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“Of course not,” I repeated, shaking my head as I turned to Orion, mouth open, ready to lash intohimtoo.
Before I could speak though, my father had a few more words. “And I didn’t sell it tothem.”
My eyes narrowed at Orion, who was standing entirely too close to me, looking incredibly amused. “Then how did you get it?”
“It was a pretty neat trick.” He chuckled. “He just didn’tknowit was us. I bought it through a shell company, and for astealat that, with the change in my cupholder.”
Immediately, I blinked back tears of confusion, hurt, and most of all,rage.
Of courseten million dollars was seat-cushion findings to him.Stellar Foodswas a multi-billion dollar company, who swallowed little places like ours wherever they went.
Thatwas why he’d looked familiar.
As Chief Operating Officer of Nectar, I didn’t deal with those details—which I now understood exactly why—but I remembered the hullaballoo a few years ago around a buyout offer fromStellar.
Of course, the offer had been rejected.
Nectar was a community-focused business, had always been that way. My mother’s people’s people had owned the land we stood on, fighting to keep it from becoming a casualty of the race riots and other hostile takeovers since before this building stood.
It wouldalwaysbe in the family.
Or at least… it would’ve been.
It wassupposed to be.
I swallowed the desire to scratch the man’s eyes out, knowing an emotional display wouldn’t get me very far.
“So… what is this?” I asked, lacing my fingers together in front of me and fixing him with a glare. “You here to try bankrupt us? What’s the offer? What is it going to cost to buy this land back so you don’t… what, kick us out, bulldoze the building?”
“Oh, it’s not for sale. A space like this, inBlackwood? One of a kind.” He grinned, stepping close enough that the linen and vetiver of his cologne tickled my nose. “As I said in my opening volley… therentis the problem here, not the markets.”
“Why would the rent be a problem?” I asked. “I’m sure the lease—”
“Expired,” he interrupted. “The lease you had…expired.So… there’s a new lease you’ll need to review and agree to… or immediately vacate the premises.”
I crossed my arms. “How much?”
Orion’s eyes stayed on my cleavage for a moment before they lifted to meet mine, pure evil glinting in them before he delivered a number that damn near made my eyes bug out of my head.
“You’re insane,” I snapped. “That’s damn near aquarterof revenue! You can’t do that.”
“I do whatever I want, Nala.” He grinned. “So… do we have a deal, or are you leaving? I hope you’re leaving. TheWholesome Foodslogo is going to look so good over that big open front entryway.”
“We’re not goinganywhere,” I sneered, shaking my head as I turned to Alan and my father. “Where is our legal team? There has to be some way out of this…bullshit.”
“Oh, everything about this is ironclad,” Orion spoke up. “But, in case you want to try it…Stellar Foods’ legal teamloveslitigation, and we willbury youunder years of it.”
Fuck.
He was probably right.
“Whatever,” I shrugged. “We’re still not going anywhere. Even if we have to just—”
“Justwhat,Nala?” he asked, stepping even closer. “Just… pay it?” That evil ass grin spread even wider as he looked to my father. “William… Alan… aren’t you going to tell her?”
My head whipped around to them. “Tell me what?”
Instead of answering, the two men looked at each other, then began careful inspections of the damn ground.
