Page 55 of Quarter Miles (Runaway 3)

“Well, I commend you. My visit to Montana was one I’ll never forget. In the most positive way.”

“Thank you.” I shared a smile with Aria. “I’ll let you two get back to work. Call me later?”

She nodded. “Now that you’ve made my boss’s day, I’ll be taking the afternoon off. I’ll find you when I’m done.”

“Wait.” Mark raised his hand, stopping me before I could leave. “I have to ask. And you should know that this is very unlike me. I realize it’s not exactly the polite way to do business, attempting to recruit another establishment’s employee.”

My jaw nearly dropped. Was he going to offer me a job? I might have been toying with the idea of moving, but I wasn’t ready to decide. My pulse raced and my fingers trembled as he reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a business card.

“My general manager is retiring in three months. Aria has pitched in to help ease the tran

sition but she wants to be in management about as badly as I want to water the plants.”

Aria hummed her agreement.

“I’m having a hell of a time finding an experienced replacement.” Mark handed me his card. “If you’re ever interested in a location change—”

“She’s not.”

My head whipped to the side as a familiar, towering figure crowded into the space between me and Aria.

“Cash Greer.” He held out his hand to Mark.

Mark returned Cash’s handshake, looking guilty for having just been busted poaching. “Mr. Greer. Welcome to The Gallaway. If there’s anything I can do to improve your stay, please let me know.”

Cash nodded and slipped his hand around my elbow. “Katherine, may I speak with you for a moment?”

Damn. He’d called me Katherine. I was not going to like this conversation.

“Sure.” There was no point arguing. Cash was not going to leave me here with Mark. “It was a pleasure meeting you, Mr. Gallaway.”

“Mark. Please.” He gave me a slight bow, then backed away. “The pleasure was mine.”

Aria followed him toward the front desk, mouthing, “Later.”

I nodded and steeled my spine, then turned to face an angry—extremely angry—Cash Greer.

Chapter Eleven

Katherine

The door slammed behind Cash as we walked into our hotel room. He strode past the unmade bed to the windows, practically ripping them apart as he flung the drapes away from the glass.

He hadn’t spoken a word on the elevator ride to the second floor, but the lecture and fight were coming. Cash didn’t lose his composure often, which was why our arguing on this trip was so abnormal. When angry, he’d close down and disappear to spend some time on a horse until he’d had some time to cool off.

We were a long way from his horses.

I braced when he turned from the window and planted his fists on his hips.

“What the fuck was that?”

“Nothing.” When his hazel eyes turned hard as stone, I realized playing dumb had been the wrong decision. “I was just talking with Aria’s boss.”

“He offered you a job.”

“Not officially,” I muttered.

Mark Gallaway hadn’t even seen my résumé. He might decide to find someone with broader experience when he learned that the only people I’d ever worked for were the Greers and that my education had peaked at a GED.