The Rivals - Vi Keeland Page 0,74
two suits.”
“There are four lawsuits pending, Sophia!” my father barked. “What are you doing at that hotel? Do I need to be there every day?”
Weston held his hands up—his tie stretched between them. His hooded eyes raked over my body as if contemplating what he might tie up first. Distracted, I’d heard what my father said, but my response capabilities were running in slow motion.
“I think I need to get back on a plane.”
That snapped me out of my haze. I shook my head, turning away from Weston. “No, no. That’s not necessary at all. There’re four suits. I knew that. I just misspoke.”
“I want an update tomorrow morning,” he grumbled.
“Fine. I’ll talk to you tomorrow then.”
As usual, he didn’t bother to say goodbye. The line just went dead. Normally a conversation like that would leave me sitting and stewing, but it was impossible to feel angry with the glint in Weston’s eyes.
I tossed my cell phone on the desk and swiveled in my chair to face him.
“I think you went a little overboard with the flowers.” I smiled.
His eyes focused on my lips. “Have you ever had sex blindfolded?”
Okay, then…guess we aren’t talking about the flower deliveries. I crossed one leg over the other. “No, I haven’t. Have you ever blindfolded anyone?”
He shook his head, which surprised me. “You’ll be the first.”
I arched a brow. “Sure of yourself, aren’t you?”
“How about in public?”
“Does in a car count?”
“That depends. Where was the car parked?”
“In a parking lot at the beach after it was closed.”
Weston grinned. “Then, no. That doesn’t count.”
“What about you? Ever had sex in public?”
“Not while sober.”
As ridiculous as it was, I felt a pang of jealousy. “Well, then you have, and I’m not looking to be another notch on your belt.”
Weston’s grin turned into a full-blown, cocky smirk. “You’re cute when you’re jealous.”
I folded my arms across my chest. “I’m not jealous.”
“We have a meeting now; otherwise I’d love to argue with you over who’s right and wrong. Or at least prop you up on your desk and eat you out while you try to yank the hair from my scalp.”
Oh… That sounded good.
Weston read my mind and chuckled. “Hold that thought. There’s another problem with the construction, and I told Sam we’d come up to discuss it.”
I should have been disappointed that we had another issue to contend with, but let’s face it, I really just wanted to go deal with whatever it was and come back to pick up where we were leaving off.
I stood. “Okay. Let’s go.”
Weston didn’t move out of my way. Instead, he slipped one hand around my neck and pulled me to him, placing a tender kiss on my lips. “You’re welcome,” he said against my mouth.
“What am I thanking you for?”
“The flowers. And, no, I didn’t go a little overboard. You said you liked them, so you should have them.”
My insides felt all mushy. “That’s sweet. But four deliveries weren’t necessary. The gesture was enough. Though I am looking forward to thanking you for each one.”
“That’s good.” He winked. “Because you have a lot more than four coming.”
Upstairs, the Boltons didn’t even have to point us to the latest issue with the construction. The wide-open wall filled with dry rot was self-explanatory.
Weston and I were already looking at it when Sam and Travis walked over.
“This whole wall needs to come out,” Travis said. “There’re some leaky pipes above that must’ve been trickling for years. The wood is soft and warped.”
The wall ran the length of the entire ballroom. It had to be at least a hundred feet.
“What about the leak itself?” Weston asked. “How much of the pipe needs to be swapped out?”
“We can probably contain the leak and fix the current problem, but that’s only a Band-Aid. The pipes all along the ceiling should be changed. They’re pretty badly corroded. Now’s the time to do it since the walls are wide open. But that also means a delay of a few days at least and another plumbing bill.”
Weston and I looked at each other. I shook my head. “Let’s just do it right. The last thing we need is to start holding events in here and have leaks spring up.”
Weston nodded. “I agree.” He looked at Sam. “How soon can you get us an estimate?”
“I can start working on it now and bring it up to you by the time I get out of here tonight at eight.”
“I won’t be around this evening,” Weston said.
Travis looked at me and