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“This is for real? I can leave the cabin?”
He nodded. “Brooke, this day is huge for you. I think the woods and snow will do you some good.”
“Oh my God. Thank you.” She hopped from the table before they could change their minds.
She rushed from the dining room and climbed the stairs to the second story. She had tried to stay away from the guys’ bedrooms, but she had no doubt where each one of them slept.
Sometimes at night she thought she heard one or both of them pause outside her door, but she was never sure. They had respected her boundaries. Over the last two weeks she had begun to trust them, even when she didn’t want to.
They had never touched her. Never hurt her. They had only put limitations on leaving the cabin. Sometimes she had to remind herself why she was angry she was kept in a gorgeous house, given designer clothes and shoes, fed amazing meals, and treated like a princess but two gorgeous men. She had to be going crazy.
As she walked past Tyler’s room she noticed the door was cracked. She paused, noticing the pictures tucked into the mirror.
She had never thought before about what kinds of things mattered to Tyler. She had been too busy either hating him, or trying to keep her distance from his smoldering stare. The last two weeks of work had given her an escape.
But now, she absorbed the photos he had saved.
He had his arm around a woman with wisps of gray in her hair. It must be his mother. There was a picture of him and Lee. She stared at the collection of art museum shots. He had been to every impressive collection in the world. She couldn’t believe it.
Brooke fought the burning interest in her belly. Today Tyler wasn’t a hot sexy man who might have a side she’d like to get to know. No, that couldn’t happen. Today, Tyler was the man who decided her fate. That was all that mattered.
She walked to her room and found the heaviest coat, scarf, and gloves and dressed for the bitter cold.
Fourteen
Tyler
He took a look at the three leading portfolios in front of him. Tyler pushed away from his desk and walked to the bar to pour a drink. He filled the rocks glass with bourbon and leaned his heavy frame against the marble surface.
He knocked back the first swallow. If he chose Brooke’s design, she would be free. He took another sip.
It was the last thing he or Lee wanted. Two weeks with her had changed him. He didn’t know how to admit it, or face it, but it was the fucking truth.
She had a smile that could bring him to his knees. She had a smart mouth that he wanted to kiss every morning and every night. Her voice. Her laugh. She had invaded every part of him when he wasn’t looking. The thought of letting her go was ludicrous.
But he had made a deal and he wasn’t going to break his word, even if it cost him the one thing he wanted more than anything.
He heard a knock on the door and Lee stepped inside.
“Have you made a decision yet?” he asked.
Tyler shook his head. “No. I haven’t even opened them.” He nodded at the presentations on his desk. “The messenger brought them an hour ago. I told the poor bastard to warm up before he headed back on the road.”
“You know Brooke is a nervous wreck waiting on your answer. She’s back from the woods and pacing upstairs.”
Tyler frowned. His brows almost touched with the scowl.
“I know. There’s a lot riding on this.”
“Which part? The foundation? Or Brooke?”
Tyler exhaled. “Both. I don’t want to fuck up either. Our return to StarCon hinges on this. This.” He pushed his finger into the desk.
“It’s going to crush her if you don’t choose her design, man.”
“You don’t think I know that?” He shot a look at his best friend. “I want hers to be the one, just as much as I don’t.” He took a seat behind his desk. “This is the one time I wish I didn’t know a damn thing about art.”
“I could go through them if you like,” Lee offered. “I know absolutely shit about art.”
