Page 28 of Taming the CEO

He shook his head. "At this point, you're burning money."

I pinned him with a stare, cocking a brow. "We're the clients, and it's our money. If we want to burn through it, that's our problem."

"Fair enough," he said, holding up his hand in self-defense. "I’ll get on it right away."

"Perfect."

He gathered his files and shook everyone’s hands, promising to get back to us with the new plans sometime soon.

After Aiden left, Gabe headed home to Boston as well.

"Planning on leaving soon?" Leo asked me.

"I want to grab dinner in town first," I said. It was late, and I was hungry.

He nodded. "I'll come with you. I've wanted to get a look around Main Street for a while, and I could go for a good burger."

"Why do you want to see the town?"

"I want to get a feel for it, see if it’s a good fit for clients looking for vacation homes." Despite leading one of the biggest real estate companies in the country, Leo was still very hands-on. But it was probably what led to his phenomenal success.

"Sure. Let's go."

I didn't like that Aiden didn’t give me a timeline for the new plans. I needed them quickly—at least the basic sketches. I was going to call him and put more pressure on him later this week. Time was of the essence, and I knew if I had those plans to show Cami, she'd see that this was an excellent deal.

Leo and I drove our respective cars and parked just off Main Street. Essex certainly had its charm. Once I got out of the car, I noticed my brother morph into business mode. He kept cataloging everything up and down the street, looking intently at the mix of Federal- and Colonial-style buildings. His real estate mind was clicking away.

"They've done a great job preserving historical buildings," he commented.

"I agree. Now come on. Let's go inside and grab something to eat.” I pointed at the sign that said Lisa’s Burgers.

“Burgers! Great!”

The restaurant was in one of the Colonial buildings, and there was already a lot of commotion inside. Clearly, we'd hit a popular time for dinner. I looked around for an empty table and noticed a familiar redhead sitting alone by the window.

"Find anything?" Leo asked.

"Yeah, that’s Cami."

He narrowed his eyes, following my gaze.

"Damn, she's hot as hell. I can see why Gran is starting to have ideas.”

I scoffed. "Gran is very off base, but I don't have the heart to tell her. Let’s go over to her and say hi.”

"You think that’s a good idea?” Leo asked.

"Yeah." I’d made up my mind. "The architect said he could draw the plans. I don't have to wait until he's actually done with them to bring this up to Cami."

"Right. And you’re sure you're not just looking for an excuse to talk to her?"

"Don’t be a dick."

Leo wiggled his eyebrows.

I sighed. "Whatever it is, say it. You're bursting with it."

"You've got a reputation of someone who doesn't give an inch in negotiations."

---