LITMIR.BIZ

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a card,” he said.

      “Let me get you a tip.”

      The man lifted his hand. “It’s been taken care of. Have a wonderful day,” he said.

      Kandace took the spectacular bouquet of red, white, and pink roses from his hands and sniffed them before reaching for the card.

      It’s a shame that I was assaulted, yet you get the flowers. Why don’t we start over? Hi, I’m Solomon, and I’d love to have you for dinner.

      Though she read the double meaning in his card, Kandace couldn’t help but smile. His intentions were clear. He wanted her in his bed for dinner, but it was not going to happen. She set the roses on the coffee table in the sitting room, admiring their beauty as she grabbed her book. All I have to do is ignore him, she thought as she settled on the sofa.

      Solomon had sent roses to women before, but he never found himself wondering what any of them thought about the arrangements. He wished he knew what Kandace’s thoughts had been when she got the flowers and read the card. He wanted her for dinner in every way; first he’d feed her, then he’d feed off her. She had to be sweet, from those luscious lips to the tips of her toes, and he intended to find out. It was slowly becoming an obsession with him to get inside her. As fiery as she’d been last night, he knew she would be wild in bed. She would probably make him call her name over and over again, after he’d made her scream his.

      Knowing that Kandace probably wouldn’t be sending him a thank you note, he decided to find out what she planned to do with her day. He headed down the back stairway, which was marked “employees only,” and headed for the front desk manager’s office. He figured he owned the place, he might as well use that to his advantage.

      Carmen walked into her Manhattan office with a venti cup of Starbucks in her hand and a pair of Jackie O–style sunglasses covering her puffy eyes. She’d spent the night scouring the Internet trying to find every piece of information that she could about Kandace Davis. What she’d found out about the woman scared her because Kandace wasn’t the typical woman Solomon sexed and left. She had more substance than the models and actresses that he normally bedded just to have something to talk about later. Kandace was everything that Carmen presented herself as, a businesswoman and a smart one at that. Though Kandace was running a successful restaurant in Charlotte with three business partners, she had a public relations business as well, based in Atlanta. Carmen hated her. She knew Kandace was going to be a problem. Carmen wasn’t going to have anyone stand between her and the man she loved. She dropped down in her seat and snatched her sunglasses off. How could Solomon not realize that she was everything he ever needed? She was beautiful, smart, and all she wanted was to make him happy. How blind was he? She knew that he wanted a woman who wasn’t blinded by the Crawford fortune, and she wasn’t.

      Carmen booted up the computer and pulled up the Crawford Hotel’s Web site. She clicked on Solomon’s picture and gazed at his smiling face. Closing her eyes, she imagined Solomon standing at the altar dressed in an Italian tuxedo as she marched toward him dressed in an ivory Vera Wang gown. Her hair would be curled in ringlets because Solomon had once told her that style looked good on her. She wouldn’t cry on the outside because her makeup would be too flawless to mess up with tears. And tears were a sign of weakness anyway.

      Solomon would take her hand and kiss it as he stared into her eyes. It would be a storybook wedding and she’d finally be the woman she knew she could be. A somebody with a husband everybody wanted.

      “Carmen?”

      She looked up from the computer and saw Richmond standing there. “What is it?” she asked.

      “I guess congratulations are in order,” he said reluctantly.

      “Yes, and you thought opening a new resort was a bad move,” Carmen said as she leaned back in her seat.

      “I guess people still want to go to the mountains. The holidays are already booked at the resort.”

      “Then why are you here?”

      “I wanted to talk to you about your alliance with my brother. Solomon couldn’t do half of what he does without you, but you’re never going to advance in the company if you continue to be his fall girl.”

      Carmen narrowed her eyes into tiny slits. “I’m no one’s fall girl. Solomon has promised me…”

      “Solomon doesn’t give a damn about you and he’s only keeping you around because you make him look good. Where is he now? Not here, not working.”

      “Get out of my office, Richmond. You’re just jealous of him. You’ll never be half the man Solomon is. Solomon has moved this company to the top of the hospitality industry and you just hate that your little brother is showing you up. What do expect from me? Solomon gave me a chance that I know you would’ve never given me.”

      Richmond shook his head. “You’re a bigger fool than I thought. I’m sure there are many things Solomon gives you that I never would. I have morals. I don’t know what’s going on with the two of you, but when it comes to light, I hope there is still a business for me to run.”

      Stalking over to Richmond as he walked out of her office, Carmen slammed the door shut behind him. Kicking the door with her Jimmy Choo clad foot, she silently wished Richmond would be the victim of a violent robbery. Then she and Solomon would have the whole company to themselves. If that idiot thought she would betray her man, he was sorely mistaken. She would never do anything to hurt Solomon, and if Richmond knew what was good for him, he’d stay out of her way.

      “Mr. Crawford, I had no idea you were staying here with us.” The front desk manager, Frances Honeycutt, stood when she saw Solomon walk into her office.

      He smiled at her as he extended his hand to shake hers. “I like to keep a low profile to get a true feel of the property. I have to say, you and your staff have been excellent. All of our guests are happy and will surely come back for another visit.”

      “Well, we, uh, are living up to the Crawford standard.”

      “Frances,” Solomon said as he took a seat across from her desk, “are you nervous?”

      She ran her hand down her throat. “It’s just been my experience that when the property owners show up, there’s a problem.”

      Solomon smiled. “Frances, you have nothing to worry about. But there is a slight problem.”

      Frances inhaled sharply. “What can I do, Mr. Crawford?”

      “The guest in the Wonderland Suite, I don’t think she’s very happy.”

      Frances shook her head. “We haven’t had any complaints, but I will be more than…”

      Solomon held up his hand, cutting Frances off. “It’s not that sort of problem. I met her and it seems as if she’s suffering from being overworked. I’m just trying to make sure she gets taken care of in a very special way.”

      Frances’s face relaxed and the tension eased from her shoulders as she typed information into the computer. “Kandace Davis? I guess she’s working on relieving stress. She has a noon spa appointment.”

      “Really?” Solomon said. “That’s good to know. Frances, I want you to keep me informed of her movements. I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure she doesn’t forget this trip.”

      “Mr. Crawford, I’m a little uncomfortable with this. Our guests expect privacy in a hotel.”

      “And I will respect Miss Davis’s privacy. Keep in mind, I own this place and I’m not just someone off the street looking to harm a guest. Kandace and I have a history.” No matter how recent it is, he added silently.

      Frances nodded. “I understand, sir.”

      “And just so you know, there’s nothing I’d do at this resort to cause a scandal. We have too much money to make.”

      “All right, Mr. Crawford.”

      Solomon

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