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“I’ll go but there is still one problem….” Her voice trailed off.
When she pushed around the pasta on her plate, I ducked to get into her line of sight.
“I know what’s holding you back, Sydney. We’re going to have to talk to Alec about us. I’ll be there whenwetalk to him.” I emphasized thewe, showing her she was not alone in this.
“He’ll never be okay with us.” She chewed on her bottom lip, twirling the pasta distractedly.
“We’re perfect together. You’re saying that your brother is not going to be okay with that?”
The crease between her eyebrows deepened. “He won’t.”
I felt determination firing me up. “Well, we’re just going to have to change his mind then. I’m going to tell Brandy about us soon, and then we’ll tell your brother.”
The Alec she was describing was not the Alec I knew, and by chance, if he was against this—us—then the hell with him. Because I loved this woman and I wasn’t about to let anything or anyone get between us.
CHAPTER36
SYDNEY
“I’m almost there,Serena. Just parking, and I’ll be at the restaurant.”
Today was the meeting with Mahoney Enterprises, which included my first meeting with Logan Tyler. He’d flown in from Hollywood for this meetup, and Serena was on edge.
I pulled in the nearest parking lot in front of The Capital Grille, slipped on my heels, and headed into the restaurant. I had invited Austin, given he was the one who’d handed over this deal, but he had a late session with his physical therapist.
After I entered the restaurant, the hostess led me to the back, where the private rooms were. I saw Brooke talking up a man in the far corner. If I were to guess, he was the owner of Mahoney—because Brooke was the looker and talker of the Loverly clan and also the face of the company.
Serena held this forced smile on her face as she stood to the side of them, listening to them chat, a martini in hand.
Ryanne seemed unaffected by Logan, who stood next to her, talking about whatever famous people talked about.
There was no reason I needed to be here, not really. We already had the deal. The contract had been signed. There was no way Mahoney could push us out.
Serena just didn’t like anyone else playing in her sandbox, so I was here for moral support.
“Hey!” Serena said, walking toward me. She squeezed my hand and widened her eyes. “Let me introduce you to the Mahoney team.” Her voice was weighted with fake glee.
Pulling me toward the far corner by the bar, Serena made introductions.
“Hey, everyone, I’d like to introduce you to Sydney. She’s VP of operations at Loverly and my right-hand woman.” She motioned to the guy in front of her, who was wearing a bow tie. His hair was pushed back, and he had the greenest eyes I’d ever seen on a man. “This is Reed. He’s the lead on the Mahoney side and, from what I hear, CEO in training.”
“I wouldn’t jump the gun there,” the male beside Reed spoke up. “Granny hasn’t decided yet who will take the reins.” Then, he winked. “I’m Carter.”
Carter was equally broad and had the same set of green eyes. They could have been twins. The only distinguishable factor was that Reed had darker hair, whereas Carter was almost blonde.
“They’re brothers,” Brooke said, tipping back what looked like a margarita.
“I could have guessed that,” I mumbled, taking each of their hands in greeting.
“And of course, I don’t need an introduction at all.” Logan Tyler,People’sSexiest Man Alive stood in front of me.
Ryanne stood next to him, looking like she was about to barf at Logan’s introduction, most likely due to his arrogant tone.
“Yes, of course. I loved your last film,” I said, boosting his ego. But to be honest, it was a great movie. “Sydney,” I said, taking his hand next.
He gave me a discerning look. “I know all about you, Sydney Loverly. Austin and I are practically brothers.”
My ears warmed as I felt Brooke’s and Ryanne’s eyes flip toward me.
