I have not. And don’t call me that.
MASON:
So she’s available then?
ME:
NO.
I don’t know why I care. But, Jesus, Mason’s just as bad with women as Caleb. Isabelle doesn’t look like the kind of woman who’s after a fling, which is all she’d be getting with either one of my brothers.
She looks like the kind of woman who wants a soft and sweet love. To be someone’s entire world, and she’d love you right back just the same. All that warmth and brightness, so overwhelming that it seeps from your pores. Not that I’d know anything about that. I’m not interested in letting another person down.
The flight attendant comes over to announce we’re ready to take off. I tighten my seatbelt and press my head into the headrest, telling myself to keep my eyes up and not drop to the woman seated in front of me.
The plane taxis down the runway, and my hands grip the armrests.
Don’t look at her. Don’t look at her.
Then again, what’s the harm in looking?
Just as the plane leaves the ground, my stomach jumps and my resolve caves.
Shit.I looked.
Chapter two
ME:
Landed safely. Hope my baby’s being good xx
MUM:
Your father says he’s a dog man, yet I’m watching him at the table reading the newspaper with your cat in his arms… Hallie’s fine. Good luck at your meeting, darling. Love you xx
ME:
Thanks Mum. Love you, too
I tuck my phone into my handbag while I stand with Beth and Gage, waiting for Caleb to check us into our hotel rooms. Beth is doing the equally important job of scouring the internet to find a decent coffee shop nearby so we can refuel. After the early flight, plus hours of reviewing our business proposal to the point of exhaustion, my brain is toast.
I look around, taking in the modern Art Deco design of the lobby—oversized glass chandeliers, intricate gold patterns inlaid in the marble floors, rich ruby and amethyst lounges. I spin slowly, taking in all the details before my attention halts on Gage.
I don’t know what I was expecting for my first in-person meeting with Gage Heart. I’ve worked for Caleb for almost a year. He’s hardworking, smart as a whip, a bit of a playboy, but he’s very kind with a good heart. His little sister, Beth, is an absolute firecracker. She is so confident and quick-witted. It took no time at all to feel comfortable in her presence when I met her a few weeks ago, when we started working on this project.
Gage was a different story. When Caleb assigned me as Smoke and Barrel’s marketing manager, I was excited to get started, expecting the second-oldest Heart sibling to be much the same as the others. We traded a few emails where he was to the point, without being rude. I took his response to mean he simply didn’t have big opinions like Caleb and Beth did. I tried to phone him a few times, hoping a more personal connection would be more his style, but that conversation remained just as stilted.
Caleb assured me it had nothing to do with me. Gage was just a little closed off. A bit rough around the edges. So I eventually suggested Caleb be the main point of contact for our work together, if that made his brother a little more comfortable. That seemed to do the trick, but then Caleb suggested I come along for this pitch meeting with the High Rollers.
I had already heard the gossip about the four friends who owned casino chains around the country. No one can manage to breach their inner circle, they are notoriously difficult to gain favour with, and you never know where you stand with them.
But knowing it meant I’d also finally be meeting Gage in person this weekend, that was a whole other level of nerves. When Beth introduced us before we got on the plane in Heart City, I didn’t realise he’d be sohuge. I just about broke my neck looking up at him. His dark hair was pushed lazily off his face, with a square jawline dusted in heavy scruff. He had dark swirls of tattoos poking through the top of his shirt and down his arms,all the way to his fingertips. It looked like he spent time in the gym, too.A lot.
Even his cologne was unexpected. Smoky vanilla and rum. I’m sure I’ve never had such a keen interest in the way a man smells before. There’s the comfort of grease from my dad, and Caleb always smells clean and expensive. But Gage brings with him this overwhelming sense of power. It’s sexy and sultry and commands the image of Gage in a dark room, sweating as he—
“Looks like the coffee shop just a few doors up is good,” Beth announces as Caleb rejoins us. I can feel the heat rush to my cheeks as I realise the thought she interrupted. “Can you take all the bags upstairs, and then we’ll meet you out the front and head straight to High Rollers?”
“Sure,” Caleb says, reaching for Beth’s suitcase handle. “Can you get me a hazelnut macchiato?”
