14. Caden
Caden
I sat in the conference room, monitoring the feeds, and listening to the new bug. I was trying not to think about Allie. Or the kiss after our risky escape.
Hell, I’d been seconds away from losing all control and fucking her—at work, outside, against a wall.
Okay, I was failing badly in keeping my hands off Allie Ford.
I blew out a breath. Grabbing my mug, I sipped my coffee. I hadn’t seen her since our espionage mission, but I’d caught glimpses of her on the video feed occasionally.
So far, listening to the extreme-sports guys hadn’t paid off. There was lots of talk of bikes, tires, and their friend’s busted knee.
“Ah, the lone predator in its lair, monitoring prey and eschewing all contact with the rest of the species in order to hunt.”
I shot Piper a look over my shoulder. She stood in the conference room doorway, Ro beside her.
Ro slipped his hands into the pockets of his suit pants and looked at the screen. It showed room service being delivered to the ESG.
“Why are you watching these guys?” Ro asked.
“Because they’re trouble. Twenty-something guys into extreme sports. As far as I can tell, they don’t work, just travel around. They’re here to mountain bike, and their bikes are worth thousands of dollars. They came last winter to snowboard.”
“The blond one’s cute, and he knows it,” Piper noted.
“Blake Moreland. He’s the ringleader.” I leaned back in my chair. “They’re also dealing drugs.”
Piper stiffened. “They’re the ones who drugged the woman in the bar?”
I nodded. “I suspect so.”
Ro’s face hardened. “Why are they still in my hotel?”
“I don’t have hard proof. Right now, it’s just circumstantial. I’m working on it.”
Ro’s gaze narrowed on the screens as the blond guy closed the door to his room. The head of Langston Hotels nodded. “Then you’ll get them.”
Piper’s nose wrinkled. “They sound like first-class assholes.”
“I’ll catch them. Then we can ban them from all Langston Hotels and turn them over to the police.”
“Good,” Ro said.
I studied his face. “What’s bothering you?”
Ro glanced at Piper. “I hate when he does that.”
She shrugged. “He’s trained to read nonverbal cues. He can’t not do it.”
Ro leaned back against the conference table. “I finally talked with Chef Harvey. The guy is gruff as hell, but despite the bluster about being too busy, I could tell he was interested. I might need to go to London to meet him in person.”
“And he doesn’t like being away from Tessa,” Piper said.
He got a faraway look in his eyes, and the corner of his lips quirked. “I bet Tessa would like to see London.”
I swiveled to look at Piper. “What’s bothering you?”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “Nothing. The renovations are right on track as planned.” She buffed her nails on her shirt.
“And?” I prompted. I knew the woman too well by now.
She huffed. “I hate you. Fine. I sent a bunch of uniform samples to the head of maintenance. Do you know what he did with them?”
I hid my amusement. Piper and Everett were like a cat and a dog. Piper the glossy, prissy cat who liked things her way. Everett was a laid-back, mountain man, who didn’t give a fuck about uniforms.
“He used them as rags. He sent me a picture of himself wiping grease on them.” Her chin lifted, her eyes on fire. “While he was wearing that old, red flannel shirt he knows I hate.”
Ro was grinning.
“You’re the CEO,” she snapped. “You’re not supposed to find this amusing.”
“Uniforms are not my area, they’re yours.”
She tossed her head back. “I will ensure everything is up to the standards of a Langston Hotel, whatever it takes.”
She looked like a woman on a mission. Everett had better watch out.
For once, I had no idea who was going to win that battle.
Ro’s shrewd gaze landed back on me and I fought the urge to stiffen. “Now, time to share what’s bothering you.”
“Nothing.”
Ro leaned against the table and crossed his ankles. “I hear you’ve been kissing a certain member of the housekeeping team.”
Dammit . I should have known Tessa would tell him.
Piper straightened like she’d been hit with a prod. “What? Caden kissed someone?”
Ro inclined his head, clearly enjoying himself. “Allie Ford.”
The COO stared at me, dumbfounded. “I’ve never seen you show a single glimmer of interest in any woman. Even ones who blatantly throw themselves at you.”
“This topic is not up for discussion.”
Piper held up a hand. “Oh no. You pry into everything. Turnabout is fair play, my friend.”
“You’ve got a thing for Allie,” Ro said.
“A serious thing, since I know you usually avoid relationships,” Piper added.
“It doesn’t matter what I have. She’s a single mom, she’s rooted here in Windward. I’m not. And I’m…not right for her.”
The pair of them just stared at me.
I looked back at the screens. “I have monitoring to do.”
Ro straightened. “A good, protective man who can help her shoulder some of the responsibility weighing her down. Sounds like you’re exactly what Allie needs.” He glanced at his watch. “Shit, I have a call. We’ll talk more about this later.”
“No, we won’t.”
Ro shook his head, but swiveled and stalked out.
Piper eyed me. “I know talking about stuff like this isn’t your thing, but Caden, whatever came before…it doesn’t matter. You deserve to be happy.”
With that, she strode out on her heels.
