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“Okay, okay.”I swatted his hand away, because as much as I would like a repeat of what we’d just enjoyed, I also needed some sleep if I was going to be of any use to my class tomorrow.Because I’d been so busy talking with Ben about his problems in class, I hadn’t gotten around to grading the students’ papers, so I’d need to set my alarm to get up early and complete the grading.
And take a test of your own,a voice in the back of my head reminded me.
The pregnancy test still sat, wrapped tightly in its packaging, in my purse.And yes, I would take that test in the morning, too.But at that moment, with Leo holding me tight, loving me not only despite my flaws, but because of them, the pressure I’d felt about it earlier was gone.No matter what the test said, it wouldn’t matter because I had everything I already needed.
~Leo~
There was nothing better than Lexi drifting off to sleep in my arms.Her content little sighs escaping her lips like puffs of air on my arm made me smile and I pulled her closer to drop a kiss on the top of her head.There wasn’t a day that went by that I didn’t thank the heavens above for the life I had with Lexi and Ben.Fate brought us together all those years ago when we fell in love on the streets of Las Vegas, and I didn’t care what anyone said, it was fate that brought us together again all those years later: Her with a five-year-old son—my son.Me with only the memory of the girl who’d meant everything and slipped away.
I was a lucky man.Of that there was no doubt and despite the fact that we’d tried without success to expand our family, it didn’t matter.We were perfect, just the three of us.
At the lake.
In the mountains.
In a small town.
Averysmall town.
Stop it.I needed to force those thoughts out of my head.They were coming far too frequently these days.It wasn’t that I didn’t love my life.I did.But I’d be lying if I said I didn’t miss the excitement of the big city and the challenge of running a large resort hotel.
And I was lying.Every single day.But if my choice was a big city hotel or my family, it was no contest.I snuggled Lexi even closer to me.No.There was no choice to make.
The Lake Lillian Inn had been a huge success and a huge challenge.It was falling into almost complete disrepair when I’d bought it.A struggling little hotel with no prospects and no future.But I’d changed that.In a big way.Now it was thriving.As much as it could, anyway.We offered company retreats, weddings, even ladies’ weekends that included scrapbooking.I still shook my head at that one.When Lexi suggested it, I had no idea what to expect, but what I didn’t envision was a dozen women with crafting supplies and endless bottles of wine to descend on my little hotel.As it turned out, it was one of the more profitable ideas we’d had, and the inn now offered them quarterly.The retreats had a preferred placement on the schedule.
The schedule.
That was part of the problem.The inn more or less ran itself.The challenge was gone.I craved a challenge.Something to really sink my teeth into.The idea of what that challenge might be had kept me up on more than one occasion.As the hours ticked by, and my arm fell asleep under Lexi, I realized I was in for another night of sleeplessness.Finally, I slid my tingling arm out from under her and slipped out of bed, grabbing my pajama pants from the floor as I went into the kitchen.Maybe a glass of wine would help still my thoughts.
I poured the wine and picked up my cell from the hall table before I headed into the living room.One missed call.I punched in my voicemail password, expecting a sales call or something equally wasteful of my time.I didn’t get a lot of calls, especially after dinner.If there was an issue at the inn, Seth would handle it.He was proving to be a natural manager.
But it wasn’t Seth.Instead, it was Keith Halford, my old friend who worked with me at the MGM in Vegas all those years ago, the only buddy I bothered to keep in touch with.His familiar voice filled the air and for a moment, I was lost in the memory of sharing a couple beers and war stories about some of the adventures we’d have to deal with managing a big hotel like the MGM, and I didn’t bother to listen to what he was saying.
“Opportunity.” The word caught my attention, so I listened a little more carefully.And I was glad I did.I listened to the entire message once and then again.
“Leo, man.You can’t miss out on this.I’ve stumbled on a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get in on the ground floor of something that’s going to be huge.”
My attention was definitely piqued by that detail alone, but when Keith said what the opportunity was, I was definitely excited.
“Lake Las Vegas,” Keith’s voice said.“What was supposed to be a luxury resort is up for sale at a bargain.We need one more investor.A manager.”
A manager.
I was familiar with Lake Las Vegas.Anyone who worked in the hotel industry in Vegas was definitely familiar with the development that was meant to be a luxury destination for the stars and wealthy of the world.Of course, that was before the major economic crash when everything went to shit.I’d heard rumors about some of the properties, but that was right around the time I was starting my life in Canada with Lexi, and to be honest, it wasn’t really on my radar.But what Keith was saying was definitely on my radar.Especially the word opportunity.That one kept playing over and over in my head.
I couldn’t ignore it.There was no way I could take him up on any kind of opportunity, no matter how good it was, but I still had to know what it was.It was late, but he’d be up.Keith never slept either.
Sure enough, he picked up on the third ring.
“You got my message.”
I grinned at his direct greeting.“I did.Sounds interesting.”
“More than interesting, Leo.It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.I’m telling you.Youneedto see this place.”
I chuckled and shook my head, even though he couldn’t see me.“I don’t know, Keith.What’s the point?”
“The point is that you would be a friggin’ moron to miss out on this.I know you, Leo.I know what you can do and Iknowyou need to be part of this project.”
