Tempt Me In Vegas
Maureen Child
This billionaire doesn’t play well with others…Cooper Hayes won’t share his hotel empire, especially not with his business partner’s secret daughter—even if Terri Ferguson is the most beautiful woman in Vegas. He must buy her out. Will she say yes to his offer and his bed?
This billionaire doesn’t play well with others...
Until he meets her!
Cooper Hayes won’t share his hotel empire, especially not with his business partner’s secret daughter—even if Terri Ferguson is the most beautiful woman in Vegas. He’s obsessed with sinful fantasies—and buying her out. But Terri refuses his offer...while she shares his bed. With enemies working against them, how far will Cooper go for a love that money can’t buy?
MAUREEN CHILD writes for the Mills & Boon Desire line and can’t imagine a better job. A seven-time finalist for a prestigious Romance Writers of America RITA® Award, Maureen is the author of more than one hundred romance novels. Her books regularly appear on bestseller lists and have won several awards, including a Prism Award, a National Readers’ Choice Award, a Colorado Romance Writers Award of Excellence and a Golden Quill Award. She is a native Californian but has recently moved to the mountains of Utah.
Also by Maureen Child (#uea8a63a7-6d5d-5fe2-932e-3c9e7e85e740)
The Baby InheritanceMaid Under the MistletoeThe Tycoon’s Secret ChildA Texas-Sized SecretLittle Secrets: His Unexpected HeirRich Rancher’s RedemptionBillionaire’s BargainRunaway Temptation
Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk).
Tempt Me in Vegas
Maureen Child
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
ISBN: 978-1-474-07682-1
TEMPT ME IN VEGAS
© 2018 Maureen Child
Published in Great Britain 2018
by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF
All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.
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www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
To my cousin,
Terri Hineline—a strong woman,
a good friend and someone who always knows
how to smile through the bad stuff.
I love you.
Contents
Cover (#u5912486f-afd8-5653-9a65-981b9fe9daa7)
Back Cover Text (#uc964b38c-589e-5cf3-9bc2-0c3f15f720e5)
About the Author (#u9cbd1833-cd10-535e-b4a8-a51a0aab8291)
Booklist (#u5fedd6cf-8dce-56bc-8998-ffd29101d28f)
Title Page (#ua1f30dfa-fbd3-5b13-9d3f-d7ae28a4297f)
Copyright (#u65f7f7d4-c206-59ff-a810-a921f515f53c)
Dedication (#ud823f62b-c4b2-522a-a8a6-8e7ee5d210e3)
One (#ucb0dcd87-0020-53c2-865e-d17cacbcc475)
Two (#ubb28c06b-d991-5d3a-8c55-e5e368ae114e)
Three (#u2e1ed7fb-d6c1-52b8-9e76-027d44bc2ba1)
Four (#litres_trial_promo)
Five (#litres_trial_promo)
Six (#litres_trial_promo)
Seven (#litres_trial_promo)
Eight (#litres_trial_promo)
Nine (#litres_trial_promo)
Ten (#litres_trial_promo)
Eleven (#litres_trial_promo)
Extract (#litres_trial_promo)
About the Publisher (#litres_trial_promo)
One (#uea8a63a7-6d5d-5fe2-932e-3c9e7e85e740)
“This isn’t a damn soap opera. It’s real life.” Cooper Hayes jammed both hands into his slacks pockets and shot a glare at the man opposite him. “How the hell did this happen? Secret heirs don’t just appear at the reading of a damn will.”
“The only thing that appeared was her name,” Dave Carey reminded him.
True, but hardly consolation. Cooper stared at the other man for a few long beats. Dave had been his best friend and confidant since college. He was always reasonable, logical and so damn cool-headed that it was irritating at times. Like now, for instance.
“That’s enough, though, isn’t it? She exists. She has a name. And now,” Cooper added darkly, “apparently, half of my company. To top it all off, we know nothing about her.”
Here in his office on the twentieth floor of the StarFire Hotel, Cooper could let his frustration show. In front of the board and the company’s fleet of lawyers, he’d had to hide his surprise and his anger at the reading of Jacob Evans’s will.
Usually, being in this room with its wide windows, plush carpeting and luxurious furnishings helped to center Cooper. To remind him how far the company had come under his direction. As did looking at the paintings of the famed Hayes hotels that decorated the walls. His father and Jacob had started the company, but it was Cooper who had built it into the huge success it was today.
But at the moment it was hard to take comfort in his business...his world, when the very foundations had been shaken.
Cooper still couldn’t quite wrap his head around any of this. Hell, he’d had everything planned out most of his life. Hayes Corporation had been his birthright. He’d trained for years to take the helm of the company and he’d damn near single-handedly made his hotels synonymous with luxury.
Though there were five star Hayes hotels all around the world, their main headquarters was here, in what was considered the flagship hotel, the StarFire, in Las Vegas. The building had undergone massive renovations over the years, but it still claimed a huge swath of the famed Vegas Strip, and at night it glowed as fiercely as the stars it had been named after.
When Trevor died, Cooper had stepped into his father’s place and worked with Jacob. Since the man had no family, it was understood that when Jacob died, the company would fall completely to Cooper, who had been raised to be king.
Except it hadn’t worked out that way.
Cooper looked at Dave again. Now his executive assistant, he and Dave had both worked summers for the corporation, interned in different departments to learn as much as they could and, when Cooper took over from his father, Dave had come along with Cooper. He couldn’t really imagine doing this job without Dave. Having someone you could trust was priceless.
Dave sat in one of the maroon leather guest chairs opposite Cooper’s massive mahogany desk. He wore a black suit with a red power tie. His brown hair was cut short and his dark brown eyes were thoughtful. “We don’t know much now. We will, though, in a couple of hours. I’ve got our best men working on it.”
“Fine,” Cooper muttered darkly as impatience clawed at his insides. “Jacob had a daughter. A daughter no one knew about. Still sounds like a bad plot in a B movie.” Unbelievable. Apparently, Jacob did have family after all. A daughter he’d never seen. One he and the child’s mother had given up for adoption nearly thirty years ago. And he had waited until he was dead to make the damn announcement.
Pushing one hand through his black hair, Cooper shook his head. “You’d think Jacob could have given me a heads-up about this.”
“Maybe he planned to,” Dave offered, then shut up fast when Cooper glared at him.
“I’ve known him my whole damn life,” he reminded his friend. “Jacob couldn’t find five minutes in the last thirty-five years to say, ‘Oh, did I tell you I have a daughter?’”
“If you’re waiting for me to explain this away,” Dave said, lifting both hands in an elegant shrug, “you’ve got a long wait. I can’t tell you why he never told you. I can say that Jacob probably wasn’t expecting to die in a damn golf-cart accident.”
True. If that cart hadn’t rolled, Jacob wouldn’t have broken his damn neck and—it wouldn’t have changed anything. Jacob had been eighty years old. This would all have happened, eventually.
“He gave her up for adoption, ignored her existence for years, then leaves her his half of the company?” Cooper took a deep breath, hoping for calm that didn’t come. “Who does that?”
Dave didn’t answer because there was no answer. At this point all Cooper had were questions. Who was this woman? What would she say when she found out she was a damn heiress? Would she expect to have a say in how Cooper’s business was run? That stopped him cold. No way was she going to interfere in the company; he didn’t care who the hell she was.
“Okay,” he said, nodding to himself as his thoughts coalesced. “I want to know everything there is to know about—” he broke off and looked down at the copy of Jacob’s will laying on his desk “—Terri Ferguson, by the end of today. Where she went to school, what she does, who she knows. Hell, I want to know what she eats for breakfast.
