Page 10 of Tempted By the Broken Cowboy
“That it is. Why don’t we order breakfast as we get started?” Ella suggests.
She gives no indication that she knows anything, which I’m grateful for. I want to put last night behind me and focus on getting my funding.
The Morgans are much easier to get along with than I imagined, and this business meeting feels casual, almost like I’m not asking them for fifty million dollars. They listen keenly, asking all the necessary questions, allowing me to see that they are genuinely interested in my project.
“I already liked your proposal, Miss Atwood, and everyone else around this table agrees with me,” Jace speaks up once I’m done.
“Thank you. So, when do I get the check, or are we digging up some secret stash somewhere?” I tease to lighten the mood.
It works as everyone laughs.
“I’ll give you the money you need, under two conditions,” he replies.
“Of course. What are they?”
“One, you’ll need to move to Iron Stallion for at least two months,” he starts.
“Why?”
“Because of condition number two.”
“Which is?”
“You have a PR degree, right?” he queries.
“Yes, I do,” I affirm, wondering where he is going with this.
“Perfect, then this will be right up your alley,” he says, and I take a deep breath, bracing myself, but his request still leaves me befuddled. “I would like for you to fix Beck’s reputation around Wrangler Creek,” he decrees.
He might as well ask me to plow Iron Stallion with a fork because that’s how impossible this task is. Wrangler Creek’s townspeople hate Beck for a reason. It’s been more than a decade since he did what he did, and there are still whispers around the wholeincident. His father paid for the damages, but Beck’s reputation was ruined forever, and now they want me to fix that? It’s an impossible task, which means I might as well give up on getting my funding from the Morgans.
“But everyone hates him!” I exclaim before I can stop myself.
Jace nods. “Exactly, so fix that and you have yourself a deal.”
“Anything else but that,” I plead helplessly.
“Those are my conditions. Take it or leave it.”
I’m about to defend myself when the devil himself pulls up a seat and drops himself next to me. “What are we talking about, and when are we leaving?”
4
BECKETT
The whole table turns in response to my voice as I settle down in the only free seat between Zane and Quinn.
“Beck, just the person we were talking about,” Jace says, piquing my interest.
“You guys were talking about me?” I question, picking up a slice of toast from the basket in the middle of the table and taking a bite.
From the corner of my eye, I can see Quinn glaring at me, but it doesn’t faze me. She probably thinks that I am going to say something that will expose her behavior from last night, but I’m not that petty. It’s partly my fault anyway—I should havedisposed of that pill as soon as I got it. I don’t want to get in trouble with my siblings when they learn that I had drugs on me, so it’s in both our best interests if I keep my mouth shut.
“Yes,” Jace confirms.
“What about?”
Instead of answering me directly, he turns to Zane and Ella, who nod subtly as if giving him permission. Now I’m worried. What is it that they were talking about that they need to confirm with each other before revealing to me? I thought this was a business meeting, and since I’m not an administrator at Morgan Enterprises, I didn’t see the need for me to be here. But I was getting bored, and they were taking too long.
