Her dress was a dark-blue sleeveless number. The skirt stopped just a few inches above the knee. Probably the longest skirt Nathan had ever seen on one of his ex-girlfriends. Well, she supposed they’d never really dated, so that meant she wasn’t an ex. Well, that thought did nothing to cheer her up.
But because there was nothing she could do about her appearance now and the most elite guest this inn had ever had was right on the other side of the door, it was time to pull on her big girl panties and get the job done.
She gently turned the knob and pushed the door open, careful not to ram the paneling into the man on the other side. She poked her head out, and of course Nathan was right there. A gentleman would back away to give her space, but Nathan was no gentleman.
She was emotionally incapable of facing Nathan, so she decided to go for the mental wall approach and just pretend he was a guest she had no history with. “I’m really sorry about the mix-up, but, as you can probably see,” she motioned to the bucket on the bed, “this room isn’t available at the moment. I’m not sure how you got booked.” Considering Mr. Parker was only moved out that morning, she was especially confused.
“The girl who gave it to me mentioned she was surprised it was open.”
“The girl?” It would have to be Sheila. Sean would’ve left her at the desk while he arranged and delivered the dinner voucher for Mr. Parker. “Let’s see if we can get you another room. We’re booked close to capacity,” she lied, “so we’ll have to see if anyone is checking out soon.” The owner would flip if she kicked out Nathan Farrell, but she could try to be diplomatic about it.
“When I confirmed my reservations this morning, I was told there was plenty of availability.”
Katy frowned as she came fully out of the bathroom and tried to put some space between Nathan and her. “You didn’t have reservations. I review all of our upcoming guests and I would’ve remembered.” She winced at the unintentional confession. Though her little running act earlier had made it pretty darn clear that she wasn’t completely over what had happened all those years ago.
The corner of Nathan’s mouth hooked up. “I don’t book rooms with my real name. I like to make it hard for people to find me.”
For a moment, Katy was at a loss for words. It was so surreal to be standing there in a room with Nathan for the first time in eight years. He looked so...different and the same. He seemed older. Instead of being clean-shaven, he had a layer of stubble that only served to make that strong jawline and those killer cheekbones stand out more. And then of course there were those eyes. They weren’t light and they weren’t dark, but they seemed to be a perfect medium, and when he laughed they would seem to glow with some inner light.
No. Those were her memories flooding back. He wore suit pants but no jacket or tie. The sleeves of his gray shirt were rolled up, making him look casual and sexy and totally off-limits. “Let’s get you into a new room,” she finally said. She maneuvered around him and grabbed his bag on the way.
“I can get that.” He reached for the bag, but she was already making her way for the door.
“No. I work here. You’re the billionaire. This is how it works.”
“Katy.” He reached out and grabbed the handle of his roller suitcase. She wasn’t looking in his direction, so when the edge of his hand touched hers, she released her grip and jerked away. “I want to tell you why I’m here,” he continued.
Katy rubbed her hand where they touched, as though she could wipe off the tarnish he’d left on her. “It doesn’t matter why you’re here. You’re either going to work or relax and I’m going to make sure my staff gives you the best possible experience. And then my job will be done and we won’t have to deal with each other at all.”
“Think you can fit in time for a dinner?”
“The Lighthouse Grill takes reservations. I’m sure they can fit you in.”
“No. I meant dinner with you and me.”
“I’m busy.”
“I didn’t give you a time.”
“Well, I’m really busy from now until you leave.”
He nodded, but she had a feeling he wasn’t going to let it go. “Is that how you’re going to play this?”
“It’s the only way to play this, Nathan. We’re essentially strangers and we are—at least, I am—very different people than we were back then.”
“You think I haven’t changed?”
“I think it doesn’t matter.”
“It matters to—”
“Nathan, I have to go back to work. I don’t have time right now to deal with...whatever it is that we’re doing right now. I have a leaky ceiling, a wedding consultation, and about fifty other things on my plate right now and none of those things have anything to do with you.”
Nathan gave Katy a head start. He’d pushed enough and gotten nowhere. He’d been in enough negotiations to realize when strategic retreat was necessary. Sometimes the surprise attack worked to catch his quarry off guard and they’d fall into his hands. Other times, said quarry would lock themselves in a bathroom until they were prepared to face him.
Of course, this wasn’t a business negotiation and Katy wasn’t his prey. Not exactly. The end result would be the same. He was going to get what he wanted, one way or another.
He pivoted around to look at the room. The girl at the desk had been more than happy to make sure he had the room with the best view and he had to agree with her taste. The views of the cove the inn was nestled in were amazing. It was hard to imagine what it would be like to live out here. He was so used to the ever-present skylines that were always visible from whatever apartment or hotel room he was in at the moment.
The continuous dripping of the water falling into the bucket on the bed got him to turn around. The rest of the inn was so well put together, the leak seemed strangely out of place. When driving up, the exterior, including the roof, had all appeared immaculate. Maybe that was a testament to Katy’s management skills.
