by Donna Alward
“Are we in the black?”
“Of course we are!” When he didn’t take the file, she lowered her arm again, hiding behind it.
“Then that’s all I need to know.”
“It is?”
“Please, sit down. Would you like a drink?”
“No, thank you.”
She perched on the edge of an armchair like a bird waiting to take flight, while he walked over to the small bar. She noticed he was in his bare feet and for a moment her gaze was drawn to the frayed hem of his jeans, the way it rested against the skin of his heel.
She couldn’t let his good looks distract her. She’d bet anything he was aware of his appearance and used it to his advantage all the time. But it wouldn’t work with her. She wasn’t so naïve as that.
He wasn’t interested in the numbers? Worry plunged through her stomach. What was he going to do to the hotel? Run it into the ground? Every decision she’d made in the last two and a half years had been carefully thought out, balanced against the pros and cons. What to do, where to live, what to wear and say… And he was treating this whole thing like it was no big deal. More and more he was bearing out her initial judgment that for him this whole thing was a rich boy’s game. But it was her livelihood. It was all she had. She’d built it from nothing. And he’d been given everything—life on a silver platter, with the proverbial silver spoon and all that.
“What are your plans for The Cascade?” She spoke to his back as he poured a glass of red wine, filling a second glass despite her refusal.
He returned and handed her the glass, then perched on the arm of the sofa. “I have many plans. I think revamping the hotel is going to be fun.”
Fun? Her heart sank further. Great. He was charming, handsome. There was no denying it. He was also the first man she’d responded to physically ever since leaving Toronto. Her eyes narrowed. Acknowledging his good looks meant nothing except that she still had eyes to see with. Taking her livelihood in his hands for fun didn’t sit well.
“Don’t you think those sorts of decisions should be examined, weighed?”
“What’s the fun in that?” His lips tipped up as he sipped his wine. “Aren’t you going to have any? I brought it with me. It’s Nico—the vineyards of my best friend, Dante Nicoletti. You’ll like it, it’s a fine Montepulciano. And it’s a staple on all Fiori lists.”
She dutifully sipped and looked down as the rich flavour surrounded her tongue. Oh, it was nice. Very nice. But that was hardly the point.
“I take my job seriously, Mr. Fiori. It’s not something to enjoy on a whim.”
“Sometimes whims are the very best things.” He smiled disarmingly and she found she actually had to work at not being charmed. Damn him!
She sipped again, sliding further back in the chair and crossing her legs. “I like what I do.” Would she have called it fun? Probably not. But it gave her a sense of accomplishment. Working in a hotel in the majesty of the Rockies suited her wallflower qualities to a tee. She could glimpse the fairy tale while still being able to watch from the sidelines. She felt protected and yet had room to breathe. But fun?
She wasn’t sure she knew what fun was.
“But that’s not the same thing. Tell me, Mari, what drives you? What makes you get up in the morning?”
The fact that I can.
She pushed the automatic answer away. She didn’t have to justify her choices to him. He didn’t need to know how she’d had a narrow escape, how it could have turned out so very differently years earlier.
“This isn’t about me, it’s about what’s going to happen to this hotel. Paul Verbeek resigned when you bought the hotel. How much more is going to change? Staff is already upset at the possibility of change and insecurity. If I start handing out layoff notices, morale’s going to take a serious dip.”
“That’s the first thing you’ve said that I agree with.”
She bristled. He waltzed in here and after what, four hours? Decided she was wrong about just about everything. She knew how to do her job and she did it well, despite being new at it. This was going to be another case of owners sending in an emissary, turning everything upside down, then leaving the mess for local management to clean up. She sighed. Everything had been going fine. Why did this have to happen now?
“I don’t know what to say. We obviously have differing opinions, yet I have no wish to cause any discord. You’re the boss.” She folded her hands. One of them had to keep a logical head.
“Describe The Cascade in three words.”
She squeezed her left fingers in her right hand. “Are you serious?”
“Perfectly. What are the first three words you think of when you think of this hotel?”
“Efficient. Class. Profitable.” She shot the words out confidently. She prided herself—and the hotel—on them. It was the image she tried to portray every day.
He stopped pacing and sighed. “I was afraid of that.”
“What’s wrong with that? We have an efficient staff, an elegant establishment, and we make a profit. You should be happy with all those things.”
“Come here.” He went to the balcony door again and slid it open. She followed, bringing the wine with her and cradling her glass in her hands. What on earth was he doing now?
“Look out over there.”
The afternoon was waning and the sun’s rays filtered through trees and shadows. Goosebumps rose on her skin at the chill in the air and she shivered.
“Just a minute,” he murmured, disappearing back inside.
When he returned he draped a soft blanket over her shoulders and took the glass out of her hands. She exhaled, releasing the knot between her shoulders at his casual touch.
“Now look. And tell me, what do you see?”
“The valley, poplar trees, the river.”
“No, Mari.”
His body was close, too close and she fought against the panic rising instinctively in her chest. Please don’t touch me, she prayed, torn between fear and an unfamiliar longing that he’d disobey her silent wishes. What would it feel like to have him cradle her body between her arms? Torture, or heaven? The way her heart was pounding, she recognized the sensation for what it was—fear.