“If I’m going to have to deal with her, I want to have as much ammunition going into this fight as I possibly can.”
“Got it.” Dave stood up and turned for the door. “Maybe we’ll get lucky. Maybe she won’t want any of this.”
Cooper would have laughed, but he was too furious. “Sure, that’ll happen. People turn down billions of dollars every day.”
Nodding, Dave said, “Right.”
“No, she won’t turn it down,” Cooper was saying, more to himself than to his friend. “But she’s not going to show up out of nowhere and be a part of the company. I don’t care who she is. Maybe what we have to do here is find a way to convince her to take the money and then disappear.”
“Worth a shot,” Dave said. “I’ll push our guys to research faster.”
“Good.”
Once his friend was gone, Cooper turned toward the wall of windows at his back. He stared down at Las Vegas Boulevard, better known as the bustling Vegas Strip, nearly thirty floors below, and let his thoughts wander. He’d grown up in this hotel and still lived in one of the owner’s suites on the twenty-fifth floor. He knew every nook and cranny of this city and loved every mercenary inch of it.
On the street, tourists wandered with hope in their hearts and cash in their wallets. They played the machines, the gaming tables and in the bingo parlors. Every last one of them had thoughts of going home rich.
Why would Jacob’s long-lost daughter be any different?
His gaze swept the hotels that surrounded his own and he noticed, not for the first time, that in daylight Vegas held little of the magic that shone on it at night. The city slept during the day but with darkness, it burst into exuberant life.
Cooper’s family had been part of Vegas history for decades, he reminded himself as he turned back to his desk. He’d taken his father’s legacy and made it a worldwide brand. Cooper had made his mark through hard work, single-minded diligence and a vision of exactly what he wanted.
Damned if he’d let some interloper crash the party.
* * *
“I’m sorry.” Terri Ferguson shook her head and almost pinched herself, just to make sure she wasn’t dreaming. But one look around the employee break room at the bank where she worked convinced her that this was all too real. Just fifteen minutes ago she’d been downstairs on the teller line, helping Mrs. Francis make a deposit. Now she was here, sitting across from a very fussy-looking lawyer listening to what seemed like a fairy tale. Apparently, starring her.
“Would you mind saying all of that one more time?”
The lawyer, Maxwell Seaton, sighed. “Ms. Ferguson, I’ve already explained this twice. How many more times will be required?”
Terri heard the snotty attitude in the older man’s tone and maybe there was a part of her that couldn’t blame him for it. But come on. Wouldn’t anyone in her current position be a little off balance? Because none of this made sense.
It had been an ordinary day in Ogden, Utah. She’d gone to work, laughed with her friends, then taken her spot on the teller line at the Wasatch Bank in downtown Ogden. Familiar customers had streamed in and out of the bank until this man had approached her and, in a few words, turned her whole world upside down.
Now the older man removed his glasses, gave another sigh, then plucked a handkerchief from his suit pocket and unnecessarily cleaned the lenses. “As I’ve made clear to you, Ms. Ferguson, I represent your biological father’s estate.”
“My father,” she whispered, the very word feeling a little foreign. Terri had grown up knowing she was adopted. Her parents had always told her the truth, that she had been chosen by them because they fell in love with her the moment they saw her. They’d encouraged her to search for her birth parents once she was eighteen, but Terri hadn’t been curious. Why would she be? she’d reasoned. Where she’d come from didn’t really matter as much as where she was, right?
Besides, she hadn’t wanted to hurt her mother or father. Then her dad died, her mother moved to southern Utah to live with her sister, and Terri had been too busy with college and life to worry about a biological connection to people she didn’t know.
Now that connection had just jumped up to bite her on the butt.
“Yes, your father. Jacob Evans.” The lawyer slipped his glasses back into place. “He recently passed away and in accordance with his will, I’m here to inform you that you are his sole beneficiary.”
And that summed up the weird. Why would he have left her anything? They had no connection beyond biology. And if he’d known who she was, why hadn’t Jacob Evans ever reached out to her? Well, those were questions she would never get an answer to.
“Right. Okay. And I inherited a hotel?” She took a breath and held up one hand before he could speak again. “I’m really sorry. Normally, I’m not this slow on the uptake. Honestly. But this is...just so bizarre.”
For the first time since entering the bank and asking to speak to her privately, the lawyer gave her a small smile. “I do understand how unexpected this must seem to you.”
“‘Unexpected’ is a good word,” she agreed and reached for the water bottle in front of her. She took a sip and added, “Weird is better.”
“I suppose.” Another smile. “Ms. Ferguson, your father was a full partner in the Hayes Corporation.”
“Okay...” That meant exactly nothing to her.
He sighed. “The Hayes Corporation owns more than two thousand hotels, all over the world.”
“Two thousand?” She heard her own voice squeak and winced at the sound. But seriously? Two thousand hotels? That couldn’t be right, could it? Her stomach did a quick pitch and roll and Terri took a deep breath trying to calm it.
The smell of burning coffee from the pot on the counter flavored the air, and the bank’s furnace made a soft hum of background noise. Downstairs people were working, talking, laughing, living normal lives, and up here? Terri was trying to think. Tried to remember who she was, where she was. But her brain had apparently decided it had accepted enough information for one day and shut down.
Resting one hand on a sheaf of papers he had stacked on the table, Mr. Seaton looked at her steadily. At least the gleam of impatience was gone from his eyes. Maybe he was finally understanding what a shock all of this was to her.
“Once you sign these papers, it’s official,” he told her. “You’ll have your father’s share in a very successful company.”
She tipped her head to one side and quietly asked, “How successful?”
One corner of his mouth twitched slightly. “Very. You, Ms. Ferguson, are now an extremely wealthy woman.”
Wealthy. Rich. Also weird. But good. Because her cable bill had just gone up and she had just been forced to put new brakes on her car and with winter coming, she really wanted to get new insulation on her windows and—
She reached for the papers instinctively, then pulled her hand back. “I’d like my own lawyer to look these over before I sign.” Well, her late father’s lawyer, but that didn’t really matter, did it?
“Commendable,” he said with a brief nod. Standing, he closed his black leather briefcase with a snap. Looking down at her, he said, “Your new partner, Mr. Cooper Hayes, is at the company headquarters in Las Vegas. He’d like to see you there as soon as possible.”
“Cooper Hayes.” She should probably write that down.
“Yes. His contact information is included in the packet of papers.” He gave her a small smile. “Hayes Corporation is headquartered at the StarFire Hotel and Casino.”
StarFire. She’d heard of it, of course. Seen pictures in magazines and now that she thought of it, Terri had seen pictures of Cooper Hayes, too. Her mind drew up one of the images of him posing with some celebrity or other—naturally, he was tall and gorgeous with eyes so blue he had to be wearing colored contacts.
And now he was her partner. The idea of going to the StarFire, meeting Cooper Hayes on his home turf, was a little intimidating, but she didn’t see a way around it. After all, she was now half owner of the place. A shocked burst of laughter bubbled up in her chest, but she squashed it. Yesterday she wouldn’t have been able to afford to stay at the StarFire. Now she owned half of it.
Weird just kept getting weirder.
“Okay, thank you.” She glanced at the papers, but didn’t touch them.
“Ms. Ferguson,” the man said quietly, and waited until her gaze met his to continue. “I know this is all new and somewhat overwhelming—”
“Somewhat?” she laughed but the sound she made sounded a little hysterical so she stopped. Fast.
