Page 52 of Iron Willed Warrior

“Cameron is your manager, correct?” he asked. “How long has he represented you?”

“For about a year.” I repeated a few details of how Brianna and Cameron had met, how she’d fallen for him. “He’s been good to me.”

“I’m sure. But did Cameron actually want to attend thisseminar with you? Or was it your idea?” He angled his head toward me like we were sharing a secret.

“I guess it was mine.”

“He doesn’t seem all that happy to be here.”

“He helped me take my business to the next level. Make more contacts in the industry. But…” I pretended to hesitate.

“Yes?”

“Never mind. I should be grateful for everything he’s done for me.”

We rotated in a slow circle to the music, and Cole came into view. He was leaning back against the bar, arms crossed as he watched us. Westwick moved his grip from my waist to my lower hips.Keep going, asshole, I thought.I dare you.

On the other side of the room, Ryker and Manning hunched together at a table, watching us too.

“You know, Brianna, you can’t allow another person to hold you back from what you want.”

“That’s why I wanted to attend your seminar. I follow a lot of entrepreneurs online, study their advice, but yours resonated with me.”

“Really.” His focus on me sharpened. “You know, this afternoon I took a look at your Instagram account. You’ve built a nice little following. Your lifestyle brand could go far. But you have to consider your future. Is Cameron the best manager to achieve your goals?”

I tried to look guilty. “I’m not sure.”

“We could meet up to discuss options, but it would have to be without your current manager. Cameron is likely to discourage you from changing anything. Especially if it would diminish his control over your career.”

There we go, I thought.Was the man truly this easy?

I thought of Cole’s worry—that we were walking into a trap. That Westwick and Ryker already knew our real identities.

“You think he’s trying to control me?” I asked.

“Something as beautiful as you?” Westwick purred into my ear. “What man wouldn’t want to own that?”

It took all my willpower not to push him away. Or better yet, pull him closer and squeeze him by the jugular.Remember the mission, I told myself.It’ll be worth it when we destroy him.But my defiant heart just couldn’t let that pass. Without thinking, I asked, “Are you sayingyouwant to own me? Shouldn’t a person get to be in control of her own career? Her own life?” A hint of genuine anger had sneaked into my tone.

Thankfully, he laughed. “I like you, Brianna. You’re feistier than I imagined you were.”

I smiled and shrugged. As if I’d been teasing him.

His long fingers massaged circles into my hip, just over my behind. “I think we’d get along very well together.Verywell. If you can get time away from your overbearing manager this weekend, then we can talk business. See what we can do for each other.”

“I’ll…” Fighting back my disgust, I finished my sentence. “Think about it, Mr. Westwick.”

“I’m sure you will. And you’d better call me Garon.” His phone made a noise. Westwick took it from his inner blazer pocket to look at it. He frowned. I tried to get a glimpse of the screen, but he kept it covered. “I’m sorry, Brianna. Forgive me for being rude, but I’d better take this.”

“Oh? Is it important?”

“The kind of thing that can’t wait.” With a wink that he probably thought was charming, he walked toward the exit. He waved at his bodyguards, signaling that he didn’t need them.

Cole was still watching me, but I went casually toward the restrooms.

As soon as I was in the hallway, out of sight of Westwick’ssecurity, I jogged past the bathrooms and went through the door at the opposite end, which led back to the lobby. I wanted to know who had called Westwick. What was so important that he had to deal with it right now?

Did it have something to do with his decision to move up his arrival?

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