Tessa and Josiah settled on an unspoken truce. It had been three months since her sister's visit, and the end of summer was approaching. No one else in Tessa's family had reached out to talk with her, and other than an occasional funny meme, there was no contact with Gloria either.

With Josiah's blessing, Becky had been moved to work as Tessa's personal assistant, focusing on event coordination, and now the hotel hosted a themed party night on the last Saturday of each month. So far, every events had been successful, and the hotel was starting to become a weekend getaway destination because of them. Becky was learning quickly, and aside from the occasional paper cut, there had been no further workplace injuries.

Tessa had worked tirelessly three of the cabins, and they were renting well. There was only another month or so in the season, but she felt confident that Levy could now see the vision and would give her permission to rent out the additional cabins next year.

She and Josiah had their Tuesday meeting every week, and they kept it strictly business. Sometimes, she would catch a look in his eyes that started as appreciation for something she was saying or doing and then evolved into one of sadness. It made it clear that he was still fighting his personal demons and was nowhere near ready to talk about it.

Some days were really lonely for Tessa, and she could have used a friend, but Josiah was still not willing to be one for her. When it mattered, he was there, but day-to-day, he was absent from her life.

In their last Tuesday meeting, Josiah mentioned that he, Tessa, Levi, and Trinity were scheduled to attend a hospitality conference in three months in Colorado. She couldn't help the thought that her family often attended conferences because it was the best way to network, and she wasn't sure what she would do if she met them in that situation. The one they were scheduled to attend was the biggest in the nation, so it was highly likely that she would find out.

However, the conference was Tessa's top worry at the moment.

Josiah had ended the meeting with the news that this was the week the spa company's representatives would arrive to look around and begin planning, and he had asked her to make sure that they were comfortable and had everything they needed.

In anticipation of their visit, Tessa had asked Rita for a copy of the contract. She scoured the document to see exactly what her and the hotel's responsibilities would be while the representatives were in residence.

Tessa still wasn't clear about how much of a lead she was to take on the project. She had understood that she would be the primary representation for the company, but since she had been left out of the contract dealings, she wasn't sure.

Tessa was currently waiting in her office for the arrival of the representatives from Country Day Spa, and when Josiah, Levi, and Trinity joined her toward the end of the day, she knew that their arrival was imminent.

"Tessa, can you join us for dinner here at the hotel at about seven?" Levi asked as he leaned against the door jamb to her office.

"Yes," she agreed, knowing this was her chance to voice her concerns about her role, but also the contract itself.

"But while we're all here, what's expected of me for this project? I only ask because I was under the impression that I would have a large part in laying the groundwork, but I wasn't included in the formation of the contract, which I only saw today after I asked Rita for a copy." Tessa was trying to keep her voice calm and friendly despite her anxiety about the situation.

Levi looked at Josiah and then at Trinity, who both returned his gaze with questioning looks.

"This was your deal, Levi. I told Tessa she would probably have a hand in it as the manager of the hotel, but she's right, it was never specified," Josiah reminded him.

"What did you think of the contract?" Levi asked with a thoughtful expression. He hadn't answered her question about what her role in all of it would be.

Tess looked at all three of them. "For the most part, it's fine, but there were a few things that might cause some issues depending on how they are interpreted."

"Such as, what's the biggest one?" Levi moved further into the office and sat in a chair across from Tessa, leaning back and watching her as she pulled out the contract and turned to the page that talked about employees and staffing.

"The setup of the subsidiary company is all straightforward, division of income, division of assets should the project fail, who owns the land and building, yada yada yada... the subsidiary company will pay the spa employees, but who is actually in charge of those employees during the spa's creation? I assume Country Day Spa will be, since they're in the spa business, just as Shaw Holdings will be in charge of our employees here at the hotel, but it's not clear where those divisions will occur. That could be a liability issue going forward." Tessa passed Levi the contract. "Also, a new building will be built. Who will be primary on that? Again, I assume Country Day Spa because they know the spa business, but it's not clear."

