Page 40 of Resolute

I immediately hear the clicking of her heels on the hardwood floors. Even though she wears simple clothes, the woman knows how to wear them. Today, she’s wearing a black pencil skirt that limits her movements, so he has to take shorter steps while walking faster. The result is her arse swaying like a wave in the Caribbean Sea.

“Yes, boss?” she says as she comes into view.

She ditched the “Mr. Godoy” a couple of days ago. My initial thought was to correct her and ask—not demand—to call me Mr.Godoy with that thick accent of hers. But then I decided “boss” had a good ring to it, too.

“I’m about to call Durán, and I would like you to be present to take notes at the meeting.”

She gives me a blinding smile and takes a seat across from me, her tablet on her lap. Crossing her legs to the side, she looks like a siren taking a sunbath.

Fuck. Since when do I think like a moron?

A siren?

“Señor Durán?” Camila says after he picks up on the second ring. “Good afternoon. This is Camila Flores, Mr. Godoy’s executive assistant.”

“Camila, what a pleasure. How are you today?” he says.

I immediately don’t like him.Is he trying to hit on Camila?

She smiles and doesn’t miss a beat, replying, “I’m doing great. Thank you for asking. Are you ready for Mr. Godoy?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” he says, chuckling.

I scoff. Camila widens her eyes in horror at me, and I take a deep breath before greeting him with my most menacing tone.

“Mr. Durán, what can I do for you?”

I see Camila press her lips hard against each other, clearly trying to avoid laughing. I can’t help it—I smirk at the sight.

“Oh, well, a man of few words, I see,” Durán says.

Camila closes her eyes.

Did I fuck it up?

I’m sure if he admires my father and did his due diligence, he would know that I’m ruthless when negotiating and have no patience for formalities.

“Well, Godoy,” Durán continues, "I have acquired three new cocoa farms in the Antioquia region, and I’m in the process of certifying them as sustainable. I’m looking for partners who can create products with my exquisite beans. Since there’s a rumorthat your father is retiring, I thought I would offer you the exclusivity of my beans for the Chilean market.”

I like it. The man can adapt, shifting from friendly to all business without a second thought.

I do also like the idea of adding chocolate to the umbrella of products Hacienda Carmen currently offers. Wine, flowers, and chocolate. We could be the one-stop destination for sweeping women off their feet.

And it would give us a different vibe than what Karina and Luca are offering at their vineyard.

“I need to be honest with you, Durán. I like the idea of having exclusive rights to an outstanding product.”

I can almost hear his smile through the phone as he hums his appreciation.

“But I must know, why did you approach Owen Clarke instead of me directly?”

The line goes silent.

Camila’s eyes immediately fix on mine. She called it—there’s something fishy here.

She smirks, and it catches me off guard.Is she getting a kick out of this?For some reason, I hope that’s the case. Mrs. Evans would have never smirked at me that way.

Maybe Camila will turn out to be a thrilling partner.

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