Just thinking about the laden supply closet at the Wilder had her heart rate speeding.

  She’d write the CEPS ideas on colored sticky notes.

  Those she could stick on the big white sheets of paper on the flip board in the meeting room. Colored markers would create a bigger better version of Ethan’s grid. She’d use that as her version of his chart. Just to start, while she ironed out her ideas. She could tear off as many sheets as she needed and hang them right on the walls of her office. Or carry them back to Rosie’s with her to work on or if she was going to meet with Ethan there again.

  Then once she had perfected the final version of the events she wanted to present, she would transfer them into a presentation template on her computer. Add pictures. Maybe a map. Hook her laptop to the projector and wow Wyatt with her presentation, in living color.

  That would blow CEPS’s little flyer and fancy embossed folders out of the water.

  Riding an adrenaline high, she strode down the deserted silent hallway toward the meeting room to borrow the flip board.

  As she walked, she honed her color coding system. She’d use pink stickies for the best ideas. The ones she’d definitely want to steal from CEPS—or rather rework. Blue could be for nos. Yellow for maybes—

  Her colorful internal dialogue halted along with her forward motion the moment she stepped into the meeting room. The hallway and offices she’d passed had been empty, but the meeting room was not. Inside she found none other than Corporate Ken and Caroline.

  They turned at her arrival. Ken smiling, Caroline openly assessing her with a head to toe glance that Poppy couldn’t read. She conquered the urge to glance down and evaluate herself. She looked great and she knew it.

  She might be in Bitter End, Tennessee but her clothes today had been purchased at one of the most popular—and expensive—boutiques in the Hamptons.

  The Hamptons were also where she’d learned how to give as good as she got. Channeling her mother, Poppy mirrored Caroline’s perusal, taking her in from highlighted blonde head to high-heeled peep toe.

  Unfortunately, she couldn’t find the other woman lacking. Yes, Caroline’s slacks and blouse were off the rack. But they were this season’s Ralph Lauren, if Poppy wasn’t mistaken.

  Classic. Understated. Perfection.

  Dammit.

  Interesting that Wyatt had dated this woman. He was so head over heals for Olivia now, who was the polar opposite of Caroline.

  “Poppy. Perfect timing. I’m glad you’re here,” Ken—or rather Montgomery McDonnell—said.

  “And why is that?” Poppy faked a smile, as she decided to call him Monty in her head.

  It was shorter. Not to mention, less ostentatious, than his actual name. He could definitely stand to be brought down a peg.

  “I wanted to introduce you to my partner on this project. Caroline Gardiner.”

  “I’m acquainted with Ms. Gardiner. Although I don’t believe we’ve ever been formally introduced. In fact, it’s her position I stepped into when Wyatt hired me.” Hoping to rub that point in, Poppy turned her attention back to the woman. “Welcome back to the Wilder.”

  Looking as if she’d sucked on a lemon, Caroline parsed out a short, “Thank you.”

  “That’s right. Caroline did work here.” Monty smiled, but his guileless act didn’t fly with her.

  Of course he’d known Caroline had worked here. It was no doubt the reason he’d brought her with him for the presentation. Her knowledge of the Wilder. Her past personal relationship with Wyatt before he’d met Olivia…

  If Caroline thought she was going to get either her job or her man back, she was sadly mistaken.

  Poppy narrowed her eyes, angry on behalf of her friend as well as herself until she got control of her runaway emotions. She’d learned long ago to keep her friends close, but her enemies closer.

  Poppy flashed her teeth, which she’d made sure to have whitened by her dentist back in New York right before she’d moved here.

  “Caroline was amazing at her job. She left some rather large shoes for me to fill—figuratively, of course. Those shoes you have on are absolutely adorbs, by the way.” Pouring on the sweetness she gushed with over the top enthusiasm, stroking Caroline’s ego.

  “Thank you,” Caroline said as she cocked her head as if evaluating her.

