Page 14 of Savage Prince
“Try fifteen or twenty.”
I can already imagine the head chef of Seven Sinners chasing me out of the kitchen with a butcher knife when I relay that information. “So, you want to talk to Odile about that this afternoon?”
Keira laughs. “If you’re scared of her ...”
“It’s not her, it’s her close proximity to sharp objects that I’m afraid of.” I pause, reminding myself it’s my job, so I need to handle it. “But it’s not a problem. I’m sure she’ll be thrilled to accommodate the changes.”
The snort-laugh that follows is pretty much the only appropriate reaction. “Right. Totally. She’ll be thrilled. I’ll let Mary’s House know the extra attendees won’t be a problem, but they will see an increase in the final bill.”
“Damn right they will,” I mumble, thinking of the gauntlet I’m going to run on their behalf as I make another note on my pad.
“Oh, and I totally forgot to ask if you wanted to bring a date,” Keira says. “You know you can, even though it’s a work event.” My face must freeze in some unflattering expression, because she laughs. “Or not.”
I force my lips into some semblance of a smile, and my brain stutters as I try to come up with something to say in response besideshell no.“I’m ... uh ... that’s really not necessary.”
“You’re going to make me think I’m working you so hard you don’t have any time left for fun at all. What about Jeff Doon? He asked me if you were seeing anyone after that interview for the local network about the distillery tours.”
“Jeff Doon? The guy from the chamber of commerce?” I ask like I don’t know who he is, mostly to buy myself some time to overcome my shock. I never would have expected him to show any interest in me, considering he was Keira’s high school boyfriend.
“It’s not weird, I promise. He was so impressed with how you’ve spearheaded the tour project and wondered if you might want to grab a drink with him sometime, but apparently he felt the need to ask for my blessing first.”
“I’m not sure what to say. I ... I don’t really date, I guess.” It’s a true statement, especially because what happened Friday night was definitely not a date. But that’s not something I can ever tell my boss about. “Besides, I’m still fending off advances from the meat supplier because of the promises I made him to get the Voodoo Kings the cuts they wanted at the price we had to quote.”
Keira giggles at that one. “If you ever go out with him, I promise I’ll award you hazard pay for it. That’s above and beyond the call of duty.”
“I’ve held him off for this long with excuses, but for some reason, that hasn’t discouraged him nearly enough.”
Keira’s head tilts to the left. “In the sage words of the wise Magnolia Maison, have you looked in the mirror lately, girl? Because you’re shit hot.”
I choke out a laugh. “I think you’re talking about yourself.”
She shrugs. “You need to get out. Do something. It’ll appease my guilt about you working too many hours as it stands ... and I’m going to be asking you to take the reins again because my husband has decided we’re taking a vacation.”
I sit up in the chair. “When?”
“He wants to leave next week. I told him I’ll see how it goes with the event and—”
“It’s fine. I can handle things. You know I can.” It’s a matter of pride for me to know that Keira can leave her company in my hands and disappear for a few days without worrying about it burning to the ground.
“I’ll tell him I’m thinking about it. I can’t give in to him right away because then he’ll think he’s got the upper hand. It’s all about methods and tactics with that man.” Keira’s phone rings and she grabs it. “Keira Kilgore.”
I can’t hear the voice coming through the other end, but it doesn’t take long before I can guess.
“Don’t you dare. And we agreed I would use the Kilgore name as long as Seven Sinners is around.”
Lachlan Mount, her husband.
Does he know my brother was here?It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to assume that he knows exactly who I am and who Rafe is and what he does. Mount knows everything, after all.
It’s just one more reason I need to watch my step and make sure Rafe’s job doesn’t spill over into mine.
“Yes, I’m still thinking about the vacation. No, you can’t hurry my decision.”
I look at the ceiling, not wanting to feel like I’m intruding on Keira’s conversation. Thankfully, there’s a knock at the door, and I pop out of my chair to answer it.
Breakfast.
“Breakfast is here, which I’m sure you already know, so let me call you back after this meeting. Yes. I love you too.”
