Page 27 of Night and Day

“The Langston Windward.”

She faltered. “What?”

“Time to start calling it by its new name.”

Her nose wrinkled.

I took a step closer and got a hint of her scent. It tickled my senses and smelled familiar. “But don’t forget that I’m the one in charge here, Ms. Ashford. I will be making the final decisions.”

“I’m hardly likely to forget that,” she said dryly. She waved a hand at the door. “Shall we?”

“After you.”

She marched ahead, her trim body vibrating with tension.

This would prove interesting or a massive pain in my ass.

Chapter7

Tessa

“Here we are.” I opened the door to the owner’s office.

It was neat, tidy, and smelled like lemons. I needed to give Allie a big bonus. When Amos had owned the hotel, he’d crammed it full of knickknacks and artwork in heavy frames. Since he’d left, it looked much more spacious now.

Langston swept in and I got a whiff of his cologne. He smelled like sandalwood. I blinked, fighting back memories of my mystery stranger.

He strode around the desk and stood by the window.

The man made an impact. He was probably six feet tall, and his thick, black hair had a hint of curl. His skin was bronze, like he spent his days on a yacht, or playing tennis, or something. He looked like a Greek God. I’d read somewhere that his mom was Greek. He had a hell of a face—sharp jaw, just enough stubble to be interesting, and piercing, brown eyes under dark brows. I felt a stupid flutter.

You’re only human, Tessa.Anyone female—hell, and some males—would have the same reaction.

But it wasn’t just his looks. It was the sense of sharp intelligence and contained energy that radiated off him. I couldn’t imagine Ambrose Langston switching off for the day and relaxing. No, he’d put on a tuxedo and attend some fancy party with heads of state. Or have night calls with his hotels on the other side of the world. He didn’t have the time to slow down. Not when there were more deals to be done.

He stared out the window. He matched the sleek office, but not the view. He needed a city skyline behind him, not the mountains.

He turned to look at me. “This is fine.”

Oh, the praise and thanks. “I’ll arrange the penthouse and guest rooms for your team.”

He set his briefcase on the desk. His cellphone rang, but he ignored it. “Please take a seat, Ms. Ashford.”

I really didn’t want to, but he was the boss. Or the boss’ boss’ boss’ boss. I took two steps and perched on the edge of a guest chair. He sat on the other side of his desk looking… rich and powerful. Authority kind of oozed off him.

“Over the next few days, I want you to give me a full, detailed tour of the resort. Every nook and cranny. The rooms, the restaurants, the outdoor activities, the back of house.”

“A full tour.” I thought of all the things on my schedule and mentally started shuffling things.

“I want to see everything. I need to assess what needs updating, where things work well, where there are issues and room for improvement.”

So he could suck out all the charm and leave things sleek, glossy, and boring.

“Caden will run a full security check and Piper will be looking at operations.” He paused. “She’ll also be doing an analysis on knocking down the hotel and building new.”

I sucked in a breath. It felt like the floor heaved under me. I shot to my feet, my heart thudding hard. “No.”

He cocked his head. “Ms. Ashford?—”