The Tycoon's Seductive Revenge(38)
Releasing a tense sigh, Ellie realized she was about to find out.
As Carter roused from slumber, he instinctively reached for Ellie. All he found were cold sheets. He sat up, scrubbing a hand down his face, and stared at the empty place beside him in bed. His hands fisted.
“This was not part of the deal,” he seethed.
Uncontrollable fury ignited in him. Did she think he’d let her slip away, after she gave him her word?
She thought wrong .
Exhausted from their amazing night of sex, but fired up by her absence, Carter levered himself out of bed. He threw on jeans and a t-shirt, without bothering to shower or check himself in the mirror. He was in no mood to care.
Finger-combing his hair as he stalked down the hallway, he approached her room and knocked with his fist. “Ellie, if you’re in there, open up.”
No response.
“Don’t mess with me, little girl. You won’t like the way I play.”
Someone moved toward him in the hall. He turned to find Matilda. She assessed him coolly. “Miss Montgomery is not in her room, sir. You’d do better to look in the dining area. Last I saw, she was having breakfast.”
“Thank you.”
She gave a curt nodded.
Carter took off in the direction of the dining hall, his blood boiling. If she had waited, he would’ve ordered breakfast in bed. And lunch. And dinner. Andre would’ve delivered the meals personally, so they never had to leave the room. Carter wanted her right there beside him, or under him, always within reach.
One night wasn’t enough. Not nearly. It’ll take a lifetime to get my fill .
Carter was too pissed off to give that thought much consideration. Bottom line—she was his. And he wanted her back in his bed. Now.
Disheveled and not giving a damn, he paused in the dining area’s open doors until he spotted Ellie. She sat with her back to him, and across the table from her was one of the ugliest guys Carter had ever seen. His teeth were yellow and crooked—Carter could tell when the guy smiled at Ellie. Thready strands of hair swept over his bald head from a steep side part. His eyes were slightly bugged out, his nose flat and wide. He looked like a genetic experiment gone wrong.
How dare he sit at the same table with Ellie? That spot was reserved for Carter alone.
Prepared to stake his claim, he advanced on them. He heard Ellie speaking to the man cheerfully, in a careless ramble, as if she hadn’t just signed herself over to Carter, body and soul. As if they hadn’t spent the entire night making love and fulfilling each other’s every desire.
Carter stopped in front of them, pinning Ellie with a hard stare. “Did you think it would be that easy?”
Ellie’s teacup clattered to its saucer.
“You should know me better by now, sweetheart.” He held out his hand for her to accept. “You have an appointment. With me.”
She ignored his gesture. “Arnoff Applestone, I’d like you to meet Carter Stratton, the other investor interested in buying the Montgomery Hotel.”
Carter pointed at Arnoff. “This guy?”
Primly, she folded her hands on the table and explained. “You will be bidding against each other on Friday. I hope in the meantime we can leave our egos at the door and save the competitive spirit for the auction.”
“He is my competition,” Carter deadpanned. Yeah, right . “Come with me, Ellie. We need to finish nailing more details of our negotiation,” he said tongue-in-cheek.
Arnoff spoke. “The lady seems quite content in my company.”
“Who the hell are you to say what she does or doesn’t feel?”
“Carter, don’t make a scene,” Ellie hissed. Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment.
“Then talk to me out there.” He pointed to the hallway.
Ellie offered a pained smile as she said, “Arnoff, please excuse us a moment.”
With a smarmy grin, he replied, “I’ll be here waiting, dear.”
Dear? Territorial instinct kicked Carter in the gut. He whipped back around to set this idiot straight.
Ellie grabbed his arm, dragging him toward the exit. “Carter,” she said in a warning tone, “if you want to talk, let’s talk.”
When they reached the hallway, Carter switched their roles, leading Ellie into a shadowed nook beneath the curving staircase.
His hands flattened above her head, his body trapping her against the wall. “You think I came all this way for one night?”
“I don’t care what you came for. That’s all you’ll get from me.”
He chuckled low. “I don’t think so, honey. You agreed to my terms last night. You belong to me.”
“I agreed because I felt trapped. Now there may be an alternative.”