Falling For You

by Nicole Taylor

“Leiliana?”

  “Yes, it is.”

  And just like that, his voice changed. It was warm and welcoming. “Hi there!”

  “Is this a bad time?”

  He hesitated. “Not really.”

  “What are you doing?”

  “I’m on my way back to my hotel. How ya doing, hai?”

  “Not in the greatest spirits. I’ve been having a challenging day.”

  “I’d like to hear more about it. Are you in London?”

  “Yes.”

  “I can be there tonight.”

  “You can?” she sat up on the sofa in surprise.

  “Aye. I want to see you. Will you have dinner with me?”

  Would she have dinner with him? Was that even a question?

  “Absolutely!”

  ~*~*~*~

  Gabriel announced his name at reception and was surprised when he was given a key card and directed to the elevator. He had assumed Leiliana would meet him downstairs like she had last time.

  As he approached the elevators, he felt buoyed. The fact that Leiliana was inviting him up to her penthouse instead of meeting him in the lobby, as she had the last time, seemed to say much about how their relationship was progressing.

  Gabriel inserted the keycard that allowed him access to the penthouse suite. The doors slid open into a foyer. Before he could take a moment to admire the marble and glass features, he saw Leiliana coming towards him.

  He inhaled a sharp breath. She looked simply amazing. She was wearing a black dress that hugged her torso and then flowed gently down her hips. Her hair was pinned to the top of her head, revealing her graceful neck and the delicate gold necklace and dangling gold earrings she wore.

  The moment she reached him, he took her into his arms and gave her a kiss on her cheek. When he leaned back, he looked at her beautiful face and sparkling eyes and could no longer resist, he leaned in and gently met her lips with his. She stiffened at first, and then she eagerly returned his kiss. They kissed for a few minutes more then he gently broke away and cupped her face in his hand. She smelled as good as she looked. It was a flowery perfume that was well suited to her personality.

  “I missed you,” he said softly, trailing his thumb across her cheek.

  Her cheeks colored prettily, then she gently said, “I missed you too, Gabriel.”

  They continued to stare at each other for several seconds. During that time, he debated whether he should kiss her again. He really wanted to but felt he must not rush things.

  She made the decision for him. She stepped away and went to retrieve her coat and purse.

  For the first time, he looked around the apartment. Whoever had decorated it had exquisite taste. It was supremely elegant and classy and in keeping with what he would expect from Leiliana.

  “This place of yours is magnificent,” he said when she gave him the coat and turned around to allow him to put it on.

  “Thank you,” she demurred. “It took me a couple weeks to achieve the look.”

  “You did this yourself? I thought it was done by a professional.’

  “I’m very professional,” she said with a smile.

  “You did a great job. You are a woman of many talents. I must sound like a broken record, but it’s true.”

  She blushed again. “Thank you. Do you want me to show you around?”

  He glanced at his watch. “Another time. We’ve got reservations for seven-thirty, and it’s now seven twenty-five. The restaurant is extremely popular. If you don’t get there on time, they give away your table.”

  Leiliana let out a laugh as she moved towards the door. “That sounds terrible, but my father would agree with their approach. He is quite a stickler for punctuality.”

  Mention of Leiliana’s father reminded him that he should probably try to see Lord Lamport as soon as possible. He didn’t like the thought of dating a woman whose parents he hadn’t met. Call him old fashioned, but that was the way his grandparents had raised him. It was hard to deviate from foundational teachings.

  He held open the door for Leiliana, and she sailed through. He couldn’t help admiring the way her hips swayed in that dress.

  When they got into the elevator, he said, “Speaking of your father, will I get to meet Lord Lamport now that I’m in London?”

  She gave him an apologetic grimace. “He and mum are leaving for an overseas trip tomorrow. But at the earliest opportunity.”

  As they headed out to the car, she asked, “So how was your trip to Belfast?”