As if he sensed her tension, he stepped to the side and gripped the iron railing. He breathed deeply, closed his eyes. When he opened them again he gazed over the vista before them.
“Freedom. Right now, what I’m feeling is freedom.” His smile was wide and relaxed. “Look at this place. Look at where we are. There’s no place in the world like this place. The Cascade can be a jewel in a beautiful kingdom. Wild and free on the outside. And inside…a place to rest, rejuvenate, to fall in love. Can’t you feel it seducing you, Mari?”
Tears pricked her eyes but she blinked them away, gripping the edges of the blanket closely around her in a protective embrace.
Freedom. Rest. Rejuvenation. All the things she had spent years searching for, and exactly how she felt about her new life in this tiny resort town.
And with his good intentions, Luca Fiori was about to ruin it all.
Chapter 2
“I don’t understand.”
Mari stepped back from the railing, away from the whispering trees and Luca’s warm voice. He was talking castles and falling in love? She’d stopped believing in fairy tales a long time ago. “How exactly do you intend to accomplish this?”
Before he could answer she scuttled back inside, removed the blanket from her shoulders and kept her hands busy by folding it. Having it around her shoulders had felt too much like an embrace and that didn’t sit well. It was becoming increasingly clear that she and Luca were two very different people. She was firmly grounded in reality. Full stop.
He followed her, watching her from the glass door until she put the blanket down. Then he stepped forward, giving her back the wine.
“I’m just working on impressions, for now.”
“I prefer to work with facts, and so far all I’ve heard from yo
u are nebulous statements of…of grandeur,” she finished, faltering a little. Her heart pounded in her ears as she fought back the feeling that she was crossing an invisible line.
It was beginning to feel like an argument and she forced herself to relax, taking slow breaths and picturing the stress leaving through the soles of her feet. She hated conflict. With a passion. She’d learned to stick up for herself over the last few years but it didn’t mean it came easily to her. If it weren’t for the rest of the employees looking to her for leadership, she’d be tempted to back away and let him have a go at it rather than argue.
But she was the manager and if she wanted to keep that job, she needed to fight the battles that needed to be fought. People were depending on her. People who had been there for her since she’d made this her home, whether they knew it or not. She steeled her spine and made herself look up again.
“That’s the problem with The Cascade,” Luca explained. He poured a little more wine in his glass, took a sip, and smiled a little. “Everything’s been compartmentalized. One room says cool elegance and another is modern and another is rustic comfort…all admirable designs and styles, but without unity.”
Unity?
His hand spread wide. “We need to decide what The Cascade is. What it means…what we want to achieve…and then work with that. If we work on one area at a time, it means less disturbance to everyone. The goal is to make everything exemplify Fiori Cascade.”
Mari’s eyes widened. “That will cost a fortune.”
“Fiori has deep pockets.”
“Of course…I’m just…weighing the cost versus the benefit. The Bow Val—I mean The Cascade is already doing well. Look at the numbers; we have excellent capacity even for this time of year.”
“That’s not remotely the point.”
And there was where they differed. She realized that they did not see anything the same way. Maybe it was having money and security that made the difference. Luca didn’t have to worry where his next meal was coming from, or where he’d sleep, or what the future held because his was there waiting for him. It always had been. But her life wasn’t that way. It was planning and dollars and cents and making the most out of less, rocking the boat as little as possible. It was staying in the background, out of notice, causing little trouble. And there was nothing wrong with that. It had gotten her where she was. She worked quietly but effectively, and she’d been rewarded for it through steady promotion.
“If you implement all these great ideas, when can we expect the memo from head office telling us to downsize our staff?”
“That won’t happen.”
“Will you guarantee that in writing? Because I’ve seen it happen, when the expenditures are too great to sustain staffing and layoffs happen. Are you planning to close us down during renovations? What are these people to do then? They count on their pay to put food on the table. Have you considered that?”
A smile flickered on Luca’s face and Mari steeled herself against the onslaught of charm she knew was coming. This was important. As much as she wanted to back away and say, “Yes sir, whatever you want sir”, she wouldn’t.
“Of course I’m not shutting the hotel down, don’t be ridiculous. And if any employees aren’t required during refurbishing, they’ll get paid vacation. Will that suit you?”
“I want it in writing,” Mari reiterated, and put down her wine glass. He was the boss, and she was treading perilously close to insubordination. She thought back to the timid girl who had started working here only a few years ago. It was the people in this very hotel who had helped her. She wouldn’t let them down now.
“You are a sharp one.” His voice held a touch of irritation and she felt the warm thread of slight victory infuse her. She’d gotten to him, then. His implacable charm was faltering and it emboldened her.
“I’m no one’s yes-man.”
“I’m beginning to see that.” His gaze appraised her, and she felt a flush climb her cheeks as the air in her chest expanded. No, no, no. She had to keep them focused on work!
“Perhaps tomorrow we might schedule a meeting to go over the preliminary details.”
“I have a better idea.”
