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the ground first.”
    Cheap shot about her fire mishap aside, she knew in her heart that he was wrong. Failing was not an option. Because if she ran the business into the ground, what then? How would she support herself and Katie? She’d be back to the same dismal options she’d had before Lowell’s attorney had presented Cloud Nine as part of their assets in the divorce.
    She could not and would not fail, because more powerful than her fears was her iron will to do right by her daughter and make something of herself. There were no forces in the world greater than that kind of determination. “You don’t know the first thing about me.”
    Eyebrows raised, he gave an incredulous snort. “Want to bet?” He speared a finger toward the window. “In case you hadn’t noticed, this is a boat rental company and you’re afraid of water. How fucked-up is that?” His shout reverberated off the kitchen walls.
    Allison pressed her palms against the table, refusing to cower. “Oh, it’s pretty fucked-up. I get that. Water is my curse, always has been and always will be. But I’m not afraid of it; I hate it. You, of all people, should understand the difference between fear and hate.”
    â€œLady, you don’t know the first thing about me,” he snarled, throwing her words back in her face.
    She did, though. After she was rescued from the water, she might have been soaking wet and pissed off, but she’d noticed that he kept his houseboat in meticulous condition inside and outside, which meant he took care of the things that were important to him; he had a lot of close friends and neighbors who had dropped everything to help him, which meant he was a good man and good neighbor; and he’d kept Cloud Nine running despite Lowell’s neglect, which meant he had a keen business sense.
    He cared deeply about the people in his life, his work, and his home, which was why she also knew that the reason he hated her was that he was afraid of losing everything he cared about. It didn’t take a genius to figure that out, and she didn’t blame him. She probably would have hated her, too, if she’d been in his position.
    There wasn’t anything she could do about that now except leverage the things he cared about to persuade him to stay on as her employee. “I’m not going to run Cloud Nine into the ground because you’re not going to let that happen. You’re going to get me up to speed on the business and teach me everything I need to know to help it thrive.”
    His expression turned hard. “No. It’s going to thrive because you’re going to sell it to me.”
    She ignored the bait. “We’ll start later this morning, going over the financials and next year’s calendar.”
    He faked an exaggeratedly blithe shake of his head. “Sorry, I already have plans for today, meeting with my lawyer to draw up a new sales contract and contacting the bank about cutting a down payment check.”
    She marched out of the kitchen, through the dark, smoke-scented lobby to the office’s back door. She turned to find him watching her, his shoulder propped against the wall near the kitchen.
    With as much aplomb as she could manage, she opened the door and attempted to usher him out with a sweep of her hand. “Sounds like we both need to get some sleep because it’s going to be a busy day.”
    He pushed off the wall. Back to giving off that angry bear vibe, he didn’t so much swagger as stalk her with slow deliberate steps across the office until he towered over her, close enough that her chest brushed his stomach. Though his expression was still hard, the fire in his eyes had returned in full force. She held her ground and held his gaze.
    â€œGood night, Theoren.”
    He answered her in a quiet growl of French that felt more like a threat than parting pleasantries.
    She’d taken French in high school