The Right Swipe - Alisha Rai Page 0,97

sometimes you reached for the least bitter piece of meat. She wasn’t going to beat herself up for how good he’d been at tricking her.

“If you think this somehow makes you better than me, you’re mistaken,” Peter hissed.

It was probably unwise to taunt a man who looked as angry as Peter did, but . . . eh. Fuck it. “I don’t think I’m better than you,” Rhiannon explained. “I know I’m better than you. And pretty soon the whole world will know it, too, won’t they?” She dropped her gaze to Peter’s fists. “Do you want to hit me?” Exhilaration made her brave, or maybe reckless. She took a step closer to him, on the path she’d follow to speak with Annabelle and claim her crown. “Go on. How will you explain a black eye? That I was asking for it?”

Slowly, he unclenched his fingers.

Tough talk aside, the knot of apprehension in her chest eased. She nodded. “Now move.”

They waited in a tense standoff for a few seconds, but Peter finally budged. She could feel his gaze on her back, drilling a hole, but with each step she took, pride and accomplishment took the place of her fear and nervousness.

She found Annabelle in her office, seated at her desk, scribbling something. The older woman looked up when Rhiannon entered and gestured for her to close the door.

Her beautiful Willy Wonka.

Rhiannon’s butt had barely hit the chair when Annabelle shoved a folded piece of paper across the desk. “That’s my counteroffer,” she said crisply.

This was a little unexpected, but not wholly so. Rhiannon had anticipated some negotiation. So long as she wasn’t the one angrily grabbing her bags and exiting the mansion right now like Peter undoubtedly was, she was fine with some friendly wrestling over dollars and cents.

Rhiannon opened the paper and choked at the number written there. “This is a much higher counter.”

Annabelle folded her hands on the desk. “It’s what Peter offered.”

That son of a bitch. He’d been willing to overpay for this company, just to make sure Rhiannon got shut out? Because that’s what this amount was. A vast overpayment.

She folded the paper. “I’ll have to check with my partner.” This was much higher than what she and Katrina had agreed their final number would be.

“I’ll give you a week.” Annabelle’s smile wasn’t so friendly now. She might not be her older sister, but there was a businesswoman underneath all those eccentricities. A shark of a businesswoman. “There’s also some terms in Peter’s proposal that I liked that weren’t in yours. I’ll send you a list tomorrow, but those would also be included in the counter.”

Annabelle’s tone was stern and dismissive, something Rhi never heard before from her. “We can consider some additional terms, but again, I have to speak to my partner.”

“Perfectly acceptable.” Annabelle stood. “Well, that’s that, I suppose. Congratulations, Rhiannon. I look forward to hopefully doing business with you.”

Rhiannon rose to exit the office, but a tiny itch between her shoulder blades stopped her from leaving. “Was there any part of my proposal that you liked more than Peter’s?”

“Oh yes.” Annabelle peered at her over her glasses. “I liked the words you spoke from your heart.”

“But the actual proposal?”

“Well, Peter offered more money. And 100 percent employee retention.”

Rhiannon wasn’t sure she could guarantee employee retention, especially if everyone at Matchmaker was as snotty to her as William was. She definitely couldn’t imagine retaining and working with William. “That is an extravagant promise,” she said cautiously.

“Oh, I know. I wasn’t expecting it.”

“If you don’t mind me asking then . . . why didn’t you take Peter’s offer? If it was so good it could hardly be true?”

“Personality and heart matter in all aspects of life, business included.”

A suspicion bloomed. “I didn’t think you disliked Peter.”

“Appearances can be deceiving.” Annabelle’s smile was fake. “Are we done? I’m sure you have to get on the road.”

Rhiannon hesitated. Her stomach was a mess of knots. “Annabelle . . . this isn’t because of what William said about me being involved with Samson, is it? Because I would hate to think that influenced your decision making.”

Annabelle reared back. “Of course not. I don’t make business decisions based on who my nephew likes.”

That sounded genuine. “Okay.”

Annabelle shrugged. “I didn’t care for some of the things I heard about Peter’s past, that’s all.”

Instead of easing it, the sinking sensation in Rhiannon’s stomach intensified. Why are you looking a gift horse in the mouth? She’s willing to bargain with you, not Peter.