Page 39 of Trick's Trap

It was mind-bending how young Patrick and his brother had been when they founded their hotel chain. “Liam and Patrick must be amazing businessmen to have built all this.”

“They are. Liam’s brutal in the boardroom and Maggie’s no slouch either. Trick acts like the soft touch, more devil-may-care, but in reality, he’s a born salesman. He could sell anything. He’s almost better at that than poker, although since you beat him, that probably doesn’t mean much to you,” Peyton teased.

Did he tell everyone? “It was only one game. Maybe I got lucky,” she offered.

Peyton’s lips quirked. “Did you?”

Tahlia’s shoulders dropped. “No. I’m better.”

The other woman’s peal of laughter preceded them into the restaurant, where the chef personally served them lunch. The sommelier also fussed over them until Peyton sent him away, telling him Tahlia couldn’t drink with the painkillers she was on.

“That was delicious,” she said as they resumed their tour.

“All the food here is amazing,” Peyton boasted, leading the way to the elevators.

Their next stop was the manager’s office, located directly behind the main desk.

“I thought I wasn’t allowed on the lobby floor yet.”

Peyton waved that away. “As long as you’re not in the open, we should be fine. Plus, this is my domain.” She threw open a door, revealing a high-tech space filled with monitors.

Two men in dark suits nodded at them as Peyton shooed her to an intimidating semi-circular desk. Three huge monitors faced the leather rolling chair like some sort of space command center.

Peyton pulled up an extra chair for her to sit in. “This place doubles as security and our IT department. Kevin and Sam over there keep watch on all the floors and entrances via our internal camera feeds. I’m part of a team that maintains all the hotel’s computers and encrypted Wi-Fi system.”

Tahlia whistled, squinting at the command line interface on the closest screen. Her math skills didn’t translate to being adept with computer languages. She knew the basics, of course, but Peyton must have been a very good programmer to make all this run.

The other girl typed a few commands on her keyboard, bringing up closed-circuit feeds from the penthouse floor. The men were in the reception area just outside of their offices, deep in conversation with a small group.

“Trick is done with his meeting, so we can expect him to start hunting you down soon.”

“I don’t mind if he finds me,” Tahlia said, feeling like a voyeur as she watched him shake hands with another man in the monitor. In the background, Liam Tyler was standing with his assistant.

The Tylers oldest brother had dropped by her room the day before. Though he’d been polite and welcoming, his clipped speech and bear-like build intimidated her. She found it difficult to speak to him. Patrick was the complete opposite.

Peyton giggled. “Of course you don’t mind. You’re almost healed up. Soon, it will be time forbam chicka wah wah.”

Tahlia’s ears heated. She jerked in the swivel chair to see if the two security men overheard.

“They are wearing earpieces, tuned to the in-house band. You could drive a truck in here and they wouldn’t notice.”

Chagrined, Tahlia turned back to her. “Patrick said he wants to take it slow,” she confessed. “I wasn’t sure I did, but it’s a good idea. I don’t have a whole lot of experience with men. My family never allowed any near me—even after I left home.”

Despite the distance, her relatives kept up a relentless surveillance. Every time a man showed more than a passing interest in her, she received a warning, usually in the form of a phone call from her father. She was repeatedly warned to discourage suitors, so that was what she did, albeit as subtly as she could. If that didn’t work, her cousins would start appearing in the same places until Tahlia was forced to be more direct with the man in question.

She gave herself a little shake. “I don’t know why I’m telling you this. You’re like Patrick in a way. It’s far too easy to tell you things I shouldn’t.”

Peyton beamed. “It’s a gift. Rest assured, whatever you tell me, I will keep to myself. Ask Maggie when she gets back. I’m a vault.” She gripped Tahlia’s hand before letting go to scribble on a post-it. “If you need anything or if the guys get too overbearing, call me. This is my extension. It will forward to my cell phone if I’m walking the halls.”

Tahlia mumbled her thanks, her throat tight with emotion. She tucked the post-it into a pocket. “I don’t know how I ended up here. It almost doesn’t seem real, having so many people concerned for my welfare.”

Peyton tilted her head contemplatively. “Actually…now that you mention it, caring about women in distress is kind of our thing.”

Puzzled, Tahlia raised an eyebrow.

“I can show you.” Peyton stood. “Come with me.”

She led her to a large storage closet across the room. As soon as they crossed the threshold, a motion sensor turned the lights on.

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