Mari met his eyes yet again, and for a moment the air seemed to hum between them. The annoyance of moments ago was dispelled as he slid one hand into his trouser pocket. His eyes were warm, crinkled at the corners as he smiled at her.
“Have dinner with me tonight.”
She took two steps back as sure footing flew out the window. Alarm bells started ringing in her head. “Absolutely not.”
“Here, in the hotel. It’ll be a business supper. What is it you say…Scout’s Honor? Strictly work.” He lifted a finger to his forehead.
“It’s two fingers, and dinner is hardly a business meeting.”
Luca stepped forward, putting his glass down on a side table with a small click that echoed in the silence.
He was too close again. Part of her held the thread of panic and the other part was drawn to him, plain and simple, which meant that nothing was simple at all. It was much easier when they were disagreeing. Easier to keep him at a distance. She wasn’t equipped to deal with his charm. He didn’t even seem to know he possessed it.
“Bring your day planner if that makes you happy.” Happy? Huh. He was flirting, and she didn’t flirt. Ever!
“I think my office tomorrow would be much better.”
“Yes, but you see I need to get a complete picture, and that includes the quality of the dining experience. And eating alone does not constitute a fine dining experience, in my opinion.”
Oh, he was good. Smooth and persuasive and actually logical. She couldn’t find a good argument. How could she tell him why she didn’t go out to dinner with anyone? How she went home each night and made a meal for one and ate it with Tommy, her dog? Flimsy at best. And the real reason was none of his business. Not his, not anyone’s. No one here knew how she’d run away. How she still looked over her shoulder.
“A working dinner.”
“Of course.”
There was no polite way out of it. He was here, all the way from Italy, he was her boss, and he was calling the shots. Like it or not. She’d pushed him as far as she’d dared just now, and her victory was thin. If they were to work together for the next several weeks, months even—her heart quivered at the thought—then somehow they needed to reach an amicable status quo. She swallowed. He had to know she was not afraid. He had to know she put the hotel and its employees first.
“One dinner, that’s all. And we discuss work.”
“Naturally.”
Mari took a few sidesteps, thankful the door was within reach. “I’ll meet you in the Panorama Room at six.”
“Perfect.”
When he walked toward her, she pulled open the door, a little too quickly to be poised. His hand gripped the doorframe above her shoulder and she felt the heat from his body. Too close. She wasn’t sure if the tripping of her pulse was fear or exhilaration. She slid out the opening as fast as she possibly could, clinging to whatever grace she could muster.
“I’ll see you then,” Luca said softly.
She fled for the elevator without looking back.
* * *
It was five fifty-seven when Mari stopped before the entrance of the dining room and smoothed her dress.
She paused in the doorway, scanning the room, but he wasn’t there. Relief warred with annoyance. She didn’t have to worry about making an entrance this way, but at least he could be on time. She wanted to get this over with. It was irritating to have her initial impressions of him confirmed so accurately. Luca was unfocused, cavalier about this whole thing. He was every bit the playboy she’d read about. Sexy and smooth. Working together was going to drive her crazy.
She was shown to the best table in the room. She took her seat with surprise, looked outside at the mountains and trees being thrown into shadow by twilight. She hadn’t asked for this particular table; it was one usually r
eserved for guests requesting something “special.” It would be very wrong of them to monopolize the table when there was likely a paying guest waiting for it.
She sipped her drink and waited. By ten past six her toe had joined her nails, tapping with impatience. Only to stop abruptly when he stepped in the room.
God, he was beautiful. She could admit it when he was a room away from her and they weren’t embroiled in business. He was safe there. Safe and devastatingly sexy in black trousers and a black shirt. She shook her head, sighing. It was one of those tailored shirts that was meant to be untucked, emphasizing his narrow waist and moving up to broad shoulders. One hand slid casually into his pocket in a gesture she somehow already knew intimately. He said something to the hostess at the front, and the two of them laughed.
Luca Fiori was every woman’s dream. Everyone’s but hers. Dreams like that simply didn’t last. But it didn’t mean she couldn’t appreciate the package. It was a lovely package. And for a very quick moment, she wished. Wishing wasn’t a luxury she afforded herself. But looking at Luca, with his bronzed skin and free smile, she wished she knew how to be that free. To be able to accept, and to give.
He approached the table with an easy stride. “I’m sorry I’m late. I got caught up in e-mails my father sent and lost track of time.”
She pursed her lips, determined not to let him off easily, but he leaned over and pressed an informal kiss of greeting to her cheek.
She froze.
Seemingly unaware of her reaction, Luca took the chair across from her. “You look beautiful. Have you ordered?”
Beautiful? Her? She’d gone home to change and feed Tommy and then he’d drooled over the front of her outfit, causing a wardrobe change. Gone was the tailored charcoal trouser suit she’d picked and in its place was her generic little black dress—simply cut, black velvet with long fitted sleeves and with a hem ending just above the knee.
It wasn’t as businesslike as she’d have preferred, but it worked and while classy there wasn’t much sexy about it. It seemed compliments rolled off his tongue as easily as assurances.