“Not sure yet,” he replied, glancing at his watch once again. “I’m meeting with J. W. Mosley tomorrow. Slade and I are glad we won the bid for the contract. I understand we had some pretty stiff competition.”
Luke nodded. Blade’s construction company, which he jointly owned with his fraternal twin, Slade, had been hired to do extensive renovations to Luke and Mac’s home, as well as build the Luke Madaris Rodeo School. And now the company would also be building the new thirty-four-story Mosley Building in downtown Oklahoma City.
Over the past few years, the Madaris Construction Company had earned a reputation as one of the best firms in the country. With Blade as construction engineer and Slade as master architect, their designs were renowned worldwide.
“You’re sure they’re on their way?”
Luke glanced at Blade. He recognized the look on his face, since he’d seen it on several occasions over the years. It was Blade’s predatory look. Luke swore silently to himself and decided it wasn’t any of his business, since he’d given his cousin fair warning. Samari Di Meglio was not your typical Blade Madaris kind of woman. Sam despised players in the worst way, and Blade was definitely a player—of the card-carrying variety. Hell, he even had membership in the notorious Gentlemen’s Club, and everyone in Houston knew that its members were far from being gentlemen.
“Yes, they’re on their way,” Luke said, taking a sip of water after deciding to mind to his own business. Blade was a grown man and Sam was a smart, intelligent woman. There was no doubt that the two would tangle, bump heads and even try to do each other in before it was over. He smiled as he leaned back in his chair. Things would definitely be interesting and all he could do was settle in for what he knew would be a wild and crazy ride.
Samari Di Meglio frowned as she glanced at the woman by her side after handing the valet attendant her car keys. “I don’t know why I agreed to come here with you, Mac. You of all people know how I feel about Luke’s cousin. The man is everything I detest.”
Mackenzie Standfield Madaris couldn’t help but smile. “Well, yeah, I know. I’m also surprised that you came.”
Sam shrugged. “What can I say, it’s a free meal.”
Mac rolled her eyes. “Whatever.”
Sam, Peyton and Mac had met in law school. The three women had become the best of friends and now they were partners in their own law firm, Madaris, Di Meglio and Mahoney. She of all people knew that the last thing Sam needed was a free meal, especially given her family—the filthy rich Di Meglios of New York.
Thanks to the proceeds from the trust fund that she had received on her twenty-third birthday, Sam had been the one to provide the financing to get their law firm off the ground, and for that Mac would be eternally grateful.
“Besides,” Mac said as they entered the restaurant, “if there’s any one woman who can handle Blade Madaris, it’s you.”
Sam appreciated Mac’s vote of confidence, especially when she glanced around the restaurant and her gaze landed on the man in question at the same time he laid eyes on her. He immediately gave her one of his predatory smiles.
She could actually feel the blood rushing through her veins and felt the hard thud of her heart beating in her chest. It wasn’t a good sign that a twenty-eight-year-old woman suddenly felt like a teenage girl swooning over one of those “I-heart-you” smiles from the cutest boy in school.
Luke and Blade saw them as they entered and stood up to greet the two women, stretching their muscular bodies to their full height. Sam’s gaze immediately went to Blade’s broad shoulders, and with his jacket off she could actually see the muscles rippling under his starched white dress shirt. He was wearing a pair of jeans that hugged his firm muscular thighs. She’d seen him only a few times and the one thing that stood out, besides the fact that he was truly a handsome man, was that he was a sharp dresser, whether it was business or casual attire. He was Mr. GQ in living color, and he had an air of machismo about him that women could sense and few could resist.
He stood tall—almost six foot four—with a body that had her insides quivering in appreciation. She hated being reminded of how long it had been since she’d been intimate with a man. She was used to flirting with men who had the word player stamped on their foreheads, and setting them up for heartbreak. She enjoyed showing them that two could play their games. Thanks to the hurt and humiliation she’d suffered at the hands of Guy Carrington a few years back, on what should have been her wedding day, she got great pleasure from pretending to be the needy, airhead, spoiled little rich girl. She enjoyed getting to them before they got to her, but not in the same way, of course. She figured it was their just deserts, and the least she could do to retaliate for their thoughtless behavior toward women.
Mac touched Sam’s arm, regaining her attention. “Wait a minute. You didn’t bring it up so I will.”
Sam lifted an eyebrow. “What?”
“The vase of flowers you got today.”
She shrugged. “What of it? I have a secret admirer who evidently hasn’t gotten the message that I’m not interested.”
“Or one of those players who didn’t appreciate your turning the tables on them, perhaps?”
Sam looked at Mac as she planted her hands on her hips. “Trust me, if that was the case I wouldn’t be getting flowers.”
“Still, I think you should consider investigating just to be on the safe side. You could have a stalker.”
Sam shook her head. Of course Mac would think that way. “I really don’t think it’s that serious. Besides, I have an idea who they might be from.”
She glanced back at Blade and her gaze went directly to his face. The eyes staring back at her were dark, piercing and determined. They were filled with a hunger like he wanted to eat her alive. She could just imagine what was going through his mind. He wouldn’t hesitate to seduce her if given the chance. She tilted her head, knowing he would never get the opportunity.
Okay, she would admit there was a sexy air about him, and there was no doubt in her mind that he proudly lived up to his womanizing reputation. A part of her knew she probably should not have come, since tonight she wasn’t at the top of her game. But because she was here, she would just have to deal with it and handle the notorious Blade Madaris in her own way.
And notorious he definitely was, with a face too gorgeous to be real. He possessed a ruggedly handsome square jawline, high cheekbones and a straight nose. And then there were his lips, the most sensuous looking pair she’d ever seen. They were curved in a smile that was trying really hard to seduce her, get on her good side and break down her defenses.
She found his efforts annoying and was determined not to let him get past her guard. Some men just didn’t know when to give up. Her mind went back to the flowers she’d left sitting on her desk, and felt the same held true for whoever had sent them. For the past three weeks she’d received a bouquet of flowers. They were beautiful, and she could tell by the blossoms in each arrangement that they had to have been expensive. Although she wasn’t one hundred percent certain, she believed they had come from Blade.
If he was the culprit, and assumed liked a lot of players did that a quick way into a woman’s panties was with sweet-smelling roses, he would be sorely disappointed. Maybe there were some women who were that naive, but their name wasn’t Samari Di Meglio.
Mac nudged her shoulder, interrupting Sam’s thoughts. “Our guys are waiting.”
Sam frowned, feeling a migraine coming on. “One of the guys is definitely yours, but the other is sooo not mine. I wouldn’t claim him if my life depended on it.”
As they began walking toward the two men, Sam wanted to believe what she’d just said.
Blade glanced at the two women who were making their way toward him and Luke. Both were stunningly beautiful. One was already taken by Luke.