He took one more look around the room before he carried his suitcase down the stairs. Katy was nowhere in sight when he was back at the front desk, but the brunette who’d checked him in was still there. “Mr. Smith! I’m so sorry about the mix-up!” Her eyes were wide and her cheeks were flushed with embarrassment. He hoped Katy wasn’t too sharp with her. He’d wound her up a bit, so she probably wasn’t as patient as she normally was.
“It was an honest mistake,” he assured her as he leaned against the counter. “I’m hoping you still have some room for me?”
“Oh, of course.” The girl, Sheila according to her nametag, smiled in thanks, but then she started to bat her lashes and lean forward the slightest bit so that the low cut v-neck suddenly appeared lower.
There was a chance the girl was over eighteen, but he’d stopped toeing that line a while ago. The last time he’d gotten involved with a high school girl was...well, it was Katy. Lesson learned.
“You were originally booked into the Blue Room. It’s on level three and has great views, a jetted tub, mini fridge, and the mattress was recently replaced.” She looked up, locking eyes with Nathan. “I hear it’s like sleeping on a cloud.”
Oh boy. “Well, that sounds amazing. Let’s go ahead with that one.”
He heard footsteps coming down the hall, and he got the briefest glance of Katy as she walked past the entrance area and outside. She very noticeably didn’t look in his direction at all, and he was sure she knew he was there.
“I think I upset your boss. I hope she didn’t take any of that out on you.”
“Oh, Katy? She’s not angry. Just stressed.” Sheila was typing into the computer in front of her so he couldn’t get a good read on her expression. But he was glad she didn’t fall into an immediate tirade about her boss. The Katy he knew, the Katy he came back for, wasn’t the type to scream at employees.
“This is a beautiful place to work,” he said, deciding to try to fish for more information from Sheila.
“It’s nice to visit.”
“But not to live.”
Sheila smirked. “It’s scenic and all, but I’ve always wanted a little more...action in my life.”
Nope. Not the direction he wanted to go. “Does everyone live close by? Or is the commute a bitch?”
“Most of us live around Bath. It’s about ten miles up the interstate. Some of the lifers have properties close by though.”
“Lifers?”
“For me this is, you know, a job. But for Katy this is life.”
There it was. “Katy?”
“The uptight pretty one you pissed off. Katy. She’s the general manager here, but I like to refer to her as God.”
Okay. That was the first time he’d ever heard of a boss described as that. “God? Because she’s all-powerful?”
“Because what she says goes, because people here seem to worship her, because she’s the direct line to the owner.” Sheila frowned. “Or would that make the owners God since they made things and then we never see them?” Sheila seemed to get lost in her own theological debate, and Nathan decided he’d have to get his information from some other source. “Okay, you’re all set, Mr. Smith.”
Nathan wasn’t sure whether she suspected the obvious alias wasn’t his real name or not. She seemed a little loopy, but it wasn’t the first time a woman who was attracted to him dumbed it down. He didn’t know what it was about him that made women think that the lower their IQ was, the hotter he’d get for them. Probably didn’t say anything good, though.
She passed the key across the desk. The inn was modern enough to have the electronic keycards for all the guests, which was a plus. Physical keys were too hard to keep track of and replace when necessary. When looking to purchase properties, it was one of the minor details that always caught his eye.
He didn’t want to go back to his room right now, though. He wanted to get a better look at this inn. This was where Katy spent all of her time. This was basically an extension of her. If he was going to get what he wanted, he was going to have to learn this place like the back of his hand.
“Sean!” called Sheila. The young kid, maybe seventeen or eighteen, emerged from around the corner. “Can you take Mr. Smith’s bags up to the Blue Room?”
“Sure.” He walked around and nodded a quick hello before he took the bag.
“I’m going for a quick walk. Thanks, Sean.” He handed him a tip.
“Have a nice walk!” called Sheila as he left. Once he was outside, he didn’t see Katy, but he didn’t expect her to still be around. The air out here was clean and fresh. It should make him feel good, but it was just a reminder that this wasn’t his domain. He was comfortable in smoke-filled clubs and parties. Give him a bottle of tequila and get him alone with any suit in the city, and he could have them signing their lives away by the end of the night without them ever feeling cheated.
He’d done a fair bit of research on the inn after he’d booked the spontaneous trip. The inn was located on fifty acres of wooded property along the coast, and they utilized all of those acres. In addition to the main house that had all the main suites, there were two different cottages on the property for couples or families who wanted privacy. Even though there was a decent amount of beachfront, it was too cold most of the year for swimming.
There was an on-property spa, restaurant, and a glass building called the “Carriage House,” which was used for weddings. They were getting a lot of money out of this place. Based off the reviews, guests loved every single one of the amenities, which wasn’t an easy task. He had dealt with his fair share of property managers, and it was a tough job to keep all the balls in the air.
But he wasn’t surprised. His time with Katy had been...enlightening. She wasn’t his normal type. Probably why they’d never officially dated—or anything else, for that matter. He had been in a thing with Katy’s best friend at the time. Back then, she was still in school and best friends were a different beast. A sacred pact that no man was supposed to come between. But Nathan had never been one for following rules.
His thoughts were interrupted as some of the trees to the left of him rustled and a jogger emerged. If this were the apocalypse, the guy would be dead in a heartbeat. How did he manage to make that much noise?
