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“Lord, it’s cold. I didn’t imagine it to be this cold. I’ll have to thank Siv again for the loan of her coat. Brr. And I can’t believe we’re riding in a limo, Rian. That’s so extravagant. Couldn’t we rent a car or something?”

“First of all, there’s no need to rent a vehicle.

I keep one at the resort. We’re only using this to get us there.

Secondly, this limo doesn’t cost us anything.

It’s part of our limo company, which Shane manages.

If it comes to things like this, we use them for brief trips, especially short and one-way ones.

It keeps the staff working, though they don’t have a lot of downtime,” I explained.

This explanation seemed to appease her. Malone winked at me.

When we arrived at the entrance to the Chalet, I scanned the area.

I saw a group of people standing outside the grounds with their signs.

They were yelling at passing cars. If you stopped, they tried to get your attention.

They had no idea it was me in here. The windows were blacked out.

It didn’t take me long to spot Clay. I pointed him out.

“That’s the bastard. We need to put a permanent gag in his mouth. He won’t stop badmouthing us and telling untruths. It’s all due to being angry that we fired him. Gianna, I hope you can get to work on him soon.”

“I plan to do it today as soon as we finish your meeting. I can find it. It may take a few days, but I’ll know all of Clay’s dirty secrets,” she said, eyes narrowed on my ex-employee. I didn’t see Harissa.

“What the hell does that mean? Or should I not ask?” Malone asked.

“Besides hunting, Gianna is a cybersecurity expert, and she’s like Cody. We’ve hired her as his direct backup on family matters since he won’t farm that out to his team.”

“Good. He needs to take it easier. And that’s wonderful. Can’t wait to see what you find, Gianna.”

Our driver rode past the crowd and up the driveway to the front door.

I had the fleeting thought that I hoped the protesters would freeze their asses off and leave.

Just how long could they last out there in this cold?

Stopping, we waited for our driver, Shad, to come around and open the limo door closest to the entrance.

Reign went first, then Malone, I was next, followed by Gianna.

I held her hand. She shivered when the cold hit her. I brought her close to share my warmth.

After getting our bags out and onto a cart, I shook hands with our driver and thanked him before giving him a tip.

He thanked me and was on his way. A bellhop came rushing over to get the luggage.

He knew who I was and where to take our overnight cases.

We kept our work bags. I thanked him and slipped his tip into his hand, which he thanked me for.

As we entered, the lobby was somewhat busy but not as bustling as it should be. Clay was definitely affecting our business. I directed Gianna toward the main elevators. There was no need to check in. Monty knew to expect us. I texted him in the car, telling him we’d meet him in my office.

I had a dedicated office, although I didn’t use it much.

I tried to tell Monty and the others not to give me one.

I could work in the conference room or at a desk when I came, but they were aghast at the idea.

They said the president of Crystal Castle Chalet would not be put in a closet.

I’d laughed and told them I drew the line at a closet, but a small corner of a room would be fine.

I lost the battle. The next time I visited, I was shown to my office.

Malone had been here before, so he was familiar with it.

I noted Gianna taking it all in. The interior was as luxurious as the outside.

The Chalet had every comfort and convenience you might need.

We rode the elevator to the appropriate floor.

We meandered down a long hall to the offices when we got off.

Monty’s, the marketing and HR teams, and others’ offices were there.

Mine was slightly away from theirs, but on the same floor for privacy’s sake.

When I opened the door to mine, I waved them inside.

The sight out the windows never failed to make me pause and stare.

It didn’t matter which season it was. There were always the most picturesque scenes to gaze upon.

The combination of the trees, hills, and mountains was breathtakingly gorgeous.

I heard Gianna gasp, and she was drawn straight to the windows.

“Oh my God, Rian! Look at this. It’s unreal and so beautiful. You get to sit here and see this every time you’re here? I’d never get any work done,” she exclaimed.

“It can be hard, so there are shades that come down to block it out.”

I pointed to the buttons and acted like I was about to do it. Gianna grabbed my hand.