  The driver got out and held open the door for Leiliana. After she was seated, Gabriel got in and sat beside her.

  “Eventful. I’ll tell you more about that later, but I’d rather hear about what you’ve been up to since I saw you last.”

  ~*~*~*~

  The restaurant was called Bokhor. It was a bit of a departure from the places Leiliana usually frequented, but she liked it on sight. It was a loud, lively place. It was packed with people talking, laughing, eating, and drinking. Waiters weaved in and out of tables that were positioned so closely together Leiliana wondered how one could carry on a private conversation in comfort. More than the sounds and the sights, there was the smell. Without having tasted a morsel, her mouth began to water with the tantalizing aroma of spices combined with wood smoke.

  What most surprised her about the place was that as soon as they gave their names, they were shown to their table. It was truly amazing because in such trendy places on a busy Friday night, you had to wait at least an hour to get a table.

  The waiter took their drink order and, leaving them with their menus, disappeared.

  Leiliana glanced around at the people near them and then back at Gabriel to find him watching her with a gleam in his eye. “What do you think?” he asked.

  “It’s quite a place. Very energetic. And it smells wonderful!”

  He sniffed the air. “Smells like meat and charcoal to me,” he said with a laugh. “There are vegetarian options, though. I verified that before I made the reservations.”

  She glanced at him in appreciation. “That was thoughtful of you.”

  “I’m trying to impress you. Don’t you see?”

  Her face felt warm, and she bit her lip to restrain herself from giggling like a schoolgirl.

  When Gabriel had met her at the door this evening, she thought he looked incredibly handsome. It had hit her how much she missed him. When he had kissed her, she felt a surge of passion that scared her. When was the last time she had felt this way about a man? Possibly never.

  She glanced away from him so that she could breathe more easily. “I love this artfully distressed look,” she said, commenting on the decor.

  “I think we’d better check out the menu before the waiter returns.”

  The menu was focused on Persian cuisine. They decided on the feast option, which featured plates from which they would build their own meal. When the waiter returned, they ordered the hummus, lamb kebabs, and aubergine cooked with garlic tomato and eggs and pickled chili and house rice.

  After blessing the meal, they dug into the dishes, which turned out to taste as good as they smelled.

  “So, you promised to tell me some more about your trip. You mentioned it was eventful. I’m very intrigued,” Leiliana said.

  Gabriel shared with her what was happening with the wind turbines. “They have asked for two weeks to decide what to do. I swear that if they decide to ban the wind turbines, I will sue them. I already invested in those wind turbines for that site. This is just ridiculous.”

  “That may not be the best approach, Gabriel.”

  “What do you mean?” he asked, sliding a lamb rump shank kebab in his mouth.

  “Suing the Government is not going to get you what you ultimately want. You need to resolve this dispute, not fuel it. Meet with the Minister alone. Based on your impressions, approach things from that vantage point. Suggest to him that you are willing to give a little in this area. Strike a balance, you know. Find out what he
’s after and see how you two can reach a compromise. You know, win-win.”

  Gabriel shrugged. “I’ll think about it. Perhaps that can work.” He glanced at her with a smile that looked like a load had been temporarily lifted. “What about you. You told me on the phone that you were having a challenging day. What was that about?”

  “One of our subsidiaries encountered some legal issues with property rights,”

  “Ouch! Are you going to have it resolved?”

  “I sure hope so. My legal team is working on it.”

  “What’s it about?’

  “Land I’ve been mining for diamonds. The original owners are now claiming we didn’t have mineral rights.”

  Gabriel was thoughtful. “You can ask the court to grant you a license to operate. Try to see if you can negotiate from that standpoint.”

  Her eyes sparkled. She whipped out her phone and made notes. “License, huh? I’ll enquire about that.”

  “Barry Walsh and Company encountered a similar situation once when property owners were suing us for land on which they were operating. We were able to negotiate a license. It worked out.”

