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“Laney? Who the fuck is Laney?”
“My sister-in-law. She’s the one married to Evan. You’ve seen her around.”
“Wait, isn’t she like mega-rich? Didn’t I read something about her being a millionaire or something and bringing jobs to this area?”
“She’s a billionaire, but that’s neither here nor there. I went over there last night to speak with her. She had spent her life buying and selling businesses, and I wanted her professional opinion. She did some preliminary market research and saw the tremendous opportunity for growing the tavern.”
“How could she do research and know that in a few hours—especially overnight?”
I gave him a stern look. “She’s a billionaire. She can do anything anytime and get results with the snap of a finger.”
“And she said there was a tremendous opportunity?”
“Yes, she suggested you update the kitchen and make it a bit bigger, which would mean taking some of the room from the main dining area, but we could build a patio for outside dining. If we put partial walls, we could cover them in the winter, add heaters, and still use the area. We could also do the same for the bar area. Now without actually doing a drawing and setting it all up, we anticipate we could about double the seating.”
“Double the seating? You’re serious?” He leaned back, pulling his hand from mine. “You’re really fucking serious about this?”
“Yes.”
“What kind of money are you talking about investing?”
“Well, it would be best to see if we could get Howard down as far as we can because of the work that needs to be done to stabilize the building. Because I work for the company, I can get us a discount on all the work. Laney and I are prepared to invest two hundred thousand in you and the tavern.”
“Two hundred grand?” His jaw dropped. “You would invest that much? But what do you want in return?”
“We’d do a sixty-forty split. You would own the tavern and do the day-to-day operations. We would only step in if you needed us for something or to oversee major changes. Laney and I would split the forty percent between us.”
“So you two would be partners, but I would still own it?”
“Yes, you would have the controlling interest in the business. We are merely there to help you get your dream.”
He stared at me for a long time. “Candy, why would you do this? What will your family think of you going into business with a former gang member?”
“Well, the only person who might give me any flak might be Ethan, but he can’t help himself since he’s a cop. However, he might like that he could get a discount on his bar bill.” I said with a laugh.
“Yeah, we’ll see about that. If Ethan gives you shit, I might double his bar tab.”
I laughed. “He would deserve it.” I waited a moment as he stared at his beer bottle. “So, what do you think? Are you open to the possibility of being business partners with me?”
He shifted his warm brown eyes my way. “That depends. Does being business partners mean that we can’t sleep together?”
I stood slowly, then stepped closer to him. “I hope it doesn’t mean that.”
Mike shifted and put his hands on my hips as I began to climb over his lap. “I’m not sure I’m ready to give this up yet.”
“Me either.” I sat over his thighs.
“Candy, I can’t give you anything more than this. I’m not wired that way.”
“I’m not asking for more, Mike. I love the way you make me feel. I like being with you. That’s all I want for us. Our business relationship and personal one have nothing to do with each other. We can keep them separate.”
He ran his hands up my back. “You think we can do that?”
I leaned forward, my lips a breath away. “I know we can, Mike. Now, do you want this or not?”
He pulled me forward, kissing me with an intensity I had not felt from him before. A few moments later, he pulled back and cupped my cheeks. “Yeah, I want it. I want you, and I want the tavern. So, yes, I would love to have you and Laney as partners.”
“Perfect.” I rubbed my groin against him. “Now, let’s do some celebrating, shall we?”