  One smart woman sizing up another. And there was no doubt in Poppy’s mind that Caroline was cunning. And determined. She’d be a challenging adversary.

  Usually Poppy liked a challenge. At least she did in the academic arena. In the New York social scene, as well.

  It was always fun to have her family’s fundraiser attract bigger celebrities and raise more money for charity than the other families’ events. But being up against a formidable opponent when the cost of losing could be her career was far less fun.

  Monty frowned. “Poppy, wasn’t today your day off?”

  Was he keeping track of her? Why? She didn’t let the question rattle her as she nodded. “It was, yes. But I decided to come in and get a little bit of work done this afternoon. And I mostly came in to grab that.” She indicated the flip board with one finger. “If you’re not using it, of course.”

  Monty and Caroline both turned to glance at the easel containing the large white pad of paper.

  He turned his attention back to Poppy. “Uh, no. It’s all yours.”

  “Thank you.” She forced a big bright smile as she strode to the easel.

  As they looked on, she wrestled with the apparatus, almost giving up and carrying it down the hall open like it was, when it folded. Good thing she was tall so she could carry the oversized thing that dwarfed her. When she got to the doorway, she shot a sweet smile toward them again. “Thanks, again. Have a good night.”

  “See you tomorrow,” Monty said as she struggled her way into the hallway.

  When she made it to her office, she leaned the stand against the wall and swung the door closed, shutting them out. Sealing herself inside her sanctum. If only she could shut them out of this proposal as easily.

  Sagging against the thick wood, she drew in a breath against the tightness in her chest.

  Monty, the professional corporate event planner, and Caroline, a former manager of the Wilder, versus Poppy with her three months of employment here and Ethan, a ranch hand. She always bet the underdog at the horse races at Belmont. But she wasn’t sure she’d bet on her and Ethan in this race.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  “Ethan.” Wyatt saying his name had Ethan pausing halfway down the hallway where he’d been motoring along pretty fast, anxious to get to Poppy’s office.

  Blowing out a frustrated breath, Ethan turned. “Yes, dear brother?”

  “What are you doing here?”

  “I’m here to see Poppy.”

  Wyatt’s chin dropped to his chest before he lifted his head and leveled a stare on Ethan. “Your flirting with her at the house or at Rosie’s is one thing but when it starts to get in the way of her work—”

  Ethan’s mouth dropped open at the insult. “Fuck you, Wyatt. I am here to work. I’m helping her with that stupid corporate event presentation. Now that you brought in those CEPS people she’s a wreck. She thinks she’s going to lose her job if you don’t like her ideas best.”

  Wyatt let out a sigh. “She’s not going to lose her job.”

  “Well, she sure as hell has lost her confidence and that’s on you. So yes, I’m here in the middle of a work day to help her before she has a meltdown.”

  Cocking up a brow, Wyatt said, “How are you helping her?”

  “You know what? Never you mind.” Ethan shook his head, cutting off a rant that could have led to him saying some very not nice things to his brother. Not that Wyatt didn’t deserve it. “I got work to do.”

  He turned and continued down the hall at just as brisk a pace, only now it was because he was pissed off.

  The door was closed. Usually when she was in her office, she left the door open. Thinking that odd, he knocked.

  “Who is it?” she called.

  What was with the questioning? What was she doing in there?

  “It’s Ethan.”

  “Come on in.”

  Frowning, he pushed open the door and glanced around. She wasn’t at her desk. Finally he spotted her standing in front of two giant pieces of paper stuck to the far wall.

  He’d only taken one step toward her when she said, “Shut the door.”

  “All right.” More and more intriguing.

  He did as she’d asked and closed the door, resisting the urge to lock it since security seemed to be a top priority with her today.

  Once he’d made his way to her, he saw the many colored sticky notes had her swooping handwriting covering them.

  “What’s all this?” he asked.

  “You don’t recognize your grid system?”

