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“You need some work done in here, too.” Though he had to admit the hotel was in pretty good shape. He guessed it had been built in the mid-seventies. “Just a little touch-up, a good cleaning and some professional restoration work. That’s just my first impression. I have to see blueprints, do a thorough inspection, but I can find you someone good who can do that.”
“I don’t want someone good.” Miss E. shook her head. “I want you.”
They walked through the reception area after a quick glance at the casino and out the back to the pool sparkling in the morning sun. The pool was roughly L-shaped. Lounge chairs bordered the edges. A small cabana showed stacks of white towels. Already half the chairs were filled with lounging customers smearing tanning lotion on their skin. Children played in the shallow end.
The hotel curved to his right around the pool and the casino curved to the left. Beyond that, he saw nothing but desert rising into hills.
His gaze traveled up over the balconies jutting out over the pool. A couple kids stood on one, looking down. If his brother Donovan had been there, he would have already calculated the distance from the balcony to the pool and considered trying a swan dive. Donovan had always been the daredevil. Hard to believe he was now a chef in Paris. His brother Scott had always been Donovan’s co-conspirator, leaving Hunter to partner with their only sister, Kenzie. If only Kenzie were here. She’d always been able to handle Miss E., unlike Hunter and his brothers, who always seemed to be in conflict with her.
“I have a business in San Francisco.” The hotel/casino was a grand old dame, just like his grandmother.
“And you have a partner who can take up the slack. I want you,” Miss E. repeated more forcefully.
Hunter gulped. “Yes, ma’am.” No one argued with Miss E. He’d always been a tall man. Even at ten, when he first came to live with his grandmother, he’d been taller than her. He’d used his size to intimidate his two brothers and sister. The one time he’d tried to intimidate his grandmother, he’d learned the hard way that no one crossed her and lived to tell about it. He was thirty-two years old and his grandmother could still make him feel as if he was ten. Miss E. played poker with a lot of unsavory people and didn’t intimidate easily.
“Who’s financing this?” Hunter wiped a trickle of sweat from his forehead. “You don’t have that kind of money.” But then again she could, and no one would ever know about it unless she wanted them to.
His grandmother waved at the top floor of the hotel. “You’ll meet Miss Montgomery later. She’s getting settled in one of the penthouse suites. And Reed will be along when his family emergency is taken care of.”
Another thought occurred to him. Private poker games like the one his grandmother participated had a high buy-in. “How did you manage the entry fee for the game?”
“Reed and Lydia put up the buy-in money and I brought the expertise. We each own a third.”
Hunter stepped back and looked up. From what he could see the structure, the bones seemed solid, though he’d know more when he started crawling around inside. They walked back into the reception area.
“This place looks frozen in time.” Hunter watched a middle-aged couple step through the front doors and out into the dry July heat.
The interior was dark, heavy with wood furniture despite the most beautiful mosaic floor he’d ever seen. The long check-in counter was painted a dull brown and a woman standing behind it wore a dark brown business suit with the logo of the hotel embroidered on the pocket of her blazer. She glanced up and smiled at Miss E., then went back to whatever task she’d been doing.
The check-in area opened onto a large airy courtyard, with a pond that meandered toward the casino. The pond was a nice touch. About six feet wide and made to look like a stream, the pond bisected the approach to the casino. Small footbridges crossed over it. On one bridge a young woman stood looking down. A flash of fish caught his eye and he bent over the edge of the pond to see koi the size of his foot.
Women dressed in short flamenco skirts and ruffled blouses along with men dressed as matadors wandered the casino floor with trays, balanced on their hands, filled with various sized drinks.
The casino was really old school with slot machines that chimed out the winners along with the dings of coins into the collection bowls. The more modern casinos switched everything to digital, which were quieter and took prepaid cards instead of money.
“The hotel has four hundred twelve rooms,” Miss E. said as they walked through the check-in area. “There are two restaurants, one café and a lounge. There’s a small stage in the lounge for live entertainment, a couple of novelty shops at the other end of the casino and a small amphitheater for the big name acts.”
Hunter sighed. “Where does the spa fit in?”
“Behind the pool is the hot springs. To take advantage of the hot springs, I think the spa needs to go there.”
He would have to take a look at the area. Miss E. led him toward the bar at the edge of the casino area.
“Good morning, Miss E.,” the bartender called cheerfully.
Miss E. waved at him, a happy smile on her face. “That’s Roy. He’s been here for years and knows where all the bodies are buried.”
Hunter shook his head, still trying to process the fact his grandmother owned a casino. He wondered if his grandmother had gone insane to risk everything she had for this. “One question.”
“Only one?”
He had about a million, but they’d have to wait. “What do you know about running a hotel and casino?”
She shrugged her elegant shoulders. “I know how to play poker.”
So did he, because she’d taught him to play the game. “That does not make for experience in hotel management.”
“I have Jasper,” she said.
As if that gave him any reassurance that this wasn’t a still a crazy idea. “And he is?”
“He’s the previous owner and I’ve hired him to stay on as a consultant. I know what you’re thinking, Hunter.”
