It Had to Be Fate (An It Had to Be Novel Book 3) by Tamra Baumann Page B

become about women. And about most of the people in his life now. Seemed everyone had an agenda, and they didn’t give a damn about him.
    Had that been why his mother said love and family are all that mattered? Had she been talking about more than just taking care of Nick?
    He finished his cake, cleaned up the dishes, then gathered up his laptop and headed out the door. One thing was for sure. There was nothing boring about Casey. She was an intriguing woman with a complicated life and he wanted to explore being another complication in it.

O n Friday morning, Casey glanced up from her paperwork just as Zane plunked himself in the guest chair across from her desk. He wore a baseball cap and dark glasses, complete with his usual happy grin. “Morning, Casey. They said I’d find you here.”
    “Good morning. What can I help you with?” She hoped her cheeks weren’t turning red from embarrassment. She hated that he’d seen her crying. But it had been nice he pretended not to notice when he brought her cake. And that he’d said she was a good mom.
    “I wanted to talk to you about breakfast.”
    “Was there something special you want Dax to make for you?”
    “No, it’s not that. You say the people in Anderson Butte are good about ignoring celebrities, but I’m not sure I can trust the teenaged guests.”
    “Our guests come to Anderson Butte for the privacy and would never mention others at the hotel—it’s an unspoken code amongst the wealthy and famous—but I can see your point.” While certainly their parents would warn against it, she couldn’t guarantee one of their visiting kids wouldn’t sneak a picture on their phone and send it out on social media.
    He said, “Would you mind if I ate in the kitchen instead of the dining room with the other guests?”
    “No, of course not. You can eat wherever it best suits you.” Crap. That meant Zane would be eating his meals with her and the boys. So much for trying to keep her boys away from Zane. Maybe she’d get lucky and he’d be so worried about someone seeing him that he’d eat a majority of his meals in his room.
    “Thanks, Casey.” He stood and cleared his throat. But didn’t leave.
    “Was there something else you needed?”
    His cheerful grin slowly faded. “Are you doing all right? I mean after the phone call last night and all?”
    “I’m still trying to figure out what the best thing is to do for the boys.”
    “Yeah. That makes sense.” His lips slowly tilted into a cute smile again. “Did you eat the rest of the cake?”
    “I did. And I enjoyed every bite.” She lifted her chin, daring him to make fun of her for it.
    He laughed. “Good for you. Have a nice day.”
    “You too.”
    After he left, she smiled and got back to work. What was it about Zane? He was so different from any other man she’d ever met. Not that she’d really known that many men, living in their tiny town her whole life. Sure, she’d met some powerful and famous ones, but they were just guests. By far, Zane was the most handsome and charming. But then, Tomas had been charming at first too.

    Later that afternoon, the beeping of a backing-up semitruck made Casey glance up from the registration desk. They weren’t due for any deliveries until Monday. She crossed the lobby and pushed at the swinging door to the kitchen. Zane sat at the island, deep into answering texts on his phone.
    Casey passed through the warehouse to the delivery dock. She waited as the truck driver got out and then opened the back door of the semi. The interior was packed with electronic gear. A curvy blonde appeared from the passenger side of the truck, talking on a cell phone. When she noticed Casey, she quickly ended the call. “Hi. I’m Mandy. Zane’s assistant. Kip said to ask for Casey.”
    His “assistant” looked like a Victoria’s Secret model—naturally. “I’m Casey. What is all this?”
    The blonde slipped her phone into the back pocket of her jeans. Her pants were so