Page 16 of Vail

“Why is he here?”

“Apparently, the shipment you sent him didn’t arrive. He’s here to collect either his money or his product.”

“Cameron was supposed to deliver it this morning. Where the fuck is he?” I yelled.

“He isn’t answering, but the GPS on the truck shows him north, near the Poconos.”

“What the fuck,” I growled. “He was supposed to be going west. Why was he going north?”

“I’m not sure, sir.”

“Is he still moving?”

“No, he’s stationary. There aren’t any businesses near him. From what I can tell and from memory, there’s nothing there at all. Just a long stretch of trees.” Barry grew up in the Poconos, so he’d know the area better than I would. While I’d lived here my entire life, I didn’t know the back roads farther north like Barry did.

“Take Vinny and go see what the fuck is happening.”

“Will do.” He hung up. I turned to face Kayli again.

“Do you want me to go too?” she asked. She wouldn’t have heard Barry, only me.

“No, you and I are going downstairs to speak with Derek. We have to smooth things over while I figure out what the hell is happening.”

She stood; her slender legs bare from the mid-thigh down. Kayli was stunning but did nothing for me. My eyes were only for Vail and Hartley.

Her blond hair was pulled back on the sides. Blue eyes glimmered with mischief. Kayli loved to torture people, but that wasn’t what this was. She was there to help convince Derek not to be pissed if need be.

“Do I need to change and flaunt what I’ve got?” she asked. “I won’t sleep with him.”

“You know better. I’d never ask you to do that.”

“I wanted to put it out there.”

“Come on, before you say something else fucking ridiculous.”

We exited my office, striding toward the elevator. Hartley was working on getting his business up and running exactly the way he wanted it. I couldn’t help it when many of the items he needed kept miraculously appearing. He was on to me, of course. He’d chastised me for buying things but wore a huge smile. I’d give him everything his heart desired, if he let me.

There was no need to worry about my partners today, or them seeing me talk to a buyer. I wanted to draw blood. Instead, I had to do the opposite. Although, if Derek was an asshole, he wouldn’t get shit. I didn’t need him.

The elevator doors opened, and I stepped into the lobby where my guards had their guns out. In the center of the room was Derek in a pressed suit and shined shoes. He was a few inches shorter than me, with auburn hair and blue eyes that latched on to me the moment he saw I was walking his way. The guns didn’t seem to faze him.

“Derek, I understand you’re upset,” I said. “I just found out about the shipment and have people investigating what occurred.”

“The delivery was supposed to be to me this morning. Not this afternoon. Not tonight or even tomorrow. This. Morning,” he bit out. “I do business with you because you’re reliable and always deliver a quality product. Today, the opposite happened. I want my fucking guns.”

Most of the time, I let my irritation show. I didn’t care what others thought of me, letting them know exactly where I stood. I would be friendly to Derek once more. If he still had an attitude, I’d take him down a notch… or twenty.

“As you pointed out, this isn’t normal for me,” I said. “I don’t have drivers who go off course or shipments that don’t arrive at their destination. My truck could have been hijacked or my driver could have been held at gunpoint. Until I hear from my people after they locate it, I don’t have an answer. I’m willing to knock the delivery fee off the price and will get the shipment to you as soon as humanly possible.”

“No,” he seethed. “I needed it today. You think you’re the only one with a business to run? I have shit to do and need my guns. Now, I’m fucked. I want a full refund.”

I almost laughed. “You’re not thinking clearly, if that’s your demand. It was said from day one in our verbal contract, no refunds. You buy from me because I provide the best. You’ve had zero complaints for the past five years. Yet one shipment is late, and you drive to my building to bite my fucking head off.” I resisted growling. Just barely.

“I want my money. Now.”

I took a step closer, then another. He didn’t notice Kayli behind me. I heard her knuckles crack. She was gearing up for a fight. “Never demand shit from me. I don’t owe you anything but your fucking shipment, which you will have regardless of the truck’s condition. I will have it to you tomorrow morning. If that’s not sufficient, that I’m one fucking day late in five goddamn years, then by all means, haul your ass out the door before I fucking shoot you between the eyes.”

His lips parted like he was about to speak, but I cut him off before he could utter a single word.

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