“No, you don’t.” Hunter hated when she told him exactly what he was thinking. Why couldn’t she have been a bank clerk? Bank clerks didn’t need to read people.
“You’re wondering if I’ve lost my mind.”
Damn, he thought. “Okay, you do know what I’m thinking. Have you lost your mind?”
She punched him on the arm. “Stop thinking that.”
“What am I supposed to think?”
“That this is an incredible opportunity too good to pass up” she replied tartly.
“An incredible opportunity for what?” Poverty, starvation or homelessness?
“To be a financially independent woman, a chance to call the shots,” she said.
“I’m already financially independent, and if you’re worried about money, I’ll take care of you.”
“I don’t want nor do I need you taking care of me. I can take of myself,” she said, a glimmer of anger in the set line of her mouth. “I’ve been doing it for a few years now.”
“Then why did I need to rush over here?” Hunter ran a hand over his face. He never did win an argument with her.
“Because I want my grandchildren to be a part of this.”
A restaurant opened off the casino and Hunter glanced inside. “So what do you want me to do to be a part of this?” Hunter asked. Maybe what he needed to do was to treat her like a client instead of his grandmother.
“Old world elegance brought into the twenty-first century.”
“It could use a bit of toning down but without losing the elegance or class.”
“Lydia will handle that.” She patted him on the hand. “I just need you to come up with ideas for the spa that compliments what we’re going to do on the inside.”
They passed through the casino, back into the lobby and to a bank of elevators. The stream-like pond stopped thirty feet from the elevators and Hunter was surprised to see two white swans floating majestically on the water. The former owner had really understood how to create a mood. Who didn’t like swans? He could have a lot of fun playing here.
An elevator opened and Miss E. led the way inside, where they were lifted steadily upward, albeit a bit slow. The inside of the elevator was more functional than elegant. Boring, Hunter thought. Whoever the previous designer had been hadn’t considered how the elevators should look.
The elevator stopped on the top floor and the doors slid smoothly open. Miss E. stepped out and led the way down the hall. Only six doors opened to the hall, three on either side. They had reached the penthouse floor.
“The previous owner lived in the hotel,” Miss E. explained as she stopped in front of one of the doors. “This floor has what he said were family suites.” She knocked on the nearest door.
When the door opened, Hunter nearly fell to his knees. One of the most beautiful women he’d ever seen smiled at him. She was slim with a fragile, almost ethereal air to her in a Zoe Saldana way with a heart-shaped face and wide brown eyes. Shoulder-length black hair hung in long silky waves about her shoulders. Skin the color of his favorite mocha coffee looked as smooth as satin. A cream-and-black dress skimmed her body. He could tell the dress was a designer label and probably tailored to fit her. Her hands were long and slender, the nails lacquered a pale, iridescent pink to match the barely there lipstick on her pouty lips. She was so tiny a strong wind would probably blow her away. She certainly took his breath away. The longer he stood mute, the more strained her smile became until it began to falter. He was probably creeping her out.
“Oh, for heaven’s sake.” Miss E. pushed him into the tiled entry. “Close your mouth, Hunter. Hunter, this is Lydia. And this is Maya.”
A young girl, maybe eight or nine, ran across the tiled floor and flung her arms around Miss E. Maya’s resemblance to Lydia told Hunter the child was her daughter. She wore a yellow flowered sundress that showed off her light brown skin. Her long hair was woven into two thick braids that bounced against her shoulders as she ran. Instead of dark brown eyes like her mother, Maya’s eyes were light amber.
“Miss Eleanor,” Maya cried. “My bedroom looks like a castle. It has a princess and a prince. The prince even has a horse. I’ve always wanted a horse.” She sighed longingly.
She grinned so wide Hunter could see new teeth coming in at the sides of her mouth. From the slight crookedness of her front teeth, braces were in her future. Yet her smile was infectious and Hunter found his own smile growing at her elfin enthusiasm.
“Lydia,” Miss E. said, “this is my grandson Hunter Russell.”
Lydia held out her hand. “How do you do? It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.” Her voice held a faint Southern accent.
Hunter was dazed as he took her hand in his. Her skin was warm and soft. “Hello.” Was that the best he could do?
“This is my daughter, Maya,” Lydia said with a soft smile as she eased her hand out of his.
Maya smiled. “Hello, Mr. Russell, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” She held out a tiny hand for him to shake.
He solemnly accepted Maya’s hand, shaking it slightly. Hunter was impressed she had manners. Like her mother. “How do you do?”
“Well, thank you.” Maya giggled. For all her mannered politeness, she was still a child.
The suite was divided into three parts. The area upon walking in contained the living room. Closer to the balcony was a dining table that looked large enough to seat eight people. Beyond the sliding glass doors, he saw a pond and wondered if it had koi. On his left an open door showed a bedroom that seemed to have a child motif. Nearest the balcony was a large, open kitchen. On the other side of the living area was another open door showing a second bedroom. Across from the kitchen was another closed door, which he assumed was probably a third bedroom, and a second open door showed a white tiled bathroom.
