stomach sank, and I felt the sudden urge to cry. I wasn’t a big crier, but I had hit my limit of things not going my way.
Corrie straightened. “And what might that be? We came to a verbal agreement during the showing.”
Wendel toyed with a loose thread on his button-down shirt and cleared his throat. “The property is no longer available.”
“And why is that when it was available yesterday?” There might as well have been steam coming out of Corrie’s ears.
“I, uh, something came up.”
I took a step forward. “Would that something have the name Grant Abbot?”
Wendel blanched, and I knew I had my answer. The older man looked terrified, and I honestly felt bad for him. But I was also exhausted, tired down to my bones. And I was done fighting this family. “Come on, Corrie, let’s go.”
“But—” She snapped her mouth closed at my look, but then turned to Wendel and spoke again. “I’m afraid I won’t be able to do business with you anymore. I don’t deal with people who kowtow to bullies.”
The older man spluttered. “But—but you’re the best real estate agent on the island.”
“Should’ve thought of that before you screwed my client over for a bunch of greedy outsiders,” Corrie tossed over her shoulder as she followed me out of the office. She let out a frustrated growl. “I want to kick that Grant creep where the sun doesn’t shine.”
My lips tried to form a smile but failed miserably. “I’m sorry you wasted your time on this.”
Corrie turned to me, her eyes hard. “You have nothing to apologize for. That family is just despicable.” She took my hand and squeezed. “I’m making it my personal mission to find you something even better for your office. And the landlord will be someone who will be happy to stick it to the Abbots.”
“You don’t have to do that. Really, I—”
Corrie cut me off with a look. “This is my job, and I love it. It makes me very unhappy when someone messes with my clients. It will be my pleasure to find you the perfect place.”
I gave her hand a squeeze and released it. “Thank you.”
“Are you going to be okay?”
I wanted to laugh but knew it would come out just a little bit hysterical and would probably turn into a crying jag of epic proportions. I held it in. “I’ll be fine. I’m just going to grab a coffee and head back to The Gables.”
Corrie looked as if she wasn’t sure she believed me. “Okay. Drive safe. I’ll call you as soon as I have a space for you to look at.”
I nodded, and Corrie took off back towards her office, a woman on a mission. I appreciated her care and determination, but right now, I had the strongest urge to give up. All I wanted to do was curl up into a ball. And I wanted to do that in Crosby’s arms.
The backs of my eyes burned as I stared down the street. Crosby’s truck gleamed in the afternoon light. I inhaled deeply. I was a big girl. If I wanted something, I needed to ask for it. I started towards The General Store and Crosby’s bungalow office that sat just behind it.
My hands began to tremble as I walked. The idea of exposing my need for Crosby sent waves of fear through me, but I pressed on. By the time I reached his office, I felt as if I were going to come out of my skin. I pulled open the door, and the bell jingled.
Penny looked up from her desk, her smile faltering as she took me in. “Oh, honey, what’s wrong?”
“Is Crosby here?” My voice shook slightly as I spoke.
“Of course, go right in.”
I crossed to his office door, and by the time I reached it, Crosby had stood from his desk. His expression hardened as he took me in. “What happened?”
“Grant.” I didn’t know what else to say.
Crosby opened his arms, and I walked right into them. The strength and warmth of his hold was everything that I needed. Just to know I wasn’t alone. I didn’t want Crosby to fix my problems, but I wanted to know that he was with me while I went on the journey. He rubbed a hand up and down my back. “Tell me what happened.”
I turned my head to the side so my cheek rested on his pec. “They got to the landlord I was going to rent an office space from. I found