by Suzanne Rock
“You know how I lost investors and could no longer buy those hotels from your brother in Asia?”
“And you even had to stop renovations and put some of your hotels up for sale to consolidate and focus your business. Yes, we’ve been through this.” She shook her head. “The two of you have been going crazy trying to outdo each other with how much you’re saving and how fast you can recover.”
He grinned. “What can I say? We’re both competitive.” But the truth of the matter was that the competition had changed. While they still loved to go at each other in the boardroom, the jibes were more in jest, and the language had softened. After seeing how crazy his sister and Jason were about each other, Leo had forged a fragile friendship with Jason, and while there were still a lot of things to work out, that friendship had been growing stronger every day.
Strong enough for Jason to put the next phase of his plan into action.
Ari smirked. “At least you two aren’t going after each other’s throats anymore. You were even buying drinks at the bar of my charity event last week.”
“All in an effort to get him to spill his secrets, my dear,” he joked.
“You can’t be serious.”
He wasn’t serious, but he liked how he could get her riled up. “Oh, it’s true—didn’t you read the tabloids? We’re in competition about everything, even when it comes down to winning a certain woman’s affections.”
She shook her head and chuckled. “I can’t believe that the tabloids think I could choose between the two of you.”
“You don’t have to yet, but Leo’s feelings may change once he’s learned that I just inked a deal that will gain the upper hand in the hotel business.”
“Upper hand? How?” She shifted in her seat as she widened her eyes. “You have a buyer?”
He nodded, unable to keep the grin off of his face. “After two long months, I finally have someone willing to purchase those damn hotels.”
“You’re kidding.”
He took her hand and stroked her fingers as he talked. “This person is offering enough money for me to get back on my feet and start up the renovations again.”
“Oh, Jason. I’m so happy for you!” She hugged him, and Jason felt a tightening in his chest as he inhaled her sweet scent. She pulled away slightly and met his gaze. “And I’m sure Leo will be happy for you, too.”
Jason wasn’t so sure, but he wasn’t going to argue when there were more pressing matters to discuss. “I’m going to finish the renovations to the German suites first.”
“The hotels shaped like old castles? Get out—I love those buildings.”
Jason nodded. “You see, I want to do those first, because I know how much you like castles, and I want you to have someplace nice to stay for your honeymoon.”
“For my…” She gasped as Jason pulled out a ring and got down on his knee.
“Oh, Jason.”
“Arianna Perconti, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
She reached for the ring, then hesitated. “I thought you said that marriage was boring?”
“It is. Wonderfully, beautifully boring.”
“But you hate boring.”
“Correction—I used to hate it. I find that, as of late, predictability is growing on me.”
She grabbed the ring from his hand and put it on.
Jason chuckled. “Is that a yes?”
“Only if we get married in one of the renovated hotels.”
“My thoughts exactly.” He glanced at the dress. “Which is why I bought the dress.”
“It’s perfect,” Arianna said. “Just perfect.”
As Jason’s lips closed over hers, he decided that he couldn’t agree with her more.
Epilogue
Jason steered Ari into the conference room at the Prudential Center as a sliver of unease rippled down his spine.
“What are you doing here?” Leo asked from his position by the window.
“The same could be asked of you.” Jason lowered his hand from the small of Ari’s back as she went to kiss her brother.
“Please, Leo, not today,” she said as she gave him a welcoming hug.
Leo embraced his younger sister then turned his dark gaze on Jason. “If you think to come here and sabotage this deal—”
“Me? Why on earth would I do that?”
“So you didn’t come here to stop the sale from going through?” Marco asked as he started to close the distance between them.
Ari moved into his embrace. “We came here to finalize a deal of our own,” she said.
“Deal, what deal?” This was getting worse by the minute. Jason glanced around the large space and found nothing out of sorts. The cream-colored walls held various prints from contemporary artists, including a painting of a girl on a swing he had remembered seeing at the Palazzo. A long buffet table with coffee supplies lined the wall to his right, while a projector screen pulled over a Dry-Erase Board filled the left. Straight ahead were large, floor-to-ceiling windows and in the middle sat a large conference table with ergonomic office chairs. In the center of the table sat a laptop, connected to some power source through a hole in the table.