  “I’m glad I spoke to you.” She sat forward eagerly. “So when are you returning to New York?”

  “Tomorrow night. Why do you ask?”

  “Because I’ll be traveling there in a couple days myself. I’ve got to conduct some business. Plus, I’m waiting to hear if a bid I submitted was successful. Even though I can remain in London, I prefer to be there in case I need to meet with the owner for any reason.”

  He looked at her with his head tilted to a side. “That’s quite a coincidence.”

  “What do you mean?” she asked, bringing the glass of wine to her lips.

  “I’m also waiting on word about a bid I submitted. I got a call today regarding it.”

  “What was the call about?”

  “The lawyer told me that there is a competing bid that is higher than mine. I agreed to an escalation clause.”

  Leiliana nodded. “That’s just what I did with mine.”

  “I didn’t feel comfortable about it, though.”

  “The competing bid?”

  “That too, but I was speaking about the escalation clause. The cost is beginning to concern me. I feel as though I might be biting off more than I can chew. I wish I could gauge how much higher the competing bid is willing to go. I really can’t afford to go any higher.”

  Leiliana nodded as she chewed a bite of hummus and naan bread. “Is it that important to you to purchase this business?”

  He nodded. “It is. I feel like once I have that company, I’ll be set.”

  “What industry is it in?”

  “Electronics,” he said.

  Suddenly, Leiliana felt a cold feeling of dread creep up her spine. She and Gabriel couldn’t possibly be bidding for the same company, could they?

  “Maybe we shouldn’t discuss this!” she blurted out.

  He gave her a puzzled look. “What do you mean?”

  “It sounds private.”

  “I don’t mind discussing it with you. What I shared with you about that housing project is also private. I guess I feel as though I can share anything with you,” Gabriel admitted with a boyish smile that twisted Leiliana’s gut.

  “Yes, but your bid is quite private, I’m sure. You don’t want that information to get out there.”

  He shrugged. “If I only tell you how will it get out there?”

  She shook her head. “JJ Inc. is ripe for the taking right now.”

  He stared at her. “I never said it was JJ Inc.”

  “I’m sure you did.”

  “I said it was an electronics firm. I didn’t say which one.”

  “Oh, well, I probably assumed it was JJ Inc.—” she said, not meeting his eyes.

  After silence stretched out between them, she chanced a glance at him. He was staring at her with narrowed eyes.

  “Have you been bidding for JJ Inc.? Are you the competing bid?”

  She didn’t answer immediately. The way he was watching her with those intense green eyes made her heart jump into her throat.

  She considered her options. She could hedge, she could evade, but she couldn’t lie. “Yes,” she murmured.

  “I can’t believe this,” he said almost to himself.

  “I can explain,” she said.

  “Go ahead,” he said, sitting back and folding his arms across his chest. “Be my guest.”

  “I was interested in acquiring JJ Inc. shortly after Jonas Judd died. When it was announced on the night of the Innovation Awards ceremony that you had worked there, I thought you’d be a good source of information on its operations.”

  “So you decided to pump me for this information under false pretenses,” he said in a low voice vibrating with anger.

  “It wasn’t like that.”

  “Wasn’t it? I was wondering why you were asking me all those questions on our first date. I didn’t feel too comfortable about it, but I let it slide. And now to hear this. I can’t believe I was so gullible,”

  “Wait just a minute! I did nothing wrong.”

  “Of course you would see it that way,” he said with a sneer.

  “It’s perfectly legal to make a purchase offer on a company last I checked.”

  “Why weren’t you upfront with me? Why didn’t you say you had an interest in the company when we were at dinner?”

  “I was being cautious. I didn’t know you that well.”

  “You weren’t forthright. You pumped me for information and never revealed your interest.”

  “I did not pump you for information! I wish you would stop saying that. I wanted your professional opinion on the company.”

  “You knew I was planning to make a bid.”

  “How on earth would I have known that?”