  Now that he looked closer, he saw she too had a column for CEPS, a column for her, one for him and one for the final ideas. Only hers were much more colorful than his, between the brightly hued markers she’d used and the colored papers stuck everywhere until there was barely an inch of paper left uncovered.

  “Pink is definite. Yellow is maybe. Blue is no.”

  “You did a lot of work,” he said as he moved closer to read a few of the pink notes. He might have used red, yellow and green himself, like a stoplight, but he got what she was going for.

  “I came in yesterday after you left. Oh, and guess what? I found out why Caroline is back in town. She’s working for CEPS. Monty introduced her to me as his partner for this project.”

  “Monty? Is that the square ass’s name?” he asked. He’d never known anyone named Monty before. It must be a California thing.

  “No. Not exactly, but it’s what I’m calling him. His real name is too long.”

  “Gotcha.” He nodded, willing to be onboard with that plan.

  So Caroline was back because of CEPS. Interesting. And even more so that Wyatt neglected to mention it to him. Or to Olivia as far as he could tell.

  He hadn’t heard Caroline’s name mentioned at all around the house. And if Olivia knew, no doubt she’d have immediately called Eva and Poppy, in which case Poppy wouldn’t have been surprised to see her yesterday or have to find out she was working for CEPS from Monty.

  Very interesting. But something he’d have to deal with later, with his brother. Now they had work to do and he intended to do a good job too. Just to prove his condescending brother wrong.

  The one problem was, that after seeing all Poppy’s hard work, he was less enthused to unveil his own from the night before.

  The folded page from the yellow legal pad, covered half in crayon and half in pencil because that’s what he had to use in his room last night, looked extra raggedy next to the multicolored glory of her larger than life project. He took it out of his pocket anyway, unfolding it before he held it out to her.

  “Here’s what I came up with… if there’s room.”

  “I left that whole column for you.” She tapped the portion of the second piece of paper that was the most sparsely covered in stickies.

  Still there were a few things stuck there. He moved closer to read them.

  “Ghost tour. Wine tour. Rodeo?” He turned to look at her after the last item.

  She nodded. “I think we should add any local competitions to the event schedule. I think families with kids will like it. Hell, I think my girlfriends in New York would love it.”

  “No cowboys up there?” he asked.

  “Not a whole lot.”

  He grinned, loving that she’d added that idea all on her own. Maybe he had a chance with her after all. “All right. That sounds good. I’ll get you the schedule of competitions for the whole year.”

  “There’s more than one?” she asked.

  “Oh, yeah. But most are smaller. Not like the state championship. That’s only once a year.”

  She bobbed her head. Eyes narrowed and looking unfocused, she stared up at nothing until finally she spun to look at him. “What if we have a theme for every month? And we make the events fit the theme of that month.”

  “Like ghost tours in October because of Halloween,” he said.

  “Yes. And whatever month they harvest the grapes can be a wine month. And the month you collect the honey—“

  “Honey month,” he supplied.

  “Exactly.” She nodded. “And if the events are different each month, people on their first visit here might see a future event on the schedule and decide to come back again for it.”

  “It’s a good idea. Can we come up with enough? Twelve months is a lot to cover. And if we have to stick to a theme…”

  “I don’t think it will be that hard. I mean we can take a lot of the more generic things and massage them to fit the theme easily enough. The couples cooking class can focus on food that contain honey during that month. Foods that use wine during wine month. Holiday recipes for November and December.”

  “And what do we cook for Rodeo month?” Ethan asked.

  “Cowboy food, of course.” She smiled.

  “I like it.” He grinned, even though he had no clue what cowboy food might be.

  Her enthusiasm was infectious. It was sure a hell of a lot better than her moping around like she’d been yesterday morning at Rosie’s.

  “Let’s see what you came up with then I can start a couple of new sheets with a grid for the twelve months of the year.”

  “Ooo, what fun. More markers and sticky notes.”

