Tempt Me In Vegas

Jan was right. She had to take this chance. Had to try for... more.

“Your new partner expects to see you in Vegas and you’ve got to figure all of this out before you meet him.”

Terri blew out a breath. She wasn’t a coward. Never had been. Sure, she’d never been faced with anything like this in her life before, but she could do it.

Couldn’t she?

She’d always been the good girl. The good daughter. The responsible one. She’d had dreams of traveling but had accepted that for the things she’d wanted to do and see, she would have to spend years saving money. Now suddenly, the world was laid out in front of her. She’d be crazy to ignore it.

“You’re right,” she said, nodding. “I’ll talk to Mike, tell him I need to take some time off.”

Jan shook her head and smiled. “While you’re talking to the bank manager, you might tell him that you’re going to be taking off forever.”

Terri laughed. “Things are changing, yes. But I’m not ready to throw my whole life out just yet.”

“I think,” Jan said as they left the break room together, “someone already did that for you.”

“I hate it when you’re right.”

Jan laid a hand on her arm. “Terri, you’re making yourself nuts and you don’t have to. Cooper Hayes doesn’t need you to run the company. But you’re his new partner, like it or not, so you do at least get a say in things.”

True, she thought and her mind started racing again. This was the opportunity of a lifetime and she’d be crazy to ignore it or to fear it. Sure, she didn’t know how to run a hotel. But she’d stayed in enough of them to know what she liked and didn’t. That had to count for something. And her Dad had owned a popular restaurant for decades. Terri had worked there herself as a teenager and learned from her father that the key to success in the service industry was making people happy. Sounded easy, but way too many people didn’t understand that.

“Just go, Terri. Grab this shiny brass ring with both hands. And if you need the cavalry, I’m only a plane ride away.”

Terri grinned. “Vegas, here I come.”

* * *

Four days later Terri was in Las Vegas, standing in the massive, opulent lobby of the StarFire Hotel. The floors were covered with wide, navy blue tiles that sparkled as if stars were trapped inside them. The ceiling was high and featured a night sky dazzled by twinkling stars and streaks of light from falling stars leaving trails of gold dust in their wakes. The effect was so real that if not for the crowds and the noise and the fact that it was the middle of the day, Terri would have thought she was outside staring up.

Paintings in gold inlaid frames dotted the walls, and a waiter served complimentary champagne to guests waiting in line to register. The noise level was tremendous, since the casino spilled right off the lobby. Slot machines beeped, pinged and sang out encouragement to the hundreds of people wandering the casino floor.

She turned in a slow circle, saw a gift shop, signs for restaurants and bars and still more people. From what Terri could see, the hotel seemed to stretch on forever. The outside had been impressive, but the inside was like walking into a different world.

One that was hers now.

That thought had her smiling and biting her lip at the same time. She hadn’t contacted her new partner, but she had made a reservation, so she dutifully joined the tail end of the line and accepted a flute of champagne from the waiter.

She hadn’t told Cooper Hayes she was coming. Terri had wanted a little time on her own, to check out her inheritance. To get a feel for what could be her new life. Or to at least explore the possibilities.

She owed that much to herself and to her parents. They’d raised her to be strong and confident. They’d sent her to college, encouraged her to find her passion. How could she walk away from this without even trying to make it work?

And in a way, didn’t she owe it to her biological father, too? She hadn’t known him, but he’d clearly kept track of her. He’d left her everything he had, so she was really his legacy, wasn’t she?

The line moved quickly and in minutes Terri was at the desk, handing over her ID to the clerk. He was young, with a practiced smile and a name tag that read Brent.

“Is this your first time at the StarFire?” he asked.

Terri grinned. “How could you tell?”

He winked at her. “You keep looking up at the ceiling.”

“Guilty.” She took a sip of the champagne. “It’s beautiful.”

“It really is.” He glanced at her driver’s license, tapped a few keys on his keyboard then stopped, turned and stared at her as if she had three heads. “Terri Ferguson?”

“That’s right.” She frowned a little and tried to get a glimpse of the computer screen. “You’ve got my reservation, don’t you?”

“Yes, ma’am,” he said with the crispness of an audible salute. Gone was the easy, flirtatious smile. Brent was suddenly all business. “We’ve been expecting you, ma’am.”

