Page 91 of Bad Seed

“Her reputation precedes her in the world ofcorporate shenanigans. Lead the way. We can do the tour of the hotel after we talk to her.”

***

Harley was waiting with her feet up and a cold drink at her elbow when their visitors arrived and knocked.

Brendan checked to see who it was and then let out a little whoop. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” he said, and opened the door wide. “Wow…what a surprise! Good to see you!”

Wolf was all smiles as he gave Brendan a quick hug, then let them lead the way, but he’d already seen the woman sitting on the sofa and was trying not to stare. Even with the bandage on the side of her head, she was stunning.

Harley stood as the trio approached, but the buyer was walking behind them, and she had yet to see his face. Then Brendan stepped aside, and she was face-to-face with Wolfgang Outen. Shock left her momentarily speechless. She’d seen countless pictures of this man, but they hadn’t come close to the real thing.

“Miss Banks, I have been wanting to meet you for years, but you keep a low profile. Thank you for agreeing to speak with me under such adverse conditions.”

Harley shook the hand he extended. “Brendan is giving me that look. I’m still a little wobbly on my feet, so please sit with me. Oh…Liz, I finished the audit thisevening, so I can freely answer any questions regarding the financial stability of the hotel.”

“Wonderful! Does Dad know?”

“I intend to email him tonight. Now, Mr. Outen, you ask, and I will answer your concerns.”

Wolf fired off questions and Harley responded without hesitation, expanding when he needed clarification until he was satisfied, while Brendan sat in the background, watching in admiration at Harley’s acumen. Finally Wolf seemed satisfied with what he’d been told.

“Miss Banks, you have been most helpful, and it’s obvious why you’re the first name on the lips of anyone in need of your services.”

“Harley, please, and thank you. I like numbers. They don’t make mistakes. They don’t lie.”

He smiled and then leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees.

“I didn’t get where I am today by hesitating. I have a question to ask you that has nothing to do with the hotel. May I?”

“You can ask,” Harley said.

He laughed. “Which means I may or may not get an answer. Fair enough! Okay, here’s what I want to know. If I were to buy the Serenity Inn, I would be moving my main headquarters to this hotel, and if I did, would you consider coming to work for me as my global finance manager? I have holdings all over the world. I know it’s a lot, but we would begin salary negotiations at a million.”

“A year?” she asked.

He nodded. “You’d be earning it. My holdings are vast. A couple of years back, I lost an entire refinery in South America because of an embezzling employee. He was trying to cover up his crime, set the office on fire, and in turn, the refinery caught fire and blew up. Men were killed. The fire was still burning weeks later when I relinquished it. And none of that would have happened if I had someone like you who would not have missed the details when invoices and payments didn’t add up to the amount of crude oil being shipped out. The accountants I already have at each location would still be employed, but you would be overseeing all of them all over the world, but from this location. Don’t say anything. I don’t own the hotel yet, but will you at least think about it?”

Harley was trying not to giggle from the glee of the offer. “Yes, sir. I will give it serious consideration, and thank you for the vote of confidence,” she said.

“Awesome,” Wolf said, and then shifted focus to Brendan. “Now that business is out of the way, how do you feel about becoming an uncle?”

“Excited for Sean and Amalie, for sure. And for Mom. She’s beside herself. Probably bragged it all over Pope Mountain already. Are you ready to be a grandfather?”

Wolf laughed. “Papa. I’m going to be a Papa. And don’t tell them I’m in Jubilee. I want to surprise her. I’ll be talking to her tonight. Oh, I have a suite in this hotel, so mum’s the word, please.”

“No problem,” Brendan said. “And mum’s the word on Harley, too. The whole event was hushed. The feds are dealing with it. We don’t want the wrong people knowing she’s still alive.”

“Of course,” Wolf said, then stood and shook Harley’s hand. “Please don’t get up. Get well and come work with me instead.”

Liz escorted him to the door, and Brendan locked up behind them, then turned around and saw the smile on Harley’s face.

“So, Sunshine…what an opportunity, or is it too far out of your wheelhouse to consider?”

“A million dollars a year is never out of my wheelhouse. It’s a dream job. Living here in this town and working where you work, and for Wolfgang Outen? Pinch me. I think I’m hallucinating again…but he has to buy it first.”

“You don’t know Wolf. If he says he’s buying it, then it’s already in the bag. He’ll outbid any other buyers until he gets what he wants and then turn this hotel into a showplace,” he said.

She frowned. “Will he expand, do you think?”

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