Love Takes All. J.M. Jeffries

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      The check-in area opened onto a large airy courtyard, with a pond that meandered toward the casino. The pond was a nice touch. About six feet wide and made to look like a stream, the pond bisected the approach to the casino. Small footbridges crossed over it. On one bridge a young woman stood looking down. A flash of fish caught his eye and he bent over the edge of the pond to see koi the size of his foot.

      Women dressed in short flamenco skirts and ruffled blouses along with men dressed as matadors wandered the casino floor with trays, balanced on their hands, filled with various sized drinks.

      The casino was really old school with slot machines that chimed out the winners along with the dings of coins into the collection bowls. The more modern casinos switched everything to digital, which were quieter and took prepaid cards instead of money.

      “The hotel has four hundred twelve rooms,” Miss E. said as they walked through the check-in area. “There are two restaurants, one café and a lounge. There’s a small stage in the lounge for live entertainment, a couple of novelty shops at the other end of the casino and a small amphitheater for the big name acts.”

      Hunter sighed. “Where does the spa fit in?”

      “Behind the pool is the hot springs. To take advantage of the hot springs, I think the spa needs to go there.”

      He would have to take a look at the area. Miss E. led him toward the bar at the edge of the casino area.

      “Good morning, Miss E.,” the bartender called cheerfully.

      Miss E. waved at him, a happy smile on her face. “That’s Roy. He’s been here for years and knows where all the bodies are buried.”

      Hunter shook his head, still trying to process the fact his grandmother owned a casino. He wondered if his grandmother had gone insane to risk everything she had for this. “One question.”

      “Only one?”

      He had about a million, but they’d have to wait. “What do you know about running a hotel and casino?”

      She shrugged her elegant shoulders. “I know how to play poker.”

      So did he, because she’d taught him to play the game. “That does not make for experience in hotel management.”

      “I have Jasper,” she said.

      As if that gave him any reassurance that this wasn’t a still a crazy idea. “And he is?”

      “He’s the previous owner and I’ve hired him to stay on as a consultant. I know what you’re thinking, Hunter.”

      “No, you don’t.” Hunter hated when she told him exactly what he was thinking. Why couldn’t she have been a bank clerk? Bank clerks didn’t need to read people.

      “You’re wondering if I’ve lost my mind.”

      Damn, he thought. “Okay, you do know what I’m thinking. Have you lost your mind?”

      She punched him on the arm. “Stop thinking that.”

      “What am I supposed to think?”

      “That this is an incredible opportunity too good to pass up” she replied tartly.

      “An incredible opportunity for what?” Poverty, starvation or homelessness?

      “To be a financially independent woman, a chance to call the shots,” she said.

      “I’m already financially independent, and if you’re worried about money, I’ll take care of you.”

      “I don’t want nor do I need you taking care of me. I can take of myself,” she said, a glimmer of anger in the set line of her mouth. “I’ve been doing it for a few years now.”

      “Then why did I need to rush over here?” Hunter ran a hand over his face. He never did win an argument with her.

      “Because I want my grandchildren to be a part of this.”

      A restaurant opened off the casino and Hunter glanced inside. “So what do you want me to do to be a part of this?” Hunter asked. Maybe what he needed to do was to treat her like a client instead of his grandmother.

      “Old world elegance brought into the twenty-first century.”

      “It could use a bit of toning down but without losing the elegance or class.”

      “Lydia will handle that.” She patted him on the hand. “I just need you to come up with ideas for the spa that compliments what we’re going to do on the inside.”

      They passed through the casino, back into the lobby and to a bank of elevators. The stream-like pond stopped thirty feet from the elevators and Hunter was surprised to see two white swans floating majestically on the water. The former owner had really understood how to create a mood. Who didn’t like swans? He could have a lot of fun playing here.

      An elevator opened and Miss E. led the way inside, where they were lifted steadily upward, albeit a bit slow. The inside of the elevator was more functional than elegant. Boring, Hunter thought. Whoever the previous designer had been hadn’t considered how the elevators should look.

      The elevator stopped on the top floor and the doors slid smoothly open. Miss E. stepped out and led the way down the hall. Only six doors opened to the hall, three on either side. They had reached the penthouse floor.

      “The previous owner lived in the hotel,” Miss E. explained as she stopped in front of one of the doors. “This floor has what he said were family suites.” She knocked on the nearest door.

      When the door opened, Hunter nearly fell to his knees. One of the most beautiful women he’d ever seen smiled at him. She was slim with a fragile, almost ethereal air to her in a Zoe Saldana way with a heart-shaped face and wide brown eyes. Shoulder-length black hair hung in long silky waves about her shoulders. Skin the color of his favorite mocha coffee looked as smooth as satin. A cream-and-black dress skimmed her body. He could tell the dress was a designer label and probably tailored to fit her. Her hands were long and slender, the nails lacquered a pale, iridescent pink to match the barely there lipstick on her pouty lips. She was so tiny a strong wind would probably blow her away. She certainly took his breath away. The longer he stood mute, the more strained her smile became until it began to falter. He was probably creeping her out.

      “Oh, for heaven’s sake.” Miss E. pushed him into the tiled entry. “Close your mouth, Hunter. Hunter, this is Lydia. And this is Maya.”

      A young girl, maybe eight or nine, ran across the tiled floor and flung her arms around Miss E. Maya’s resemblance to Lydia told Hunter the child was her daughter. She wore a yellow flowered sundress that showed off her light brown skin. Her long hair was woven into two thick braids that bounced against her shoulders as she ran. Instead of dark brown eyes like her mother, Maya’s eyes were light amber.

      “Miss Eleanor,” Maya cried. “My bedroom looks like a castle. It has a princess and a prince. The prince even has a horse. I’ve always wanted a horse.” She sighed longingly.

      She grinned so wide Hunter could see new teeth coming in at the sides СКАЧАТЬ