When did she become ma’am? “Expecting me?” She’d hoped to fly in under the radar but apparently that wasn’t going to happen.

“Your suite is prepared and ready for you, Ms. Ferguson.”

“I didn’t reserve a suite,” she said.

He grinned, printed off two key cards and slid them into a folder with the word StarFire emblazoned across it. He returned her ID, handed her the keys, then looked up and waved to someone behind her. “Like I said, Mr. Hayes—and we—have been expecting you.”

“He has?” Well, of course he has, Terri. Hadn’t the lawyer told her as much?

“Your name was tagged in the system so we’d recognize your arrival right away.” Brent smiled again. “Your suite’s been ready for days. Bill here will take your bags—”

A bellman in his twenties appeared out of nowhere beside her.

“Oh, I’ve only got the one bag, and it has wheels. I can—”

“It’s my job, Ms. Ferguson,” Bill said. “I’ll show you to your suite.”

Of course they’d reserved a suite. Terri had never stayed in a hotel like this one—let alone in a suite. This was so far out of her everyday ballpark, she couldn’t even see the stadium from here. But she was part owner now of this amazing hotel, so she’d better get used to it. Right, and that didn’t feel weird at all.

“Okay.” She swallowed the last of her champagne and slid the glass across the counter to Brent. “Could you take care of this please?”

“My pleasure, Ms. Ferguson. And welcome to StarFire.”

Welcome. She followed Bill across the polished lake of a floor toward a bank of elevators. Terri didn’t feel welcome. She felt...on edge. She was about to meet her new partner. About to start a life that she had zero experience with. In a place she didn’t know with people who were strangers. Sure. Great. Nerves? No, who would have nerves?

Everything had changed so quickly, she’d hardly had time to take a breath, and now she was in Las Vegas taking the first step into a world she didn’t belong in.

Now the question was, could she make a place for herself here? Would Cooper Hayes try to stand in her way? And if he did, was she willing to fight for a new life? Instantly, she thought of all the things she could do with the inheritance her father had left her. She could buy a house, send her mom and aunt on a trip around the world if they wanted it.

The possibilities were endless. All she had to do was prove she could fit in. Be a part of this world. This business.

In her head, she heard her friend Jan saying, “Go for it, Terri. Enjoy it. Life just got way interesting.”

Besides, Terri told herself, it was too late to back out now.

That last thought had barely raced through her mind when she saw him.

It was as if the crowds melted away. The ambient noise was nothing more than a buzz in her ears. Her heart pounded, her mouth went dry and her gaze locked on what was probably the most gorgeous man she’d ever seen in her life.

Every cell inside her stood up and started cheering. Honestly, even from a distance, he had the kind of magnetism that could turn a woman’s knees to jelly. He stood alone, tall and invincible as people hurried past him, instinctively giving him a wide berth. He wore a black suit with a shirt so white it was nearly blinding against the dark red tie. His black hair was expertly shaggy and his eyes were a pale, clear blue so startling, she couldn’t look away.

He was watching her, too, but she couldn’t tell what he was thinking by the expression on his face. Not surprising, she supposed. A billionaire businessman—especially one who owned casinos—like Cooper Hayes—was probably born with a poker face.

Cooper Hayes. Her new partner.

And a man who could feed her fantasies forever.

Two

Dave Carey watched the security footage from his office. He’d gotten a text alert the moment Terri Ferguson’s name had been entered into the hotel computers. She was here and now he had to find a way to get her gone.

He watched her now on the screen, a cold fist in the pit of his stomach. From his computer he could tap into any camera in the hotel. As executive assistant to Cooper Hayes, Dave pretty much had the run of the place. And it paid to always be on top of whatever was happening in the casino.

“She’s hotter than I expected,” he muttered, studying the footage of Terri Ferguson as she spoke to Cooper. “That’s not good.”

Cooper might think of himself as having a great poker face, but Dave had known the man since college. He could tell in a blink that Cooper was intrigued by his new partner. And that wasn’t good for Dave.

Hell, none of this was.

