Little Secrets: Holiday Baby Bombshell. Karen Booth

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СКАЧАТЬ “I’ll keep doing what I do, but thanks for the heads-up.”

      Completely uninvited, Gabe perched on the locker-room bench. “What do you have in the hopper these days? Anything new and exciting? Some big fish on the line?”

      “Always. But I’m not about to share that information with you.”

      “I heard you landed the Grand Legacy residential units.”

      Dammit. Michael worked his feet into his shoes. He wasn’t about to spill the details. It was all sewn up, but there was no point in bragging. He’d let news of the sales filter through the circles of the real-estate world on their own.

      “No comment?” Gabe asked. “I get it. Trying to be the mysterious Michael Kelly. Well, I’m psyched for you, but just so you know, I’ve worked on several properties with Sawyer’s brother, Noah. I even snagged an invitation to Sawyer’s wedding. Pretty sure those guys are eager to work with me.”

      Michael cast his eyes at Gabe, but only for a moment. The less he acknowledged him, the better. “I know the game you’re playing because I invented it. Don’t try to go up against me. You’ll only regret it.”

      “Is that some sort of threat?”

      “I don’t need to make threats, Gabe. Threats are for people who can’t deliver. I always deliver.” With that, Michael grabbed his suit coat. “Have a good day.”

      Michael strode to the elevator and took it down to the parking garage, where his car was waiting. He was one of those guys—the ones who insisted on having a car in the city, even when it was generally a pain in the butt. He didn’t like waiting around for other people, he didn’t like barking orders from the back seat. He knew the best way to get where he wanted to go, and driving himself was the only way to get there.

      Traffic wasn’t too heavy, so he arrived at Sawyer Locke’s office in twenty minutes and nabbed a spot in the lot next to his building. He took the stairs and still arrived five minutes early.

      “Please have a seat, Mr. Kelly. Mr. Locke is finishing up a conversation with his sister. Can I get you a cup of coffee while you wait?”

      His sister? Charlotte’s back in town? Michael shifted in his seat, finding it more than a bit uncomfortable. “Uh, No, thank you. I’ve had two cups already this morning.”

      “It shouldn’t be more than a few minutes.”

      Michael had learned long ago that there’s a bump in every road, especially when you’re sure everything is going to go smoothly. Apparently, today’s bump was going to be Charlotte. He’d probably jinxed himself by daring to think the Grand Legacy was a done deal. Now he had to hope that Sawyer didn’t mention who his ten o’clock was with, opening the door for Charlotte to rail on Michael, call him a jerk or insensitive or any of the things she’d called him the day she’d ended it with him.

      The thing was, Michael had had no choice but to open the door for Charlotte to break things off with him. Three months of monogamy was a lifetime for him, and all signs were there that Charlotte was taking things much more seriously than he ever would be able to. He just wasn’t built for focusing on a relationship. There was nothing to win. He’d be lying if he said he was looking forward to speaking to Charlotte. He could only imagine what she might spout off at him. But he was most certainly looking forward to seeing her, even if it might be as she huffed and stormed past him in the lobby of her brother’s office.

      Lily’s phone buzzed. “Yes, Mr. Locke?” She glanced over at Michael. “Certainly. I’ll send him right in.” She hung up and rose from her seat. “Mr. Locke will see you now.” She stepped out from behind her desk and headed for Sawyer’s office.

      “I thought you said he was meeting with Charlotte.”

      Surprise crossed Lily’s face. “You know Ms. Locke?” She gently tapped her forehead. “Of course you know Ms. Locke. You both work in real estate.”

      Michael cleared his throat. That’s not the only reason. “We’re acquainted.”

      “Well, good. Mr. Locke won’t need to make any introductions.”

      Michael was beyond confused, eyeing the door as Lily rapped on it lightly. “I’m sorry. I guess I’m running a step slow today. My meeting was with Sawyer. It’s an important one, too. If he’s busy, perhaps I should come back another time.” And cut out of here before Charlotte lops off my head.

      The door opened. Sawyer waved him in. “Michael. I understand you’ve already met my sister, Charlotte.”

       Two

      Michael did not like to go into meetings unprepared, but he did love a challenge. He first saw Charlotte only in profile, her long, golden-blond hair framing her rosy cheeks, full lips and adorable chin. She sat straight as a pin in a dark purple jacket and black skirt, poised on the edge of her seat. That was Charlotte. Beautiful, but always on the edge. She turned toward him, her vivid blue eyes immediately putting him on notice. She was still angry. He not only saw it, he felt it, as if her eyes were slicing right into him.

      It was pretty hot.

      Just seeing her brought back the day they first met seven or eight months ago, when she’d come to interview for a position in his agency. She’d been professional and polished, but her résumé was thin. As they talked, he became more and more enchanted by her as a woman, but he knew she wasn’t cutthroat enough to work for him. She smiled so easily, almost as if she couldn’t help it. She laughed in much the same, affable manner. She was clearly beguiling, but he couldn’t see her playing hardball in a negotiation, or putting up with an ultrademanding billionaire client. He’d told her as much. That hadn’t gone over well. In fact, she’d argued with him about it, giving him that first vision of the fire behind those eyes. In the end, she didn’t get the job she wanted, but he called her a few weeks later anyway. He asked her out and she said no, but then she started peppering him with questions about real estate, and the next thing he knew, they’d been on the phone for an hour, the conversation ultimately drifting to more personal topics. Three or four more marathon calls after that, he asked her out again, and that time she said yes. The rest—all three months of it—was history.

      “Michael, hello.” Charlotte’s words were polite enough, but the tenor of her voice was rigid. She’d never taken that tone with him before, not even when she left. That day, she’d only had tears and gasping breaths. Crying was one of his weak spots when it came to relationships. He never knew what to say. So he often didn’t say much of anything.

      “Charlotte. It’s nice to see you.” He reached out to shake her hand and it was clear she was thinking twice about it. When she finally reciprocated, she was quick to retreat, but even a lightning-fast brush of her skin against his brought back memories of just how white-hot their connection had been. Charlotte might be a handful, but that was also the reason she was impossible to forget.

      She folded her hands in her lap as Michael took the open chair next to her and Sawyer sat behind his desk. Michael’s full attention needed to be on Sawyer at this moment, but he had to steal a glance at Charlotte’s legs as she crossed them and sat even straighter. She was wearing jet-black heels today, and he would’ve been a fool not to take his chance to admire her, while his mind flashed to what the rest of her looked like naked as she did the simplest of things, like padding from his bed to the bathroom and back.

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