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The man Brian had been meeting with was sitting at a table about thirty feet away.
Excellent. They could have a meeting of their own, and he could figure out what was going on. He slid his cell out of his pocket and found Brian’s number, dialing it. It went straight to voice mail.
Dare frowned. It wasn’t like Brian not to answer when they were working. Actually, now that he thought about it, Brian always answered his calls.
“Everything okay? You want me to get you a drink, Dare? I assure you I can get someone over here.” Nate had been standing at the exit, but he moved in now that the meeting was over.
He shook his head. “Nah. I’ll save it for after. You said The Station had a nice bar. I thought we could sit and come down after we play.”
“An excellent idea. Are you ready to go back to the room or do you have other plans?”
Tasha would already have gone to her cousin’s and wouldn’t be back for another hour or two. “I’d like to figure out where Brian is. He’s not answering his phone.”
“Thought he was in some sort of big meeting. Didn’t he say that was why you had to take this one?”
“Yes, but the guy he was meeting with is sitting over there and he looks pretty happy, so I have to think it went well from his point of view. It makes me wonder what Brian gave up.” He hoped it wasn’t enough to unbalance the victories he intended to show his father. That was the problem. He could bring his father ninety percent of what he’d asked for and the man would complain about the ten percent that wasn’t possible.
It might be best to figure the situation out now. He stood, picking up his laptop case. It felt a little like a millstone to him. He had to carry it with him everywhere unless it was locked up safely. Luckily The Station’s lockers had security on them. And there was the fact that no one knew or cared who he was there. He could pack away all of his troubles and simply be the man he wanted to be.
In a few hours. He was still the son of Edward Nash right now, and he was interested in figuring out how much trouble he was in.
He looked back at Nate. “I’ll be over there for a few. Hold the table in case we need it. I’ll be right back.”
If Brian had fucked up, he might be able to save it. Might. He walked through the throng of people in the crowded bar. Brian didn’t fuck up. Brian was solid, so he was probably borrowing trouble.
Five minutes and one conversation later and he realized there was trouble. Just not the kind he thought.
“You all right?” Nate asked.
Brian had lied to him. The client hadn’t seen Brian all day and hadn’t called an emergency meeting at all. He’d been a bit disturbed at the thought, and Dare had been forced to calm him down. “When was the last time you saw Brian?”
One big shoulder shrugged. “Breakfast. The last time I saw him, he was bugging Kara to have lunch with him. They were arguing about it as they went down the lift.”
Dare pulled his cell out as it buzzed. A text. From Brian’s phone.
Sorry. I’m in the middle of something important. Will explain later. Promise. Have fun at the club tonight.
Was he in the middle of Kara’s bed finally? What the hell was going on with him? He was about to write an angry text back demanding some answers when a call came through.
His father. Damn it.
If only it was a call he could ignore. He nodded toward Nate and stepped outside the bar, knowing the big Aussie would follow him. “This is Dare.”
“Darren, how did the meeting with Huisman go? And who is the woman?”
He felt his jaw clench. “Huisman seems like a reasonable man, and I believe we can work a deal with him. The woman was there to distract Oakley.”
“Is she a hooker?”
He was about to throw his cell across the hotel lobby. “Does it matter? She did her job. I was able to talk to Huisman without interference.”
There was a pause over the line. “That was actually quite a smart play.”
“You have someone watching me?”
“Calm down, son. I have people at the conference who saw you walking out of the hotel with a woman instead of Brian. You know I don’t give a damn what you do with your personal life.”
A lie. His father wanted all the control. “She’s someone I met here, and she’s pleasant to spend time with.”
“Good. Get your rocks off all you like, but once you’re married you have to be more discreet,” his father announced. “There’s been talk about you neglecting your duties and running around Sydney with this woman.”