“But,” he continued calmly, “I believe once the surprise of the situation eases, you’ll do very well in your new life.”
“You think so?”
“I do.” He grabbed the doorknob and said, “I’ve left my card with the papers, as well. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to call me.”
“Thank you.”
He opened the door and Jan Belling almost fell into the room. She recovered quickly, stumbling to catch her balance, then flashing the lawyer a brilliant smile. “Hi, sorry.”
“No need,” he said, lips twitching. Giving Terri one last nod, he left.
Jan slipped into the room, closed the door and hurried over to take a seat opposite Terri. Her short, spiky black hair complemented bottle-green eyes, making her look like a pixie. “Well,” she said, “that was embarrassing.”
“I can’t believe you were listening at the door.”
“I can’t believe you’re surprised. Besides, I didn’t hear much. The door’s too thick. Stupid historical buildings with real wood doors.” Jan took a breath. “So what happened? Who was he and why did he want you?”
Terri laughed as the tension she’d been feeling for the past fifteen minutes dissipated. Jan was her best friend, and the one person who could help her make sense of all of this. “Speaking of a ‘can’t believe’ situation...”
“Try me.”
Terri shook her head at the strangeness of it all. “I want to tell you all of it, but I should get back to work.”
Jan shook her head. “No worries. The boss says you can take as long as you like. We’re not busy, anyway, so start talking.”
Turning her bottle of water back and forth between her hands, Terri did. As she told her friend everything, it all began to settle in her own mind. It was beyond strange. Crazy. Impossible, even. Okay, maybe her mind wasn’t as settled as she’d thought.
“This is like a fairy tale or something,” Jan finally said once Terri had wound down.
“That’s exactly what I was thinking,” Terri admitted wryly. “So when the clock strikes midnight do I turn back into a pumpkin?”
“Cinderella wasn’t a pumpkin. Her carriage was.” Jan laughed a little. “And this is reality no matter how strange it all seems. This is amazing, Terri. You’re rich. I mean wildly rich.”
“Oh, God.” Terri dropped one hand to her stomach in a futile attempt to calm it. She’d never had a lot of money. Growing up, her adoptive parents had been schoolteachers, so though they’d had a nice life, they’d also driven ten-year-old cars and saved up to take vacations.
Of course, she drove to Idaho occasionally to buy lottery tickets, because who didn’t dream of suddenly becoming a gazillionaire? But to have it actually happen was almost terrifying.
Jan reached across the table to take her hand. “Why aren’t you celebrating? Oh. Wait. Sorry. God, I’m an idiot sometimes. You’re reacting to hearing that your biological father died, aren’t you?”
“Seems ridiculous to be sad about someone you’ve never met, but yeah, I guess I am.” In the midst of the windfall, there was that sad fact. Terri silently wondered what her father had been like. If he had known who and where she was, why had he never contacted her before? Why had he left her everything? She’d probably always wonder.
Jan took Terri’s water, had a sip, then handed it back. “You really had no idea at all about who your biological father was?”
“Not a clue,” she said softly. “And now I’ve got all these questions and no way to get answers and... I don’t know. It’s all so far out there, it’s hard to believe it’s really happening.”
“Yeah, I get that. But,” Jan said, “at least you know he thought about you. Remembered you. And in the end, wanted to give you everything he had.”
A smile tugged at the corner of Terri’s mouth. “Good point. Okay, then. No feeling sorry for myself. But I can be a little panicked, right?”
“Absolutely. The StarFire?” Jan grinned. “That’s supposed to be an amazing hotel.”
“I know.” Terri took a deep breath, but she had a feeling the wild tremors inside weren’t going to be soothed away. Her entire world had just been rocked.
Terri’s mind raced with possibilities. She had a good job, if not an exciting one, but now she had been given the chance for more. Sure, she’d have a lot to learn, but stepping into this new life could be amazing.
“And you own it!”
“Well I own half of it, apparently.” Abruptly, Terri stood up and said, “How do I go from being a bank teller to being a hotel executive?”
“Seriously?” Jan looked at her. “You’re going to make me mad if you start doubting yourself. Okay, fine, there’s the whole surprise factor to take into account,” Jan said. “But you’re smart and you’re good with people and you can do any damn thing you want to.”
Smiling, Terri said, “Thanks for that.”
“You’re welcome.”
“I don’t even know where to start, Jan.”
“With a lawyer.” Jan stood, too, and her expression read sympathy and aggravation. “Terri, this is your big chance. A chance to get out of the bank, to find a job that really interests you. Take it and run.”
All true. Terri had taken this job at the bank because she needed to work. But it wasn’t where she’d wanted to build a career. She really hadn’t known what she wanted. And the longer she stayed at the bank, the more comfortable it became and the less likely it was that she would leave to find something that fit her better.
She’d always done the expected thing. School. Work. Maybe this was the Universe giving her the opportunity to burst out of her rut and find out just what she was capable of.
Jan was right. She had to take this chance. Had to try for... more.
“Your new partner expects to see you in Vegas and you’ve got to figure all of this out before you meet him.”
Terri blew out a breath. She wasn’t a coward. Never had been. Sure, she’d never been faced with anything like this in her life before, but she could do it.
Couldn’t she?
She’d always been the good girl. The good daughter. The responsible one. She’d had dreams of traveling but had accepted that for the things she’d wanted to do and see, she would have to spend years saving money. Now suddenly, the world was laid out in front of her. She’d be crazy to ignore it.
“You’re right,” she said, nodding. “I’ll talk to Mike, tell him I need to take some time off.”
Jan shook her head and smiled. “While you’re talking to the bank manager, you might tell him that you’re going to be taking off forever.”
Terri laughed. “Things are changing, yes. But I’m not ready to throw my whole life out just yet.”
“I think,” Jan said as they left the break room together, “someone already did that for you.”
“I hate it when you’re right.”
Jan laid a hand on her arm. “Terri, you’re making yourself nuts and you don’t have to. Cooper Hayes doesn’t need you to run the company. But you’re his new partner, like it or not, so you do at least get a say in things.”
True, she thought and her mind started racing again. This was the opportunity of a lifetime and she’d be crazy to ignore it or to fear it. Sure, she didn’t know how to run a hotel. But she’d stayed in enough of them to know what she liked and didn’t. That had to count for something. And her Dad had owned a popular restaurant for decades. Terri had worked there herself as a teenager and learned from her father that the key to success in the service industry was making people happy. Sounded easy, but way too many people didn’t understand that.
“Just go, Terri. Grab this shiny brass ring with both hands. And if you need the cavalry, I’m only a plane ride away.”
Terri grinned. “Vegas, here I come.”
* * *
Four days later Terri was in Las Vegas, standing in the massive, opulent lobby of the StarFire Hotel. The floors were covered with wide, navy blue tiles that sparkled as if stars were trapped inside them. The ceiling was high and featured a night sky dazzled by twinkling stars and streaks of light from falling stars leaving trails of gold dust in their wakes. The effect was so real that if not for the crowds and the noise and the fact that it was the middle of the day, Terri would have thought she was outside staring up.
Paintings in gold inlaid frames dotted the walls, and a waiter served complimentary champagne to guests waiting in line to register. The noise level was tremendous, since the casino spilled right off the lobby. Slot machines beeped, pinged and sang out encouragement to the hundreds of people wandering the casino floor.
She turned in a slow circle, saw a gift shop, signs for restaurants and bars and still more people. From what Terri could see, the hotel seemed to stretch on forever. The outside had been impressive, but the inside was like walking into a different world.
