It was a miracle she wasn’t drooling. “I’m sorry. I’m having trouble placing you. Where have we met before?”
He chuckled. “I was the agent for the buyer on the Friendly Drive property that has that devastating view of the ocean.”
“Right.” She’d shown that property just a few hours before Bill had dropped the bomb on her that their marriage was over. The beautiful man shaking her hand had been representing buyers from a town inland, and she was pretty sure that’s where he was based, too. “Owen, was it?”
“That’s right.” His lips were curved into a sexy half smile as he swept his gaze over her, making no effort to hide the fact that he was checking her out.
Well, hell. That made her feel good, even if he was way too young for her. It felt awesome to be appreciated. She was warm with pleasure as she asked, “Are you here negotiating a deal?”
“Nope. I just moved to Premonition Pointe and started working here last week. Kevin liked that I have connections to buyers from the city. A lot of them want beach property.”
What the actual hell? If Kevin just hired this guy, he certainly wasn’t going to be in the market to hire Grace. Why did he even have her come in? To humiliate her? That was likely, but she damned well wasn’t going to go down without a fight. She suppressed a frustrated groan and forced a tight smile. “That sounds like a good arrangement for both of you.”
Owen’s smile slipped, and his brow furrowed as he studied her. “Is everything all right, Grace? You seem—”
“Mr. Landers will see you now, Ms. Valentine,” Nina said from behind them, cutting Owen off.
She whirled around. “Great. Thank you.” With a polite nod to Owen, she followed the young woman back to Kevin Landers’ oversized office.
“Grace,” the older man who was built like a linebacker said, pushing himself to his feet. He wore a camel colored suit that was already wrinkled and… Was that a jelly stain on his light blue tie? He held out his hand. “It was good of you to come in.”
She took his hand and shook it. “Thanks for meeting with me.”
“Of course. Anything for the wife—ahem—woman behind Munch’s operation.” He smirked and waved to one of the plastic chairs in front of his desk.
As Grace took a seat, Nina bustled back into the office and placed a mug on Kevin’s desk. She took a small step back and gazed adoringly up at her boss. “Is there anything else I can get for you, Mr. Landers?”
“Only if Ms. Valentine would like something to drink,” he said, narrowing his eyes at his assistant.
“Oh. Yes. Ms. Valentine, can I get you anything? Coffee? Tea? Water? A donut?” She glanced at the open door and then snapped her fingers. “But you’d probably prefer a piece of fruit, right? We have bananas and apples for those who are trying to watch their weight.”
Oh, no she didn’t. Grace gave the child receptionist a glare that could melt steel and said, “No thank you, Norma. I’m fine.”
“It’s Nina,” she said.
“Oh. Is it? My mistake.” Grace smirked at her and then turned back to Kevin and raised one eyebrow. “I think your receptionist might need better training.”
Kevin let out a bark of laughter and nodded to his assistant. “Shut the door on your way out, Nina.”
“She’s interesting,” Grace said once the receptionist was gone.
“Nina thinks sucking up to the boss will get her a raise.” He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest as he eyed Grace.
“And being rude to a potential agent is sucking up to her boss?” Grace asked conversationally. The last thing she wanted was for Kevin Landers to think this situation was getting under her skin.
He shrugged. “She knows there’s no love lost between me and your husband.”
“Ex-husband,” Grace corrected. “Whatever issues you have with Bill, I hope you realize that they don’t have anything to do with me.”
“But weren’t you the brains behind the operation over there?” he asked, his expression unreadable.
He was trying to find a reason to not hire her. That much was clear. If she claimed she was instrumental in closing a majority of their sales over the years, he’d have every reason to hold a grudge against her. But if she didn’t, then her experience wouldn’t be enough to land her the job. Grace cleared her throat and leaned forward, staring Kevin Landers in the eye. “I am good at