And now he was her partner. The idea of going to the StarFire, meeting Cooper Hayes on his home turf, was a little intimidating, but she didn’t see a way around it. After all, she was now half owner of the place. A shocked burst of laughter bubbled up in her chest, but she squashed it. Yesterday she wouldn’t have been able to afford to stay at the StarFire. Now she owned half of it.
Weird just kept getting weirder.
“Okay, thank you.” She glanced at the papers, but didn’t touch them.
“Ms. Ferguson,” the man said quietly, and waited until her gaze met his to continue. “I know this is all new and somewhat overwhelming—”
“Somewhat?” she laughed but the sound she made sounded a little hysterical so she stopped. Fast.
“But,” he continued calmly, “I believe once the surprise of the situation eases, you’ll do very well in your new life.”
“You think so?”
“I do.” He grabbed the doorknob and said, “I’ve left my card with the papers, as well. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to call me.”
“Thank you.”
He opened the door and Jan Belling almost fell into the room. She recovered quickly, stumbling to catch her balance, then flashing the lawyer a brilliant smile. “Hi, sorry.”
“No need,” he said, lips twitching. Giving Terri one last nod, he left.
Jan slipped into the room, closed the door and hurried over to take a seat opposite Terri. Her short, spiky black hair complemented bottle-green eyes, making her look like a pixie. “Well,” she said, “that was embarrassing.”
“I can’t believe you were listening at the door.”
“I can’t believe you’re surprised. Besides, I didn’t hear much. The door’s too thick. Stupid historical buildings with real wood doors.” Jan took a breath. “So what happened? Who was he and why did he want you?”
Terri laughed as the tension she’d been feeling for the past fifteen minutes dissipated. Jan was her best friend, and the one person who could help her make sense of all of this. “Speaking of a ‘can’t believe’ situation...”
“Try me.”
Terri shook her head at the strangeness of it all. “I want to tell you all of it, but I should get back to work.”
Jan shook her head. “No worries. The boss says you can take as long as you like. We’re not busy, anyway, so start talking.”
Turning her bottle of water back and forth between her hands, Terri did. As she told her friend everything, it all began to settle in her own mind. It was beyond strange. Crazy. Impossible, even. Okay, maybe her mind wasn’t as settled as she’d thought.
“This is like a fairy tale or something,” Jan finally said once Terri had wound down.
“That’s exactly what I was thinking,” Terri admitted wryly. “So when the clock strikes midnight do I turn back into a pumpkin?”
“Cinderella wasn’t a pumpkin. Her carriage was.” Jan laughed a little. “And this is reality no matter how strange it all seems. This is amazing, Terri. You’re rich. I mean wildly rich.”
“Oh, God.” Terri dropped one hand to her stomach in a futile attempt to calm it. She’d never had a lot of money. Growing up, her adoptive parents had been schoolteachers, so though they’d had a nice life, they’d also driven ten-year-old cars and saved up to take vacations.
Of course, she drove to Idaho occasionally to buy lottery tickets, because who didn’t dream of suddenly becoming a gazillionaire? But to have it actually happen was almost terrifying.
Jan reached across the table to take her hand. “Why aren’t you celebrating? Oh. Wait. Sorry. God, I’m an idiot sometimes. You’re reacting to hearing that your biological father died, aren’t you?”
“Seems ridiculous to be sad about someone you’ve never met, but yeah, I guess I am.” In the midst of the windfall, there was that sad fact. Terri silently wondered what her father had been like. If he had known who and where she was, why had he never contacted her before? Why had he left her everything? She’d probably always wonder.
Jan took Terri’s water, had a sip, then handed it back. “You really had no idea at all about who your biological father was?”
“Not a clue,” she said softly. “And now I’ve got all these questions and no way to get answers and... I don’t know. It’s all so far out there, it’s hard to believe it’s really happening.”
“Yeah, I get that. But,” Jan said, “at least you know he thought about you. Remembered you. And in the end, wanted to give you everything he had.”