One that was hers now.
That thought had her smiling and biting her lip at the same time. She hadn’t contacted her new partner, but she had made a reservation, so she dutifully joined the tail end of the line and accepted a flute of champagne from the waiter.
She hadn’t told Cooper Hayes she was coming. Terri had wanted a little time on her own, to check out her inheritance. To get a feel for what could be her new life. Or to at least explore the possibilities.
She owed that much to herself and to her parents. They’d raised her to be strong and confident. They’d sent her to college, encouraged her to find her passion. How could she walk away from this without even trying to make it work?
And in a way, didn’t she owe it to her biological father, too? She hadn’t known him, but he’d clearly kept track of her. He’d left her everything he had, so she was really his legacy, wasn’t she?
The line moved quickly and in minutes Terri was at the desk, handing over her ID to the clerk. He was young, with a practiced smile and a name tag that read Brent.
“Is this your first time at the StarFire?” he asked.
Terri grinned. “How could you tell?”
He winked at her. “You keep looking up at the ceiling.”
“Guilty.” She took a sip of the champagne. “It’s beautiful.”
“It really is.” He glanced at her driver’s license, tapped a few keys on his keyboard then stopped, turned and stared at her as if she had three heads. “Terri Ferguson?”
“That’s right.” She frowned a little and tried to get a glimpse of the computer screen. “You’ve got my reservation, don’t you?”
“Yes, ma’am,” he said with the crispness of an audible salute. Gone was the easy, flirtatious smile. Brent was suddenly all business. “We’ve been expecting you, ma’am.”
When did she become ma’am? “Expecting me?” She’d hoped to fly in under the radar but apparently that wasn’t going to happen.
“Your suite is prepared and ready for you, Ms. Ferguson.”
“I didn’t reserve a suite,” she said.
He grinned, printed off two key cards and slid them into a folder with the word StarFire emblazoned across it. He returned her ID, handed her the keys, then looked up and waved to someone behind her. “Like I said, Mr. Hayes—and we—have been expecting you.”
“He has?” Well, of course he has, Terri. Hadn’t the lawyer told her as much?
“Your name was tagged in the system so we’d recognize your arrival right away.” Brent smiled again. “Your suite’s been ready for days. Bill here will take your bags—”
A bellman in his twenties appeared out of nowhere beside her.
“Oh, I’ve only got the one bag, and it has wheels. I can—”
“It’s my job, Ms. Ferguson,” Bill said. “I’ll show you to your suite.”
Of course they’d reserved a suite. Terri had never stayed in a hotel like this one—let alone in a suite. This was so far out of her everyday ballpark, she couldn’t even see the stadium from here. But she was part owner now of this amazing hotel, so she’d better get used to it. Right, and that didn’t feel weird at all.
“Okay.” She swallowed the last of her champagne and slid the glass across the counter to Brent. “Could you take care of this please?”
“My pleasure, Ms. Ferguson. And welcome to StarFire.”
Welcome. She followed Bill across the polished lake of a floor toward a bank of elevators. Terri didn’t feel welcome. She felt...on edge. She was about to meet her new partner. About to start a life that she had zero experience with. In a place she didn’t know with people who were strangers. Sure. Great. Nerves? No, who would have nerves?
Everything had changed so quickly, she’d hardly had time to take a breath, and now she was in Las Vegas taking the first step into a world she didn’t belong in.
Now the question was, could she make a place for herself here? Would Cooper Hayes try to stand in her way? And if he did, was she willing to fight for a new life? Instantly, she thought of all the things she could do with the inheritance her father had left her. She could buy a house, send her mom and aunt on a trip around the world if they wanted it.
The possibilities were endless. All she had to do was prove she could fit in. Be a part of this world. This business.
In her head, she heard her friend Jan saying, “Go for it, Terri. Enjoy it. Life just got way interesting.”
Besides, Terri told herself, it was too late to back out now.
That last thought had barely raced through her mind when she saw him.
It was as if the crowds melted away. The ambient noise was nothing more than a buzz in her ears. Her heart pounded, her mouth went dry and her gaze locked on what was probably the most gorgeous man she’d ever seen in her life.
Every cell inside her stood up and started cheering. Honestly, even from a distance, he had the kind of magnetism that could turn a woman’s knees to jelly. He stood alone, tall and invincible as people hurried past him, instinctively giving him a wide berth. He wore a black suit with a shirt so white it was nearly blinding against the dark red tie. His black hair was expertly shaggy and his eyes were a pale, clear blue so startling, she couldn’t look away.
He was watching her, too, but she couldn’t tell what he was thinking by the expression on his face. Not surprising, she supposed. A billionaire businessman—especially one who owned casinos—like Cooper Hayes—was probably born with a poker face.
Cooper Hayes. Her new partner.
And a man who could feed her fantasies forever.
Two
Dave Carey watched the security footage from his office. He’d gotten a text alert the moment Terri Ferguson’s name had been entered into the hotel computers. She was here and now he had to find a way to get her gone.
He watched her now on the screen, a cold fist in the pit of his stomach. From his computer he could tap into any camera in the hotel. As executive assistant to Cooper Hayes, Dave pretty much had the run of the place. And it paid to always be on top of whatever was happening in the casino.
“She’s hotter than I expected,” he muttered, studying the footage of Terri Ferguson as she spoke to Cooper. “That’s not good.”
Cooper might think of himself as having a great poker face, but Dave had known the man since college. He could tell in a blink that Cooper was intrigued by his new partner. And that wasn’t good for Dave.
Hell, none of this was.
He tossed a pen onto his desk, leaned back in his black leather chair and kept his gaze locked on the tall blonde who had ruined his plans. Why couldn’t she have been short and ugly with an overbite and a dragging limp or something? No, she had to look like a damn goddess. Who would have guessed that women in a wilderness like Utah could look that good? He watched her smile at Cooper and more important, watched Cooper give her that hungry-lion-looking-at-a-gazelle expression.
“Damn it.” After years of putting in the time, helping Cooper build the Hayes Corporation into a global power, Dave had been on the cusp of finally getting what he deserved. Cooper had promised Dave that soon his loyalty would finally be rewarded.
And now some country-bumpkin blonde with great legs and a spectacular rack put it all in jeopardy.
Standing, Dave walked away from the image of Cooper staring at Terri Ferguson as if he were trying to keep from taking a bite of her. Moving across his office, Dave didn’t notice the high-end furniture, the thick carpets strewn across hardwood floors. He didn’t even see the wide windows giving him an awesome view of Vegas and the desert and mountains beyond. Instead, his mind was dredging up a meeting with Cooper nearly two years ago.
“Jacob’s not getting any younger, you know. And when he dies, the company comes to me. Once I’m fully in charge,” Cooper had said, lifting a glass of scotch in a toast, “I’ll see to it that you get a major chunk of Hayes Corp.”
Pleased, Dave had instantly wanted to know exactly how much they were talking about. But he came at the question subtly. “I appreciate it, Coop,” he said, “but what are you really saying?”
“I’m saying that you’ve had nearly as big a hand as I have, turning the company into what it is today,” Cooper said and Dave silently agreed. He was the one, after all, who ran around setting up meetings, taking care of minor issues before they became big ones and in general doing whatever Cooper didn’t have the time to handle.
“I couldn’t have accomplished so much so quickly if I hadn’t been able to count on you.” Cooper took a sip of his Scotch, then set it down again.
