Mine To Take (Nine Circles) (7 page)

“What do you mean?”

“I have a condition before I invest a dime in Tremain.”

Honor went still, conscious of her heartbeat accelerating. A condition from Gabriel Woolf? She had a feeling that whatever it was, it wouldn’t be good. “What is it?” she asked with as much of her earlier cool as she could muster. “And if this is a thinly disguised pickup line, you can think again.”

A soft, surprisingly seductive laugh came through the phone. “Oh, baby, none of my pickup lines are ever gonna be thinly disguised, believe me. If I want you, you’ll know all about it straight up.”

She didn’t know why that comment should make her feel breathless, set her heartbeat racing. Because though he was a very attractive man—yes, he was, she could admit that to herself—he wasn’t a man she would ever want. She preferred men with more sophistication, who were far more civilized than he was.

“Tell me.” She hoped she sounded poised and calm.

“If I’m investing in Tremain Hotels, then I’m going to want to see what I’m getting for my investment.”

“Well, certainly I can organize a visit to—”

“I haven’t finished,” he interrupted mildly. “I don’t want a visit. I want a personal tour.”

Honor flicked a glance at Guy. Her stepfather looked back. A cold expression had settled into the lines of his face. It made him look like a stranger. “What do you mean by personal tour?”

“What do you think I mean? I want to be shown around one of the hotels personally. By you.”

A weird shock went through her. “Me? Why me?”

“You’re a fellow investor, aren’t you? Plus, I’ve heard of your reputation. I’m sure you wouldn’t invest in a bad bet, just like I’m sure if anyone knows all there is to know about the company it’ll be you.”

She found she was gripping the phone hard. “There are many better people who could show you around, Mr. Woolf. I can even get—”

“I don’t want anyone else, Honor. I want you.”

She opened her mouth to voice an instinctive denial. Then stopped herself. What was the big deal? Why was she protesting? His request was reasonable and hell, even if it wasn’t, if he’d made it a condition of his investment, then she had no choice but to agree to it. Just like her stepfather had no choice.

Guy’s pale blue gaze was intent. “What is he saying to you?” he demanded. It was obvious that even though he couldn’t hear what Gabriel was saying, he didn’t like it one bit.

Honor took a little breath.

“Am I interrupting something?” Gabriel asked.

“I’m not sure you’d care if you were or not.” Honor held up a finger to Guy and mouthed,
“Give me a minute.”

Guy frowned.

“No, you’re right. I damn well wouldn’t. So, what do you say?”

Still taken off guard, Honor murmured, “I … I’m not sure I have the time. I’ll have to check my schedule.”

“I want an answer now.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m fucking impatient.” He said the word with a certain amount of relish, as if he wanted to shock her.

It didn’t. “You’ve said that word before,” she said mildly. “It doesn’t offend me, you know.”

Again that laugh. “I guess that means I’ll have to find something else then.” And it didn’t sound so much like a threat as a promise. “So, are you going to make the time for me, sweetheart? Or are we going to continue arguing about it?”

A personal tour. What did it matter? She could do that, couldn’t she? “No,” she replied, in a voice that wasn’t entirely level. “I’m sure I have some time in my schedule for you.”

“Good. Make it a week.” Then he hung up.

CHAPTER FOUR

“I don’t like it.” Eva sat back on the leather seat, arms crossed, shoulders hunched, glaring at Gabriel.

They were in her limo again, mainly because she was uncomfortable around large groups of men, and the building site Gabriel was currently working on was certainly full of men. He’d offered to meet her in the club but she’d refused, saying she was out and about anyway and was impatient to hear about how things had gone with Honor.

Zac was with her, as he often was, a large, calm, silent presence sitting in the seat beside her.

“I know you don’t like it,” Gabriel said, his hand resting on the hard hat he had on one knee. “But you agreed to let me handle this, Eva. You can’t back out now.”

Eva scowled at him. “I shouldn’t have said yes.”

“Why? What’s the problem now?”

“You’re taking advantage of her. I just know it. Why else would you have told her that Void Angel wouldn’t invest if she didn’t agree to you?”

