat by the time she returned to the house.
A cold shower revived her. She put on a different pair of shorts and a tank top, found her flip-flops, and went downstairs. She found Kate on the front porch sipping iced tea. Her long hair was up in a ponytail and she was fanning herself with a magazine. The second she spotted Isabel, she started talking. “How long were you in the sun? You’ve got a sunburn. Did you use sunscreen?”
“Of course I did,” she answered. “I want to talk to you about—”
It was as far as she got before Kate launched into her day. “I wish you had gone with us. I know you hate shopping, but you would have had fun with us. We stopped at the Hamilton for lunch, and there’s this fantastic women’s clothing shop in the back near the promenade. It’s called the Madison,”
she added. “I swear I wanted every dress. There were several that Regan and I thought you would look stunning in, so Regan put a hold on them and added quite a few casual outfits for you to try on.
We’ll go Thursday afternoon. You need a new wardrobe now that you’re out of college. I also deposited ten thousand dollars in your checking account this morning. You’ll need it for your expenses.”
“Kate, just because you and Dylan have money doesn’t mean you should support me. I’m not going to be a charity case. I’m giving the money back.”
“No, it’s a gift, Isabel. You’re my sister. Dylan and I want to help. Just say, ‘Thank you.’?”
Isabel couldn’t get her back up because Kate was being so sweet. “Thank you,” she said. “How long will the shop hold the clothes?”
“As long as Regan wants them to,” Kate answered. “The Madison is owned by the Hamilton, and the Hamilton hotels are owned by . . .”
“Regan and her brothers,” Isabel said. “I am going to need some clothes,” she admitted then.
“Most of my wardrobe is college grunge. I do have two nice dresses. I wore the blue one when I went to the club and sang.”
“We’ll have fun,” Kate promised. “I’ve missed you, and the last couple of weeks have been crazy with work. It’s nice to kick back and relax.”
“Thursday isn’t going to work for me. Any chance we could go tomorrow?”
“I could make it work. What’s going on Thursday?”
Isabel got up from her chair and went over to the porch swing. It looked so inviting. “You aren’t going to believe me, but I swear I’m telling the truth.”
Kate frowned. “What’d you do?”
How like Kate to assume that Isabel had screwed up. Of course, the assumption was based on the fact that there had been more than a few times she had, in fact, screwed up.
“Do you know who XO is?” She didn’t give her sister time to answer, but continued on. “He called me. I’m rehearsing with him Thursday afternoon, and Friday night I’m performing with him at The Garden.” She laughed then and said, “Kate, your mouth is open, and you look like you just got tasered.”
It took a full minute for Kate to react. Once it sank in, she shouted, she was so excited. “Oh, please let me be there when you tell Laurant,” she begged. “She’s going to die when she hears . . . and Regan will flip, and . . . oh my God, Isabel . . .”
Isabel patiently waited while her sister rambled on and on, and then blurted, “Kate, I’m so nervous about meeting him.”
Kate didn’t downplay or make light of Isabel’s worries. “I’d be in a panic, too, I think, walking on the stage with thousands of people watching. Maybe you can figure out a way to block them and concentrate on your song. I wish I could come up with something better,” she admitted. “And even
though I know you won’t believe me, I think you’re going to be phenomenal. Mom would be so proud of you.”
“I’m not so sure of that.”
Before Kate could argue, she told her about the promise their mother had asked Isabel to make just before she died.
Kate became teary-eyed. “Oh, Isabel, why didn’t you tell Kiera and me? You sang all the time, and I never could understand why you let it go when you went off to college. Now I realize what you sacrificed. I’m so sorry. Mother shouldn’t have asked you to give up what you love. Music is part of who you are.”
“Mother was worried I wouldn’t be able to support myself. I don’t think she had a lot of faith in me. I know she didn’t want me in what she called a cutthroat business. Toward the end she was afraid, and I would have agreed to anything to give her peace.” She took a breath and said, “It’s been over five years and I still miss her.”
“I miss her, too,” Kate said.
The two sisters spent several minutes reminiscing about some of the happier times they’d had with their mother.