"In other words, they're hinting that they want you to take the lead, but you're not even sure if you can?" Trinity summed up with a nod.

Tessa nodded back. "I'll do whatever you require of me to make the project a success, but I need to know what is required."

There was a commotion in the lobby, and they all turned to see a lovely, tall, redheaded woman and a handsome, sandy-haired man enter. Holly at reception perked up as she welcomed them.

"Well, they look fit," Trinity said drily, and Tessa couldn't help the snort that escaped at her words.

She clapped her hand over her mouth and looked at Josiah, who was watching the two newcomers intently, as if getting a read on them before a word was said. He appeared to be on edge, as did Levi.

"Thank you for pointing out your concerns, Tessa." Levi turned to look at her. "We do want you to take the lead, but obviously, there needs to be some fine-tuning of the contract. Would you please put a pen to it and let us know of any other potential issues you see?" Then he put on his best smile and walked out to welcome the Country Day Spa representatives.

"Is it possible to change the contract this late in the game?" Tessa asked, looking at the signed document.

"Look at the last line," Josiah said before he joined his father.

Tessa and Trinity watched the redhead brighten when she saw Levi approach, but when she saw Josiah, she had a look that was almost predatory, and she held his hand longer than necessary.

"I'm glad it's you that will have to watch your man around that one, and not me." Trinity shook her head in relief.

"I don't know what you mean?" Tessa said with a frown as she watched the redhead laugh obnoxiously at something that Josiah said.

"Don't you?" Trinity asked, looking over at Tessa with a sly smile. "Give it time." Then she took a fortifying breath. "Come on, let's go and meet and greet. The guy's not bad on the eyes."

Tessa took a moment to read the last line, which specified that the contract could be amended with the agreement of both parties or canceled by either party with no penalty before the ground was broken on the development.

Tessa gave a sigh of relief before following Trinity and joining the others. Tessa watched the man's eyes study Trinity with evident appreciation, while the redhead's high spirits sank a little as Trinity was introduced. When Tessa was pulled forward by Josiah and introduced to Mallory Rheem and Robert Zoller, it was a non-event, and neither representative paid her much attention.

Tessa looked at everyone in the group, and when her eyes met Josiah's, he gave her a wink that made her smile. Mallory did give Tessa a second look at her and Josiah's exchange.

"Excuse me," Tessa said, even though no one was paying her any attention.

She walked over to the reception desk and worked with Holly, ensuring their reservation was as it should be.

"He seems nice, but I don't like her," Holly whispered as they prepared the key cards.

Tessa couldn't disagree, so she didn't say anything.

"Is everything alright?" Josiah asked as he joined them at the desk. Holly didn't respond, but did give him a little of the evil eye, probably for flirting with Mallory.

"Everything is fine, they're in our best rooms," Tessa assured him. "But please be careful about that lethal smile of yours, Joey. Ms. Rheem is already smitten, and I don't want to have to pretend to be your girlfriend again." It came across as a joke, and Holly giggled, but Tessa meant it. She didn't think she could survive that kind of charade after everything they had discovered about each other.

"I can't help it, Tessa. It's as natural as breathing." Josiah gave them both the very smile they had been discussing before he took the key cards and joined the others.

Tessa should have delivered them, but it was apparent to her at least that he didn't want her to.

"Good, let him do the dirty work. The less we have to deal with her, the happier we will all be." Holly grumbled.

"Go take your break, Holly. I'll watch the desk. I know you want to go tell everyone that they've arrived and give them all the details, but while you're talking with Chef, would you tell him that the six of us will be dining here at seven?"

Holly didn't need any encouragement, and she darted away with a nod of agreement.

Shortly after that, Tessa noticed that each employee managed to find a reason to walk through the lobby on their way to somewhere else. Josiah noticed it as well because he looked at Tessa with a raised eyebrow.

Tessa grinned, her sense of humor winning, and shook her head.

These were her people, and no redhead was going to change that. It was the first time she felt like she might truly belong in Sweetwater.