Skip to content “I want to be honest about something.”
I waited.
He admitted that he had occasionally allowed rental guests to use our hot tub.
Occasionally.
That was the version he offered.
A small mistake.
An overstep.
Something that had gotten out of hand.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I want to make things right. Whatever you think is fair.”
I thought about fourteen months of bookings.
The guest reviews.
The electricity.
The maintenance.
The chemicals.
Every person who had walked through our gate believing our backyard was part of the property they rented.
“I’ll let you know what I think is fair.”
Jim looked visibly relieved.
He returned home.
Two days later, Detective Hartley called.
Jim had been charged with fraud and criminal trespass.
The rental platform had provided booking and payment records covering the fourteen months his listing was active.
Several guests had also received messages explicitly stating that a private hot tub was included with their rental.
The evidence was much clearer than investigators had initially expected.
“He was arrested?” I asked.
“Earlier this morning.”
I sat silently for a moment.
I had wanted consequences.
I wanted the situation handled seriously.
But I hadn’t fully imagined what that would look like once the legal system became involved.
“What happens now?”
Hartley explained that the process would continue through the courts.
Tom and I might be contacted regarding restitution.
We would probably need to provide statements.
And investigators would keep us informed.
I thanked her.
Then I sat quietly at the kitchen table.
Four weeks later, Jim and Lisa put their house on the market.