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Snowbound Surprise for the Billionaire - Мишель Дуглас - Читать любовный роман онлайн в женской библиотеке LadyLib.Net
Snowbound Surprise for the Billionaire - Мишель Дуглас - Скачать любовный роман в женской библиотеке LadyLib.Net
Дуглас Мишель
Snowbound Surprise for the Billionaire
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Dear Daisy
Munich is amazing. Gorgeous. And so cold! After a couple of hours out my face burned when I came back inside as if it were sunburned. Everything here is so different from Mudgee. I know it’s not Paris, but it’s marvellous just the same.
You know, it got me thinking about starting the blog back up, but...I’d simply be searching for something I can’t have. Again.
You should be here in Europe with me. You should... Sorry, enough of that. Guess what? I finally found out what we’re doing here. The perfectly perfect F is buying a brewery that has its own beer hall! How exciting is that?
We have our very first business meeting at eleven o’clock this morning. I’m going to wear that gorgeous garnet-coloured suit I bought in Sydney when we went to see Cate Blanchett at the theatre that time. I have no idea what I’m supposed to do in said meeting, but in that suit I’ll at least look the part!
Wish you were here.
Love, Buttercup
ADDIE EXITED HER Till the Cows Come Home Word document, closed the lid of her laptop and resisted the urge to snuggle back beneath the covers. It was only seven a.m. She could sneak in another hour of shut-eye. Flynn had said he didn’t need to see her until quarter to eleven in his room, where the meeting was scheduled to take place, but...
She was in Munich!
She leapt out of bed, smothering a yawn. A brisk walk down by the River Isar would be just the thing. She wanted her body clock on Munich time asap. What she didn’t want was any more of the crazy disturbed sleep like that she’d had last night.
A walk in Munich would wake her up, enliven her and have her bright-eyed and bushy-tailed for Flynn’s business meeting.
Perfect.
* * *
Addie tried to stifle a yawn as the lawyer droned on and on and on about the conditions of probate and the details of the contract negotiations that were under way, plus additional clauses that would need to be considered, along with local government regulations and demands and...on and on and on.
Did Flynn find this stuff interesting?
She glanced at him from the corner of her eye. He watched the lawyer narrowly, those blue eyes alert. She sensed the tension coiled up inside him as if he were a stroppy King Brown waiting to strike, even as he leaned back in his seat, the picture of studied ease. She wondered if the lawyer knew.
She shivered, but she couldn’t deny it only made him seem more powerful...and lethal, like a hero from a thriller. It must be beyond brilliant to feel that confident, to have all of that uncompromising derring-do. One could save small children from burning buildings and dive into seething seas to rescue battered shipwreck victims and—
‘Make a note of that, will you, please, Adelaide?’
She crashed back into the room, swallowing. She pulled her notebook towards her without glancing at Flynn and jotted on it.
Am making notes about nothing so as to look efficient. Listen in future, Addie! Pay attention.
She underlined ‘listen’ three times.
Biting back a sigh, she tried to force her attention back to the conversation—the negotiations—but the lawyer was droning on and on in that barely varying monotone. If he’d been speaking German she’d have had a reason for tuning out, but he was speaking English with an American accent and it should’ve had her riveted, but...
For heaven’s sake, the subject matter was so dry and dull that he could’ve had the most gorgeous and compelling voice in the world and she’d still tune out. She mentally scrubbed property developer off her list of potential future jobs. And lawyer.
She glanced at Flynn again. He wore a charcoal business suit and looked perfect. Didn’t he feel the slightest effect from jet lag? Perhaps he really was a machine?
She bit back another sigh. Perhaps he was just a seasoned world traveller who was used to brokering million-dollar deals.
The figures these two were bandying about had almost made her eyes pop. She’d wanted to tug on Flynn’s sleeve and double-check that he really wanted to invest that much money in a German brewery.
Sure, he was an Aussie guy. Aussie guys—and girls, for that matter—and beer went hand in hand. But there were limits, surely? Even for high-flying Flynn.
Still, she knew what it was like to have a childhood dream. Good luck to him for making his a reality.
She had a sudden vision of him galloping across the fields at Lorna Lee’s on Blossom. She leaned back. Did he really prefer this kind of wheeling and dealing to—?
‘Record that number, please, Adelaide.’
She started and glanced at the lawyer, who barked a series of numbers at her. She scribbled them down. Was it a phone number or a fax number? For all she knew it was a serial number for... She drew a blank. She scrawled a question mark beside it.