“That’s good to hear,” Dave said, nodding. Lifting his own glass, he took a sip and gave a quick glance around Cooper’s private suite. It was palatial and, as always, Dave felt a swift, hard stab of envy that he was just barely able to disguise. He was paid very well and still he couldn’t come close to living as Cooper did.
And damn it, he wanted to.
Dave’s parents had worked hard all their lives and never got anywhere. They hadn’t been able to help him with college. He’d put himself through and getting Cooper Hayes as a roommate had just been a damn bonus. Dave had gotten close to Cooper and slowly cut ties with his blue-collar family as he began to move in higher, glossier circles. By the time he graduated and went to work at Hayes along with Cooper, Dave had turned his back on his own past completely, in favor of his future.
Hell, he hadn’t seen his family in more than ten years and if anyone asked about them, Dave kept it simple and told people they were all dead. Easier that way.
“I’m going to want to make some changes once I have unilateral power. Jacob doesn’t see things the way I do. He thinks one hotel in London is sufficient. But why have one when you can have two or three?”
Musing aloud, Cooper said again, “Once I’m in charge, everything will change.”
“Well, that turned out to be true, anyway,” Dave muttered, slapping one hand to the window glass, warm from the October sun. This woman’s arrival had ruined everything. Now Cooper had a partner again. He wasn’t completely in charge and wouldn’t be unless they could get rid of Terri Ferguson. And until that happened, Dave wouldn’t get what he’d been working toward for more than ten years.
Oh, he knew that Cooper’s plan was to get little Miss Utah out of Vegas as quickly as possible. But Dave wasn’t fooling himself about this. He’d seen the interest on Cooper’s face as he looked at Terri Ferguson. And if Cooper was that attracted, the urgency to chase the woman off would fade. Pretty soon she’d be settled in, making plans, and Dave’s plans would be completely obliterated.
Pushing away from the window, he stalked back to his desk and sat down to stare at the image of the blonde who had, just by being here, become his enemy. As Cooper and Terri disappeared into the elevator, Dave shut down the surveillance feed. There were no cameras in the private elevator or the owner’s floor so there was no point in trying to track them.
Alone with his thoughts again, Dave’s mind raced with plans, possibilities. He had to find a way to get rid of Terri Ferguson and make it look like leaving was her own idea. He had to convince the gorgeous blonde that she was out of her depth. It wouldn’t be easy, of course. But Dave had handled tough assignments for years.
He could handle this, too.
But first, he told himself, it was time to call out the Big Guns, and he reached for the phone.
* * *
She wasn’t what Cooper had expected.
His own fault, really. He could have done research on her. He’d handed that off to Dave and then never followed up. Mainly because he hadn’t wanted to even think about having to deal with a new partner, for God’s sake. If he had done due diligence, he might have been prepared for his first sight of her.
The world he traveled in was populated by celebrities, wealthy business people and other so-called “elites.” When he’d heard that his new partner, Terri Ferguson, was a bank teller from Utah, somehow he’d expected...less. He wasn’t even sure what, really. Only that Terri was more—much more—than he’d imagined.
She filled his vision to the point of shutting out everything else. She was tall, which he appreciated. He’d always hated bending nearly in half to look a woman in the eye or to kiss her senseless. This woman probably stood five feet eight inches without the three-inch black heels she wore. Her dress was a deep, rich blue that hugged curves designed to drive a man crazy. The swirling hem of her dress stopped well above her knees, displaying long, shapely legs that were toned and tanned. The bodice was cut low enough to be tempting and she wore a black shrug sweater against the October chill.
Her long blond hair tumbled across her shoulders and down her back in thick, heavy waves and her summer-blue eyes were pinned on him. Just for a second, he indulged himself with another look at the full, rich curve of her breasts and his body stirred in response. Damn it. She was beautiful.
And a distraction he didn’t want or need, he reminded himself.
The only reason she was there, in his hotel, was to throw a monkey wrench into the middle of Cooper’s business plans. So it didn’t matter what she looked like, or that his body was tight and uncomfortable just looking at her. All that mattered was that he get her to sign over her half of the business in exchange for the huge buyout he was willing to offer her.
The bellman skidded to a stop when he spotted Cooper. “Mr. Hayes. I was just showing Ms. Ferguson to her suite, sir.”
“So I see.” Cooper took two long steps forward and stopped right in front of her. He was close enough to see the flash of something...interesting in her eyes. To hear the quick intake of breath and to notice how she squared her shoulders as if preparing for battle. Which, whether she knew it or not, he told himself, was the right reaction to this situation.
“You’re Cooper Hayes,” she said and he deliberately refused to notice the low pitch of her voice. Decided to not wonder how that voice would sound as a whisper in the darkness.
“I am,” he said. “I’ve been expecting you.”
Bill stood there, swiveling his head back and forth, watching the two of them as if he was at a tennis match.
“Sorry I’m late?” She smiled with the question and her eyes lit up. Completely irrelevant.
“You’re not late. I just thought you would arrive sooner than you did.”
Cooper noticed the bellman now getting even more interested in the conversation and he had no interest in supplying his employees with entertainment. Fixing his gaze on the younger man, he said, “I’ll take it from here, thanks.”
“Yes, sir.” Bill shot Terri what Cooper thought of as a sympathetic glance, then Bill turned and hurried back to the main lobby.
“Wow, he moved fast.” Terri sent a quick look over her shoulder. “Do you inspire fear in all your employees?”
“Not fear,” he corrected. “Respect.”
“Oh, of course. Wide eyes and a dead run are sure signs of respect.”
He took a breath. Apparently, she’d be harder to intimidate than the people who worked for him. “Are we going to talk about the bellman, or would you like to see your suite?”
Terri grinned. “I can do both.”
“Why am I not surprised?” he muttered. Gripping the suitcase handle with one hand, he placed the other at the small of her back, turning her toward the bank of elevators and one that stood alone, separate from the rest.
“Anyway,” she said, turning her head to take in the expansive casino behind them, “I’d have been here sooner, but there was a lot to do. I had to put in for a leave of absence at my job, get my car checked to make sure it was safe for the drive—”
“You drove?” He interrupted the flow of words because he was pretty sure that was the only chance he’d have to speak at all. “If you had called to let us know you were coming, I’d have sent the jet for you.”
“You have your own jet?” she asked, goggling at him.
“We do.”
“We have a jet. Right. Who doesn’t?” Shaking her head, she took a breath and said, “Anyway, I drove so I could stop off in St. George to see my mom and my aunt. Tell them what had happened and get them to babysit my dog for me because I didn’t know how long I’d be gone and I couldn’t ask my friend to watch her for who knows how many days—”
“You have a dog?” Cooper didn’t know why that hit him, but it did. It was something that hadn’t come up in Dave’s research, either. Cooper’d never had a dog. Or a cat. Or hell, even a hamster. Growing up in a hotel didn’t lend itself to pets. As a kid, that had bothered him. Apparently, it still did.
She grinned. “Yes. Daisy’s a cute mix of about a hundred and fifty different breeds, and she thinks she’s a Great Dane, so she needs a lot of attention and really doesn’t like being left alone. My mom loves her, so Daisy’s happy and—”
“What did your mom say about all of this?” Another interruption and he didn’t feel the slightest bit guilty about it. Until she spoke.
“You keep interrupting me. That’s rude, you know, but it’s okay for now.”
“Thanks so much,” he said wryly, but she apparently didn’t catch the sarcasm.
