She could help him get this deal done.
He knew it.
He wanted The Napa Valley clients here in Sedona and he wanted them at Red Canyon Vineyards. The wives of the three potential clients could shop and sightsee and he could golf with the men and get some business done. Hosting this group would only be the first of many like enterprises.
But how to get the winery?
Carly’s outright refusal was an opening salvo, nothing more. He needed a way to get to her, to be with her, to figure out that one weakness that would make the winery his.
As he left Sedona, inspiration struck. He saw the next month roll out before him in the most perfect way. He knew what he needed to do on more than one front.
He had an itch for Carly that he couldn’t explain, which he needed to get rid of. He also wanted her winery as part of his working portfolio. When he put the two problems together, they cancelled each other out, fire-with-fire. He had no doubt that he’d emerge not only free of these powerful, incomprehensible longings for her but in possession of her winery as well.
He made a mental note to have Brad hire a top-notch PI to dig around in every aspect of Carly’s life.
Once he had his plans set, he’d head back to Sedona and begin his assault.
He slid on his Ray-bans and settled back in his seat. He loved this feeling of command. He would get to know Carly’s body all over again and in the seduction he’d get to know her. He’d get inside her head. He’d search and probe until he got what he wanted, her Achilles heel. As soon as he had that critical piece of information, the winery would be his.
His chest got really tight. He had a sudden uneasy feeling.
He’d never gone after a woman like this before. Taking her back to bed and keeping her there violated his one-date rule. He had good reasons for keeping his personal life simple—women tended to get emotional with successive encounters. He didn’t want Carly to start thinking he had more to give than just sex. If he wasn’t careful, she could get hurt and he didn’t want that. He might be ruthless when it came to building his business, but he would hate to think of Carly mistaking his intentions.
Well, he’d keep his finger on the pulse of that issue as the next three weeks went along. If he saw some danger signs, he’d remind her of their agreement that after the Napa deal, he’d be heading back to Phoenix for good.
He could breathe again and his brow cleared. From this point on, in his considered opinion, the winery deal was just business.
Now all he needed to do was to have a talk with Brad, his accountant and his lawyer then head right back to Sedona with his IT manager. Between the two of them, he would get his electronics set up, the way he did whenever he traveled, to keep his hands on every aspect of his empire.
Now that he had a plan, he felt certain he’d have Carly back in bed in no time and soon after, he’d have her winery.
Life was so good.
* * * * * * * * *
Two days later, when Quint hadn’t even called to pester her about her winery, Carly should have felt relieved. Her spirits however were strangely lethargic as she leaned over the lobby counter.
“I forgot to ask yesterday, did you have a nice Fourth?”
Tina nodded. “We were with Bob’s family. His idiot brother, Shane, had some illegal rockets. Of course he set them off and it was fun—that kind of thing always is—but one of the rockets misfired and landed in a juniper, in flames. That whole tree would have combusted if we hadn’t had a hose nearby.”
Carly shook her head. “Shane’s always been a loose cannon.” Her thoughts drifted elsewhere, to a set of broad shoulders and sky-blue eyes. She sighed.
“You sound like a dog who’s lost her bone,” Tina said. She tapped away at the computer. Every now and then she glanced at Carly.
“We’re slow today,” Carly said, her thoughts now fixed on the way Quint had sort of attacked her at the winery house.
“What are you talking about? You have a tour in ten minutes.”
“Oh, yeah.”
“Do you wish he was still here?”
“Who?”
“Harry Blooker, of course.”
Carly rolled her eyes. “Of course I don’t miss Quint.” Okay a little lie. “Do you know what I miss?”
“What?” Her fingers tapped some more.
“Going on dates and having someone open your car door and that sparkle of anticipation when you know he’s on his way.”
“Wait,” Tina cried. She stared at the computer screen, her brows high on her forehead. “Uh-oh.”
“Don’t tell me a computer virus.”
Tina shook her head. “No, a different kind of virus. He’s on his way.”
“Who?”
“H.B.” Tina turned the computer screen around. She’d pulled up an email from Hunter Enterprises.
Carly scowled as she read, “Have new plan. I’m on my way. This can work…for both of us.”
“Oh, God.” She stumbled backward and fell into that same seat she’d fallen into just a few days ago. “Why is he coming? Did he say anything else, maybe in another email?” She jumped back to her feet. “Email him now. Tell him not to come.” As though an email would stop him. She’d need a Swat team and even then…
“It’s too late. This email was sent an hour ago.”
“I already told him no,” she muttered.
“Face it. He likes you.”
“Don’t say that.”
“He liked you enough that first day—or rather, night.” She waggled her eyebrows
“Would you stop it?” Carly cried.
“Your tour is ready to leave.”
“Fine.”
“Fine.”
* * * * * * * * *
Quint sat at the Cowboy Club bar and sipped the local Oak Creek Amber Ale. He had a view of the Mogollon Rim in the distance rising two thousand feet higher than Sedona. The Rim walls surrounded the northern and eastern part of the town like a citadel. The whole canyon ought to be the eighth wonder of the world.
