Smitten by Colleen Coble Read Free Book Online

notebook in her hands across the desk to him. “I thought you might enjoy looking at these pictures of luxury cabins.”
    He flipped through the pages. The first few showed the interior of various cabins. The pine was lighter than his, which had been stained dark. What did he do about that?
    She stared at him. “You’re frowning. You don’t like them?”
    “They’re okay,” he said. “But they don’t look anything like the interior of my cabins.”
    “Yours don’t have to look exactly like those. The pictures are just some ideas the girls and I have collected. Would you mind if I took a look at your cabins?”
    Why not? He could use all the ideas he could get. “Be my guest.” Tucking the notebook under his arm, he led her to the door and out into the yard, patchy with bald spots.
    The blue of Timber Lake glimmered through the pines. The expanse of water beckoned to their right, with thick trees crowding the banks. A beautiful sight.
    Natalie stared. “I never get tired of this view,” she said. “You should maximize it so visitors never forget their first glimpse.”
    He took in the blue of the lake with the trees crowding the shore. Ducks paddled in the shallows, and the air was filled with the crisp scent of pine and water. Pretty as a painting, but he’d seen it so often he took it for granted.
    She pointed at the sign at his drive. “The sign should be discreet, an engraved wood one, maybe. Landscaped with flowers and shrubbery that tell customers this is a special place.”
    “The sign is looking ratty,” he admitted. He hadn’t even looked at it in years. The thing was peeling, and the e in “Smitten Fishing Cabins” was nearly worn off. There had once been a picture of a largemouth bass on it, but now only bits of the green paint remained.
    Natalie glanced at him. “Have you given any thought to a new name? You can hardly call it anything to do with fishing. How about Smitten Cove? It has a romantic sound.”
    He liked it, but he wasn’t about to capitulate yet. “I’ll think about it,” he said. At least his drive was paved. If it had been gravel, she would have wanted changes there too.
    He watched her stare around the place and tried to see it with her eyes. The cabins were in good repair—he’d made sure of that. New windows two years ago, the chinks between the logs were tight and even, and the roofs had all been done just last summer.
    “You need some landscaping, but the exteriors look nice,” she said. “Some redwood stain and they would be perfect.” She advanced to the first building. “How many cabins do you have?”
    “Twelve.”
    “Is there a building you can use for a convenience store?”
    He pointed to the larger building to his right that they’d just exited. The neon sign declaring it an office was only half lit. “I have a bait shop in there too.”
    “It should have a cutesy name that lets customers know they can get supplies there like cold meds, hand lotion, snacks, that kind of thing.” She stepped to the nearest cabin. “You have a key?”
    He brushed past her and pushed open the door. “I don’t keep them locked unless they’re occupied.” The stale air rushed past his face as if to let her know there was seldom someone inside.
    She followed him. “Nice big space,” she said. “And there’s a fireplace. Bedrooms?”
    “Some have one bedroom and some have two,” he said. “Separate bedrooms plus a living space and kitchenette.”
    “The walls all need lightening up,” she said. “The easiest thing to do would be to whitewash them. Then you could put in light pine furnishings.”
    He hadn’t thought about whitewashing. At least he wouldn’t have to sand all the wood. “What about the kitchen?”
    She wrinkled her nose. “The wooden counters were a nice touch once upon a time, but they’re stained and warped now. I’d take out the kitchens. Cheaper than replacing, and you’d have room for the tub where they once were. Besides,