“Mom’s as freaked out by this as I am,” Terri continued. “Neither of us knew anything about my biological parents so we’re kind of shocked to find out my birth father even knew who I was, let alone where I was. Sorry. Rambling. The point is, I had a few things to take care of before I could come to Vegas.”
That bright, brilliant smile had knocked him back for a second but thankfully she hadn’t noticed. He felt off his game and that was something Cooper couldn’t afford. With that firmly in mind, he brushed aside her rambling. “Doesn’t matter. You’re here now.” Nodding, he slid a card into the slot of the stand-alone elevator. “This is a private elevator. It’s the one you’ll use to get to and from your suite. The other elevators stop at the nineteenth floor. This one goes directly to the top five floors and the roof.”
“Okay...” Another deep breath and he refused to notice how her breasts lifted with the action.
Focusing had never been an issue for Cooper. Until today, apparently.
“The waitstaff and housekeeping have their own elevators that will take them to the top floors for business purposes. The general public can’t access the higher floors.”
“Sounds very...secure.”
If she was joking he let her know by his tone that he didn’t find it funny. “As secure as technology can make it. Hayes Corporation offices are on the twentieth floor,” he said, turning his focus from her to the matter at hand. “And on twenty-one, two and three we have suites for special guests, dignitaries, celebrities...anyone whose security issues demand a safe, impregnable, luxury suite.”
“Impregnable. Right. Sounds cozy.” She nodded as the elevator doors whisked open.
“Our guests don’t come here for ‘cozy.’”
“Good thing,” she murmured.
He took that as a direct insult. “A cozy hotel is a B and B. A Hayes hotel offers luxury. Exclusivity.”
She blinked at him. “Wow. That sounds terrible.”
Surprised again, he said, “What about that is terrible?”
“Oh, just everything, but never mind...”
Cooper thought about arguing her ridiculous point but buried his irritation instead. Unknowingly, she was proving that he was right to want to buy her out of this partnership. If she didn’t understand the basics of the hotel industry, then she had no business being a partner. Certainly not his partner.
He took a breath. “The owners’ suites are on the twenty-fourth floor.” Cooper steered her inside the open elevator, slid his card into the slot again, pushed the right button and stood back, looking at her. With the mirrored wall behind her, he was able to take her all in at once. And he had to admit, every damn view he got of her was a good one.
Too bad she was such a pain in the ass.
The elevator swept up in a rush and she laughed, a rich, deep bubble of sound that whipped through the small, enclosed space and wrapped itself around his throat until Cooper felt like he couldn’t breathe. Pure enjoyment wreathed her features, when only a moment or two before, she’d been irritated, and damned if he wasn’t...captivated. Most women he knew were more guarded about their emotions. But Terri was honest and open and he found that intriguing.
She grabbed hold of the brass rail at her side, tossed her hair back and slanted him a delighted glance. “Well, that’s faster than I expected.”
“Express elevator.” His own voice sounded as tight as he felt. Cooper watched her staring up at the elevator roof and realized she was the first woman he’d been with in this elevator who didn’t turn and check herself out in the mirror. Every female he knew would fluff her hair or smooth her lipstick or simply give her appearance a mental thumbs-up. Terri Ferguson, though, was looking up at the digital midnight sky.
“That’s so fabulous. Like the lobby.” She shook her head. “I love the shooting stars. It looks so real.”
“I wouldn’t know. Living in a city with this much ambient light, you don’t see many stars.”
She leveled her gaze on him. “Now, that’s a shame.”
“I’ve never thought so.”
“Then you don’t know what you’re missing,” she said, looking at him with what could only be sympathy.
Well, Cooper Hayes didn’t need anyone to feel sorry for him. Especially over something as minor as not being a stargazer. Watching her, he figured this was just one example of how the two of them were from different worlds. She looked at the stars in the sky, and the only stars he was interested in were the celebrities who came to his hotels. Yeah, a partnership between them would be doomed. Best to end it as soon as possible.
She turned her gaze back to the ceiling, a soft smile on her face, when falling stars left trails of gold dust across a digital sky. Cooper didn’t bother looking at the illusion. Instead, he watched her pleased smile and wondered why the hell he was enjoying it.
Deliberately, he brushed it off and started talking. “We work with a company who designs and installs illusionist skies in the hallways, casino, the lobby. StarFire can follow you all over the hotel.”
“That’s amazing. I’m a little technologically challenged, so imagining people who can do that? Wow.” She looked at him. “It’s really great. I mean, everything I’ve seen since I walked in the door has been just beautiful.”
Her face was open and easy to read. So he saw her excitement, the touch of nerves in the way her teeth tugged at her bottom lip. The easy curve of that smile did things to him he really didn’t want to think about. Irritated, he snapped, “Glad you approve.”
And just like that, her smile wobbled and her eyes lost that sparkle.
Idiot.
Being charming with a beautiful woman had never been difficult for him. Before Terri Ferguson, apparently.
He spoke up again quickly. “The illusions are relatively new. Installed just a couple years ago, but everyone seems to like them.”
“I can see why.” She relaxed again, but her eyes still looked wary, as if she had walls up because she’d wandered into a hotbed of enemies. Which he really didn’t want her to be thinking. He needed her to see him not as an enemy, but rather as a man who was going to do her the favor of sparing her all the work necessary to keep a company like Hayes Corporation running.
“You said yourself this was a strange situation to be in,” he reminded her with a deliberately casual shrug. “Well, I only found out about you a few days ago, too.”
She blinked at him. “Jacob never said anything about me?”
“No. I didn’t find out the truth until a few hours before you did. So now we’re both surprised.” He tapped one finger on the key card folder she held. “Anyway, your card will take you to any of the top floors. Right now I’m showing you to your owner’s suite.”
She dragged in another breath, tossed her hair back over her shoulder and tightened her grip on the cold, brass rail. “Is that where my father stayed?”
“Only when he was in town. He mainly lived in New York.”
Even to him, his voice sounded cool, disinterested—and that wasn’t good. If Cooper’s plan was to smooth the way for her to become an in-name-only partner, then he needed to be a hell of a lot more amiable than he’d managed to be so far. It shouldn’t have been difficult at all, but his attraction to her was throwing him off balance. Not something Cooper enjoyed. “Jacob wasn’t in Vegas often over the last couple of years, so I didn’t see much of him. And I would have, since I live here in the hotel.”
Her gaze snapped to his. “You do?”
He’d surprised her and he supposed he could understand it. In her world, people probably lived in neat little houses with backyards and dogs and kids. People visited hotels; they didn’t live there.
“I practically grew up here,” he told her. “Always figured to move out eventually. Get a place away from the Strip, but I realized I like the Strip. And living here is easy. My office is right downstairs. Twenty-four-hour room service, and housekeeping.”
“Sure. Of course. Well, housekeeping I really understand. That would be handy.” She laughed a little and he heard the nerves in it. “Sorry.” She held up one hand and shook her head, smiling wryly. “This is hard to take in. Last week I juggled bills so I could pay to have my car fixed and now...”
“Now you can buy any car you want.”
She blew out a breath. “That hasn’t really settled in yet.”
“Get used to it,” Cooper advised quietly.
This was good. He wanted her to realize that the money she’d inherited could change her life. He wanted her to go out and play, explore the world. Hell, do anything but stay in Vegas and try to help him run his company.
“Your old world is over.” When the elevator doors opened with a whoosh, he added, “Welcome to your new one.”
A wide hallway where the sun shone through several skylights plugged into the ceiling stretched out on either side of the elevator. Pale blue carpet covered the floor, and the soft gray walls held framed photos of different hotels in the Hayes chain. Cooper watched her take it all in and felt a flush of pride. He was so used to his surroundings, he rarely noticed any of it. But her reaction to the place made him pause briefly to enjoy what he’d built.