His gaze dropped to the street. His chest tightened. His lips parted so he could suck in some air. Carly headed in his direction.
He swiveled on his stool. His heart thumped. She was like Sedona, a great natural beauty, her will as solid as the rock walls beyond.
He took a swig of the ale as he watched her. She looked angry and he smiled. He liked her riled up. Tina had warned him that she’d been as mad as fire when she read the email. So she was.
He chuckled but he also felt a little guilty. How could he enjoy himself like this when she looked like the top of her head could blow at any second?
She had red smudges on her cheeks, she hadn’t bothered with a single bit of make-up and still she was beautiful. He sipped the ale a little more. Desire crept over him like a tide that just kept moving in.
He remembered taking her the first time, from behind, her body so ready for him, her groans, his hand rubbing up and down her back, then he was inside. He wanted to be there again, but by the look of her mulish expression, he had a lot of work to do.
But how he loved a challenge.
He took a big gulp of ale and forced his body to calm down. This battle wouldn’t be won any time soon. Right now he needed to concentrate on business, on getting her geared in the right direction. Once he had this stage of his plan in place, he could focus on getting close enough to her ear to tease her with that little flip of his tongue that had made her whimper all night.
He had hammered out the details with his lawyer and his accountant. He felt certain Carly would go for this new, but quite temporary angle.
If she didn’t, he’d find some other way to get in, simple as that.
Carly jerked the door open and entered the restaurant.
He waved to her and smiled.
She met his gaze, but her lips settled into a grim line. He would so love to kiss away all that dreary determination.
“Quint,” she stated, approaching the bar.
“Have a seat. You know, I’ve heard they make a nice prickly pear margarita.”
“Why did you come back?” she asked, straight to the point, her voice hushed.
Her tone did nothing to encourage his ‘naked ASAP’ plans. “I’ve solved the dilemma.”
“There was no dilemma to solve. I’m keeping the winery. Period.”
Quiet but determined.
He liked her a lot but decided on a different tack. “I’m ready for a good meal, how about you? They’re holding a table for us. Can I at least buy you dinner?” He heard her stomach growl. He chuckled. “I know you’re hungry.”
A blush crept up her cheeks vying with all the red Sedona dust still on her face.
She compressed her lips. “Fine. We might as well get this settled now rather than later.”
Of course she’d meet things head on.
“That’s the spirit.”
She glared at him.
As the hostess led them to their table, he put his hand on the small of her back, but she jerked away from him and cast him a look from hell right over her shoulder. His face felt scorched.
He tossed up his hands, but he couldn’t keep from smiling. What was it about her that set his body on fire? Although all this resistance wasn’t helping, kind of like putting one foot on the brake, while pressing the accelerator full force with the other. Now if she’d just let go of the brake, man would this car fly.
* * * * * * * * *
Carly felt stretched to the limit and irritable. She accepted the suggestion and ordered the prickly pear margarita on the rocks. After several minutes she realized that Quint no longer talked. He sat adjacent to her on her left and when she glanced at him, she saw that he watched her over the rim of his bottle of ale. “What?” she snapped.
“I apologize for just showing up. That was rude of me.”
“Yes it was,” she said, as though she fired her words through a pistol.
Her margarita arrived.
Quint grew silent once more.
“What?” she shot again.
“Did you have lunch?” He frowned a little. Maybe it was a scowl.
“No. What does that have to do with anything?”
“You’re edgy tonight.”
I’m edgy because you’re here. She sighed. “I didn’t expect to see you again. I thought we’d already wrapped this up.” She sipped her margarita through the straw. She shoved the straw aside and took a deep drink.
“What’s good here?” he asked, flipping through the menu.
“The restaurant is called, ‘The Cowboy’. You figure it out.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he drawled.
This time she laughed. She sipped her margarita a little more. She scooted down in her seat. She’d been sitting like a soldier at attention and now her shoulders ached. Okay, maybe she’d been a lot edgy.
After she devoured a salad, baked potato and a beautifully grilled spencer steak, and after Quint had done the same, he asked, “Will you hear me out?”
“Shoot.” But she didn’t intend to listen.
She had said no and she meant no.
She sighed. She leaned her elbow on the table and sunk her chin in her hand. She watched his mouth open. The words of his proposal began to flow.
Now why was such a gorgeous man still unattached? Oh, yeah. He didn’t intend to go the marriage-and-rug-rat route. But what about love? Probably no time. But why was he like that? How had he gotten to be Quint in the first place? Wounded by a woman once? Scorned? Betrayed?
“Are you listening?”
She shook her head. “Sorry.”
“What were you thinking about?”
“What made you such a solitary man?”
He narrowed his eyes. “I wouldn’t use the word solitary. There’s very little about my life and my work that doesn’t involve other people, working together, solving problems, forging ahead. Oh, you mean because I don’t want a wife.” She nodded, her chin still resting on her hand.
