The conference room was empty except for the one bleary-eyed assistant who had let me in. I always made a point to be as close to the first person present as possible so I could watch each and every person make their entrance. It gave me the advantage of being able to watch their body language and read how they carried themselves when they were caught off-guard.

Today, though, I knew that none of that was going to matter. This meeting might as well have been a formality, but for the one woman who would be in attendance who was in for a surprise. Haley.

There was no avoiding it. Today was going to be the day that she knew who was really behind the purchase of Peppertree.

If Haley had just waited long enough, I could have at least braced her for what she’d be walking into. I wouldn’t want to be in her position for anything, and she was getting less than nothing.

But now I had to deal with the fallout of not only what had to happen here, but the shock and betrayal that Haley was going to be hit with. Nothing I did to brace myself would soften that blow to both of us.

The conference room was sleek and modern, befitting the caliber of bank that was handling the transaction. A large, black conference table sat in the middle of the room with cups of piping-hot coffee or tea already set at everyone’s designated place, and the massive window on the south side of the room offered a breathtaking view of the mountains.

Whenever I was in Colorado in the winter, I always found myself gazing out onto the sweeping, pristine blankets of snow and feeling at peace. Unlike the bothersome snow in the city, it was simple out here. Beautiful. Serene.

Even that couldn’t settle me this morning.

I placed my second cup of coffee of the day down and crossed my arms. Behind me, I heard the conference room door open, and the bankers began to spill in, some of them already talking amongst themselves, a few of them casting surprised glances at me that I could see in the reflection of the window.

I didn’t bother turning around. I already knew how everything in this meeting was going to go.

My attorney was one of the men who entered with them, the only one not surprised to see me. He just gave my reflection a curt nod as he took a seat beside the one I always took at conferences.

“A pleasure to see you again, Mr. Hawthorne,” one of the bankers greeted me. Others chimed in with similar vacant greetings.

“Looking forward to getting this settled smoothly, it’s always a pleasure doing such efficient business with Hawthorne.”

“Well,” my attorney answered for me. “Once Ms. Simmons arrives, we can get started and be out of here before lunchtime.”

“She’s halfway across the parking lot,” I spoke. I usually kept my speaking to a minimum at these meetings.

As expected, my sudden interjection made everyone pause and look my way briefly before exchanging nods with each other.

It was true, Haley was making her way across the parking lot, looking flustered and hurried. I frowned. This wasn’t right. I could tell she was doing everything she could to handle her business well--she was no amateur, but it would take a seasoned veteran to be able to handle the mess that her father had left Peppertree in, and no matter how brilliant and charismatic she was, her inexperience and lack of resources worked against her.

I took a few slow, deliberate steps over to my chair and stood behind it. It would be a minute at most before she made her entrance. I took a few deep breaths and glanced among a few of the withered old men before turning to my attorney.

“Most of this deal is already settled, so can I assume we can keep negotiations over the details to a quick minimum?”

“If all goes well, yes, sir.”

“Good.”

No sooner had I finished speaking than the door swung open. Haley entered. She was wearing a crisp, professional outfit in black and gray that clung to her figure. Under any other circumstances, my first impulse would be to think about getting her to the office bathroom and ripping it off her before pinning her against the wall, impaled on my cock.

But for now, I only had a split second to appreciate the way she looked in her professional look and demeanor before she turned, and we locked eyes.

Her face was already sullen, given the nature of this meeting. But when she recognized me, saw me standing over my chair at the end of my table and realized what that meant I was doing here, those gorgeous cheeks went ashen.

I might as well have been driving the knife into her back with my own hands.

She was a businesswoman, though, and she was experienced with the basics of how to carry one’s self in a meeting like this. The emotions flitted over her face so fast that I never would have noticed them unless I knew what to look for.

There was shock written all over her, and it quickly melted away to utterly crushing disappointment, a kind of sadness I wished I’d never have to look in the eye. I knew that wouldn’t last long, though. Her jaw set and her brow leveled just enough to see the intense anger that was blossoming in her.

She must have thought that I was planning this from the very beginning, as if this was all part of some sick, twisted joke to humiliate her. The purest form of insult to injury.

She had surrendered to me last night, physically and in some ways emotionally. It had been sweeter than I could have possibly imagined, and I knew it was for her, too. But every ecstatic moment we shared together turned to bitter ash the second we exchanged that look.

When she made her way to her seat, it was a brisk, restrained motion that told me just how much willpower it was taking to keep her from tearing into me right then and there.

She could have, too, and if she chose her words carefully, she could have really humiliated me in front of some important business contacts here. But of course, it would tarnish her name too, stooping to the level of a personal attack. And more likely than not, these old codgers would not even believe her unless I admitted to it.

But she did no such thing. She sat down, smoothed out her outfit, and glared at me from across the table.

“Mr. Hawthorne,” she pronounced in an icy tone.

“Thank you for joining us, Ms. Simmons.” One of the bankers was using a vaguely condescending tone, implying she was late, and my jaw clenched.

“We’re in no rush,” I retorted. He looked a little surprised, but he was successfully cowed and said no more. This was very bad for her, but I would at least keep these vultures from humiliating her any further.

But I knew that what she really needed was some concrete help, and I had to think of something fast. I cleared my throat.

“Let’s begin, shall we?”