Hotel Ladd Read Online Free Page A

no
need. Annie extended a hand. “Ms. Devane?”
    Jillian noted the gesture with a
knowing smile, as though fully aware Annie had been forewarned of
her intentions. “Ms. Owens,” she purred in a heavy Spanish accent.
Her voice was smooth and sultry, and rather deep for a woman. As
they shook hands, Annie marveled at her slender grasp, fine-boned
yet firm in its connection. Her skin was silky in texture, her
nails professionally maintained. Annie knew from experience that an
older woman didn’t retain the supple skin tone of youth without
professional care. Gesturing toward her nail chair, she said,
“Thank you for coming.”
    “ The pleasure is all mine, I
assure you.”
    Annie didn’t doubt a word. She could
feel the woman’s claws sinking into her in a most visceral way. Ms.
Devane was here for the kill, there was no mistake. Second thoughts
flooded Annie’s gut. It was an attack she had invited with a single
phone call, a willing phone call. “My friend told me you were
asking about my daughter’s half of the property.”
    “ Yes,” the owner of a hotel
empire replied, sliding her gaze around them as though making sure
the path was clear when she pounced, “I understand you are the one
in charge of the property.”
    Annie cleared a rush of nerves from her
throat. “I am.” While she might be intimidated by this woman, she
wasn’t going to let on to the fact.
    Jillian smiled and moved closer. “As
you know, I am in the owner of Eco-Domani, the number one hotel spa
company in the world where we pride ourselves on working in tune
with nature. It is my business to build hotels—fantastic, beautiful
hotels—that seamlessly blend with the land around them, allowing
guests to lose themselves in the luxury of nature.” She slowly
circled Annie, taking note of her white leather nail chair and
black ottoman, a line of shiny bottles filled with a broad spectrum
of nail enamels that comprised Annie’s nail station. “Your property
is incredible in its beauty and location, and I should like to work
with you on how to make it the number one destination in the world.
People will come from all over the world to visit your mountains
and woods, seeking to become at one with your land. By selling, you
will become wealthy beyond your wildest dreams.”
    Ms. Devane dripped with extravagance
when she spoke, pulling Annie in with her lavish description and
promises, as she created a dreamy vision with her talk of lavish
hotels and land conservation. It was easy to see how this woman
could spin a person into her web, sucking them clean without
spilling the first drop of blood. Annie shook off the elaborate
images and asked, “Haven’t you already purchased property for your
hotel?”
    Plunging into a shrewd
smile, Ms. Devane’s flinty eyes grew calculating. “So we don’t play
any games, okay?” She straightened her slim frame and stood
eye-to-eye with Annie. “I will tell you that I am still looking,
but I’m most interested in your property.” She tipped her head and
glanced askance. “I’m willing to pay you handsomely for it,” she
said, then dropped all pretense, pinning her with a hard gaze. “Am
I to take this meeting as a yes ?”
    Stunned by how quickly the cat turned
lion, Annie hesitated. She hadn’t decided anything because she
hadn’t heard anything! Darting a glance to the drips of blue
lighting overhead, she felt suddenly heated, despite the salon’s
contrived ambiance of calm. “What are you proposing?”
    Jillian smiled. “What do you
want?”
    Annie had no idea. She didn’t know what
the property was worth, other than what the tax assessor said. But
Cal had explained to her that the tax assessed value wasn’t the
market value, only the amount she was paying taxes on. If she were
to sell, the amount would be much higher—which made no sense to
her. How could there be more than one value for the same
property?
    Staring at Jillian Devane, Annie felt
the hairs of doubt tickle her neck. She