Midnight Special Coming on Strong - By Tawny Weber Page 0,80
two different things.
“Exactly,” Sierra agreed. “He’s hero material. Which means he’s hardwired to ride to the rescue. Even after all that crap went down, Mitch never bad-mouthed you or your father. If he knew how bad things are now, maybe he’d offer some advice. Or best case? He’ll step in, checkbook at the ready, and save the company.”
Belle grimaced.
Mitch definitely lived by his own code. Over the past six years he’d developed a reputation as the man with the magic touch. Mr. Money, a real estate developer with an eye for success, he was known in the industry as a fair man who played by his own rules, uncompromising, intense and dynamic. People appreciated his generous willingness to share his success, but behind the scenes there were whispers of ruthless payback to anyone who crossed him.
Which didn’t bode well for Belle, since she was the one seen as most deserving of Mitch’s revenge. Mutual acquaintances still joked that she’d better watch her back. She knew better, though. She’d never mattered enough to him to merit that much attention.
“He won’t deal with me,” she assured Sierra, playing her trump card.
“You don’t know that.” The way Sierra said it, as though she had some naughty little secret, made Belle nervous.
“Yes, I do.” Belle took a deep breath and, with the air of one confessing a mortal sin, dropped her voice to a loud whisper. “I never told you, but I tried to see Mitch. Two years ago. Remember when I had that car wreck?”
Eyes huge with curiosity, Sierra nodded.
“I was shook up and had some weird idea that being hit in a head-on accident on a one-way street was a sign that I should make amends for all my wicked ways.” She met her friend’s snort of laughter with a glare. “I figured ditching Mitch topped my wicked list, so I sucked up my courage and went to apologize.”
“No way,” Sierra breathed. “And you didn’t tell me?”
“There was nothing to tell. He was supposedly out of the country.”
“Supposedly?”
“Well, I went back a couple weeks later and his assistant said he was out with the flu.”
“So?”
“So isn’t it obvious? He was avoiding me.”
“He left the country and got the flu to avoid you?”
Belle rolled her eyes. “No, that was just B.S. He was probably there in his office telling his assistant to make something up so he didn’t have to see me.”
Sierra’s expression clearly said “you’ve got to be kidding.”
“Don’t give me that look. It could be true.”
“Only if the roles were reversed. You’re the one afraid of confrontation, Belle. Not Mitch. If he were in the office, I’m sure he’d have taken five minutes to personally tell you to kiss his ass.”
“And you want me to go chasing the guy for favors?” Belle ignored the confrontation issue. It was true, after all. “We both know he doesn’t want anything to do with me.”
Sierra hummed, then slid off the chair and crossed to the leather bag she’d tossed on the credenza. She pulled out a file folder with what looked like a printout of an email clipped to it.
Waving the file at Belle, she arched a brow and asked, “Wanna bet?”
“Spill,” Belle demanded, making a grab for the folder. Sierra whipped it out of reach with a laugh.
“You really need to have more faith in your impact on people.”
“According to you, people are only out for what they can get,” Belle shot back.
“Exactly. So while Mitch might happily punish you when it’s convenient, the tune changes when he needs something.”
“And he needs us?”
“No. He needs you. This gig is right up your alley,” Sierra claimed. Which meant it was totally social. Sierra handled the big corporate and studio events, the type of things that required juggling numbers, working with specific images or ground rules. In other words, the more traditional events that relied heavily on organization. Belle’s specialty was the over-the-top hedonistic fantasies. And since she’d indulged in so many fantasies about Mitch Carter, the idea of having another shot at sharing a few with him sent her pulse racing.
“Spill,” she demanded. She tried to ignore the excitement dancing in her stomach, making her edgy and impatient. This was crazy. Mitch hated her. He had to. But maybe, just maybe, this was her shot at making amends. At fixing the past and helping her father. And maybe, just maybe...at finally getting into his pants.
She’d blown it before, stumbling over that silly marriage idea. But she was older and much more experienced now. This