“We have a buyer for those hotels in Asia you refused to take off my hands,” Leo explained.
Jason shrugged. “Money’s tight. Besides, I know how much you like to remind me of your stronghold in China.”
“Not anymore. This buyer is willing to pay double their worth. It will mean losing most of our Asian market, but the extra money will allow for some much-needed renovations to our existing buildings.” He nodded to Marco. “If everything goes according to plan, we will start with Karin’s renovation plan for the Palazzo next month. She also picked out a publicist to help improve our image.”
“I told her I could do it myself,” Marco muttered.
Leo smiled. “I’m sure you could, but Karin believes that a second opinion by someone trained to work with the media could really help us revive our reputation.” He held up his hand as Marco started to protest. “And I agree.”
“Something similar happened to me,” Jason said in an effort to dispel the rising tension in the room. “A few days ago, an offer came in from a buyer for my properties in South America. I’ll lose most of my holdings there, but the added capital will allow me to finish the renovations.”
“He’s renovating the hotels in Germany,” Ari said, grinning. “You know, the ones that look like castles.”
Jason slid his arm around her waist. “If everything works out, we hope to be married there next spring.”
“Married?” Leo asked, raising his brows.
Ari grinned and held up her hand, showing off the large, princess-cut diamond.
The brothers immediately moved to hug both Ari and Jason, offering them their congratulations.
“You better take care of her,” Leo said as he patted Jason’s back. “She means a lot to me.”
“She means a lot to me, too.”
Leo twisted his lips into a half-smile. “I know, although I think Italy would have been a better choice.”
“We’re getting married in Germany,” Ari said as she slid her arm through Jason’s. “That’s what I want—my choice.”
“I give you a little control over the company, and it’s gone completely to your head,” Leo joked.
“I’ve had a good teacher,” Ari shot back, smirking.
“I can hardly wait,” Marco said. “Germany.” He hugged his sister again. “You’re going to make a beautiful bride.”
“Something about this doesn’t feel right,” Jason said as he broke free from Ari and began to pace.
“How do you mean?” Marco asked, disentangling himself from Ari.
“It seems very coincidental that we both received offers from a mysterious buyer within days of each other.”
“And that we were both asked to be here on the same day to close the deal,” Leo added.
“You have a point,” Marco said as he rubbed his chin.
“Who did you say made the offer to buy your South American holdings?” Marco asked.
“I didn’t say, but—”
“Good morning.” The familiar voice cut off Jason’s train of thought. He glanced around the room, but no one new had joined them.
“The computer,” Ari said, her voice full of strain.
“Deacon,” Jason said as he moved in front of the laptop screen. “What are you doing?”
Deacon smiled at his brother. “I’m doing what I do best—running a con.”
“You’re what?” Leo asked as he pulled up a chair and squinted at the screen.
“Oh no.” Jason fell into the chair next to Leo. “No.”
“Oh, yes. I do a good job, don’t I, brother? Felicia wanted to get revenge on both of us for stealing her connections and credibility by sending her to a mental hospital. I convinced her that it wasn’t me who took her power and influence, but you. One only has to look at your massive hotel chain to prove it.”
“What is he talking about?” Leo asked.
Jason suddenly felt sick. “I didn’t steal anything, and she ended up in the hospital because of her own actions, not mine. It wasn’t my fault that her creditors pulled out because of her mental collapse.”
“But you were there to soothe their wallets and pick up the pieces, weren’t you, little brother?” Deacon corrected. “Go on, ask him who his first investors were.”
“Jason?” Ari asked.
“It was their choice,” Jason said. “I had nothing to do with it.”
“You manipulated them and then left both me and Felicia in the dust while you took all of the glory.”
“Well,” Leo said. “That was a long time ago. Stone has proven time and again that he can not only manage a hotel chain, but make it thrive.”