Nathan crossed his arms over his chest and looked out at the water. The inn was on a hill; a few trails led down to the water’s edge, where there were a few floating docks guests could walk out on. He didn’t see any paddle boats or canoes. Might be a liability thing. If there was a rental place close by, they could still offer them to their guests without worrying about someone tipping the boat over and suing.
“Hey there!” said a voice from behind him.
What part of arms over chest didn’t scream “leave me alone”? Nathan glanced over his shoulder. It looked as if the jogger had approached. Considering Nathan was here to impress someone, he decided snapping at one of the guests would be bad form. “Hey,” he managed out with a forced smile.
“Are you a guest?”
Okay. Looked like this was actually going to require conversation. Nathan turned and tried to hide his annoyance. “I just checked in a few minutes ago. I figured I’d take in some of the scenery before I went back up to the room.”
“It is a great view.” The jogger came closer and then crossed his arms over his chest too. Nathan wasn’t sure whether he was doing it intentionally or was just accidentally copying Nathan.
The jogger was pretty much a stereotype. He was physically fit, sure, but he wore his glasses jogging and was decked out in high-end fabrics and brand-new shoes. Nathan already knew more than he wanted to about the man. He was the kid in school who was always picked last in sports. Never quite got the social thing down, but his test scores were through the roof. Now he had a job with good money, which gave him a confidence boost, sometimes too much confidence. Confidence that made his already rusty people skills even worse.
“Do you work here?” asked Nathan, finally giving in to the man’s need for conversation. Maybe if he indulged him, he’d go away faster.
“Oh, no. I own the house next door, but I have permission to use these trails. I love checking out the sights. The weddings here are first-class all the way and I get the best conversations with the guests.”
So Nathan wasn’t the only one to get the unwanted company. That didn’t make him feel better. “It seems like it should be a great stay. But I don’t want to bother you. Feel free to keep on running.” Far away from him.
“Oh, no. I have plenty of time. I’m meeting someone for lunch and got here a bit early.”
For the love of— “I hope you get to relax a bit. I have to get back to my room, but it was nice meeting you...”
“Levi Adams,” he supplied as he held out his hand.
Nathan returned the handshake. “Nathan. Have a nice day.” Nathan walked away before Levi could say anything else. For the first time, he had second thoughts. This wasn’t him. He didn’t have friendly conversations with small-town folk. He didn’t play nice with people he didn’t want to be around or want something from.
But his doubts faded when he saw Katy. She wore the blue dress from earlier. It managed to cover an inordinate amount of skin but was tight enough to hug her curves. That was new. She’d grown up in some good ways....
She smiled and waved and he started to wave back before he realized it wasn’t meant for him. He glanced behind him and saw the son of a bitch Levi waving back.
Something uncomfortable, almost a burning, seemed to rush through him and it took a second for it to wholly sink in. Hell, he was jealous. Jealous of the annoying-ass nerd who could barely hold a conversation. Son of a—
Katy then made eye contact with him. It must’ve been the first time she realized he was there because she promptly missed a step and stumbled onto her hands and knees. The papers in her hand flew across the lawn.
Nathan immediately ran over to her, but she was already sitting back on her heels and collecting her papers. When she had to reach forward to pick
up one particularly far away, he tried his best not to look at her ass. This was new Nathan. Better Nathan.
Nope. He was looking at her ass and it was as amazing as he could’ve imagined.
“Let me help you,” said the familiar annoying voice.
Nathan worked faster to get all the papers before Levi could find an excuse to hang around longer.
“I don’t need anyone’s help,” said Katy pointedly as she yanked the papers from Nathan’s hand.
Out of curiosity, he scanned over the documents, mostly just memos and emails, but there was one particular piece of yellow legal paper that was filled with handwritten equations. Not something he normally saw in this day and age. But then Katy had tucked it under the next papers she added to her stack.
He’d either underestimated Levi or made a serious tactical error, because suddenly the sweaty jogger bent down to help Katy up. “She can stand on her own,” he said gruffly as he stood as well.
Katy was noticeably not looking in his direction. Her cheeks were flushed red, so he wasn’t sure whether it was embarrassment or whether she was still pissed at him. Probably a mixture of both.
She brushed aside a strand of hair that the wind and fall had knocked loose. “Really, I’m fine. Why don’t you head on inside, Levi? I’ll be there in a few minutes.”
“Sounds good. I’ll order you a Diet Coke while we wait. You said you’re trying to lose a little bit, right?” Levi patted his stomach as though he was trying to be even less subtle.
Nathan cocked his head as he stared down the strange man who was somehow lucky enough to be having lunch with Katy.
But instead of pointing out just how clueless he was, Katy just nodded and smiled. “Diet is great. Thanks.”
They both watched Levi disappear around the corner of the inn. Once Nathan was reasonably certain he was out of earshot, he started in. “You’re not serious with that guy.”
“That’s the best part. I can be serious with any guy I want and you don’t have a say.”
Relentless (Fractured Farrells: A Damaged Billionaire Series Book 5) Page 2
