There was nothing Emily could do for Levi except help him hold on to Club Tahoe and make it profitable again. Emily wasn’t even sure Levi was over Lisa. But she could step up her game and not look the dowdy secretary. Anything else—much as she might fantasize about it—would be unprofessional and completely out of the realm of possibilities.
Chapter 5
The next day, Emily tugged the bottom of her navy sleeveless sweater until it lay smooth against her body, and knocked on Levi’s office door. Lisa had called this morning to tell her she’d bring clothes by from the boutique this evening, and Emily was scared. What had she been thinking, tasking her sister with finding new office attire?
Disaster, that was what it spelled.
Lisa had better fashion sense than Emily, no question, but it skewed on the sexy side. And Emily wasn’t sexy.
“Come in.” Levi’s deep voice rumbled through the door.
A shiver racked Emily’s body. God in heaven, his voice was hot. This attraction would wear off… It had to.
She straightened her shoulders and entered the office as if she owned it. Or at least like she wasn’t intimidated. “Is now a good time for our meeting?”
Levi was standing, looking out the window with his back to her.
He glanced over. “It’s as good a time as any.”
And that was when Emily caught sight of what Levi was wearing. Dark slacks that fit his body to perfection. White dress shirt, the sleeves rolled a couple of times to the top of his forearms. He might have been wearing something similar yesterday, but she’d been distracted enough by his presence. And she hadn’t seen him from behind. And his behind…
Her jaw slackened.
When Emily was younger, Levi in a flannel shirt and work boots had stimulated all of her rugged-guy fantasies. But in designer business clothes that fit his muscular frame perfectly, making him look like a suit advertisement? Not right. No man should look this good. His ass and the vee of his back… What had she gotten herself into?
She strode to a chair near his desk and slumped into it, staring at her tablet—and not at the masculine perfection in front of her.
“I made a list,” she stammered.
“A list, eh?” A hint of humor filled his tone. She sensed—still couldn’t look without gawking—him approach and sit at his desk. “Let’s hear this list. Gotta be better than what I’ve come up with.”
Emily tapped the screen to pull up the ideas she’d compiled last night. “Our special guests arrive Monday morning. They’ll have been on a plane for many hours. I thought we could bring in extra massage therapists for when they first arrive, then plan a late afternoon meet-and-greet.” She glanced up to gauge his reaction. He was staring intently, which didn’t help her concentration. “We—we could have it catered, or have one of our restaurants provide appetizers and drinks.”
He nodded slowly. “I’ll talk to Bran. Get the chef to come up with something good.”
She made a note. “Bringing out our best wines might not be a bad idea. We could have a mini wine tasting of bottles from California vineyards. The meet-and-greet could wrap early, allowing guests to rest for the night. I’m preparing gift baskets in each room with snack food and other goodies if they want something light to eat later on.”
He tapped one strong finger on the desk, and she couldn’t tell what he was thinking. “What else?”
“Uh.” She glanced back at her list. “The next day I thought we could provide a morning buffet followed by a tour of the grounds. The afternoon would be reserved for meetings the company requested with their American liaisons. Dinner would be formal and in the grand ballroom.”
“So you’re thinking hit them hard as soon as they catch their breath?”
“I—yes. I thought it would be good to put our best foot forward from the start. We’d leave the afternoons open and provide fully equipped meeting rooms with snacks, drinks—whatever they want. After the grand ballroom dinner on the second night, the meals would be informal and take place in a different restaurant on Club Tahoe grounds, or they can dine independently. I’m talking to Wes about reserving the golf course for them one day. And we could provide some sort of evening entertainment…”
“Entertainment?”
Emily bit her lip. She’d been nervous yesterday and had rambled on about making changes to Club Tahoe. But the truth was that it could stand a few livelier touches to its elegant façade. “We have three of the finest restaurants in the city, but no live entertainment, aside from a pianist who plays in the Fireside Lounge. I thought we could hire musicians.”
He crossed his arms. “Is that necessary? We’re in a bit of a financial crisis. I’m not sure spending money is the solution.”
“That’s generally true, but sometimes you need to spend money to make money. There are local bands, as well as domestic and international talent that travel through town. We don’t have the space to host large entertainment, but a small band or guitarist would be enough to draw in new customers and entertain our larger groups. In addition to music, we might want to reserve one night a week for a comedian.” Emily stopped talking because Levi had gone silent. “Sir?”
He rubbed his square jaw that, despite his more formal attire, held a day’s worth of scruff. “It’s Levi. Just Levi. No sir. No Mr. Cade.” He stared at her for a long moment, and she still couldn’t figure out what he was thinking—if he liked her ideas or loathed them, though he seemed receptive to her initial ideas on the meet-and-greet and meals. “My father would have hated bringing in a comedian to the hotel. Can you get the musicians lined up by next week?”
“Maybe.”
His mouth turned down at her vague response.
