Page 41 of Don't Stop

“She’s good,” Giacomo said, picking up his pen, and my pride started to swell in my chest. I was good, but hearing the clearly powerful men in front of me say so was a confidence boost I wasn’t angry about. I couldn’t say the same about Drake when he clamped his hand around his own thigh to stop it from bouncing.

“You have no idea,” he growled, and I shot a look in his direction. “You will get the progressive suggestions you’re looking for. Amanda knows exactly where to look, and she knows not to stop until she gets what she wants.”

The Moretti brothers leaned forward on the table, taking the papers from me. “That’s what I like to hear,” Giacomo said.

“I think we’ll get along just fine,” I said, tapping the paper. “Sign here, please.”

Chapter twenty-six

Amanda

Wepulledupinfront of the brick building in Drake’s Escalade with Giacomo and Ronan in their own car behind us. The parking lot was empty, and even in the middle of the afternoon, the building looked dark. It was overcast. My stomach flipped when the windows looked dingier than they had in the listing, but I took a deep breath and reached for the handle.

The Moretti brothers watched me climb out of the car, getting out of their dark Mercedes. They wore nice suits, and when Giacomo brushed the dust off his jacket, the abandoned parking lot seemed even more rundown.

“Gentlemen!” I put my hands out, waving around the lot to the building. “What do you think?”

Behind me, Drake closed the driver’s side door and locked the car. He joined us, shaking both of their hands, and when he lightly placed his hand on my lower back, their gazes followed. Butterflies danced in my throat.

“Let’s see what you’ve got,” Ronan said with a pointed glance first at Drake’s arm and then at the building. “Lead the way.”

The sound of my heels against the asphalt echoed off the mostly empty brick buildings as I walked. All three men filed in behind me. I could feel their stares, and I swung my hips more. The skirt I’d worn hugged my curves, fitting tightly to my knees. My confidence swelled, and I rolled my shoulders back, pushing my chest out as I opened the door to the building.

It squeaked, opening up to a large room that smelled like dust. “Keep an open mind,” I said, flicking on each individual light switch behind me.

The building looked less run down once the overhead lights lit up the exposed brick walls and the wood floors. I stepped into the room, encouraging them to do the same. Drake snuck around them. “I believe these are the original wood floors,” he said before pointing to the wooden beams along the ceiling. “Those too. They’ll call itvintage.”

Ronan and Giacomo laughed. “It has potential,” Giacomo said. He sounded hesitant, and I chewed at the inside of my cheek. Then he looked at me and urged me forward with his head. “Is there more?”

Drake chuckled behind me, and Ronan stepped forward. “Show us the rest, huh?” He put his hand on my back, and when he did, I could practically feel Drake seething behind me.

“Right this way,” I said with a curt nod. “Back here was the kitchen. It wouldn’t take much to update it now, and if we go this way, the upper two floors have offices.”

I led the way up the stairs, and I could feel the stares of all three men on my ass with each step. I tried to control my breathing on the way, hoping not to betray myself by showing my nerves.

“Offices?”

“Mm-hmm.” I paused at the top of the stairs, pointing towards the hallway that housed several closed doors. “You could rent them out or turn them into apartments.”

Ronan narrowed his eyes at me, and I pasted on a sweet smile. Behind him, Drake glared at me. When Ronan put his arm around my shoulder, his anger was palpable. “May I see one of these offices?” he asked.

“You can see anything you’d like!” I said, realizing too late what I’d said.

Giacomo chuckled, and Ronan smirked. “Is that so?” he said, and I didn’t miss the slow once-over Giacomo gave me.

“In the building,” Drake muttered, earning a loud laugh from Ronan that bounced from the walls.

Ronan clapped him on the shoulder. “I’m obviously playing,” he said, giving me a look out of the corner of his eye. “Unless she’s not.”

Drake grumbled, and I quickly moved towards the first office. I cleared my throat. “Most of the offices look the same. You’re welcome to take a look at all of them if you’d like.”

I opened the door, letting them step past me and into the room. Giacomo said something under his breath to Ronan, earning a nod in response. I hoped it meant they liked the building and not that they were ready to reject the property completely.

My breath shook when I looked up and my eyes met Drake’s. I wished I could read his mind, or that his eyes would tell me what he was thinking. They kind of did—he was angry. Was he angry with me?

Outside the window, the clouds got darker. The dim lights that lined the ceiling didn’t do much when the light from the sun was shaded, and it made the tension in the room feel thicker. My breath hitched.

When Ronan and Giacomo finished their discussion, they turned around. “You think it’ll go for under asking?” Giacomo asked.

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