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“I’ll tell you one thing for sure,” I said, taking a large gulp and pulling up the contact entry for Giacomo Moretti. “I’m not going to ask Drake for help.”
***
My stomach sank when I opened the email from the seller, and the sweet coffee that had been in my cup tasted sour. The bitter taste clung to my tongue, and I instinctually lifted my finger to bite at a nonexistent hangnail.
We have moved forward with another contract. Thank you for your time preparing your offer, and we look forward to working with you on another property in the future.
Best regards.
“Best regards my ass,” I grumbled, taking another gulp of my coffee and cringing. It didn’t taste any less bitter.
I hadn’t heard him approaching my cubicle. “What was that?” Drake asked, stepping around me and sitting against the edge of my desk. He took my coffee and took a long gulp, and when he also scrunched his nose and set the cup back down, I laughed. “That’s way too sweet for me.”
“I lost the Moretti building.” I looked down, embarrassed to admit the defeat. I hoped nobody else in the office had heard, thankful the people in the cubicles around me either weren’t in or hadn’t had enough coffee to be paying attention to me yet.
Drake scowled, leaning forward and reading over my shoulder. “What the hell?” His furrowed brow told me he was as taken aback by the loss as I was. “I thought you countered.”
“I did.” I rolled my eyes, debating another drink of my coffee. Instead, I pushed the mug farther away. “What do I do?”
His hand on my forearm was gentle but reassuring, and even while I wanted to get through this by myself, I wanted his help more. I wanted him more. “You find another building.” Drake shrugged, and the comfort I had been expecting slipped away from me.
“Just like that? I just find another building?” My annoyance was clear in my voice, and he cocked his head.
“Exactly like that,” he said. “Look, angel. It happens. You’re going to lose a lot of bidding wars, and you’re going to have some clients that are really unhappy about it. But there’s plenty of buildings out there that will work for the same thing. So you find that building, and you make another proposal.”
I sighed, dropping my head against my arms on the desk. My hair fell around me, and Drake gathered it so it wasn’t covering my face any more. “What if they’re mad?”
“They won’t be.” Drake sounded so sure of himself. “They’re keen on you. Come to them with another suggestion, and they’re going to be perfectly fine.” He seemed like it pained him to admit it, and I sat up, scowling.
“I guess you’re right,” I said. I tucked my hair behind my ears, fixing my appearance and knowing it would semi-fix my mood with it.
“I know I am.” When he stood up from my desk, he looked pained, like he was debating if he should kiss me. Part of me wished he would, but I knew he wouldn’t. Not in the office. Would he find me later? I hoped so, smiling at the thought of his lips on mine. “You can do this.”
“I know I can,” I agreed. He smirked, and I returned it before I opened a fresh email, getting ready to type.
You can do this.
Chapter twenty-nine
Drake
Something wasn’t right about the way Amanda lost that deal. The seller should’ve come back for another rebuttal, especially knowing the first offer was backed with plenty of cushion. They would’ve easily gotten more out of them. Why didn’t they?
I knew exactly who to call to find the info on the closed deal, but Amanda wasn’t going to like it. He answered the phone on the second ring. “Hello?”
“Ronan, it’s Drake,” I said. I could practically hear the confusion on his face through the phone. Ronan Moretti was known for his research abilities. He and his brothers weren’t just involved in the restaurant business, and Ronan had the skills to dig into the less-than-legal side of things. “I could use your help.”
“That’s a load of shit. Definitely fishy,” he said after I filled him in. “I wondered what had happened. Your girl there seems to have her shit together. She doesn’t seem like the type to lose a deal so easy.”
I paused. My girl? “What did you say?”
“Are you going to act like she’s not your girl? Or do you want to pretend you’re confused about the deal?” Ronan sounded amused.
“She’s not my—”
He interrupted me. “Don’t even say she’s not your girl as if you weren’t shooting daggers at Giaco the entire meeting, and I’m pretty sure I came close to an attempt at an ass kicking during the showing.” Ronan laughed, and I pulled the phone away from my ear while he did. “You’re not subtle. Don’t worry, Giaco caught it too. We’re not going after her. It is tempting, though.”
I grumbled. “Can you find out who they signed the contract with?” They knew Amanda had me wrapped around her perfectly manicured finger. I didn’t need to confirm it. “And thank you,” I added anyway.