  “You saw me meeting with Dot. Are you telling me it never once crossed your mind that I was interested in purchasing?”

  “Honestly, it didn’t. I just thought you two were romantically involved. In fact, now that I think about it, you were also quite mum about your own interest. I don’t see why you’re getting on your high horse and accusing me of subterfuge when you weren’t completely open yourself.”

  “Don’t you try to turn this around on me. You were the one who began questioning me about JJ Inc. You were obligated to disclose your interest.”

  “Says who? I will not accept that you secure the rights to this company. If you choose to take offense, fine, but this is a free country. Free competition rules. May the best man win.”

  He laughed sharply and shook his head. “I was so wrong about you. I thought you were different. But you really are all that you are reputed to be. All that matters to you is the next big acquisition. You don’t care who you have to trample to get it done. You are not this hard woman, huh? Yea!”

  Leiliana took in a sharp breath. She felt as though Gabriel had slapped her. How had this happened? She had been quickly developing feelings for him. Now it was all ruined because of a misunderstanding. She felt like bursting into tears at the injustice of it all.

  He signaled the waiter for the bill. There was a deep silence between them until it came. After he paid, he said, “Let’s go. I’ll take you back.”

  She shook her head and continued to avert his gaze. “It’s fine. I’ll have my driver pick me up.”

  “Suit yourself.” He stood and looked down at her.

  She refused to look up and meet his gaze. Then she chided herself for not doing so. She wasn’t going to let him bully her. When she raised her head, though, she regretted it. His eyes looked angry but also hurt, betrayed.

  “I want you to know that I’m not backing down. You will not win,” he said.

  With that Parthian shaft, he left the restaurant.

  Chapter 9

  “H ello, Gabriel. Thanks for answering my call,” Leiliana said.

  Gabriel got her meaning. This wasn’t the first time she had called over the last
few days. Each time he had allowed the phone to ring until it went to voicemail. He really did not want to speak to Leiliana Lamport.

  Although four whole months had passed since he last saw her, he was still smarting. If she had been anyone else, he would have let it go. But her, the woman he had begun to fantasize about having a future with. The one he had fancied himself falling in love with. Her betrayal had knocked him flat. It had downright deflated him. He had even lacked the energy to finalize the negotiations with JJ Inc. and had delegated it mostly to Patrick. He had instead thrown himself into finishing the work on his house. The housing project in Belfast was at an official standstill. He had decided not to take Leiliana’s advice. After they had come back and told him the permit was canceled, he had filed a motion to sue them. He had wound up borrowing money from AL finance to cover his purchase of JJ Inc.

  A tidal wave project he’d been interested in pursuing had to be put on hold because he was now up to his eyeballs in debt. He could only pray that as soon as the purchase of JJ Inc. was finalized, he could begin to see some returns on his investment.

  In part, he blamed Leiliana for this. He had wound up paying 15% more than he had planned for JJ Inc., which had resulted in a couple million more he could have used elsewhere.

  But this morning he had decided to answer her call. That didn’t mean he was any less aggravated, but he was curious as to why she was relentlessly pursuing him.

  “Speak quickly, Miss Lamport,” said Gabriel briefly.

  There was a pause. “I thought we had moved beyond such formalities, Gabriel,” she said softly.

  His heart skipped a beat at her tone of voice, gentle like a caress. And then he reminded himself that she wasn’t to be trusted. He sniffed. “I had too until you proved to me that we are simply competitors in a free market economy, nothing more.”

  “I’m sorry you feel that way.”

  “Well, you live and learn, as they say.”

  “I’d like to discuss a matter with you that I think will benefit us both.”

  “I can think of nothing in the world you could offer me that I’d want.”

  There was a sharp intake of breath on the other end of the line, and he felt a little guilty for being so harsh with her. Why did he feel so betrayed by this woman, still? A woman he had merely been on a couple of dates with no less. Shouldn’t he be over her by now?