The deal was solid, the offer airtight, and yet, it felt like everyone knew something I didn’t. I couldn’t stand feeling like I was being left out of something major associated with the deal, and it wasn’t even just that. It was also that Nate obviously didn’t know what was going on either.
No one gets to outmaneuver him but me.
Abram chuckled at something Douglas had said and lifted his coffee cup as he turned back to Nate. “You’ll have to explain the infield shift to me tonight.”
“I will,” he replied. “It’s simple once you understand the data patterns.”
Abram grinned. “Oh, I love patterns.”
The words sounded harmless, but they didn’t feel that way. The feeling that Nate and I were in the dark only intensified as everyone finished their food and sipped their coffee. By the time the polite goodbyes began, the gathering dissolved into small, departing clusters.
Mom touched my arm. “We should head back to the hotel, sweetheart.”
“I’ll meet you there,” I said, watching Nate speak quietly with Alex near the doorway.
Dad frowned. “Kate?—”
“I just need two minutes,” I insisted.
Mom gave Dad a subtle look and he sighed. “We’ll be waiting at the car.”
They moved toward the door and I strode across the dining room to Nate. He didn’t notice me, his blond head bent close to his brother’s darker one. They were talking in low tones, too quietly for me to hear what was going on.
Alex touched his shoulder and murmured something that made Nate’s posture shift immediately, his spine snapping straight. He and Alex took off to a study down the hall a second later, both of their expressions drawn and tight.
My stomach swooped and I went after them, but they shut themselves in before I could get there, the door closing firmly just a few feet away. I stopped three steps short of it, staring at the polished wood like I could see through it if I glared hard enough.
Spinning on my heels, I went back to the dining room in search of Jane. She and I had chatted a little last night and we got along really well. If her husband was up to something, she’d know about it. Hopefully, she’d even tell me, but she was suddenly nowhere to be found.
“Kate?” I turned to see my mom standing near the hallway, her purse already looped over her arm. “It’s time to go, honey.”
“Do you know if something else is going on?” I asked quietly when I fell into step beside her. “That was really weird, the atmosphere back there.”
Her smile faltered. “There’s always something going on in deals like this.”
“That’s not an answer.”
“It’s the only one I have right now,” she said gently.
Dad was waiting when we reached the door, smiling like he’d won a contest he’d been entering his whole life. The car ride into town was suffocatingly polite. I wanted to ask him what the hell Abram thought was missing and what it meant for us, but he seemed so happy that I could only assume that whatever it was, it was in our favor.
“Dad,” I said finally. “Is Abram after something else?”
“He’s just looking at this thing from every angle,” he replied mildly. “That’s not unusual for him.”
“What does that mean?” I asked.
“Kate.” My mom sounded nervous when she said my name, but when I looked at her, she just flashed me a serene smile. “Just enjoy the game tonight, darling. Let us know when you get back.”
“I will,” I promised, but by the time they dropped me off at the St. Regis, all I wanted was to sit down with my laptop in my favorite corner of the sofa and reread all my emails.
Whatever chaos was building around this deal, that was the one place that would always be uncomplicated.
CHAPTER 11
NATE
Wrigley Field was one of my favorite places on earth—and I’d traveled enough for that statement to mean something. Walking in here always grounded me, made me feel like I was coming home even though the crowd was already roaring like summer would never come if they shut up.