In her pocket her phone vibrated. She silently thanked the patron saint of personal assistants for giving her the insight to switch it to silent. She slid it out and her lips lifted. A message from Frank. She clicked on it, eager for news from home.
This man of Flynn’s wants to get rid of Bruce Augustus.
Her hand clenched about the phone. She shot to her feet. ‘Over my dead body!’
The lawyer broke off. Both he and Flynn stared at her. She scowled at Flynn. ‘This foreman of yours and I are going to have serious words.’
He cocked an eyebrow.
She recalled where they were and what they were supposed to be doing and cleared her throat, took her seat again. ‘Later,’ she murmured. ‘We’ll have our serious words later.’
But she messaged back to Frank.
If he does he dies. Text me his number.
Flynn stretched out a long leg, leaning further back in his chair, reminding her even more vividly of a King Brown. Addie pocketed her phone and kept a close eye on him.
‘So what you’re in effect telling me, Herr Gunther, is that there’s going to be a delay in probate.’
When Flynn spoke she had no trouble whatsoever paying attention. The lawyer hummed and hawed and tried to squeeze his way out of the corner Flynn had herded him into, but there was no evading Flynn. She wondered if he’d ever camp drafted. She’d bet he’d be good at it. With those shoulders...
She blinked and shifted on her seat. She didn’t care about shoulders. What she cared about was Bruce Augustus.
And getting off the farm.
She rolled her eyes. Yeah, right, as if she’d scaled the heights of PA proficiency today. She’d need to do better if she wanted this job for real.
You have a month.
‘Are you familiar with the law firm Schubert, Schuller and Schmidt?’
The lawyer nodded.
‘I’ve hired them to represent me. You’ll be hearing from them.’
‘I—’
Flynn rose and the lawyer’s words bumbled to a halt. Addie stood too and fixed the lawyer with what she hoped was a smile as pleasantly cool as Flynn’s. Thank goodness this was over.
‘Thank you for your time, Herr Gunther. It was most instructive.’
Was it? Addie ushered the lawyer towards the door with an inane, ‘Have a nice day, Herr Gunther,’ all the while impatience building inside her.
The door had barely closed before she pulled her cell phone from her pocket and punched in Howard’s number.
‘What’s he done?’ Flynn asked as she strode back towards the table.
‘Nothing you need to worry about. I’ll deal with it.’
He opened his mouth and it suddenly occurred to her what nicely shaped lips he had. It wasn’t something she generally noticed about a man, but Flynn definitely—
‘Hello?’
She snapped to attention. ‘Howard, it’s Adelaide Ramsey.’
He swore. ‘Do you know what time it is in Australia?’
‘I don’t care what time it is.’ That only made it worse. It meant Frank and Jeannie had been fretting till all hours. ‘Now listen to me very carefully. If you harm one hair on Bruce Augustus’s head, if you try to send him to the knackers, I will have your guts for garters. Do you hear me?’
‘But—’
‘No buts!’
‘Look, Addie, I understand—’
‘Have you ever owned a farm, Howard?’ She shifted, suddenly aware of how closely Flynn watched her. She swallowed and avoided eye contact.
‘No.’
‘Then you don’t understand.’
A pause followed. ‘The boss has given me the authority to make changes, Addie, and Bruce Augustus is dead wood.’
Dead wood! She could feel herself start to shake.
‘I have the boss’s ear and—’
She snorted. ‘You have his ear? Honey, I have more than his ear. I’m going to be your boss when I return home—you realise that, don’t you? You do not want to get on the wrong side of me.’
Silence sounded and this time Howard didn’t break it. ‘Goodnight, Howard.’ With that she snapped her phone shut and swung to face Flynn.
His lips twitched. ‘Sorted, huh?’
Was he laughing at her? She narrowed her gaze and pocketed her phone. ‘Absolutely.’
He lowered himself to the sofa. ‘Can you tell me exactly why Bruce Augustus is necessary to Lorna Lee’s future?’
‘Because if he goes—’ she folded her arms ‘—I go.’
He leaned forward and she found herself on the receiving end of a gaze colder than a Munich winter. ‘We have a deal. You signed a contract.’
She widened her stance. ‘You mess with my bull and the deal’s off. There’s a six-week cooling-off period to that contract, remember? You threaten my bull and I’ll pull out of the sale.’
He leaned back. She couldn’t read his expression at all. ‘You mean that,’ he eventually said.
She tried to stop her shoulders from sagging and nodded. She meant it.
‘Why is he so important to you?’
She would never be able to explain to him what a friend the bull had been to her. It was pointless even to try. ‘You said one of the reasons you wanted me to remain at Lorna Lee’s was due to the affinity I have with the animals.’