Yeah, he was taking advantage. But he didn’t have time for other people’s scruples. Sometimes you had to do bad shit for the overall good. Like the way he’d let himself be used as a drug mule when he’d been a kid so he could earn some cash. Money so he and his mother could survive. Like when, years later, he’d become part of the club who used to make those drug runs, working his way up the hierarchy with ruthless determination until he was in a position to kick the drug-dealing scum out of his neighborhood. The brothers hadn’t liked it, but by that stage he’d earned enough fear and respect that no one challenged him.

There were other ways to earn money, after all.

“Collateral damage, Eva,” he said shortly. “Civilian casualties happen in war, right Zac?”

The other man gave him a level stare. “Not when they concern Eva they don’t.”

Zac had always been protective of her. Overprotective as far as Gabriel was concerned. Eva could look after herself, something she’d consistently proven in the five years since she’d joined their little group.

Then again, she had quite definite opinions when it came to protecting women. Gabriel had his suspicions as to why—he knew for a fact she had an entire Void Angel research team dedicated to hunting down and stopping the white-slave trade. Perhaps if she knew what he was doing, she’d agree with him.

Then again, it wasn’t anything to do with her.

Eva flicked Zac an irritated glance. “Oh, for Christ’s sake, don’t be an asshole. You said you were here to talk about the deal, not be my guard dog.”

Zac’s calm demeanor didn’t change in the slightest. “I’ll do what I need to do, angel. Whether you like it or not.”

Eva opened her mouth, probably to deny this, but then Zac added mildly, “I have to say though, I’m rather keen to find out just what war Gabriel thinks he’s fighting.”

“None of your fucking business,” Gabriel growled, annoyed. “Honor isn’t my main area of interest anyway so calm the hell down.”

Eva gave him a narrow look. “Not your main area of interest? Then what—”

“Tremain,” Zac interrupted softly. “It’s Tremain you’re after.”

Gabriel said nothing. He just looked at the other two sitting opposite him, keeping his face expressionless, letting them draw whatever conclusions they wanted.

“Ah,” Eva said at last. “Okay then.” There was recognition in her gray eyes. Like she knew exactly where he was and what he was doing. “Don’t ask, don’t tell?”

One of the club’s rules. They only shared what they wanted to share. No one pushed for more.

Gabriel inclined his head in an almost imperceptible nod. Maybe that would keep Eva off his back about Honor. Not that the tech CEO had anything to worry about on that score.

Are you sure about that?

He had a sudden flashback to Honor’s smoky voice during their phone call earlier that day.
“I have heard that word before. It doesn’t offend me you know…”
A flame of pure heat licked up inside him. He did love a challenge and Honor’s words had been all challenge, making him want to find out exactly what would shock her. Mess with all her smooth, perfectly put-together sophistication. Maybe that made him a cliché but who the hell cared?

It’s the devil, his mother would have told him. The devil tempting you to come out and play.

Problem was he’d played with the devil before. And liked it.

“Okay,” Eva said after a long moment. “We’re still good. But if I hear you’re screwing with her—and don’t think I don’t know it’s a double entendre—then I’m pulling Void Angel from the deal.”

Gabriel met her gaze. There was clear, cold certainty in her smoky gray eyes but he caught a glimpse of burning anger beneath that ice. Eva had had some bad shit in her life, just as they all did, and it had left its mark.

“I don’t hurt women, Eva,” he said, wanting to acknowledge that anger because hell, he knew all about anger.

She looked away, down at her hands, which were folded neatly in her lap. “Yeah, fine.”

A tense, uncomfortable silence fell.

“Angel, we have another meeting…” Zac’s voice was smooth, gently reminding. Moving the conversation on.

Gabriel gave the other man a smile, one that didn’t have anything to do with amusement. “The information about Tremain doesn’t leave the group. This is mine. Understand?”

Zac’s long mouth curved, amber gaze steady, not in the least bit perturbed by the underlying tone of threat in Gabriel’s voice. “First rule of fucked-up billionaires club is you don’t talk about fucked-up billionaires club. You don’t need to remind me.”

Gabriel gave a hoarse laugh, gripping his hard hat in one hand. “And you can never be too paranoid, Zac.”

“Amen to that,” Eva muttered. “Now get out of the car, Gabe. I’ve got shit to do.”

*   *   *

“Oh, God, Vi, you’re not meditating again, are you?”