A smile tugged at the corner of Terri’s mouth. “Good point. Okay, then. No feeling sorry for myself. But I can be a little panicked, right?”
“Absolutely. The StarFire?” Jan grinned. “That’s supposed to be an amazing hotel.”
“I know.” Terri took a deep breath, but she had a feeling the wild tremors inside weren’t going to be soothed away. Her entire world had just been rocked.
Terri’s mind raced with possibilities. She had a good job, if not an exciting one, but now she had been given the chance for more. Sure, she’d have a lot to learn, but stepping into this new life could be amazing.
“And you own it!”
“Well I own half of it, apparently.” Abruptly, Terri stood up and said, “How do I go from being a bank teller to being a hotel executive?”
“Seriously?” Jan looked at her. “You’re going to make me mad if you start doubting yourself. Okay, fine, there’s the whole surprise factor to take into account,” Jan said. “But you’re smart and you’re good with people and you can do any damn thing you want to.”
Smiling, Terri said, “Thanks for that.”
“You’re welcome.”
“I don’t even know where to start, Jan.”
“With a lawyer.” Jan stood, too, and her expression read sympathy and aggravation. “Terri, this is your big chance. A chance to get out of the bank, to find a job that really interests you. Take it and run.”
All true. Terri had taken this job at the bank because she needed to work. But it wasn’t where she’d wanted to build a career. She really hadn’t known what she wanted. And the longer she stayed at the bank, the more comfortable it became and the less likely it was that she would leave to find something that fit her better.
She’d always done the expected thing. School. Work. Maybe this was the Universe giving her the opportunity to burst out of her rut and find out just what she was capable of.
Jan was right. She had to take this chance. Had to try for... more.
“Your new partner expects to see you in Vegas and you’ve got to figure all of this out before you meet him.”
Terri blew out a breath. She wasn’t a coward. Never had been. Sure, she’d never been faced with anything like this in her life before, but she could do it.
Couldn’t she?
She’d always been the good girl. The good daughter. The responsible one. She’d had dreams of traveling but had accepted that for the things she’d wanted to do and see, she would have to spend years saving money. Now suddenly, the world was laid out in front of her. She’d be crazy to ignore it.
“You’re right,” she said, nodding. “I’ll talk to Mike, tell him I need to take some time off.”
Jan shook her head and smiled. “While you’re talking to the bank manager, you might tell him that you’re going to be taking off forever.”
Terri laughed. “Things are changing, yes. But I’m not ready to throw my whole life out just yet.”
“I think,” Jan said as they left the break room together, “someone already did that for you.”
“I hate it when you’re right.”
Jan laid a hand on her arm. “Terri, you’re making yourself nuts and you don’t have to. Cooper Hayes doesn’t need you to run the company. But you’re his new partner, like it or not, so you do at least get a say in
things.”
True, she thought and her mind started racing again. This was the opportunity of a lifetime and she’d be crazy to ignore it or to fear it. Sure, she didn’t know how to run a hotel. But she’d stayed in enough of them to know what she liked and didn’t. That had to count for something. And her Dad had owned a popular restaurant for decades. Terri had worked there herself as a teenager and learned from her father that the key to success in the service industry was making people happy. Sounded easy, but way too many people didn’t understand that.
“Just go, Terri. Grab this shiny brass ring with both hands. And if you need the cavalry, I’m only a plane ride away.”
Terri grinned. “Vegas, here I come.”
* * *
Four days later Terri was in Las Vegas, standing in the massive, opulent lobby of the StarFire Hotel. The floors were covered with wide, navy blue tiles that sparkled as if stars were trapped inside them. The ceiling was high and featured a night sky dazzled by twinkling stars and streaks of light from falling stars leaving trails of gold dust in their wakes. The effect was so real that if not for the crowds and the noise and the fact that it was the middle of the day, Terri would have thought she was outside staring up.
