AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Trying to ignore how warm and delicate her hand was, he had no response to his daughter dating a thirty-year-old. It turned out he didn’t have a chance to say anything as the hostess took them directly to the table that Michael Hanover was sitting at, impatiently waiting for them.
Lucy ordered the special, not even bothering to look at the menu. Nor did she look at her phone, which he was happy about. Phones at business meetings were very much frowned upon by him. She just sat, not participating and not paying much attention.
As the meal and meeting came to a close without an agreement, he was disappointed that he had even gone to the meeting. Michael wasn’t ready to make a deal, and Leo wasn’t ready to push him yet. Soon, though.
Once Michael walked away from the table, he was left with a still-angry Lucy. Looking at her across the table, she was glancing around the room, more interested in what the waiters were carrying around than what Michael had been saying.
“What do you think?” he asked to make conversation.
“That they should stop serving so much salad. Nobody eats it all. It’s just a waste of food.” Her brown eyes turned to him as she said it.
“About the meeting?” he asked and leaned back in his chair. He tried not to grin.
“I have no opinion, Mr. Montgomery,” she stated coolly.
“What if you had an opinion?”
“Based on this one meeting, I would still say I have no opinion.”
“You have proofread half a dozen proposals I’ve sent him.” Leo folded his arms.
“I don’t really read those; I just proofread them. I never went to school for business, so I have no idea what I’m looking at,” she admitted, though she knew more than she let on.
“Still mad I brought you then?” he stated the obvious. So much for her confiding in him about her search.
“Yes, I have no place here. Nor do you; he’s not selling his company to you.” She crossed her arms again, then quickly uncrossed them and reached for her water.
“Lucy?” A woman who approached their table asked. “Harper’s sister, Lucy?”
He turned to look at the dark-haired woman in a smart business suit who was looking down at Lucy. Lucy turned to her with a smile, a smile she hadn’t given him all day. “Yes, I am. I’m Lucy.”
“I thought it was you, but I couldn’t be sure you were Lucy. We missed the latest wedding in your family. Arabella joked that we just have to wait another month, and there will be another.” Bex Carter chuckled, not acknowledging Leo at all. He knew she worked for Hawthorn International in marketing, and she most likely knew who he was.
“I think that one was the last for a long time.” Lucy smiled even brighter. “How are the babies? They must be adorable.”
“Yes, they are. Arabella is loving it. I think it’s a lot of work. When I saw you, I had to say hello and see if it really was you,” Bex said.
“It’s me.” Lucy didn’t seem to notice that the question was weird.
“I was thinking it was you since Mabel works for the university. I just wanted to stop and say hi. I have to get back to work. Nice to see you again, Lucy,” the woman said and walked away, not once saying a word to him.
“And who was that?” Leo asked.
“It doesn’t matter. My personal life is personal,” she said back to him. Meeting a friend while out of the office hadn’t improved her attitude.
“You knowing the marketing director at Hawthorn International is not something you should be hiding,” he replied. If she needed to name drop, that woman was a good one.
“I know more important people than Bex Carter, but it doesn’t matter. I have no plans to use my connections to get ahead in the world.”
“Only you would feel that way.”
“No, Mr. Montgomery, I can assure you that there are others like me out there. Are we done here?” She pushed her half-eaten meal away from her.
“Yes, we are, but I think that you should first explain why you think he’s not going to sell his company to me.”
“Because he’s just trying to get a higher price from somewhere else. Dropping your name gets that price up.”
He tilted his head slightly. “Why do you say that?”
“He managed to get you to agree to a different number three times and still is not saying yes. He doesn’t want to sell to you. Just give up and look elsewhere,” she informed him.
“Maybe I should look at Hawthorn since you have an in there.” He leaned back in his chair as he watched her.
“Kaine Hawthorn will never sell to you either. I wouldn’t even try.” She got up and headed for the door. The ice queen had earned her name today.
Getting up, he followed her. She had paid attention to what was going on and made up her mind about what was happening. She might be right about both companies, but he wasn’t going to let go of the idea of owning either one of them.