The woman sitting cross-legged on Honor’s battered red velvet couch opened one eye. “I was trying to. Guess I’m not anymore.”

Honor walked into the lounge area of her expensive Upper West Side apartment and sat down in one of the armchairs opposite the couch, kicking off her red leather Jimmy Choos and dumping her purse beside them.

Violet Fitzgerald, rebellious heiress, Honor’s best friend since school, and currently crashing on her couch since arriving back from Paris a week ago, watched her with assessing blue-green eyes. The way she was sitting, along with her blond dreadlocks and dripping silver jewelry, made her look like an idealistic hippie backpacker in the process of touring around India, “finding herself.”

“What?” Honor resisted the urge to rub her eyes, tiredness creeping into her bones. She hadn’t realized until now how much the stress of having to deal with Guy and the whole debt problem had affected her. And it wasn’t over yet. She still had this week with Gabriel Woolf to contemplate. A whole damn week. She had no idea how she was going to fit that into her schedule but she was going to have to somehow.

“You look tired,” Violet said, settling into the red cushions. “Tough day at the office?”

They really were nothing alike. Violet was all arty and free-spirited, rejecting her old-money New York family and their expectations at the first opportunity. Jetting off to Europe without giving a crap about her responsibilities. Not that Honor could blame her. The Fitzgeralds
were
a family who placed great stock in doing what was right and proper. They still believed in marriage as the perfect career move for their only daughter, for God’s sake. No wonder Violet had always chafed against the restrictions they put on her.

Unlike Honor, of course. Who’d stuck by her own family. Who took her responsibilities seriously and was still, after all these years, trying to fix what had been broken by her father when he’d taken his own life.

“I am tired,” Honor said. “And yes, tough day at the office.”

Violet smoothed the silk of the wraparound Indian-print skirt she wore, silver bracelets clicking together as she did so. “You work too hard, hon, that’s your problem. You did at school and you’re still doing it.”

“When you own your own business, you have to work hard.”

But Violet wasn’t fooled. “It’s all this stuff with Guy, isn’t it?”

Honor sighed and crossed her stocking-clad feet at the ankles. “Yes. I finally got a backer for Tremain Hotels but…” She stopped. This should be a good feeling, shouldn’t it? So why did she suddenly feel so unsure?

“But what?”

It had been a long time since she’d confided in another person. Keeping up a calm and in-control front was vital to the success of her business, and she’d found keeping her worries and insecurities to herself was a good way of achieving that. Plus, before Guy had come along, her mother had tended to go to pieces at the drop of a hat, so Honor had had to stay strong for her sake.

But keeping up that front was exhausting, and despite the years that had passed with Violet in Europe, the two of them were still best friends.

“The backer is Gabriel Woolf.”

Violet raised a pale, pierced eyebrow. “The construction dude?”

“Yes, the construction dude.”

Her friend’s eyebrow rose a little higher. “The hot construction dude?”

Honor opened her mouth then closed it. Anything she said now would only incriminate her. “If you mean the owner of Woolf Construction, then yes.”

“But that’s great, isn’t it? You were worried you weren’t going to come up with an investor.”

“It is great. It really is.”

“Then why are you scowling?”

Honor tried to unknit her brow. “He … had a few conditions.”

“Uh-huh. And these conditions are…? Come on, hon, I know you like to cultivate reserve but it’s me here, okay? Didn’t I tell you all about that French guy on the metro?”

Oh, yes, Violet had. Violet had told her
all
about it and even now, Honor wanted to flush with embarrassment at her friend’s full and frank description of her one-night encounter. On a subway. Some things should never be spoken about, even between friends.

“This hasn’t got anything to do with you and that French man,” Honor said primly, pulling at the hem of her black pencil skirt. “Guy wasn’t happy about Mr. Woolf coming on board but—”

“Hey, hey, whoa there.” Violet held up a hand, bracelets making a silvery tinkling sound. “
Mr.
Woolf
?
”

This time Honor did flush. “I call all my clients by their title.”

“Bullshit you do. Yesterday you were talking about George this and Eva that.”

“Eva told me she didn’t have a title.”

“And George?”

Damn. There was a persistent crease right down near the hem of her skirt. She really needed to talk to the dry cleaner about that. “Is an old friend.”