“Touch that, and I’ll have to hurt you, Rian,” she mockingly growled.

“Don’t talk dirty to me unless you want us to give Malone and Reign a show. They wouldn’t mind, but I might,” I murmured in her ear.

“You think everything I say is dirty and makes you want sex. You’d better watch it. One of these times, I’ll accept,” she purred.

Before I could kiss her, she twisted away. Her laughter made me smile. Malone was watching us, beaming. Reign watched us, smirking. A brisk knock interrupted us, preventing me from going after her.

“Come in,” I called out. I knew who it was.

The door opened, and in came Monty. He appeared stressed, and I knew this situation weighed heavily on him. He was a perfectionist, spending even more time at work when upheavals like this arose. I met him partway across the floor. We shook hands.

“I’m glad you’re here, Rian, although I hate that I had to have you come back so soon,” was his first remark.

“Monty, I told you not to apologize. This is my job. And I want to help. Besides, we’ve got to get this cleaned up, or you’ll never sleep. I told you to go home last night and rest,” I chided him.

“I tried, but my mind wouldn’t stop churning, so I returned. I’m fine. You know me. I don’t sleep much, to begin with,” was his excuse.

“Well, you’ll be sleeping more soon. You remember Malone?” I paused so they could greet each other. As I did, I gave Reign a chin lift. He exited the room. No use him standing in here listening to us. When they were through, I turned and gestured to Gianna.

“This is our latest weapon. She’ll deep dive into Clay’s life and find the dirt. If we have to do that to get rid of him, we will. Gianna, this is Monty, the general manager of the Crystal. And, Monty, this is Gianna…my soulmate and, one day soon, my wife.”

Monty did a double-take, and then his mouth dropped open. He stood there for several moments before he stuttered out. “A-Are you messing with me? This is a joke, right?”

I chuckled and slapped his back. “No, it’s not a joke. I’m one hundred percent in love with this woman, and as soon as I get her used to being mine, I’ll lock her down.”

“You shouldn’t have said that out loud. Now, I know to make a run for it,” Gianna smarted off.

“You can run, but you can’t hide, leanbh .”

“Don’t count on it. I have mad skills, O’Sheeran. Stop antagonizing me and let me greet Monty properly. Hello, it’s nice to meet you.” She came over and presented her hand. When Monty took it, I saw his flare of surprise at its strength.

Choosing to ignore her running and hiding remark for the moment, I went back to Monty. “Do you know when Court is supposed to arrive? I’d like us to get to work as soon as possible.”

“Excuse me, Rian. Court just messaged me and said he’s five minutes out. I told him to meet us in the conference room. I assumed that’s where we’ll go,” Malone interjected.

“Sounds good to me. Can we see if we can get some coffee brought up? Gianna, would you like something else?” I asked.

“Coffee works for me, though I’d be in their debt if they have creamer. I can’t seem to drink it black.”

“Of course, we have creamer in several varieties. When I heard Rian had arrived, I ordered it to be delivered. It should be waiting for us in the conference room,” Monty added.

“See why I can’t manage without him,” I told Gianna.

Monty appeared embarrassed, but it was true.

Malone, Gianna, and I took our work bags with us.

It wasn’t a far walk to the conference room.

When we got inside, the drinks and an assortment of fresh fruit and pastries were there, as well as hot water for tea and ice water.

We’d eaten a light lunch on the plane, but a snack or dessert wouldn’t be amiss.

We’d probably be at this for a while before having dinner. I followed my nose to the coffee first.

We took time to get what we wanted and then found seats. I was at the head of the table by default. Malone was on my left, and on my right was Gianna. Monty was next to Malone, which meant Court would end up next to Gianna. We were chatting quietly when Court came hurrying in.

He and I had met a few times. He was a couple of years younger than me.

He’d been with us for five years. Overall, he struck me as an intelligent man.

On those occasions, I noted he seemed to catch the ladies’ attention with his blond hair, tan skin, and bright blue eyes.

He was single, so more power to him. I wondered what Gianna would think of him. It was a fleeting thought.