Love Against the Odds: A Rags to Romance Book by Mallory Monroe

Author:Mallory Monroe [Monroe, Mallory]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Austin Brook Publishing
Published: 2024-03-05T18:30:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY

Despite valet service, Fred parked her Ford Taurus across the street and walked into the lobby of the elegant hotel on the waterfront. Finding a spot in the lobby against a back window, she took a seat to wait for Aliyah to show up. The only reason she knew her former colleague had gotten promoted was because she read where there was the annual editors’ convention in town and saw Aliyah’s name listed as one of the speakers. She was shocked to see it, but not surprised. Aliyah was always the hardest working woman in the room. But she was very surprised when she phoned Aliyah and she agreed to meet with her.

But that didn’t negate the fact that Fred had everything riding on this meeting.

Then why, when Aliyah entered the lobby with two male colleagues and headed for the lounge where they had agreed to meet, was she still sitting there? It was crucial meeting, but it was hard for a resourceful woman like Fred to go begging, hat in hand, to anybody. She had to get up her nerve again.

But inside the lounge, where JD was already present, the bar staff was on edge because the word had already spread: the boss was in the room. Best behavior everyone. The waiters and waitresses kept taking peeps at JD. They weren’t accustomed to seeing a billionaire in the bar in any event. Especially one that not only owned the bar, but the whole hotel! They were nervous too. Everybody avoided him.

Aliyah and her two fellow editors, Raymond and Chad, were just sitting down at the table near the back when one waiter was staring at JD so hard that he ran into another waiter and liquor-filled glasses went flying. The manager was beside himself with anger. “You idiot!” he was saying beneath his breath as he helped clean up the mess.

In the VIP booth near the back of the room, the booth next to the window, JD was already seated and sipping champagne. He was meeting with one of the top NBA owners, a man still persuadable. He was also smoking a cigar, something he rarely did unless it was needful. The fact that the owners postponed that meeting again had him on edge. He didn’t like being toyed with, and told his companion so. “If they keep that shit up,” JD said, “I’m going to show them what I’m really made of and expose every deep, dark secret of every one of their asses.”

His companion laughed. “They better not fuck with JD,” he said.

JD puffed on his cigar. “Damn right.”

And the NBA owner laughed again.

JD only noticed when Aliyah and her two black male companions sat at the table across from him was because of the beauty of the woman. He had a thing for black women, and she had that thing in spades. He looked her up and down as she and the guys sat down.

After they all ordered and received their drinks, Raymond had had it.

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