“For now, yes.” Deacon smirked. “But what will the future bring?” He glanced at each of them in turn. “The best part of this whole thing was that we used your own money to buy you out.”
Marco leaned on the back of Leo’s chair and frowned at the computer screen. “But ten million isn’t nearly enough—”
“It was only the last in a long line of cons.” Deacon glanced at his brother. “Jason has been paying into our fund for months by investing in the ‘starving artists’ we threw in his path.” He glanced at Leo. “And all of those reporters you bribed to stay away from your family?” Deacon shrugged. “The only one I couldn’t secure was that Amanda Vaughn.” He shook his head. “Some people have far too much integrity for their own good.”
“If you forged our signatures, then the paperwork is illegal. It can’t possibly stand up in court,” Leo said.
“Yes, it can. You all dealt with a company called Harris Incorporated, which is a subsidiary of my employer’s holdings, Killington Corp. Ms. Burke is thrilled by her new acquisitions. These hotels are the perfect addition to her company.”
“Ms. Burke owns Killington?” Leo asked.
Jason rubbed his temples as a dull ache formed behind his eyes. “Felicia was married to Robert Killington. When he died, he left her everything, including his company. I thought she sold it off.”
“I convinced her that it was so much more fun to play the game than to cash in and sit on the sidelines.”
“But she knows nothing about the hotel business,” Jason said. “It’s complicated and—”
“That’s why she has me.” Deacon smiled. “I have been studying you, brotha, and I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve.”
“You can’t possibly think to run us into the ground,” Leo said. “You have no experience.”
“It takes years of hard work to build an empire,” Jason added.
“And now, thanks to the two of you, the hard work is done. All we need is a little branding and marketing spin, and we’ll become the largest hotel chain in the world.”
“Why, Deacon?” Jason asked. “At any time you could have come to me—”
“I tried, little brother, but I’m too much of an embarrassment for you to deal with, aren’t I? Well, things are going to change around here. You’ve had your chance in the spotlight. Now it’s my turn.”
“What has she done to you?” Jason asked. “You know Felicia as well as I do. She’s unstable—”
Leo fisted his hands. “This is a family fight. It has nothing to do with the Percontis.”
“You are one of the most successful hoteliers in the world. I’m afraid that makes you collateral damage.” Deacon glanced at each of them in turn. “You will find copies of the paperwork over on the side table in the corner.” He smirked. “As you can see, we have countersigned and witnessed the documents. Everything is legal and in order. May the best hotelier win.”
“Jesus,” Jason said as the computer screen went black.
“What do we do now?” Marco asked.
Jason stood and walked over to the side table. Sure enough, two large stacks of legal papers were there, waiting for them. “Now, we fight.”
“Fight?” Leo asked.
Jason turned and faced the room. “My brother is counting on us fighting separate battles against him. What he doesn’t realize is that united, we are stronger than anything he can do to us.” He walked up and put his arm around Ari. “I say we fight for our hotels, and our positions around the globe. If we fight together, I’m confident we can overpower him and set things right.”
“Together,” Ari said as she put her arm out in the middle of the circle. Each of the men covered her hand in turn.
“I like how you think, Stone,” Leo said. “We shall fight this new threat together.”
Don’t miss Suzanne Rock’s first novel in this blazing new series
AT HIS SERVICE
Available from St. Martin’s Paperbacks
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
A lifetime New Englander, Suzanne has been married to her college sweetheart for more than two decades. In addition to being a self-published author whose boxed sets have hit the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists, Suzanne is a chauffeur, a maid, a chef, an event planner, a hairdresser, a wardrobe stylist, a tutor, and a sometimes masseuse. Visit www.suzannerock.com to learn more. Or sign up for email updates here.
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Contents
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Epilogue
About the Author
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
FOR HIS PLEASURE
Copyright © 2015 by Suzanne Rock.
Cover design by Crystal Ben. Cover photograph © Lorado /IStock.com; textures © solarseven/Shutterstock.
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eISBN: 978-1-4668-7824-2
St. Martin’s Paperbacks edition / December 2015
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