Page 68 of The Cowboy and the Bombshell
There was the fiery businessman that had built a billion-dollar empire; I could learn a lot from him. I felt a pang of sadness in my chest as I realized all the time I had missed with my unnecessary obstinance. All the wasted years I could never get back.
As if he could sense my thoughts, my dad turned serious. “Hey,” he said, drawing my gaze to his eyes, so like my own. “None of that. We’re here now. That’s all that matters.”
I nodded, not trusting myself to speak. I could only move forward, and that’s exactly what I intended to do.
Harold and I stood in silence for a while, just watching the party flow around us. Occasionally, someone would approach us, talking about the leadership change, the hotel, or some other aspect of the event that they felt was important enough to discuss. I had to give it to them, the food was outstanding, and I would have to remember to thank Geoff Yates and his team in my speech later. Christ. I hated public speaking, but that was just one more thing I was going to have to work through. Because I wanted this. I wanted to succeed at this, and I hadn’t even known it until it was offered to me.
I spied Gideon Langford across the casino, his shrewd eyes watching every move people made when they sat at his tables. The former FBI agent was intimidating as hell, but there wasn’t a better man around for reading people, and Gideon could spot a liar or a con artist from a mile away. He tried to explain it to me once, something about micro expressions versus macro expressions. I didn’t follow, but I knew that there was no one on the planet more suited to be the Pit Boss ofThe Alamo. As they say, the house always wins. And with Gideon in charge of the casino floor, I knew that would always be true.
Casting my eyes around again, I saw that Penelope was now standing on the far side of the room, laughing with Dolly and Carson Young. The show had been the astounding success that we knew it would be, andThe Queens of The Alamowas already splayed across the internet as a must-see Las Vegas attraction. That was all down to Penelope. I was so proud of her. She had such drive and ambition, such a keen sense of the business and the market, not to mention she ruled on social media, as well. She was a total asset to the company, and I was thrilled she was my Vice President of Marketing.
As I watched her interacting with her peers and coworkers, I noticed Carson darting his eyes to Dolly repeatedly, following every move she made as she worked the crowd like the entertainment professional she was. No matter where she went or who she was interacting with, Carson was at her side, a silent shadow that couldn’t seem to take his eyes off of her.
It wasn’t until I saw her return one of his looks that it clicked for me.
Interesting. Good for them.
Penelope excused herself from the conversation, gliding across the floor as she made her way to where I stood with my dad. She smiled slyly as she approached. “Gentlemen, how are you enjoying the event?”
“It’s spectacular, Penelope,” Harold gushed before I could even respond. I did, however, slide my arm around her, drawing her to me as I trailed my fingers over the exposed skin at the low back of her dress. I smirked when I felt her shiver at my touch and she leaned farther into my chest. “I could not have asked for a more wonderful party.”
Penelope blushed at his praise. “Thank you, Mr. Pennington.”
“Harold, please.”
Her blush deepened. “Harold.” She turned and looked at her success. “I can’t believe how many famous people are here. I mean, it’s like the freaking Oscars or something!” She was giddy, but trying desperately to hide it. I could relate to her excitement, though. Harold may be used to events like this, but it was all new territory for Penelope and me. And as I saw the star from the latest Hollywood action blockbuster slide up to the bar next to the hottest female singer in country music and make small talk, it occurred to me again just how different my life was going to be from here on out. Growing up in Austin, I had spent time around musicians, but nothing of this scale. It was a bit overwhelming if I stopped to think about it.
So I tired not to.
“So, tell me, Penelope,” Harold went on, as if two of the most famous faces in the world weren’t sipping gin and tonics not ten feet away. “How did you enjoy your time in Las Vegas?”
Penelope smiled. “Well, it was eventful, that’s for sure.” She tossed me a cheeky wink that had me chuckling, then she went on. “But, honestly? I love this town. I didn’t think I would, but I do. I love everything about it. It’s so vibrant and alive, busy, but in a completely different way than in New York. There is a pulse to this city, a heartbeat all its own.” She sighed, her eyes going glassy as she spoke of the town we both fell in love with.
Fell in love in.
Blinking away the wetness that was gathering on her lashes, she smiled broadly at my dad. “I’m really going to miss it.”
Harold looked to me and I nodded. We had discussed this at length and I wanted him to present it to her, see how receptive she would be. “What if I told you that you didn’t have to miss it?”
Penelope frowned gently, the little furrow appearing between her eyebrows. “What do you mean?” She looked to me, but I just smiled.
“I’m talking about a big changes for Pennington Hotels, Penelope. I’m talking about relocating our executive offices to Nevada.” Penelope gasped, her mouth dropping open in shock.
“Are you serious?” she questioned, her eyes widening as the spark of hope appeared there.
“Absolutely I am.” Harold looked around the casino again, taking it all in. “This casino was my dream. My passion project, if you will. Where else but in Las Vegas can you let your childhood fantasies become a reality?” We all nodded, watching as the servers dressed as old west saloon girls wandered between the tables, their fishnet stockings and tight corsets marking them as part of the team. There were themed rooms, and wagon wheels, old photographs and historical items everywhere we looked. “For a little boy who wanted to be a cowboy when he grew up, this was my chance to make it happen.
“It also happens to be something very close to my son’s heart as well. When we started construction, I had the business center built big enough to accommodate the executive offices if that was the direction I decided to go. Before I knew Stone would be willing to take over as CEO, I had intended to move here myself. I’m getting far too old for those New York winters.”
We all laughed at that. No one liked January in New York. No one.
“But now, I think that this might be the right place for you and Stone, for a lot of reasons. The first being that you already have an excellent team established here. And now the disaster that is the Atlantic City project will require a delay and a marketing overhaul.” He grimaced at the thought of the mess Toddrick had left behind. Constance hadn’t spoken to any of her family since that day, but I had a feeling she was not just going to let sleeping dogs lie. “We are going to need our best people on that, and you, my dear, are our best.”
“Thank you, sir. I mean, thank you Harold. I won’t let you down.”
I turned to her, looking into her beautiful blue eyes, so expressive and open. “Penelope, I know before, I talked about Texas, and I made decisions about us without discussing it with you, not giving you the opportunity to make your own choices. So, with that in mind, I’m asking you now.” Her quickly drawn breath was the only hint at her shock. “Penelope Lund, would you like to move to Las Vegas and run a hotel empire with me?”
Her laughter rang out around the room, drawing looks from the people nearest to us, including Mr. Hollywood at the bar, who ran his eyes over her in a way that had me scowling at him when Penelope couldn’t see. He raised his hands and turned back around, smiling like the smarmy ass he probably was.