He tossed a pen onto his desk, leaned back in his black leather chair and kept his gaze locked on the tall blonde who had ruined his plans. Why couldn’t she have been short and ugly with an overbite and a dragging limp or something? No, she had to look like a damn goddess. Who would have guessed that women in a wilderness like Utah could look that good? He watched her smile at Cooper and more important, watched Cooper give her that hungry-lion-looking-at-a-gazelle expression.

“Damn it.” After years of putting in the time, helping Cooper build the Hayes Corporation into a global power, Dave had been on the cusp of finally getting what he deserved. Cooper had promised Dave that soon his loyalty would finally be rewarded.

And now some country-bumpkin blonde with great legs and a spectacular rack put it all in jeopardy.

Standing, Dave walked away from the image of Cooper staring at Terri Ferguson as if he were trying to keep from taking a bite of her. Moving across his office, Dave didn’t notice the high-end furniture, the thick carpets strewn across hardwood floors. He didn’t even see the wide windows giving him an awesome view of Vegas and the desert and mountains beyond. Instead, his mind was dredging up a meeting with Cooper nearly two years ago.

“Jacob’s not getting any younger, you know. And when he dies, the company comes to me. Once I’m fully in charge,” Cooper had said, lifting a glass of scotch in a toast, “I’ll see to it that you get a major chunk of Hayes Corp.”

Pleased, Dave had instantly wanted to know exactly how much they were talking about. But he came at the question subtly. “I appreciate it, Coop,” he said, “but what are you really saying?”

“I’m saying that you’ve had nearly as big a hand as I have, turning the company into what it is today,” Cooper said and Dave silently agreed. He was the one, after all, who ran around setting up meetings, taking care of minor issues before they became big ones and in general doing whatever Cooper didn’t have the time to handle.

“I couldn’t have accomplished so much so quickly if I hadn’t been able to count on you.” Cooper took a sip of his Scotch, then set it down again.

“That’s good to hear,” Dave said, nodding. Lifting his own glass, he took a sip and gave a quick glance around Cooper’s private suite. It was palatial and, as always, Dave felt a swift, hard stab of envy that he was just barely able to disguise. He was paid very well and still he couldn’t come close to living as Cooper did.

And damn it, he wanted to.

Dave’s parents had worked hard all their lives and never got anywhere. They hadn’t been able to help him with college. He’d put himself through and getting Cooper Hayes as a roommate had just been a damn bonus. Dave had gotten close to Cooper and slowly cut ties with his blue-collar family as he began to move in higher, glossier circles. By the time he graduated and went to work at Hayes along with Cooper, Dave had turned his back on his own past completely, in favor of his future.

Hell, he hadn’t seen his family in more than ten years and if anyone asked about them, Dave kept it simple and told people they were all dead. Easier that way.

“I’m going to want to make some changes once I have unilateral power. Jacob doesn’t see things the way I do. He thinks one hotel in London is sufficient. But why have one when you can have two or three?”

Musing aloud, Cooper said again, “Once I’m in charge, everything will change.”

“Well, that turned out to be true, anyway,” Dave muttered, slapping one hand to the window glass, warm from the October sun. This woman’s arrival had ruined everything. Now Cooper had a partner again. He wasn’t completely in charge and wouldn’t be unless they could get rid of Terri Ferguson. And until that happened, Dave wouldn’t get what he’d been working toward for more than ten years.

Oh, he knew that Cooper’s plan was to get little Miss Utah out of Vegas as quickly as possible. But Dave wasn’t fooling himself about this. He’d seen the interest on Cooper’s face as he looked at Terri Ferguson. And if Cooper was that attracted, the urgency to chase the woman off would fade. Pretty soon she’d be settled in, making plans, and Dave’s plans would be completely obliterated.

Pushing away from the window, he stalked back to his desk and sat down to stare at the image of the blonde who had, just by being here, become his enemy. As Cooper and Terri disappeared into the elevator, Dave shut down the surveillance feed. There were no cameras in the private elevator or the owner’s floor so there was no point in trying to track them.

Alone with his thoughts again, Dave’s mind raced with plans, possibilities. He had to find a way to get rid of Terri Ferguson and make it look like leaving was her own idea. He had to convince the gorgeous blonde that she was out of her depth. It wouldn’t be easy, of course. But Dave had handled tough assignments for years.

