Page 27 of The Charmer's Gambit
In North Carolina? he returned not fifteen seconds later.
I shivered. His text confirmed all my suspicions about him keeping tabs on me. The thought of it had always bothered me, but the reality was so much worse. Because now Iknewhe had the connections to monitor my travel.
This was why I couldn’t move. Ryan would know. Just like he knew about my business trip, one that was planned two days ago. Which also meant he knew I didn’t have a return ticket booked yet because we didn’t know how long this next round of reviews would take.
“Are you all right?” Will asked. He couldn’t see the screen but could surely see my expression.
I forced a smile. “Yeah, fine. Just—” The phone dinged again.
How is the weather in Charlotte? was his follow-up message.
It’s hot. I’m with my client. Which he already knew. Not that he would care.
Don’t forget our engagement photos this weekend.
I blinked at the message. He never mentioned anything about photos but did say something about an announcement.
I won’t be home this weekend. I hit send before I could delete the words and held my breath. I couldn’t believe I’d just done that. A version of no in a text.I can’t talk, I quickly added before he could call or respond, and silenced my phone before shoving it back into my bag with more force than necessary.
Oh God . . .He was going to lose it. Would he find me in Charlotte? My hotel wasn’t part of the itinerary, but I doubted he’d let a thing like that hold him back.
Fuck. My shoulders seemed to lock in place as the scenery passed by in a blur. What would he do the next time I saw him? Hit me? Choke me again?
And when he realized I had no intention of going through with his wedding, then what? Would he force me down the aisle?
I pinched the bridge of my nose and blew the air from my lungs, then jumped when a warm hand brushed up my arm to my tense shoulder.
“Rachel,” Will murmured. “You know you can talk to me, right?”
“Oh, it’s nothing.” My voice shook with the lie, so I cleared my throat. “Everything’s fine.” Just my insane stalker ex knowing my every move. “How much longer is the drive?” Was Ryan tracking my phone? I had no doubt he already knew the name of my client, which made the location easy to find as well, but that didn’t make it any less creepy.
“Another twenty minutes or so. You sure you don’t want to talk about it?”
“Yep.” That wasn’t a lie in the slightest. I flipped to the first topic change that sprung to mind, which, of course, was work related. “So I’ve been wondering about why you want to expand internationally. Why Nice?”
His gaze searched my features for too long, then he sighed and dropped the hand that was still on my shoulder, leaving me feeling cold. “This vineyard grows a unique variety of grapes only found in that region.”
“Which means it’ll be different from your existing brand, right?”
“Very.”
I tried to think like a businessman, to understand his vision. “Okay, so you’re acquiring a new variety to add to your collection, right?”
“Yes, I’m expanding my collateral.” He turned toward me as he continued. “As you’ve seen, the French vineyard has required the family name remain on their product. As they’ve already established a clientele, I have no problem adhering to that. Mershano Vineyards will essentially operate as a silent owner, which gives me more bargaining power with retail chains and restaurants. Instead of offering only Mershano brands, I’ll be able to offer international brands with reputable backgrounds.”
He settled into his seat and cast me an unreadable expression. “I also like the challenge of learning something new, and the Mediterranean region offers a different variety of grapes.”
I nodded. “Makes sense. I’ll admit that I was surprised you agreed to not tying your name to the product.”
“It’ll be there on the label in small print, but the original family name will be what consumers notice.”
“It’s smart. But the property in Greece you want to own.” I phrased it not as a question but as a statement. He hadn’t started negotiations with that one yet but planned to at a later date.
“Right, because it’s run-down and not being cared for properly. My advisors are calling it a gamble because it’s a major renovation that may prosper, or fail. But as I said, I like a good challenge.” His gaze darkened on that last bit and droppedbriefly to my lips before trailing back up to my eyes. “The harder the fight, the sweeter the reward.”
I swallowed. I wasn’t so sure we were talking about wine anymore. The car pulled off the highway, which momentarily distracted me and saved me from having to answer. But then we continued down a road that appeared to lead to nowhere.
“Is your office out here?” Because it seemed off the beaten path.
