Hell on Heels (Hotel Rodeo #1)(6)

Slamming the phone down, she hit the intercom. “Delores, I need you to get me on the first plane to Las Vegas. I don’t care which airport I fly out of, just get me there tonight.”

“Right, Ms. Brandt. I’m on it.”

Monica slid her laptop into its case and began packing up her things.

“What the hell was that disappearing act all about?” She looked up to find Evan shadowing her doorway. “There’s a big f*cking deal on the line here, Monica. I need people I can count on. Are you on ‘Team Evan’ or not?”

“Of course I am, but I have a family emergency.”

“What kind of emergency?”

“My father’s had a stroke.”

“If only I was so lucky,” he replied dryly. “Don’t look so censorious, Mon. You know I despise my father, the controlling son of a bitch. So what’s the news about . . . ?” He waved his hand vaguely as if searching his memory.

“Tom?” Monica supplied, annoyed as hell that he couldn’t recall her father’s first name. They’d even had dinner together once. Tom had surprised her by flying all the way from Oklahoma to celebrate with her when she’d landed her current job at Hirschfeld & Davis. Tom was always thoughtful like that. Her mother, on the other hand, rarely even remembered her birthday.

“Not good,” she answered. “I need to go out to Las Vegas for a while, but Michael can handle all the preliminaries in my absence.”

“The hell he can! You think I’m going to let a clueless associate handle a hundred-million-dollar deal?”

“He’s not clueless, just intimidated by you. And I didn’t say I was handing it off to him completely. There’s no reason I can’t take care of things remotely. All I need is an Internet connection. I’m going to Nevada, not Mars.”

“How long will you be gone?”

“I’m not sure yet.” Monica scanned the stacks of folders on her desk, wondering what she should pack, but the billions in pending deals sitting there suddenly meant nothing. “A few days,” she replied absently. “Maybe a week or two. I won’t really know until I get there.”

“Ms. Brandt?” Delores’s voice interrupted.

Monica punched the intercom. “Yes? Did you get me a flight?”

“The last one out tonight departs from LaGuardia at seven-fifteen.”

Monica drew back her sleeve to check her watch. Shit. It was almost five. Even if she left straight from the office, there was no way in hell she’d ever get through the midtown rush hour in time. “When’s the next one?”

“Six-fifteen tomorrow morning out of Kennedy.”

“Put me on it. And please hire a limo while you’re at it. I’ll need one to Kennedy and another in Vegas when I arrive. Could you also call the hospital to let them know I want to meet with the neurologist as soon as I get there?”

“Absolutely. Will do, Ms. Brandt.”

Evan strolled over and perched his hip on her desk. “If you can hold off a couple of days, I’ll clear my schedule and fly you out on the Gulf Stream. I’m overdue for a visit to Vegas. Besides, it’s been way too long since we’ve had any quality time together.”

Quality time was Evan’s euphemism for sex.

Monica frowned. “This is hardly a pleasure trip, Evan.”

“Maybe not. But we can still take advantage, can’t we? If I spend a day or two scouting out investment opportunities we can write the whole thing off as business.”

Her frown deepened. “I can’t believe you. My father could be dying, and you’re talking about sex and tax deductions? Don’t you have any sensitivity?”

“Sure I do, and it’s all right here waiting for that pretty mouth of yours.” His thumb stroking slowly over her lips told her exactly what he wanted. “Make it good for me, Mon,” he murmured darkly, “and I’ll make it just as good for you.”

“Don’t you get it, Evan?” She jerked away. “I’m not in the mood.”

He exhaled a curse. “For Christ’s sake, Monica, it’s not like he raised you.”

“Maybe not, but he’s still my father!”

“Fine. I understand, but you’re not leaving until the morning. You can’t do anything for him, so why not take care of me? C’mon, I need you, Mon. Now, baby.”

“Why does everything always have to be about you? The entire world doesn’t revolve on your command.”

He smirked. “Maybe not the entire world, but certainly this corner of it. You’d do well to remember that.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You’ve got a damned nice setup here, Ms. Brandt.” He cast a slow, appraising gaze over her office before it landed back on her. “Great job . . . expensive office . . .”

Her stomach knotted. “Where are you going with this?”

“I’m just saying a little more appreciation wouldn’t be out of order.”

“I don’t like your insinuation. You didn’t give me any of this. I earned it.”

He came around the desk, cornering her in her chair. “Is that what you think? Think again, sweetheart.” His lips curved into a humorless smile. “Evan giveth, and Evan can just as easily taketh away.”