  She narrowed her gaze at him. “Are you making fun of me?”

  He wrestled his grin into submission and shook his head. “Not at all. You know I’m a fan of crayons myself.”

  Looking satisfied with that answer, she bowed her head over his list which gave him the opportunity to appreciate her. Inside and out.

  While she was busy deciphering his scrawl, he took out his phone and snapped pictures of each of the papers to have to refer back to later. Maybe he’d come up with some more ideas tonight. Or ways to make the ideas fit the theme months she’d mentioned, which was brilliant.

  She was brilliant. She was beautiful, no doubt. Model perfect. But more than that was who she was on the inside—when she wasn’t hating him, that was. She wasn’t hating him now.

  He snapped a picture of the second sheet of paper then scrolled through his photos to make sure the shots were clear. Then he kept scrolling to the pictures he’d taken yesterday. Poppy studying the grapevines as Luca explained how they tie up and prune the vines. Poppy, sampling one of the wines Luca’s dad allowed them to taste right out of the wooden barrel. He’d even gotten a candid shot of Poppy looking terrified as she opened the door to the haunted school house he’d insisted they go in.

  They were really working together. Not just getting along but collaborating on ideas. And dammit Wyatt had better choose their ideas. If he didn’t and she left Bitter End over it… Well, let’s just say, it wouldn’t be pretty.

  “Rhododendron,” he blurted as the flowers on her desk caught his eye and he got another idea.

  “Excuse me?” She looked up from the notes in her hand.

  “It grows all over Roan Mountain. There’s even a Rhododendron festival in Bakersville in June. We could have Rhododendron month. Maybe with flower arranging classes?”

  “All right. Rhododendron month. Good idea.” She smiled, taking her from beautiful to intoxicating.

  He cussed his brother one more time just at the thought Wyatt could be the reason she’d leave if he did do something stupid, like choose CEPS.

  Over his dead body.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  “I’m nervous.”

  Sitting next to her as they watched the presentation for the dozenth time on the laptop on her desk, Ethan said, “Don’t be. You’re ready.”

  “It feels like I can do more. Tweak it—” She laid her fingers on the keys as he chuckled.

  “You’re one of those people who will tweak and fiddle forever, aren’t you?”

  “No…” Because there was always a deadline that cut her fiddling short. Otherwise, he was right, she might tweak forever.

  Clasping her hands in her lap to physically stop herself from changing more, Poppy turned in her chair to face him.

  She raised her gaze to his. “Tell me it’s going to be okay. Tell me this is good. Better than CEPS’s.”

  Leaning in, he lifted his hands and palmed her face. She thought he might kiss her. Instead he said, close and intense, “It’s better than good. And fuck CEPS. Ours blows theirs away.”

  But they didn’t know that, did they? She had no idea exactly what Monty and Caroline’s final presentation would be. She and Ethan were going on what was in the CEPS brochure. But the CEPS dynamic duo had been at the Wilder working on their presentation for the better part of a week.

  She wanted to argue that point but she didn’t seem to have the breath or the words with Ethan’s face—and lips—so close to hers.

  He pinned her with a blue gaze so deep she could swear the earth moved—or at least the desk chair.

  “You’re ready,” he repeated and this time she almost believed him.

  After a moment of silence that stretched on long past the point of being awkward, he dropped his hands and leaned back in his chair.

  “Come with me to make the presentation,” she said, now that she could think again.

  His eyes flicked wider. “Me?”

  “Why not? Wyatt is—or at least was until we teamed up—expecting you to present your own ideas. You should be there with me when we present this. It’s half yours.”

  “Okay.” He nodded and a ghost of a smile crossed his lips. “I’d like that.”

  A quick short knock on the doorframe had her jumping in her seat.

  “Poppy, you ready?” Wyatt asked, his gaze moving to Ethan.

  “Yes. I asked Ethan to sit in since we collaborated on my presentation.”