Paintings in gold inlaid frames dotted the walls, and a waiter served complimentary champagne to guests waiting in line to register. The noise level was tremendous, since the casino spilled right off the lobby. Slot machines beeped, pinged and sang out encouragement to the hundreds of people wandering the casino floor.
She turned in a slow circle, saw a gift shop, signs for restaurants and bars and still more people. From what Terri could see, the hotel seemed to stretch on forever. The outside had been impressive, but the inside was like walking into a different world.
One that was hers now.
That thought had her smiling and biting her lip at the same time. She hadn’t contacted her new partner, but she had made a reservation, so she dutifully joined the tail end of the line and accepted a flute of champagne from the waiter.
She hadn’t told Cooper Hayes she was coming. Terri had wanted a little time on her own, to check out her inheritance. To get a feel for what could be her new life. Or to at least explore the possibilities.
She owed that much to herself and to her parents. They’d raised her to be strong and confident. They’d sent her to college, encouraged her to find her passion. How could she walk away from this without even trying to make it work?
And in a way, didn’t she owe it to her biological father, too? She hadn’t known him, but he’d clearly kept track of her. He’d left her everything he had, so she was really his legacy, wasn’t she?
The line moved quickly and in minutes Terri was at the desk, handing over her ID to the clerk. He was young, with a practiced smile and a name tag that read Brent.
“Is this your first time at the StarFire?” he asked.
Terri grinned. “How could you tell?”
He winked at her. “You keep looking up at the ceiling.”
“Guilty.” She took a sip of the champagne. “It’s beautiful.”
“It really is.” He glanced at her driver’s license, tapped a few keys on his keyboard then stopped, turned and stared at her as if she had three heads. “Terri Ferguson?”
“That’s right.” She frowned a little and tried to get a glimpse of the computer screen. “You’ve got my reservation, don’t you?”
“Yes, ma’am,” he said with the crispness of an audible salute. Gone was the easy, flirtatious smile. Brent was suddenly all business. “We’ve been expecting you, ma’am.”
When did she become ma’am? “Expecting me?” She’d hoped to fly in under the radar but apparently that wasn’t going to happen.
“Your suite is prepared and ready for you, Ms. Ferguson.”
“I didn’t reserve a suite,” she said.
He grinned, printed off two key cards and slid them into a folder with the word StarFire emblazoned across it. He returned her ID, handed her the keys, then looked up and waved to someone behind her. “Like I said, Mr. Hayes—and we—have been expecting you.”
“He has?” Well, of course he has, Terri. Hadn’t the lawyer told her as much?
“Your name was tagged in the system so we’d recognize your arrival right away.” Brent smiled again. “Your suite’s been ready for days. Bill here will take your bags—”
A bellman in his twenties appeared out of nowhere beside her.
“Oh, I’ve only got the one bag, and it has wheels. I can—”
“It’s my job, Ms. Ferguson,” Bill said. “I’ll show you to your suite.”
Of course they’d reserved a suite. Terri had never stayed in a hotel like this one—let alone in a suite. This was so far out of her everyday ballpark, she couldn’t even see the stadium from here. But she was part owner now of this amazing hotel, so she’d better get used to it. Right, and that didn’t feel weird at all.
“Okay.” She swallowed the last of her champagne and slid the glass across the counter to Brent. “Could you take care of this please?”
“My pleasure, Ms. Ferguson. And welcome to StarFire.”
Welcome. She followed Bill across the polished lake of a floor toward a bank of elevators. Terri didn’t feel welcome. She felt...on edge. She was about to meet her new partner. About to start a life that she had zero experience with. In a place she didn’t know with people who were strangers. Sure. Great. Nerves? No, who would have nerves?
Everything had changed so quickly, she’d hardly had time to take a breath, and now she was in Las Vegas taking the first step into a world she didn’t belong in.