I turned the audio back on. Happy? For so long, I’d just been happy to survive. After starting at Langston, I’d found some measure of…contentment. I didn’t know how to have more than that.
Another hour ticked by and nothing the ESG said proved useful.
A moment later, the conference room door opened and Allie walked in. My chest squeezed.
“Hey.” She lifted a bag of microwave popcorn. “I come bearing snacks.” She dropped down in the chair beside me.
“Didn’t your shift just end?” I asked.
She nodded. “I have a bit of time before I need to collect Ollie.” Her nose wrinkled. “Then I’m coming back for the evening shift.”
“What? You’re pulling a double?”
She nodded. “There’s a staff member who’s got sick kids. Both her kids have the flu, and she’s knee-deep in Kleenex, and stuff you put in Kleenex.” She winced. “I’d prefer she keep those germs at home.”
I did too.
“I figured I’d help you listen to the bug.” She opened the popcorn and popped some in her mouth. She held the bag out to me.
I took a handful. “It’s not very interesting so far.” I turned the volume up and we could hear the guys laughing.
She sighed. “I didn’t think they’d be sitting around saying, ‘oh, we’re asshole drug dealers.’”
My lips twitched.
She curled her legs under her. My gaze dropped to her mouth. Now that I knew how good she tasted, how those legs felt around me, I wanted more.
I looked back at the screens. Dammit .
Nothing about me, or my life, was compatible with hers.
She deserved better.
I cleared my throat. “They just ordered room service. The guy who crashed his bike is complaining about his knee.”
They were currently talking about football.
“I assume Tessa interrogated you?” I asked.
She grimaced. “Yes. I can’t believe you ran off like a coward when Tessa busted us.” She playfully slapped my arm. “You left me to defend myself.”
“I had faith in you.”
She snorted.
“Tessa shared with Ro. He and Piper came digging.”
She made a humming sound.
“Who wants to hit the bars tonight?” one guy said on the audio feed. “Mitch, can your knee handle that?”
“Yeah, if there’s beer and somewhere tight to stick my cock.”
Allie pulled a face.
“We already knew they were assholes,” I murmured.
“I feel like you need a hot, little brunette to play nurse,” someone else told Mitch. “You had a blonde last night.”
More laughter.
“If you’re feeling off your game, you might need a little help to persuade your chick of choice.”
I leaned forward.
“Are they talking about drugs?” Allie murmured.
“Probably.” But unfortunately, these guys were careful. It was why they’d gotten away with this for so long.
The minutes ticked on, and the conversation shifted to the upcoming snowboarding season.
“How’s Ollie?”
She smiled. “Good. I think he’s starting to settle in at school.”
“He’s lucky to have you.”
Her smile faded. “I just wished he was lucky enough to have his mom and dad.”
“Your mom doesn’t help you out. What about your father?”
She pulled a face. “When mom and dad divorced, he moved to Denver. He met a woman who had two young daughters and…he replaced us. It was like he traded his old family for a new one. He got busy raising those girls, going to their games and concerts.” She shrugged.
“He didn’t have time for us anymore. Still doesn’t. ”
I growled.
“It’s okay, Broody. I know it’s better to just depend on myself. And I have good friends.” She leaned back in her chair. “You said you aren’t close to your family.”
My muscles tensed up. “When I got out of the Army…” I paused.
“I imagine it can be a hard transition to make.”
“Yeah. I…lost people. Men I fought with.” I felt like my throat was wrapped in barbed wire. “I came home angry. I was hypervigilant, always assessing everyone and every situation, couldn’t switch off. It scared my mom and sisters.”
“I’m sorry you lost people.” Her voice was low, warm. Then her brows drew together. “Your family didn’t support you, help you?”
“I didn’t make it easy.”
“Your father?”
I shook my head. “He was a deadbeat. Ran off when my youngest sister was a baby.”
“So you had no one?”
“My mom tried, but…I just wasn’t the same man who left. Things worsened, then I got in a bar fight with a guy who’d put his hand up my sister’s skirt. I nearly beat him to death.” I still remembered Sara staring at me, horrified, like I was a monster.
Allie gasped.
“After that…I left.”
“Caden.” She reached out and took my hand. “You haven’t been back?”
I shook my head. “I send my mom the occasional email.”
Her fingers squeezed mine. “You can be pretty intense, a little paranoid, and overprotective…”
I tensed up.
“But I suspect some of that is just you. You’ve clearly adjusted and found a job where you can use your skills. You should call your mom, Broody. Go home for a visit.”
I stared at her smaller hand entwined with mine. I couldn’t go back. I didn’t want to risk my mom, Sara, and Clara looking at me like I was a monster. “Maybe.”
She squeezed my hand again, but didn’t say anything else.
The ESG were talking about paragliding now.
“I have to go.” Allie rose and set the popcorn on the desk. “You keep that. I need to go and get Ollie.”
I reached out and touched her hand without thinking. “I’ll see you later.”
Her gaze moved over my face, a small smile on her lips. “You will, Broody.”