Page 57 of Bargaining

“I’ll grab something quick in the room.”

Her eyebrows rose. “Nope. You said you were interested in the restaurant. There’s a world-famous chef and a view over the city to die for. We need to eat together. It will look weird if I eat alone.” She gave me a playful boop on the nose. “See you later, Mr. Ackroyd.”

My skin tingled with the warmth of her touch. Our eyes locked for a moment. I tried to keep my expression calm, but my pounding heart betrayed me. Her hand hovered a fraction too long before she swooped it away and pressed her arm to her side.

Her cheeks reddened and her gaze darted away. “I’m sorry, I have no idea why I just did—”

“It’s fine.” I resisted the urge to brush my nose and feel where her fingertips had been. “Enjoy your tour. I’ll see you for dinner.”

I worked in the hotel bar. The air conditioning was distracting in the bedroom and the balcony was too hot. This was just right. Nice to have a bit of a buzz, but still quiet enough to concentrate. I took another sip of perfect coffee. Whoever had made this was an expert. When I sealed the deal on this hotel, I’d have to make sure we held on to the barista. My father usually sacked everyone when he made a new acquisition. It wasn’t a nice way to do business, but it was often easier. Fresh staff were usually more amenable to a new vision and change in operation.

I called Lucas. His face appeared on the screen. “What’s wrong?”

“I need to talk to you about the offer on the hotel.”

His brow knitted. “God. I thought it had to be an emergency. Why are you calling me on your honeymoon?”

“Because the world doesn’t stop just because I’m in Rome.”

“No. But work should. Go back to your wife.”

“What does it matter to you?”

He scraped his embarrassing beard and smirked. “Fine. It doesn’t. Carry on. What about the offer?”

“We won’t be able to beat him on price. I’m thinking of a different angle for the negotiation. It’s a high-end boutique hotel. Gabe Rivers might appreciate if we make promises about preserving what his father has built here.”

Lucas sighed. “That may be, but I think you should drop it.”

“Why?”

“Because you’ve only just won the shareholders back on side and now you want to piss them off again?”

“Who’s going to be pissed off?”

“All of them.”

Fuck.

Lucas pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “You know why the Roman Empire collapsed, don’t you?”

“Let me guess. The emperor had a bunch of wankers with too much power on his board?”

“The emperor stretched himself too thin. He bit off more than he could chew. Probably an egotistical bastard. You run affordable family resorts. Stay within the brand remit. This is personal, not business. You know you have to drop it.”

Lucas only cared about the business when he had his begging cap in hand, asking me to fund another hospital wing or a multi-million-pound research project. His background was science. He didn’t know the first thing about business. “If I want business advice from you, I’ll ask for it.”

I was about to hang up when I remembered something. “What do the boys want me to bring them back from Rome?”

“I’ll ask them,” he said, scratching his head.

“Don’t forget.” No way was I giving up my favorite-uncle spot to Theo.

Chapter 27

Cole

The waiter escorted us to a table in a quiet corner of the hotel restaurant. I held out Charlotte’s chair, but she was too busy gazing at the enormous crystal chandeliers to notice.