Page 18 of The CEO Enemy

Pauline digs through folders. “I’m surprised you’re so cheerful,” she says. “I thought you’d be in crisis mode.”

I shrug, leaning against the doorframe as she puts a folder down and collapses onto her chair.

“I thought about it a lot last night,” I tell her, “and I’m trying to stay on the positive side of things. Going in with a negative attitude is only going to make things harder. I don’t want that.”

“You’re always looking on the bright side. That’s one of the things I admire about you. But also one of the things that annoys the crap out of me,” she teases. “You make it look so easy.”

“It helps that I had some fun last night.”

Pauline’s eyebrows shoot up, and she does a double take, as if I’ve just confessed to bungee jumping off a skyscraper for kicks (nope, I’m brave, but not that brave). She spins in her chair to give me her full attention. “What kind of fun?” she asks.

I lower my voice. “The half-naked kind.”

“Only half-naked?”

“There wasn’t time for anything else.” I shrug. “We weren’t exactly in a private space.”

“Where and with who?”

“I ran into my new neighbor at Swayze’s.”

Her eyes go wide. “No way! You mean the one you saw naked? The grumpy perfection whose balcony you climbed?”

“Yup, that’s the one.”

“It’s about time,” she says dryly. “I’m proud of you.”

I laugh at her calling me out. “Thanks. I’m proud of myself too,” I admit. “We didn’t get to do too much, but what we did do was fun.”

Honestly, my mind is still all over the place thanks to the nameless man who made me orgasm harder than I ever thought possible.

“You should stop by his apartment on the way home for an encore.”

“Oh, I will,” I say, keeping the conversation playful.

Behind me, I hear footsteps approach and I opt to move on, not keen on diving into my personal orgasm statistics in front of other employees.

Pauline hears them too. “To be continued,” she says in a hushed tone.

Smiling to myself, I leave her to her work while I finish my rounds. Even though I’m anxious about my meeting, I keep the lingering tension at bay and head to my office to finish my coffee and prepare.

Norman didn’t say I needed to prep or review anything. He was clear the meeting will be a way to provide formal introductions. Everything is expected to operate business as usual until me and the new co-owner can sit down and talk things out face to face.

That doesn’t deter me from dedicating the remaining time to analyzing our recent occupancy rates, assessing our financial performance, and reviewing our staff’s training and performance records. I have to ensure I’m well prepared to demonstrate my expertise in the hotel industry. Of course, Norman already handed over all the numbers, but hey, a little extra preparation never hurt anyone, right?

In the back of my mind, I have my suspicions that they’re going to try to buy me out.

I might as well be facing an enigma, for all I know. All I have is Norman’s vague take on Blackwood—but when it comes to billionaires, they all seem to follow the same playbook, don’t they? They swoop in and snatch up privately owned businesses—like our hotels—only to transform them into those cookie-cutter versions that seem to sprout up everywhere.

No, thank you.

I don’t want that for us. The WH properties are individually designed to reflect the distinctive characteristics of their respective locations. Norman and I dedicated ourselves to creating the ambiance of a bed and breakfast, but on a grander scale. Our loyal patrons frequently express their fondness for the welcoming, personalized atmosphere.

No matter how much money that “so-called” hotel super mogul offers, I won’t sell. No, sir. I’m not going to let them buy me off, bully, or intimidate me.

They bought the hotels knowing I would come with them.

They’ll have to deal if they don’t like me.

---