He could handle this, too.

But first, he told himself, it was time to call out the Big Guns, and he reached for the phone.

* * *

She wasn’t what Cooper had expected.

His own fault, really. He could have done research on her. He’d handed that off to Dave and then never followed up. Mainly because he hadn’t wanted to even think about having to deal with a new partner, for God’s sake. If he had done due diligence, he might have been prepared for his first sight of her.

The world he traveled in was populated by celebrities, wealthy business people and other so-called “elites.” When he’d heard that his new partner, Terri Ferguson, was a bank teller from Utah, somehow he’d expected...less. He wasn’t even sure what, really. Only that Terri was more—much more—than he’d imagined.

She filled his vision to the point of shutting out everything else. She was tall, which he appreciated. He’d always hated bending nearly in half to look a woman in the eye or to kiss her senseless. This woman probably stood five feet eight inches without the three-inch black heels she wore. Her dress was a deep, rich blue that hugged curves designed to drive a man crazy. The swirling hem of her dress stopped well above her knees, displaying long, shapely legs that were toned and tanned. The bodice was cut low enough to be tempting and she wore a black shrug sweater against the October chill.

Her long blond hair tumbled across her shoulders and down her back in thick, heavy waves and her summer-blue eyes were pinned on him. Just for a second, he indulged himself with another look at the full, rich curve of her breasts and his body stirred in response. Damn it. She was beautiful.

And a distraction he didn’t want or need, he reminded himself.

The only reason she was there, in his hotel, was to throw a monkey wrench into the middle of Cooper’s business plans. So it didn’t matter what she looked like, or that his body was tight and uncomfortable just looking at her. All that mattered was that he get her to sign over her half of the business in exchange for the huge buyout he was willing to offer her.

The bellman skidded to a stop when he spotted Cooper. “Mr. Hayes. I was just showing Ms. Ferguson to her suite, sir.”

“So I see.” Cooper took two long steps forward and stopped right in front of her. He was close enough to see the flash of something...interesting in her eyes. To hear the quick intake of breath and to notice how she squared her shoulders as if preparing for battle. Which, whether she knew it or not, he told himself, was the right reaction to this situation.

“You’re Cooper Hayes,” she said and he deliberately refused to notice the low pitch of her voice. Decided to not wonder how that voice would sound as a whisper in the darkness.

“I am,” he said. “I’ve been expecting you.”

Bill stood there, swiveling his head back and forth, watching the two of them as if he was at a tennis match.

“Sorry I’m late?” She smiled with the question and her eyes lit up. Completely irrelevant.

“You’re not late. I just thought you would arrive sooner than you did.”

Cooper noticed the bellman now getting even more interested in the conversation and he had no interest in supplying his employees with entertainment. Fixing his gaze on the younger man, he said, “I’ll take it from here, thanks.”

“Yes, sir.” Bill shot Terri what Cooper thought of as a sympathetic glance, then Bill turned and hurried back to the main lobby.

“Wow, he moved fast.” Terri sent a quick look over her shoulder. “Do you inspire fear in all your employees?”

“Not fear,” he corrected. “Respect.”

“Oh, of course. Wide eyes and a dead run are sure signs of respect.”

He took a breath. Apparently, she’d be harder to intimidate than the people who worked for him. “Are we going to talk about the bellman, or would you like to see your suite?”

Terri grinned. “I can do both.”

“Why am I not surprised?” he muttered. Gripping the suitcase handle with one hand, he placed the other at the small of her back, turning her toward the bank of elevators and one that stood alone, separate from the rest.

“Anyway,” she said, turning her head to take in the expansive casino behind them, “I’d have been here sooner, but there was a lot to do. I had to put in for a leave of absence at my job, get my car checked to make sure it was safe for the drive—”

“You drove?” He interrupted the flow of words because he was pretty sure that was the only chance he’d have to speak at all. “If you had called to let us know you were coming, I’d have sent the jet for you.”

“You have your own jet?” she asked, goggling at him.

“We do.”

