Page 25 of The Ice Queen in the Corner Office

“Yep,” he said. “It’s all clear. Come on, I want to show you something.”

It was his palpable excitement, eyes lit so bright they sparkled in the dimness, and the bounce to his voice that pulled me in. I followed him through the cramped entryway, past closed doors and into a square, small room.

“The dining room,” he said.

It looked more like the dining room in an ordinary home than in a grand hotel. He then led me past more closed doors to another room with an actual table and some broken chairs.

“And another dining room.”

He started down the hall again, but I stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

“As much as I’m enjoying this haunted hotel tour. I’m not seeing the draw.”

He frowned like he was disappointed in me, which made no sense. “Let me show you one more room.”

He opened a door and shone his flashlight into an enormous room. I could picture it with a lush king bed, a desk, maybe even a small couch.

“It’s big,” I said. “I still don’t get it.”

He shook his head. “You don’t feel it? The luxury of a large room and a private dining room with a personal chef willing to accommodate any diet requirements and feed you any time of day? Gluten-free, you’re covered. Vegan, we’ve got the best food you’ve ever tasted. Picky toddlers? No challenge for our trained chefs. There’s a separate dining room every ten rooms. And there are more dining rooms and kitchens on the upper floors. Originally, they were shared by guests cooking their own meals, but we can update them. Every ten people would have their own private dining room. You’d be in the center of the city, able to explore and enjoy the sites, or free to enjoy the amenities of our all-inclusive, yet also personalized experience.” His southern accent strengthened with each word.

“But…”

“Come on,” he said. “There’s more.”

He led me down another short hallway to the left and laced his fingers through mine as he opened a door to a stairwell. I flinched back, but he held on tight. “The stairs are still a bit sketchy. I’m hoping you’ll catch me if I take a mis-step.”

I rolled my eyes, but I didn’t release his hand. We marched up the stairs, which seemed pretty solid to me. Up and up and up, about ten stories until I was panting, and my quads were burning. I was in good shape but every part of me was exhausted after a long day, and my body was showing it.

“Can’t you just describe it to me?”

“Nope,” he said. “We’re almost there.”

Finally, we stopped climbing and he opened a door. I followed him into a round room, clearly one of the turret rooms. It was larger than I would have expected and had floor-to-ceiling windows on all sides. Several of the windows were broken, making it drafty and cold.

I shivered, and Alex wrapped an arm around my shoulders, pulling me in tight to his side.

I pushed away from his embrace. We didn’t need to cross any more lines.

He didn’t show the least anger at me pushing him away. “Check out these views.”

I went with him to the window and gasped at the amazing view of the city laid out below us. “It’s beautiful.”

He stepped up behind me, not touching me, but so close I could feel his body heat.

“Just imagine. A cozy little after-hours bar with fairy lights and no other lighting. The focus will be the view of the city. The other turret can have a game room, maybe for kids or for adults. I haven’t gotten all the details worked out yet, but this place is big enough to have something for everyone. Childcare for the kids, bars for the lushes, game rooms for the adventurous, and a concierge with a different plan for every personality type. A resort that caters to the individual.”

I spun to face him, forcing myself not to react to his nearness. “It’s an amazing idea, but this place is barely standing. It’s going to cost more to restore it than it would to tear it down and build a brand-new place.”

“A brand-new place wouldn’t have the charm and character of this place.”

I stared at him in the dim light from his flashlight and the city lights behind him. I just stared and waited for him to explain.

How had I ever thought Alex was shallow and one-dimensional? This man was so much more.

I was just as bad as the men in boardrooms who wrote me off because of my blond hair and my long legs.

He stared back and didn’t break.

---