Now the question was, could she make a place for herself here? Would Cooper Hayes try to stand in her way? And if he did, was she willing to fight for a new life? Instantly, she thought of all the things she could do with the inheritance her father had left her. She could buy a house, send her mom and aunt on a trip around the world if they wanted it.
The possibilities were endless. All she had to do was prove she could fit in. Be a part of this world. This business.
In her head, she heard her friend Jan saying, “Go for it, Terri. Enjoy it. Life just got way interesting.”
Besides, Terri told herself, it was too late to back out now.
That last thought had barely raced through her mind when she saw him.
It was as if the crowds melted away. The ambient noise was nothing more than a buzz in her ears. Her heart pounded, her mouth went dry and her gaze locked on what was probably the most gorgeous man she’d ever seen in her life.
Every cell inside her stood up and started cheering. Honestly, even from a distance, he had the kind of magnetism that could turn a woman’s knees to jelly. He stood alone, tall and invincible as people hurried past him, instinctively giving him a wide berth. He wore a black suit with a shirt so white it was nearly blinding against the dark red tie. His black hair was expertly shaggy and his eyes were a pale, clear blue so startling, she couldn’t look away.
He was watching her, too, but she couldn’t tell what he was thinking by the expression on his face. Not surprising, she supposed. A billionaire businessman—especially one who owned casinos—like Cooper Hayes—was probably born with a poker face.
Cooper Hayes. Her new partner.
And a man who could feed her fantasies forever.
Two
Dave Carey watched the security footage from his office. He’d gotten a text alert the moment Terri Ferguson’s name had been entered into the hotel computers. She was here and now he had to find a way to get her gone.
He watched her now on the screen, a cold fist in the pit of his stomach. From his computer he could tap into any camera in the hotel. As executive assistant to Cooper Hayes, Dave pretty much had the run of the place. And it paid to always be on top of whatever was happening in the casino.
“She’s
hotter than I expected,” he muttered, studying the footage of Terri Ferguson as she spoke to Cooper. “That’s not good.”
Cooper might think of himself as having a great poker face, but Dave had known the man since college. He could tell in a blink that Cooper was intrigued by his new partner. And that wasn’t good for Dave.
Hell, none of this was.
He tossed a pen onto his desk, leaned back in his black leather chair and kept his gaze locked on the tall blonde who had ruined his plans. Why couldn’t she have been short and ugly with an overbite and a dragging limp or something? No, she had to look like a damn goddess. Who would have guessed that women in a wilderness like Utah could look that good? He watched her smile at Cooper and more important, watched Cooper give her that hungry-lion-looking-at-a-gazelle expression.
“Damn it.” After years of putting in the time, helping Cooper build the Hayes Corporation into a global power, Dave had been on the cusp of finally getting what he deserved. Cooper had promised Dave that soon his loyalty would finally be rewarded.
And now some country-bumpkin blonde with great legs and a spectacular rack put it all in jeopardy.
Standing, Dave walked away from the image of Cooper staring at Terri Ferguson as if he were trying to keep from taking a bite of her. Moving across his office, Dave didn’t notice the high-end furniture, the thick carpets strewn across hardwood floors. He didn’t even see the wide windows giving him an awesome view of Vegas and the desert and mountains beyond. Instead, his mind was dredging up a meeting with Cooper nearly two years ago.
“Jacob’s not getting any younger, you know. And when he dies, the company comes to me. Once I’m fully in charge,” Cooper had said, lifting a glass of scotch in a toast, “I’ll see to it that you get a major chunk of Hayes Corp.”
Pleased, Dave had instantly wanted to know exactly how much they were talking about. But he came at the question subtly. “I appreciate it, Coop,” he said, “but what are you really saying?”
“I’m saying that you’ve had nearly as big a hand as I have, turning the company into what it is today,” Cooper said and Dave silently agreed. He was the one, after all, who ran around setting up meetings, taking care of minor issues before they became big ones and in general doing whatever Cooper didn’t have the time to handle.
Tempt Me in Vegas Page 2
