Page 37 of Blood Stone

Kate picked up her drink. “We’re not going to be bothered by drunken players swinging cues about, are we?” She sounded peeved.

The brunette smiled a little. “I made it worth their whilenotto play, today. We’ll be completely undisturbed.”

Kate’s face took on the smooth neutral expression Roman had learned was the mask for when she was surprised, or shocked, and was hiding it from public view.

Roman raised his assessment of the assistant a reluctant notch higher. Garrett knew how to pick his people well.

Garrett was already heading for the pool table, where the stairwell created a natural open area and the stairs themselves gave it some privacy at the same time.

Two of Garrett’s security people were already sitting at the joined tables. Protecting them. One of them was one of the men Roman hadn’t been sure was Garrett’s or not.

Roman managed to step within a metre of the man’s radius as they traded places and settled around the squared up tables. Human and from his odour, on a powerful mix of steroids and cocaine. Roman wondered if Garrett had picked up the drugs in the man’s scent.

The pool table area was a neat rectangle, tucked in behind the stairs. The pool table was over to the side closest to the restaurant, where half-glass walls gave the diners on the other side an unexpected view of the green baize and the balls. Buffet seating ranged down one side of the rectangle, and three of the tables ranged alongside the seating. Two of them were pushed together now. A handful of the spidery, chic chairs serviced each table.

On the wall opposite the stairs, two big LCD screens were playing in silence, their vocal text streaming along the bottom of each screen. One was showing a sports channel. The other was showing a Hollywood new/entertainment show, which was probably of more interest to the people who sat in this bar than the sports channel.

Roman fully expected Garrett to take the symbolically powerful seat at either end of the elongated table arrangement, but Garrett settled himself on one of the chairs next to the end.

Kate sat on the buffet opposite him.

Roman looked around as the rest of the chairs were taken by the lackeys, leaving him with the chair at the end. He shrugged, and sat in it, between Kate and Garrett. Symbols didn’t frighten him. Besides, it put his back to the TV screens.

Garrett’s assistant was watching him, her gaze frank and assessing. As Roman stared back at her, she shifted her focus down to the computer tablet in front of her.

Roman wondered if Garrett was fucking her. It wasn’t like Garrett to get involved with his hired help and she wasn’t his type, but the on-point stare and the direct way she had cleared out the pool area spoke of a woman with backbone.Thatwould appeal to Garrett. It might explain why, after so many decades, he’d unbent enough to take his hands off the controls and let someone help him.

Trust didn’t come easily to Calum, not anymore.

That’s your fault, a tiny voice whispered in Roman’s mind.

Roman shifted on the chair, mentally changing the subject along with his physical adjustment. He looked at Kate. She had a grim, hard-mouthed expression on her face as she stared at Garrett.

Garrett leaned back in his chair. “The lien against your studio building was lifted this morning.”

She sat for a second longer. Then, “You want a ‘thank you’ from me, Garrett? You picked on the wrong person if you’re looking for gratitude out of this. I said I’d come to the table. You lift the lien in response. Let’s talk deal. That’s the next step. Don’t try to get cute with me.”

Garrett smiled. “Very well. You were having labour problems, I heard.”

She shook her head. “No. That’s not the next step. Next step is you tell me what you’re bringing to the table.”

“Iamtelling you what I’m bringing to the table.” He leaned forward. “I understand you’re angry, Kate. I understand you’re pissed at me. But bear with me while I explain—”

“No.” She slapped her hand on the table. “That’s what youdon’tget to do, Garrett. You don’t get the luxury of explanations, or justifications, or long winded stories about how you were forced to wear a dress when you were a kid, and that’s why you get to do asshole things now like the shitty crap you’ve pulled on me. That’s not part of this deal.”

“I didn’t—”

“You didn’t listen to me, because you don’t think youhaveto listen to me. But this ismypicture, Garrett, and I own the goddam copyright on the screenplay, andthat, asshole, you cannot take away from me no matter how many lawyers you stand in front of you. I willburythis picture before I let you take it away from me, so get that straight right now. Got it?”

Garrett took a breath. Let it out. “No one is trying to take your movie from you.” His tone was reasonable.

“You did a fucking good imitation of just that this week.”

“That’s different. That was...” He hesitated.

Roman was enjoying himself immensely. Kate might not have any financial muscle in the room, but she was tying Garrett up in knots anyway. She had found his one point of vulnerability, and was using it ruthlessly to make her point. Shedidhave the ability to shut down this show and make sure it was never resurrected again. It was her screenplay. She could take her ball and go home, if she really wanted to, and there was nothing Garrett could do about it.

“What, you did it just for fun, Garrett? Or to demonstrate a point?” Kate asked, her voice dangerously soft.