‘I believe the term I used was stock.’
‘You can use whatever term you like—you can try and distance yourself from them—but it doesn’t change what they are.’
‘Which is?’
‘Living creatures that provide us with our livelihoods. We have a culture at Lorna Lee’s of looking after our own. I consider it a duty. That’s where my so-called affinity comes from. When an animal provides us with good service we don’t repay that by getting rid of them when they’re past their use-by date. They get to live out their days in easy retirement. If that’s a culture you can’t live with, Flynn, then you’d better tell me now.’
He pursed his lips and continued to survey her. It took all of her strength not to fidget. ‘I can live with it,’ he finally said. ‘Do you want it in writing?’
Very slowly she let out a breath. ‘No. I believe you’re a man of your word.’
He blinked. She held out her hand and he rose and shook it.
For no reason at all her heart knocked against her ribs. She pulled her hand free again, but her heart didn’t stop pounding.
‘Howard?’ Flynn held his cell phone to his ear.
‘Yes, I do. Just...don’t touch the bull.’
He listened then. Obviously to the other man’s justifications. She scowled. There were no justifications for—
‘Howard wants to know if you’re okay with him dredging the dam in the western paddock of the Seymour place...’
Oh, yes, that was long overdue.
‘...extending the irrigation system on the southern boundary...’
There’d be money for that?
‘...and installing solar panels on the roofs of all the homesteads?’
She swallowed and nodded. ‘Those things all sound great. I don’t have a problem with improvements.’
Flynn spoke to Howard for a few moments more and then rang off.
She swung back to him. ‘When I return to the farm, who’s going to be in charge—him or me?’
‘I’ll be in charge, Addie.’
Oops, that was right. Still, if rumour were anything to go by, Flynn didn’t stay in any one spot for too long.
‘You and Howard will have authority over different areas. You’ll be in charge of the breeding programme. He’ll be in charge of overseeing major improvements. I’ll be overseeing the two of you.’
Unless she managed to change his mind by turning into the perfect PA. Which reminded her...
‘I’m sorry I had that outburst in the meeting.’
He shrugged. ‘It needed something to liven it up.’
It didn’t change the fact that she should’ve had more presence of mind than to shout out during a business meeting. She bit her lip and glanced at him. ‘So, you didn’t find that meeting riveting?’
‘Absolutely not.’
She sagged. ‘I thought it might’ve just been me. Jet lag or something.’ She retrieved her notebook and handed it to him. ‘I’m really sorry, but my mind kept drifting off.’
He laughed when he read her notes—or lack of them.
‘I promise to do better next time.’
He handed the notebook back. ‘I only asked you to jot things down to keep myself awake.’
She wrinkled her nose. ‘Are all business meetings that dull?’
‘Not at all. Herr Gunther was just doing his best to bore and obfuscate.’
He’d succeeded with her. ‘Why?’
‘Because he favours one of my rivals and is hoping this other party can get a jump on me somehow.’
‘There’s a rival?’
‘There’re several, but only the one we need worry about.’
‘Will this rival get a jump on you? Should we be worried?’
His eyes suddenly blazed and one of his hands clenched. ‘I say bring it on. The harder and the dirtier the battle, the more satisfying it’ll be.’
Really?
‘Regardless of the cost, Addie, this is one battle I mean to win.’
She swallowed. Right.
‘The upshot of the meeting is that there’s been a delay in processing probate.’
The one thing Addie had fathomed from the meeting was that the person who’d owned the premises that housed the brewery and beer hall had recently died. Hence the reason the property would soon be on the market. The probate referred to the reading of this man’s will so his estate could be finalised.
‘Herr Gunther will try to draw that delay out for as long as he can, but we’re not going to let him.’
That made them sound thrillingly powerful and masterful. She clapped her hands. ‘So?’
He raised an eyebrow. ‘So?’
‘What next? Do we head over to these Schubert, Schuller and Schmidt’s of yours and come up with a game plan?’
‘They already have my instructions. You, Adelaide Ramsey, have the rest of the day off to do whatever you want.’
Really? That was the entirety of her work for the day?
‘Go out and explore. Sightsee.’ He glanced up when she didn’t move. ‘If I need you I have your mobile number. I’ll call you if something comes up.’
Right. She gathered up her things.
‘And, Addie?’
She turned in the doorway. ‘Yes?’
‘Have fun.’
Oh, she meant to, but she wouldn’t be sightseeing in this gorgeous and compelling city. At least, not this afternoon. If she wanted to convince Flynn that she was perfect PA material, she had work to do.
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