“We have a jet. Right. Who doesn’t?” Shaking her head, she took a breath and said, “Anyway, I drove so I could stop off in St. George to see my mom and my aunt. Tell them what had happened and get them to babysit my dog for me because I didn’t know how long I’d be gone and I couldn’t ask my friend to watch her for who knows how many days—”

“You have a dog?” Cooper didn’t know why that hit him, but it did. It was something that hadn’t come up in Dave’s research, either. Cooper’d never had a dog. Or a cat. Or hell, even a hamster. Growing up in a hotel didn’t lend itself to pets. As a kid, that had bothered him. Apparently, it still did.

She grinned. “Yes. Daisy’s a cute mix of about a hundred and fifty different breeds, and she thinks she’s a Great Dane, so she needs a lot of attention and really doesn’t like being left alone. My mom loves her, so Daisy’s happy and—”

“What did your mom say about all of this?” Another interruption and he didn’t feel the slightest bit guilty about it. Until she spoke.

“You keep interrupting me. That’s rude, you know, but it’s okay for now.”

“Thanks so much,” he said wryly, but she apparently didn’t catch the sarcasm.

“Mom’s as freaked out by this as I am,” Terri continued. “Neither of us knew anything about my biological parents so we’re kind of shocked to find out my birth father even knew who I was, let alone where I was. Sorry. Rambling. The point is, I had a few things to take care of before I could come to Vegas.”

That bright, brilliant smile had knocked him back for a second but thankfully she hadn’t noticed. He felt off his game and that was something Cooper couldn’t afford. With that firmly in mind, he brushed aside her rambling. “Doesn’t matter. You’re here now.” Nodding, he slid a card into the slot of the stand-alone elevator. “This is a private elevator. It’s the one you’ll use to get to and from your suite. The other elevators stop at the nineteenth floor. This one goes directly to the top five floors and the roof.”

“Okay...” Another deep breath and he refused to notice how her breasts lifted with the action.

Focusing had never been an issue for Cooper. Until today, apparently.

“The waitstaff and housekeeping have their own elevators that will take them to the top floors for business purposes. The general public can’t access the higher floors.”

“Sounds very...secure.”

If she was joking he let her know by his tone that he didn’t find it funny. “As secure as technology can make it. Hayes Corporation offices are on the twentieth floor,” he said, turning his focus from her to the matter at hand. “And on twenty-one, two and three we have suites for special guests, dignitaries, celebrities...anyone whose security issues demand a safe, impregnable, luxury suite.”

“Impregnable. Right. Sounds cozy.” She nodded as the elevator doors whisked open.

“Our guests don’t come here for ‘cozy.’”

“Good thing,” she murmured.

He took that as a direct insult. “A cozy hotel is a B and B. A Hayes hotel offers luxury. Exclusivity.”

She blinked at him. “Wow. That sounds terrible.”

Surprised again, he said, “What about that is terrible?”

“Oh, just everything, but never mind...”

Cooper thought about arguing her ridiculous point but buried his irritation instead. Unknowingly, she was proving that he was right to want to buy her out of this partnership. If she didn’t understand the basics of the hotel industry, then she had no business being a partner. Certainly not his partner.

He took a breath. “The owners’ suites are on the twenty-fourth floor.” Cooper steered her inside the open elevator, slid his card into the slot again, pushed the right button and stood back, looking at her. With the mirrored wall behind her, he was able to take her all in at once. And he had to admit, every damn view he got of her was a good one.

Too bad she was such a pain in the ass.

The elevator swept up in a rush and she laughed, a rich, deep bubble of sound that whipped through the small, enclosed space and wrapped itself around his throat until Cooper felt like he couldn’t breathe. Pure enjoyment wreathed her features, when only a moment or two before, she’d been irritated, and damned if he wasn’t...captivated. Most women he knew were more guarded about their emotions. But Terri was honest and open and he found that intriguing.

She grabbed hold of the brass rail at her side, tossed her hair back and slanted him a delighted glance. “Well, that’s faster than I expected.”

“Express elevator.” His own voice sounded as tight as he felt. Cooper watched her staring up at the elevator roof and realized she was the first woman he’d been with in this elevator who didn’t turn and check herself out in the mirror. Every female he knew would fluff her hair or smooth her lipstick or simply give her appearance a mental thumbs-up. Terri Ferguson, though, was looking up at the digital midnight sky.