The suite was nicely decorated with rustic red floor tiles, beige furniture and just a hint of Spanish influence in a massive sideboard holding brightly colored pottery.
“May I offer you some coffee, ice water, sweet tea?” Lydia asked in a polite voice.
“No, thank you.” Hunter was still a bit shocked at his grandmother’s decision to take on hotel/casino management, but even more so by the graceful, charming woman who was her business partner. She was a living piece of art.
His grandmother, on the other hand, was supposed to be retired, to let Hunter and his siblings start taking care of her. Running a casino wasn’t for the faint-hearted. Hunter didn’t have a clue how to run one. Miss E. probably had an idea, but she was seventy-eight years old and was more capable of playing the game than running it.
“Come see my room, Miss E.” Maya grabbed her by the hand and tugged her across the living room and into a bedroom.
He turned back to Lydia. She was watching him as closely as he had studied her. Her steady gaze unnerved him.
“I know what you’re thinking.” She sat down on the sofa and crossed her elegant legs, one foot bobbing up and down.
“And that is?” he asked cautiously.
“You’re thinking I’m insane, we’re all insane.” Her voice was calm and serene.
He wasn’t going to say anything negative. “Actually, I was thinking my grandmother is insane.”
Lydia Montgomery was as close to perfection as a woman could be. He wondered how she could have fallen in with Miss E.
Lydia leaned forward earnestly. “Miss E. knows exactly what she’s doing. And I am doing what I want to do for the first time in my life, and no one is going to stop me.” A challenge lurked in her dark eyes.
Okay, she was ready for a fight. He wondered what her life had been like that she was so passionate about doing something different. “What makes you think I intend to stop my grandmother, or you?” Part of him wanted to give her whatever she wanted. He sat down in a chair that looked comfortable, but wasn’t.
“I saw the way you looked at your grandmother. You looked at me the same way.”
Hunter held up a hand. “I’ll admit my grandmother is pretty impulsive and I do question her sanity at times, but she is an adult. And she has all her faculties.” He assumed she did. “But you....” How did he say the words struggling to get out? She looked like she belonged in a country club, not a casino.
“You think I’m going to take advantage of her, don’t you?”
“I’m more concerned about my grandmother taking advantage of you.”
A surprised look crossed her face as if she had to think about it for a minute. “Why would you think that?”
“Because she’s a bulldozer.” And Lydia looked like a stiff breeze would blow her over. “She’s an expert at reading people in order to give them what they want so she can get what she wants from them.”
“Your grandmother has been nothing but kind and encouraging to me. Maya adores her.”
“That’s how my grandma operates.” Hunter remembered when he’d been under his grandmother’s spell. He always fought it, but in the end gave in because giving in was so much easier. She just knew how to reel a person in like a big dumb trout.
“But...” Lydia floundered for a reply. “But she has such a clear vision. And she knows so much.”
“I’m pretty sure hotel and casino management isn’t on her résumé.” He could hear his grandmother’s voice coming from the open door of Maya’s bedroom. She was laughing.
“Isn’t it the same as managing a home?”
He studied her for a moment, stilled by the intensity in her chocolate brown eyes. She wasn’t as frail as she looked. The way she titled her head and watched him in such a composed manner made him wonder how his grandmother had talked her into joining the poker game. “Home management and hotel management probably have similarities, but on a much larger scale.”
“I’m sure Jasper is going to help us. And we do have experienced managers. And now we have you. Your grandmother thinks you’re capable of rising to any occasion.”
That was because his grandmother wanted him to do something. He hated feeling so cynical about Miss E. She was a master manipulator and no one got in her way when she was focused on a goal. “I have to think about this.”
Her eyebrows rose. “Think fast. We have things that need to be done and you have the expertise we need.” Her voice was soft and almost commanding. Something about her reminded him a bit of Miss E. She wasn’t asking him, but commanding him to do her bidding. Maybe he should get back in his car and return to San Francisco. His grandmother was a force of nature, but this woman looked soft and yielding yet already he could see she had a will of iron. She reminded him a little bit of a pit bull.
He forced himself not to smile or give in to make her happy. This woman was lethal. “What do you think I can do?”
“This is a luxury hotel and casino, and while we need to maintain our older clients, we also need to find a way to attract a younger clientele. Older clients think luxury comes with the room, but younger clients are willing to pay extra for them. And the one thing I’ve noticed after a couple months here in Reno and in Lake Tahoe is that there is money here. It’s quiet money, not very flashy, and buried deep. And I want to get that money for this hotel.”
He was surprised about her assumption about Reno. She had a depth to her that her exterior only hinted at. And any man would be a fool to underestimate her. “And you want a spa. Classy, elegant and...”
“Restful. A spa should be a treat. People want to be pampered.”
Me, too, Hunter thought. “Who doesn’t want to be pampered?”
“I want to create a more understated elegance. I want class with that comfort.” She closed her eyes while she thought, leaning back against the colorful cushions.
You want you. Maybe Miss E. wasn’t wrong about bringing Lydia Montgomery in. She knew what women wanted. “Understated elegance and comfort costs money. How far are you willing to go to get that?”
