“That’s Talia. She introduced herself to Cris and me earlier. She asked if Archer was as friendly as you.” Vivian pokes my chest.
I burst out laughing.
“Exactly,” she agrees. “Anyway, she’s opening a spa. She wants Archer to help her attract high-end clientele.”
“He’s done it for bars and nightclubs. I don’t see why he couldn’t help a spa, or its owner.” I study their body language. Hers doesn’t broadcast she’s looking for more than a business deal. His, on the other hand, is reading a little 007.
Listen, I know the way Archer is around women. I’ve seen him on enough dates to understand when it’s on. This Talia woman may think she’s propositioning him for a job, but my brother has something more nefarious in mind. I wonder if he’ll succeed. I would stay and find out, but I have better things to do tonight.
“Bet they end up in bed together.” I turn to Nate to see if he’d like to take that bet. He narrows his eyes like he’s considering it.
“Don’t you dare damn her to that fate.” Vivian is so sincere, I find myself chuckling at her comment.
“If Archer has a hard-on for anything, it’s his next business deal,” Nate comments. “He was already looking for something to do in Miami, so I’m sure he’s planning to piggyback the spa onto the other project to save time and money on travel.”
“He’s looking to piggyback all right, but I don’t think it’s with the spa,” I say. Vivian emits a delicate snort.
Nate watches Archer for a beat. “You’re wrong. He’s got her on the hook. This is all business, Benj.”
He might be right. Nate’s a workaholic, but he tends to be out in the field with his guys, taking out walls or doing site visits. Even when he’s meeting with the mayor, they’re usually outside of an office. Nate is a noticeable guy with his sheer size and that crooked nose of his. He’s a big teddy bear, though. He’s good at a podium.
I’ve always been a behind-the-scenes guy. I work my magic with numbers and run my life as efficiently as possible.
Archer is a blend of Nate and me. He has our father’s work habits (falling under the Why So Serious column), and nearly every biz deal is life or death to him. William doesn’t approve of the bars and nightclubs Archer builds, but that doesn’t stop Archer from building them. Pissing off Dad might be what fuels his productivity.
Whenever I’ve suggested Archer hire an assistant like Cris to help him with his schedule, he makes a joke about his phone being “slim, quiet, and never talking back,” or some shit. Half of me always thought that was his shtick whenever we were in a crowd, but the other half of me considers he was sincere.
And yet there is a part of me wondering if this woman could break him. Like Nate said, there might not be anything going on between them other than Archer’s hard-on for a shrewd business deal, but I don’t think it would take much to escalate it into personal territory.
“No way will she allow herself to be wooed into his bed,” Vivian comments. “She’s going to eat him for dinner.”
“Don’t be so sure,” I say, eyeing Nate as he slips his arm around Vivian’s waist. “Archer is an Owen, and Owens have a way of landing the girl.”
She rolls her eyes but her smile is unstoppable.
“He has moves,” I say, baiting her.
“They won’t work on Talia Richards.” A devious smile curls Vivian’s lips as a trickle of fear slips down my spine. Her hand lashes out to take mine. “Shall we wager an even three thousand?”
“Sure, if you want to be cheap about it.” I smirk.
“Talia’s going to come out on top.” She squeezes my hand. “And not in Archer’s bedroom.”
“I love when beautiful women lose money to me,” I say as I shake her hand. “Though you might be right since he’ll probably go to her room.”
Cris approaches and stands between us. “What did I miss?”
“My future wife and your…Benji made a bet about Talia and Archer.”
Her Benji. I like that.
“What are the parameters?” Cris asks, interested.
“Three grand,” I tell her. “I say Arch is going to romance the brunette. Viv thinks Talia is completely in control of her faculties.”
Cris looks over her shoulder at the couple in question and then back at me. She shakes her head before echoing Viv’s earlier sentiment. “He might try, but she’s all business. You’re gonna lose, Benji.”
Everyone chuckles at her assessment. Even me, even as a frisson of fear follows the first trickle. If Cris can tell Archer’s fate at a single glance, what does she see when she looks at me?
I have a premonition I’ll live to regret her deductive powers. I’ve never been a fan of people seeing through me. It’s why I keep a smile on my face. The idea of her detecting what’s beneath my veneer, and excavating something I didn’t know was there, is downright terrifying.