He continued, “I’m just not interested. Not the marrying kind. My dad had three more wives after my mother passed. I thought I’d keep my life simple and forgo the married-and-divorced part of the equation.”
“But you would make the prettiest babies as handsome as you are.”
His mouth fell agape. “We’re talking business, Carly.”
“No we’re not. You are. I’m just not interested.”
“What are you interested in?” he asked.
Carly answered his question with the first thoughts that came to mind. “The stars on a crystal clear night, the moon, the red earth, making sure my company keeps each of its drivers working to capacity, excellent health care, taking care of widows and orphans.” Having my arms around your shoulders as far as I can get them and settling my head on your strong, muscular chest. Listening to the strong beats of your heart…
These unwanted thoughts made her sit up straighter. She reminded herself that she wasn’t skilled at all in handling mountain lions and that the margarita had made her lazy since the greater part had been consumed before the meal arrived. “Quint, can’t you forget about the winery? I’m not selling.”
“But I would just be leasing your property for a month.”
She scowled. Had she heard him right? “What?” Maybe she should listen.
“I started at the wrong place. In this plan, I would just be leasing the winery for my Napa client deal.”
She had a sense the lease was not the whole story. “What are you proposing?”
“One month, a hundred thousand dollars and at an additional cost I would furnish the house according to your preferences. But there’s one more thing. I would want you to work with me, to help organize the Napa visit, orchestrate a simple itinerary for entertaining the guests, and be in the house during the long weekend of the visit. In other words, we’d be business associates until the deal closes which would be the last weekend in July.”
“Let me get this straight. You want to pay me an enormous sum to make use of the winery, you want to furnish the house, and you want my help entertaining your guests?”
“Yes. Exactly.” His eyes were still hooded. He breathed in even draws and appeared relaxed, but she could tell his entire body was tuned into her, waiting. In this moment, he was sexy as hell, all drive and dominance. “Do you have any other questions?”
“I need to know what you would expect me to do as your business associate.”
She had half thought he would sidle close and whisper bad things in her ear. Okay, maybe she hoped he would do that.
Instead, he remained in business mode, still at full attention. “I need you with me on this deal one hundred per cent, the way you went about refurbishing the winery property. I’ll be sending you profiles of all six guests so that you’ll understand each like and dislike, quirk and eccentricity, strength and weakness.
“During the weekend they’re with us at the winery, you’ll advise me from hour to hour with perceptions and suggestions. You already know this from giving Jeep tours, that each group is a living, breathing entity all on its own, with peculiar needs fixed to the moment. Some of the continual flux can be guided. Some can’t. But a decent amount of preparation will allow for adjustments along the way.”
Carly met his gaze aware that he had just let her into his world and into the workings of his mind. He was so seductive in ways she was certain he didn’t even understand. She had anticipated a list of duties encompassing a tour-guide-slash-hostess role. She now realized she would be playing a much more intuitive, guiding hand. “Thank you for that.”
He lifted his brows. “What do you mean?”
“I’m flattered that you think I could be an asset to you in the process of landing your clients.”
He turned into her, all his strength and confidence pouring over her like a Tsunami. “Why do you think I concocted this plan in the first place? After I saw what you’d done with your property, I knew you could do anything.”
Dizziness hit her h
ard. His compliment coupled with the heat radiating off his chest worked on her like dynamite. She kept feeling explosions inside her chest. She mentally checked and found that he’d done some serious damage to the stone fortifications around her heart.
She dropped her gaze to her glass of ice water. She picked up the glass and with fingers that trembled, drew it to her lips then took a sip. She struggled to breathe as she so often did whenever he was near. She made her decision and set the glass down.
“I’ll need this in writing,” she said, not daring to look at him just yet.
“I have the contract in my car. Everything’s detailed just as we’ve discussed.”
“I’ll also want my attorney to review your offer.”
“Of course.”
She finally felt able to look at him. “Quint, I still don’t think I get why you’ve been so intent on my winery.”
At that, he relaxed his shoulders a little. “It’s just an instinct, although a powerful one, that Red Canyon is where the weekend needs to happen. I’m going with my gut on this one. That’s all.”
“And you’re certain that a nice stay at the Phoenician or The Princess wouldn’t do the job?” Both were extraordinary Phoenix hotels.
“It’s about connections, all kinds of connections.” He smiled. “This is what I do. I figure out what pieces need to come together and on this deal that includes you. Don’t ask me how I know, I just know.”
“Okay,” she said at last. “Let me see the contract and have a long talk with my lawyer. I’ll call you as soon as I’ve had a chance to meet with him.”
“Not good enough. This offer expires tomorrow at five o’clock. I’ll deliver everything I’ve promised but I’m done waiting. It’s now or never, Carly. If you refuse this offer, you won’t hear from me again.”
“That simple, huh?”
He nodded. “Absolutely.”
She returned with him to his car. He opened the trunk and withdrew a folder from his briefcase. “Here you go.”
In her stunned state, she was about to turn away when he caught her chin in his hand. She looked into extraordinary blue eyes that had grown serious.