“So many different hotels,” she murmured, walking up to the closest painting. It was the villa in Tuscany that boasted views from every room and a world-class spa.
“We’re in hundreds of countries,” he said, not without a touch of pride.
She turned her head to look up at him. “I hate to keep using the word amazing,but it’s the only one that seems to fit.” Then she looked up and down the sunlit hall. “Well, this is different. I’m used to narrow, dark hotel hallways.”
“None of our hotels have dark hallways,” he said and saw a flash in her eyes at his use of the word our. “Not good for business. Makes guests nervous.”
“But no StarFire skies up here? The illusions, I mean?”
“The illusions are for the tourists. Our guests. I prefer reality.” He glanced at the skylights and the sunlight pouring through. “I wanted real light up here. Feels less closed in this way.”
Pushing her hair back from her face, she asked, “Do you always speak in short sentences?”
“What?”
She smirked and he ground his teeth together. Fine. He did tend to speak with as few words as possible. Saved time. But no one had ever called him on it before. “Are you always so blunt?”
“Usually,” she said, turning to look up and down the hallway. “It’s easier to just be up front and honest. Lies tend to get all tangled and twisted.”
Now it was his turn to smirk. “Honesty may be best in Utah, but it’s not really popular in Vegas. Not exactly the way most business deals are made.”
“That’s too bad,” she said, then tipped her head to one side, her long, blond hair sliding off her shoulders to shine in the sun pouring through the skylight above. “Don’t you think?”
“Never thought about it.”
“Maybe you should.” She squared her shoulders again. She was still preparing for battle. “So, which way?”
He pointed down the hall behind her. “Your suite’s to the left of the elevator.”
She inhaled sharply and he took a moment to enjoy the lift of her breasts. Damn, he really was spending way too much time thinking about her body and wanting to see more of it. Preferably naked, spread across his bed with moonlight streaming through the windows. But he got a grip on the daydreams and deliberately pushed them aside. Yes, she was gorgeous, but he wasn’t going to get involved with the woman he was trying to get rid of. That would only complicate things further.
When Cooper had heard Jacob’s daughter was from Utah, Cooper had made the stupid assumption that she’d be some unsophisticated farm girl or something. And for that, he wanted to kick himself. He should have known better than to make assumptions. Maybe he should get out of Vegas once in a while.
As she walked down the hall in front of him, Cooper enjoyed the view. Her long legs made him wish they were wrapped around his hips, and her butt was a work of art. Her hair swung from side to side with every step she took, and her hips swayed in a silent invitation he was more than ready to accept. She flipped him a look over her shoulder and he saw how the dark blue dress she wore reflected in her eyes, making them a startling, crystal blue. Then she smiled and he felt the jolt of it slam home.
She was fascinating. More so than he’d thought she’d be.
More than he could afford to acknowledge.
Whatever he wanted to do to her, with her, he had to remember, she didn’t belong here and if he had his way, she wouldn’t be staying.
He thought of what little information Dave had found on her—only child, father deceased. Well, they shared that, anyway. She’d graduated from Weber State College with a degree in archaeology—as if that would come in handy in the hotel business. She lived alone in a condo she made regular payments on and worked at a bank as a teller and new accounts executive.
That was it. No dirt. No gossip. No angry ex-lover who made threats. No arrests, not even for jaywalking. She was so good it was almost eerie.
This kind of woman was not made for Vegas.
Which meant she wasn’t for him, either.
At the suite door, she took one of her midnight blue key cards from the folder and pushed it into the slot. Cooper stayed back, wanting to watch her reaction as she stepped into the luxurious owner’s suite.
He wasn’t disappointed.
She gave an audible sigh at her first sight of the place and stopped so suddenly to take it all in that he almost ran into her. “This is...”
“Amazing?”
She turned and gave him a quick grin. “Yes. Absolutely.”
Cooper walked around her and left her pink—of course it was pink—suitcase against the wall. He edged his suit jacket back and tucked both hands into his pockets.
Still watching her expression, he said, “It’s a three-bedroom, three-bath suite. There’s no kitchen, but there is a coffee bar that’s restocked every evening and a bar fridge with soft drinks, water and wine. The wet bar is across the room and if there’s a type of liquor you prefer and can’t find it, call downstairs and they’ll bring it to you.”
“Of course they will.”
He wasn’t sure what she meant by that, but ignored it and moved on. “There are snacks in the fridge, too, but room service will bring you anything you want any time of day.”
“Right.” She nodded, letting her gaze slide around the room.
He did the same. The suites had been updated and redecorated only a year ago. Jacob’s decorator had gone with shades of gray and smoky blue. There was plenty of chrome, lots of glass and wide-planked hardwood floors dotted with plush throw rugs. The balcony outside a pair of French doors ran the width of the building, affording both Terri and Cooper access.
“This is amazing,” she whispered.
“There’s that word again,” he mused with a chuckle. If she was this blown away by her own suite, it shouldn’t take long at all to convince her that she was completely out of her depth as a partner in this business. That was good, wasn’t’ it? Get rid of her quickly—especially because of what she was doing to him. “Follow me. I’ll show you the rest of the place.”
“Oh.” She spun around to look at him and her eyes were wide. “You don’t have to do that. You probably have more important things to do.”
He did. But he wanted to get a better feel for her and what she was thinking, feeling. And, as long as he was being honest with himself, he could silently admit that he liked looking at her. “Not at the moment.”
“Okay, then.”
Cooper closed the roller handle and simply carried her suitcase down a hall to the first of three bedrooms. He opened the door, stepped inside, then moved back to watch her again. Really, he’d never known anyone with such an expressive face. Her delight was clearly stamped on her features, and her eyes were sparkling. Maybe it was growing up in the business world. Or maybe it was Vegas itself, but it seemed that everyone constantly hid what they were thinking or feeling. As if letting anyone in meant giving away their edge.
And truth be told, that was how Cooper operated, as well. He’d spent most of his life building the walls that surrounded him. As a businessman, he kept what he was thinking, what he was after, under lock and key. The only one he truly felt he could be honest with was Dave. Everyone else was kept at a safe distance.
A woman as open and honest as Terri Ferguson was a risk to the walls Cooper had spent a lifetime building.
“This is amazing. Really.” She spun around to face him and pleasure was stamped on her features. “I swear I’m going to find another word to use. Once I get used to—” she waved her arms to encompass the lovely room “—all of this. Shouldn’t take more than a year or two.”
You won’t be here that long.
Yet, even as he thought it, he responded to the shine in her eyes, the wide smile on her face and he thought of things they could do together that would get the same reactions from her. Hell, he could practically taste that mouth of hers. She did a quick spin in place and the hem of her dress lifted higher above her knees, giving him one brief glimpse of smooth, strong thighs.
Instantly, he shut those thoughts down. He didn’t need them. Didn’t want them. And, he half resented that not only had she arrived to stick her nose in his business, but she was, without even trying, turning his dick to stone.
“Settle in. We’ll talk later.” His voice sounded gruff even to him. And a part of his brain quietly whispered, Charming, remember?
But screw that. He’d used up his daily quota of charm. He looked into her eyes and felt his world tip and he didn’t like it. Best to leave now. He wanted to get out of there while he could still walk.
“Okay, then,” she said, already turning away from him to wander into the adjoining bath. “I’ll see you later.”
“Right.” Fine. Hell.
