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“What’s your favorite, Shannon?”
Surprise flashed in her green eyes and I liked that she took a moment to think about her answer. “The rhubarb macarons are to die for. Literally. I had to go up to five miles on the treadmill just to combat how many I was eating. The Nutella cronut comes in a very close second, though.”
“A beautiful woman with an appetite. Are you even real?”
She tilted her head to one side and bit her bottom lip before a small giggle escaped. “As real as they come, I’m afraid.”
“We have business to talk about.” Liam’s deep, amused tone broke through our flirty bubble, reminding me of why we were here.
“He’s right. Business waits for no one.”
“Neither do I,” Liam growled and took the tray, sparing me a look that said hurry the hell up.
“You better go, he looks upset.”
I shrugged. “Liam likes to pretend he’s a hard ass, that’s why we make such good partners, the good cop-bad cop thing works well for us. But we do need to talk business, even if I’d rather be talking to you.”
“Our pastry talk is more riveting than your business? Sounds doubtful, I heard you run a bodyguard school.”
“Not exactly.” It was more of a training facility for private security companies, but the town had decided it was a “bodyguard school”, and there was no changing their minds. “You can find out all about it by agreeing to go out with me.”
Shannon licked her lips, her green eyes studied me for a long time, and I couldn’t tell if she was deciding if I was worth the effort, or deciding if she was genuinely interested. “I’d love to go out with you Miles, but only if you promise not to fall in love with me.”
I blinked, surprised at her words. “You think so highly of yourself?”
“Not at all, but your answer will tell me everything I need to know.” She produced a business card and slid it across the counter, keeping one finger on top of it. “Well?”
“I promise not to fall in love with you.”
Shannon removed her finger and smiled. “I look forward to getting to know you, Miles.”
“Right back ‘atcha, Shannon.” The last thing I saw before turning away was a sexy blush staining her cheeks and her neck.
“You sure you know what you’re doing?” Liam’s question came before I had a chance to sit down or sip my coffee.
I shrugged, because I had no clue. “I’m looking for a good time, and I assume she is too since she told me not to fall in love with her.”
“And that didn’t heat you up, just a little bit?”
He knew me too well, which was expected after spending years together in tight situations. “Maybe a little, but if she’s not looking for serious, then she’s the perfect distraction while we finish the obstacle courses and start recruiting corporate clients.”
Liam groaned and took an angry bite of his muffin. “Is it really necessary to bring suits into the business? We already have plenty of clients with the security trainees.”
“Don’t let the guys we worked with in private security sour you on suits, Liam. There’s plenty of money to be made on corporate retreats and stuff. But I know you well, so I put together some numbers to show you.” He was beyond skeptical about corporate retreats because Liam didn’t interact well with those types of civilians, but he was a family man now and I knew the numbers would convince him.
He looked at the numbers I compiled with raised eyebrows. “Is this for real?”
“That’s just for the executive package, and that’s what we’d charge per head. The numbers below, that’s for a team building weekend.”
Liam’s hazel eyes widened in surprise and he let out a low whistle. “That’s for a weekend?”
“Yep. It’ll be much more for a weeklong retreat, which will allow us to provide even better training for the trainees.”
“I can’t turn away from that kind of revenue.”
“I knew you would say that, because next week I have meetings in Los Angeles, Dallas, San Antonio and San Jose lined up. Pitching to a few CEOs and senior execs.”
Liam shook his head and sat back, a look of shock on his face. “How did you even get these meetings?”
“My sparkling personality, of course. And I keep in touch with plenty of former service members who were happy to pass my name along when they could.”
“That’s all?”
I nodded. “High powered guys like the ones I’m meeting with, they want to be pushed and hard. Who better to do that than the guys who train the guys who protect them right now?”
“You know, when you came down here to pitch this business idea, I didn’t think it would work.”
“I know,” I snorted. “You said as much right to my face.” He was a natural born skeptic, but I knew how to make my point when it was important. “Thankfully I’m a better negotiator and debater than you.”
