5

Ryder stared at her for a moment, then without another word, he turned towards the door and walked out with Mason following close behind him.

Daniel remained behind his desk, staring at the door before turning to Amelia. “Well,” he said. “That could have gone better.”

Amelia picked up her handbag. She couldn't believe how audacious and arrogant Ryder Kane had been. “I gave him thirty days.” She said, “If he refuses to cooperate, we’ll proceed through the proper legal channels.”

Daniel nodded, although his expression suggested he wasn’t entirely convinced the matter would be that straightforward.

Outside, Ryder and Mason were already heading towards their motorcycles. “She’s certainly got a temper,” Mason remarked.

Ryder reached for his keys. “She has an opinion. There’s a difference.”

“I don't think she's going to back down.”

“Neither are we.” Ryder swung a leg over his motorcycle and started the engine. He had dealt with rival clubs, corrupt businessmen as well as men who made the mistake of challenging his authority. He had never expected to find himself arguing over a piece of land with a woman in expensive heels. But Amelia Carter had made one thing perfectly clear. She wasn’t going to make his life easy… And he sure as hell was going to return the favour. 

By the time they returned to the clubhouse, the afternoon was beginning to wind down. Ryder pulled his motorcycle to a stop near the entrance and switched off the engine. Mason parked beside him, removed his helmet and followed him inside.

Blake was leaning against the bar with a bottle of beer in his hand. He looked up as the two men entered. “That was fast. I take it the meeting went well.”

Ryder removed his gloves and placed them on the counter. “Depends on what you consider well.”

Blake grinned. “That bad, huh?”

“She wants us out in thirty days.”

Blake whistled. “Thirty days? How generous.” he said sarcastically, “Did she at least offer to help us find somewhere else?”

“No.”

“Shame. I was hoping we'd be dealing with a reasonable woman.”

Mason gave him an amused look. “You’d have been disappointed.”

Cole, who had been seated at one of the tables with his laptop, looked up from his screen. “So what happened?”

“She made her position clear,” Mason answered, pulling out a chair. “Ryder made his. Neither of them seems particularly interested in changing their minds.”

Cole closed his laptop. “Did she mention taking legal action?”

“She didn’t have to,” Ryder replied. “But it's obvious that’s where she’s heading if she doesn’t get what she wants.”

Cole leaned back in his chair. “Well, she’s the legal owner of the estate. We can’t pretend that it doesn't put us in a difficult position.”

Ryder glanced at him. Despite his determination to keep the warehouse, he was deeply concerned. “We’ve been there twelve years. My father had an agreement with Thomas Carter, and we’ve upheld it. We've taken care of the place and protected it. Made it our home. We can just pack everything up and leave because his daughter has decided she wants to build a resort.” He waved his hand, “What does she know about this town anyway? She's been gone for… God knows how long,”

Cole nodded in agreement. “We should probably have our own lawyer look through the arrangement. If she wants to challenge our right to occupy the property, we gotta know exactly where we stand.”

“Yeah we need to do that,” Ryder said.

Blake took another drink from his bottle. “So, what’s the plan? We wait for her thirty days to run out?”

“Not really. But for now, nobody does anything stupid.” He didn't direct the remark at anyone in particular, but everyone listening could tell that he was referring to Blake. 

Blake raised an eyebrow. “I wasn’t planning to.”

“Good. Keep it that way.”

A few of the men nearby exchanged amused looks, but Ryder didn't smile. He rested his hands on the edge of the bar and looked around the room. “Listen up. This situation stays between us for now. I don’t want anyone approaching Amelia Carter, making threats or giving her a reason to claim we’re causing any trouble. If she wants to take this through the courts, we’ll deal with it properly. Until then, nobody gives her an excuse to make things harder than they already are.”

The others acknowledged him with nods.

Ryder turned back to Cole. “Get our lawyer to review everything connected to the original arrangement. I want copies of any records we have showing what the club has spent on the warehouse and the surrounding grounds.”

“Alright. I’ll start pulling everything together.”

“Mason, what do we have on her resort plans?”

“Still working on it,” Mason replied. 

“Do it faster. I want to know everything she's up to. I want to know who's financing her plans, which contractors she’s working with and how far along the development is.”

“Got it.”

Ryder stood and began to walk up the stairs leading to his office. He needed some time alone to think. Although he had no intention of allowing the situation to interfere with the club’s operations, he wasn’t foolish enough to dismiss the threat either. As much as he hated to admit it, he could tell that Amelia Carter didn't seem like the kind of woman who'd back down easily, plus she also had the means and the funds to fight them legally. 

Shutting the door behind him, he walked up to the window and stared in the direction of the old Carter residence hidden slightly among the trees. He could see part of its roof and some of the windows from where he stood, but other than that there was nothing to show that the house now had a new occupant.

He frowned as he went through his conversation with Amelia in his head. He almost couldn't believe that she'd threatened him. As far as he was concerned, she was a spoiled, rich city girl who didn't know what it took to build a community such as his and he didn't care how much money she had. He turned away from the window. Soon she'd learn that he wasn’t a man who responded well to ultimatums.