She didn’t even watch him leave.
Three
Terri didn’t stay in the beautiful room for long. Sure, if she’d been on vacation, she would have indulged herself in the luxury of it all for hours. But then again, if she was on vacation, she wouldn’t have a room like this. The place she could afford would be a motel somewhere off the Strip probably sandwiched between a liquor store and a pawn shop.
But today, instead, she was staying at the top of a palace.
Her mother had made her promise to take pictures of the hotel so Terri had already documented most of the suite. Now she took some pictures in the grand bathroom.
“Wow. Just...wow,”she murmured as she moved her phone around to catch the whole thing. From the seafoam-colored tiles to the shower that took up one end of the room with multiple nozzles and a bench—she supposed it was there for when you got exhausted just walking back and forth to the shampoo alcove.
The pale green marble counter was stocked with shampoos and lotions and towels so fluffy and huge they almost qualified as blankets.She still could hardly believe this was happening to her.
“I’ve never even seen a tub that big,” she muttered, taking a picture of the deep soaker tub almost as big as a pool and complete with jets. She couldn’t wait to try it out.
“Later,” she promised herself and gave a quick look at the mirror, checking her reflection.
Her heart was beating a little fast; her eyes looked wider than normal with a sheen of excitement in them she hadn’t seen in a long time. Was it for this place, what was happening in her life?
Or was it, she wondered, because of Cooper Hayes himself?
As if in answer, her heartbeat sped up even faster and her breath caught in her throat.
It was more than just the way he looked, which was off-the-charts gorgeous—but there was an aura of power about him that fascinated her. He was steely and strong and the way he bit words off made her long to hear more of that deep voice. Not to mention the fact that when he touched her, she felt a kind of heat she’d never experienced before.
Not a good thing right now, she reminded herself. She needed to get used to this new world. To see if she could make it her own. Getting involved with her new partner wasn’t a smart plan. Then you were tangling up business and need and something was bound to go wrong.
Wow, this was not something she’d expected. Of course, here she was in a plush suite with a lap-pool bathtub and a view of Las Vegas that usually only birds saw. So what about this was expected? Then she remembered the flash of something dangerous in Cooper’s eyes as he looked at her and told herself that this was a man she had no idea how to handle. But she’d love the chance to try handling him.
“Okay, get a grip,” she told the woman in the mirror. “You’re not here for a romance. You’re here because—” She stopped.
Because her old life wasn’t enough. Yes, she’d been happy, but now there was a chance at adventure. At something bigger than she’d ever dreamed. She wanted to make this work, she realized. And once her mind was made up, as her Dad used to say, there was just no stopping Terri Ferguson.
Grabbing her black leather bag, she slung it over her left shoulder and headed for the door. The elevator ride was fast. She was still wearing the dark blue dress she’d arrived in and thought she looked pretty good for taking her first self-guided tour of the casino. When the doors swished open, a wall of noise erupted that shocked Terri even as it drew her in.
Stepping off the elevator, she was instantly pulled into the humming pulse of the crowd. It wasn’t the first time Terri had been to a casino, of course. Wendover, Nevada, was only a two-hour drive from Ogden so she and Jan often made the drive to see a show or spend the weekend at slot machines, trying to win a fortune that would change their lives.
Well, now her life had been changed and so she was looking at this immense adult playground with new eyes, hoping it would give her some kind of insight into her new partner.
The place was beautiful, of course. Like the rest of the hotel, the StarFire theme wended its way through the casino, as well. There were slot machines with flashing images of stars sailing through a night sky, and the illusion ceiling stretched across the entire room. The carpet was a deep, midnight blue with silver threads peppering it so that it looked like a night sky, as well. Mirrors dotted the walls and row after row of beeping, clanging machines with eager tourists perched in front of them stood on the carpet like soldiers. Table games formed a huge circle in the center of the casino, and overhead there was another illusion sky, this one with planets and shooting stars making a dramatic statement.
Terri wandered, wanting to see it all—not just the hotel and casino itself, but the guests—how they were being treated, if they looked happy. Like at her Dad’s restaurant, the best way to tell if a business was in good shape was to judge it from the customer’s point of view. From what she could see, everyone seemed to be having a great time. It was late afternoon, though there were no clocks in the casino to announce that fact.
Music streamed from a lounge bar where the night theme included black-topped tables and pinpoint lights on the walls. Powerful fans ensured there was only a faint hint of cigarette smoke in the air. Cocktail waitresses in impossibly high heels and body-hugging black and silver costumes hurried through the crowd, balancing trays holding full drinks and empties. Somewhere close by, a woman shrieked in excitement and bells and whistles went off at shrill levels that had Terri quickening her steps. She was still smiling as she walked away from the crowds toward what looked like a circle of peace in the madness.
A glassed-in area held sofas, chairs and pots and pots of flowers, blooms bursting in every color imaginable. There were two women inside, each of them working on their phones. Terri walked past, promising herself she’d check it out personally later. She was a little surprised the enclosed area wasn’t more crowded with people looking to take a break from the noise.
For more than an hour, Terri wandered through the hotel and the surrounding grounds. She watched valets laughing with customers and then racing off to get their cars. She saw the bellmen loading carts with luggage. Hotel guests were a steady stream, coming and going. Just beyond the front of the hotel lay the famous Strip, bustling with thousands of tourists.
Her self-guided tour ended when her black heels finally began to make her feet pay. They were beautiful shoes and she loved them, but they had not been designed for hiking. She took a seat at the bar in the main casino and smiled at the bartender.
Glancing at his name tag, she said, “Brandon, I would love a glass of chardonnay.”
“Right away.” He was gorgeous—just like every other employee she’d noticed—and Terri wondered if good looks were a requirement to work here. He had short blond hair, kind green eyes and wore a midnight-black vest shot through with silver thread over a white button-down shirt and black slacks. As he poured, he gave her a wide smile. “Your first stay at StarFire?”
“How could you tell?” she asked. “Am I that obvious?”
He shrugged, set her glass down on the gleaming black bar top and said, “It’s the way you’re looking around. As if you’re afraid you’re going to miss something.”
“In my defense, there’s a lot to see.” Terri took a sip and set the glass back down with a satisfied sigh. “Oh, that’s good, thanks. And yes, it’s my first time here. It’s a beautiful place. Do you like working here?”
It wasn’t just small talk; she really wanted to know how people felt about their jobs. And if she was now part owner, shouldn’t she?
He shrugged, wiped down a nonexistent spot on the bar top. “No real complaints. Good pay, meet nice people—” He winked.
She smiled and had another sip of the great, icy-cold wine. “Really. I’m curious.”
He planted both hands on the edge of the bar, tipped his head to one side and gave it some thought. “On the whole, sure. It’s a great hotel. Classy guests. Being a bartender, you see some really weird stuff, but not so much here. It’s absolutely the best place I’ve worked.”
She was glad to hear it.
“But,” he added, “it’d be nice if they were more flexible with the shifts.”
“What do you mean?”
He shrugged and gave a quick look around as if to make sure no one could overhear him complaining. “They don’t like us trading shifts if something comes up—like, I had to take my wife to the baby doctor for an ultrasound last week—”
“Congratulations.”
“Thanks!” He gave her a wide grin and a thumbs-up. “It’s our first. A girl. Anyway, I work afternoons, but I needed the late shift that day. Couldn’t switch with the night bartender, so I had to lose a day of pay.” He shrugged. “Things like that. It’s not bad, necessarily, but it’d be good if they were more willing to work with us.”
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