I type a quick reply.
Find anything yet?
He responds within a minute.
Their files are pretty well encrypted, but I should crack it soon. Maybe as early as tonight.
Excellent.
We’re finally getting somewhere.
That’s headway into one avenue of intel. Now I have to get another one started.
I hit the elevator to head down to the lobby, and just my luck, Maeve hops back on at the fifth floor.
“Kellin!” Her tight smile appears frazzled. “I’m so sorry about that. Should we continue our tour?”
I smirk. “Is there any corner or cubby of the hotel we’ve left unexplored? Maybe I’m missing an original sculpture by a local artist in the women’s bathroom?”
The tease works.
She laughs and brushes a loose strand of hair off her face. “I suppose you’ve seen most of it.”
Time to push. “Great. And now that you’ve shown me the public-facing perfection, I need to see the guts.” Since we’re alone in the elevator, I invade her space. “For a deal of this magnitude, my people will require full financials. P&Lstatements, balance sheets, cash flow for the last five years. I need to see your ADR, your vendor contracts, and your debt service schedule. I needeverything.”
Maeve retreats, raising a hand as if to ward me off before pressing her fingers to her chest beneath her breasts. “I think it’s a little too early for that, don’t you? We just started discussions last night.”
“Business is business.” The elevator doors open, so I jab the button to give us another moment of privacy. “When will be the right time? Next week? Next month? Zenith won’t wait forever.”
I have no idea if all that documentation will provide any insight into where Declan’s holding Doyle. I just hope I stumble on a record of him somewhere. Or one of my other investigational gambits pays off.
Maeve flounders. “I thought we would at least wait a?—”
“Look, Maeve.” I crowd her space again, forcing her into the elevator wall. The similarity to last night isn’t lost on me. “I want to be fair, but you’ve got to understand my perspective. My entire company would be backing this. If we don’t hammer out a tentative deal by next week, I’ll have to move on.”
Her lips thin as she frowns up at me, but she keeps quiet.
When the elevator doors open again with a quietding, I back out into the lobby. “It’s up to you. You know where to find me.”
Spinning, I head out of the hotel without another word.
Now, all I can do is wait and see if she takes the bait.
Chapter 9
Maeve
Irritation prickles at my skin as Kellin saunters off. Earlier, he brought me coffee and chatted me up. Then, in a huge pivot, he shut off the charm and started listing demands. Warm and propositioning one minute, all business the next.
What the heck is his hot one minute, cold the next persona all about anyway?
I don’t need to see his face to notice his smug attitude. The swagger of his firm ass is more than enough.
Last night, I almost climbed him like a tree. If he hadn’t stopped me, I might have woken up in his bed this morning.
Outside his door, I could hardly breathe, each inhalation sharp as a dagger. My blood hummed with urgency, and lust curled in my belly.
But when I was ready to ditch all reason and pin him to the nearest wall, he lifted my chin with a firm touch, regarded me with dark, steady eyes…and then shut me down cold.
