“Holy shit. Big brother finally has a crush. Fuck, I have to go ring Hunter.”
Daniel held a hand up. “I do not have a damn crush. Don’t—”
The call ended, and he slammed his laptop closed.
Jesus.
Daniel rolled his eyes. Anyone would think they were a bunch of teenage boys some days. Not executives running a multi-billion-dollar global enterprise.
Knock, knock, knock.
Daniel looked up. He made his way to the entrance and pulled the door open.
“Aloha, sir,” the young Dufort staff member said. “I have been instructed to inform you we have a hurricane warning on the island for the next few days.”
And?
He had watched the weather turning all day. Hurricanes were common in Hawaii, especially in February. Rarely did they eventuate into anything more than a bad storm despite the media dramatics.
“Thank you,” he said and began to close the door.
“Sorry, sir, but Mr. Akino asked me to emphasize that this one is the real deal and likely to be a category five.”
Daniel raised his brows.
“When will it arrive?”
“Overnight and into the early hours of the morning,” the young man said. “We’re boarding up and having supplies brought to your suite.”
Okay, so a bit more serious than he’d assumed. Daniel knew all their staff were trained supplied with the necessary requirements for natural disasters or weather emergencies. As much as anyone could.
“We will notify guests if there’s a need to move them into the corridors overnight. It’s looking likely. Let me know if you want assistance moving your mattress.”
“That’s unnecessary,” he said. “Is the PA system functioning?”
The man nodded. “Yes, sir, and the city is testing the sirens in about an hour.”
Daniel pulled out his phone just as the Hawaiian Emergency notification sounded.
“Look after the guests. I can collect the supplies I need,” he said when the blaring noise ended.
Like his brothers, his father had ensured they all worked in the Dufort hotels in several departments when they were younger. Daniel had changed sheets, washed dishes and—badly—checked guests in. Fletcher had been better face to face with people with all his natural charm.
“Thank you, sir,” the guy replied, and they both knew Akino would never let that happen.
“Will The Olive Tree remain open?” he asked, referring to the bar in the center of the lower floor. It was away from windows, making it a safe spot for their guests.
“Yes, until one 1:00 a.m.” Daniel nodded, and the man left.
They were lucky to have the internally located establishment. Every hotelier knew asking people to remain in their rooms for any length of time was unrealistic.
His mind flashed to Harper, and he wondered how she was responding to the news.
Not his problem.
Still, Daniel didn’t like that she was on her own and possibly scared. However unlikely, given the woman was made of ice.
Daniel walked to the large windows and looked out over Waikiki Beach.
No, she was more like a snow lion, cold on the outside and warm on the inside.
Even though she’d pushed his buttons yesterday, he still intended to melt her ice façade and sink into all that heat.
Deeply.