Total pages in book: 125
Estimated words: 117915 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 590(@200wpm)___ 472(@250wpm)___ 393(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 117915 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 590(@200wpm)___ 472(@250wpm)___ 393(@300wpm)
“Fine. Fucking…” Champ muttered. “Just fucking fine. Look, I do want to get my hands on the Horn, yeah, not because my client wants the device itself, but because I need to access the… the data that’s being stored on it so I can neutralize it,” he admitted in a rush. “And no, Quinn, I’m not telling you more because I’d prefer you didn’t get mixed up in this, okay?”
Champ pushed up from the table to pace the small space crowded with empty tables and chairs. He was angry—maybe angry at me for pushing, or angry at himself for giving in, or just angry that he was in this position in the first place— and for some reason, his anger… comforted me. An angry Champ was an honest Champ.
“Also? I don’t just want to get this Horn back from Tommy. I need it,” Champ fumed, quoting my words about the Drakeses’ wedding from earlier, “because I have an ex-boyfriend too. But unlike you, my ex-boyfriend isn’t just trying to ruin my business. He might arrest me if he can make a case against me for allowing the Horn and the information on it to be stolen in the first place—which is another thing I’d really rather not explain. Suffice it to say, he wouldn’t hesitate to do that if it helped him make a name for himself.”
“Your ex is a cop?” I asked softly.
“Vince is a DEA agent assigned to this case.”
Vince. I filed that information away and bit my lip. “So we have a similar problem. We both need to succeed here to save our businesses,” I said sadly.
“Yeah.” Champ came to sit on the chair beside me, facing away from the table. He rested his elbows on his knees and stared down at the ground.
“That sucks. Because I don’t see how both of us can get what we want.”
“The thing is, I do.” Champ turned to me, impaling me with his crystal-blue stare. “We can both win here, Quinn. Because yeah, I had my own goals in mind when I suggested the farm. I definitely did. But I would not have suggested the farm if I didn’t truly believe that you could plan a standout wedding literally anywhere. I knew it was gonna be too fast, and I knew you weren’t gonna like it. And…” He twisted his jaw to one side. “And yes, there were many factors I hadn’t considered about just how difficult it would be.”
“Understatement.”
“But I still believe in you. I believe you can make this thing happen. And you’ll have all of Champion Security’s resources at your disposal. If I have to pull my team off surveillance jobs to paint the Windy Pig silo, I will. If we have to tear it down and build a new one, we will. And having me take that Horn is in Tommy’s best interest, and Marissa’s too. I know it feels like you’re plotting against him, but I swear to you, Quinn, you’re helping him. Because he doesn’t know that the Horn he bought is more than just a Horn, and he doesn’t understand the shitstorm that will be unleashed when more people find out he has it or how that could impact his whole family’s reputation. No amount of running around in a Speedo could salvage it. Vince, my ex, I think he might have put the pieces together, so the clock is already running down.”
“And if Tommy realizes that my supposed fiancé stole his beloved Horn?” I demanded. “What about my reputation?”
“He won’t know. We’ll get a fake. Or… I dunno, once we figure out where he’s keeping it, we can try to steal it at a time when there’s plenty of other folks around for plausible deniability. Maybe both.”
I chewed at the inside of my cheek. “Maybe we could get your team to do it when Marissa is meeting with both of us so there’s no reason to suspect our involvement.”
“Perfect,” Champ agreed. “See, you’re thinking sneakily now. I like it.”
I rolled my eyes. “That’s not nearly as much of a compliment as you seem to think.”
“Sure it is.” Champ grinned. “So… what do you say?”
Shit, was I actually considering it? Had I officially lost my mind?
“If you do this for me, I’ll find you a new Nashville socialite client,” Champ blurted. “A way bigger name than the Drakes family.”
I frowned. “Who?”
“Not sure. I have to see who I know that’s getting married,” he hedged. “But I’ll get you the client before the Drakes wedding. Promise.” He held his hand out for me to shake.
I stared at it.
Another socialite client… That would be a hell of an incentive. “Okay, if I agree to do this, you’re going to be my very silent partner. For real this time.”
“Sure.”
I took his hand, only shivering slightly when our fingers slid together. “You’re going to take some communication training, like your guy did, except you’re going to learn how not to communicate when it involves wedding ideas and my clients.”