He knew who I was?
My heart jackhammered against my ribs. Gideon James knew who I was?
I stared at him so long the elevator doors closed, and once again, this space seemed too small to hold someone as tall and powerful as him. I should’ve gotten off, but my astonishment kept me immobile.
“You, uh, know?—”
“I make it my business to know what the family who’s trying to destroy my legacy is doing.”
My brothers didn’t share a lot of nitty-gritty details about the distillery and ranch with me, but I’d heard about the land purchase. All of us had had to approve it, but it was little more than a formality. Teller told us our brothers’ plans, and if we didn’t argue, it happened. If we did have an issue, most likely, my brothers would get their way regardless.
Tate wanted to hire someone to farm the James land. Its official name was Percival Farms. Some of it was only fit for ranching, but a couple of sections made for good farming. The family distillery, Copper Summit, would be able to source some of its own grains instead of being subject to the whims of the market and Montana farmers. We’d be the farmers and we’d be the market.
Well, my brothers would. They ran both businesses and rarely asked for my input.
Gideon tilted his head. His hand was still in his pocket and he continued to lean against the wall. The man was mouthwatering.
The way his mouth tipped up, a little taunting, a little sardonic, should’ve grated on me. But before Daddy had died, he’d given each of his kids a portion of the Bailey land. I’d gotten the section closest to the distillery. There was a creek that ran through the property, multiple wildlife trails, and my favorite—huckleberry bushes. Lots of them. How would I have felt if Daddy had tried selling before he’d died?
I’d have been heartbroken. “I don’t think anyone anticipated how hard it would be for you.”
We came to a stop. I didn’t pay attention to the floor number. Three guys crowded on and a wave of booze washed over me. I inched closer to the wall of cedar citrus surrounding Gideon.
The corners of his jaw flexed. “It’s not as if they care.”
“It’s business. Pure and simple.”
He ground his teeth together and pinned me in place with his dark gaze. His pale-green eyes darkened. “Touché.”
The small beat of triumph was fleeting. “For what it’sworth, I understand how upset you are. If I was in your place, I’d be angry at my brothers too.”
We stopped and the guys got out. Again, when the doors closed, we were alone.
We didn’t move apart.
“Isn’t Copper Summit a family company?”
I knew what he was asking. Didn’t I have a say? Weren’t all of us the brains behind the operation? Um, no. But I wouldn’t let on how little say I had. “It is, but Bailey Beef is doing the purchasing. I’m only one Bailey.”
“I thought you might argue you’re a Kerrigan.”
“I assume you know my first name,Gideon. You can use it. You’re not one of my students.”
His eyes lightened. “Autumn.”
The elevator stopped. When the doors opened, the chatter from the main floor filled the small space. The dull bass of the club traveled through the floor, reminding me of my earlier humiliation, the one I’d confessed to the most handsome man I’d ever seen.
That guy and I would part ways. I’d go to my room, and he’d... I didn’t know. Go to his mansion in the hills? Walk into Glitter ahead of the line because he was the boss and the finest man to enter the place? Meet his equally beautiful girlfriend?
None of it was my business, but when I was about to tell him goodbye, I found him studying me.
“Tell me, Autumn.” His voice was smooth, filling me with a warmth only Copper Summit’s best bourbon could produce. “Would you like to see the parts of the casino that are more tasteful?”
Gideon
I hung on her answer much longer than I normally would’ve if I’d asked a girl out. And I hadn’t for years. Decades, even.
Since college, probably.
