Page 12 of Brutal Power

“Yes.” I stare at her and she rolls her eyes. Elena doesn’t need to know and it’s not exactly flattering on my part.

“Fine, don’t tell me, but I’ll hear about it eventually. I’m sure Layla will be happy to share.”

“Doubt she even knows.”

That only makes Elena more curious and she bugs me about it a few more times, but I refuse to give in.

We end up sitting and chatting with Maggie, Omar, Layla, Walt Kowalski, the committee’s secretary, and Evie Whitemore, the treasurer. I keep getting nasty looks from Omar, but Elena manages to keep the peace and even shares a few hilarious stories about her days hanging out with Layla. The two of themare like best friends, laughing and swapping memories, and Elena even manages to get me to talk a little bit. Which goes better than expected.

“I hear the Quinn family’s been busy trying to get permits through,” Maggie says over the rim of her glass, giving me a little smirk.

She knows damn well that’s true since she’s been voting to reject all our projects, but Elena speaks up before I can say something stupid.

“Brody was just saying how he thinks this new build is going to be huge for the whole city. Isn’t that right, honeybuns?”

Omar’s eyes light up at her fucking nickname, but I take it in stride. “That’s right, sugarplum. The Waterfront project’s going to reignite the whole upper end of the lake district if only we could get the thing off the ground.”

“Tell me about it,” Maggie says, which clearly annoys the others, but I give her the quick rundown: high-end condos up top and a mixture of shops and restaurants down below with a park open to the public on a stretch of land that runs right up toward the water.

“You really have to take another look at the proposal,” Elena gushes and if I didn’t know any better, I’d actually believe she meant it. But she’s never seen the damn thing.

Turns out, my fiancée is a very good actress.

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Maggie gives me a sly look, which I’m guessing is a good thing, because I’ve gotten nothing but disdain from her in the past.

Elena drags me away after a few more minutes of aimless chatting. We refill our drinks, but before she can wander off into the crowd some more, I grab her by the hand and drag her away.

“Uh-oh, are you about to have your way with me?” she asks, giving me that flirty little smirk. I’m starting to realize that’s just how she’s going to talk for the rest of my fucking life, and I’m already exhausted.

“What was that shit back there with O’Malley?” I growl once we’re alone in a side hallway that leads toward the kitchens. A couple servers bustle past but nobody pays us any attention. I stand close to her, my hand on her wrist, not holding tight. I like the way her skin feels against mine, even if it’s only my fingers brushing ever so gently.

“Just putting in a good word for you.” She seems smug and it drives me crazy.

“Don’t do that. Not without warning me first.”

She rolls her eyes. “It’s fine, don’t worry. That’s how she operates. There’s no way in hell she’d ever look at your project stone-cold sober and in the middle of committee without hearing about it over a few drinks first. I’m shocked you never tried to take her out before now.”

I grind my jaw because I didn’t know that, and suddenly a few things make sense. Like for example, how she’s never given me the time of day, except for when I caught her in a few social situations. But I never talked business since I didn’t want to bother her.

Now I realize my mistake. And I can see how useful Elena can be.

“You still need to warn me,” I say, refusing to concede too much ground. For some stupid, stubborn reason, I don’t want her to win. “We’re supposed to be partners, remember?”

“Partners?” Her eyebrows raise. I move closer to her and put my hand on her hip. She doesn’t pull back and I’m extremely aware of the way her chest rises and falls with each breath. Her lips are plump and slightly open, and I keep catching a glimpse of her tongue behind her lower teeth. There are a lot of things I want to do to those lips and that tongue, but this is business, strictly business, and I have to keep reminding myself that I won’t cross the line until I get what I want.

“That’s right.Businesspartners. Meaning you need to tell me about your plans instead of throwing me under a goddamn bus.”

She laughs lightly, her smile fading as she shakes her head. My fingers tighten on her hip.

“It’s amazing. I do you a favor and you’re still all grumpy. What’s with you? That went well out there. Even Omar seemed like he didn’t hate you, which is apparently the first time.”

“I’m not grumpy. I just like to plan.”

“And I’m doing the best I can, okay? I have my own stuff going on. I’m not sitting around worrying about your stupid business.”

I lean closer. Fuck, I want to bite that lower lip, grab her by the hair, and bury her mouth with mine. Maybe then she’ll actually listen. “Just talk to me, that’s all I’m asking.”

“And just be freaking patient. That’s all I need.”

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