Can't Help Falling In Love (18 page)

Chapter Nine

A
N HOUR LATER,
Randa stomped, or as close as she could get in her highest Laboutins, into Viva Las
Vegas. She’d dressed for battle. If Tony thought they could toss her out, she was
going to make sure he and Willodean Jackson regretted it mightily. The young blonde
manning the hostess station smiled up at her. “Good evening, Miss Whitmore. Would
you like a seat at the bar again?”

Randa smiled down at the tiny showgirl and said, “Actually, Lacey, I’m here to meet
Willodean Jackson. Could you point me her direction?”

She smiled and said, “Sure thing. Follow me.”

Randa searched for Tony as she trailed Lacey through a few tables and nearly ran right
over her when she stopped in front of a table shoved into a corner as far from the
stage as possible. Randa sort of understood that. If tonight was a karaoke night,
outside by the pool might be too close.

“Miss Willodean, this is Miss Whitmore. She’s been enjoying the burgers this week.”
Lacey put a menu down on the table and Randa fought the urge to shoot a freezing death
ray at the thinner, younger blonde.

The older lady with very black hair and bright green eyes motioned to a chair across
from her. “Please, sit, Randa. We’ll both go stun Lacey with our best pissed-in-my-pool
looks later, okay? She’s young. She’s got no idea about treadin’ on thin ice yet.”
Willodean winked. “But you and I both know she will. Age catches up sooner or later.”
Watching Willodean smile was like watching the sunrise after a month of clouds. She
had a good-natured face and the sweet smile of a fairy godmother.

Randa was pretty sure her father would eat Willodean alive when it came to negotiation.

When the waitress stopped to take their orders, Randa said, “Sweet tea. All Shook
Up burger.” Then she smiled up at the waitress that she’d seen around but hadn’t met.
It looked like Marcy was her name. “Please, Marcy.”

Marcy nodded. “You want your usual, Miss Willodean?”

Willodean handed her the menu. “Yes, ma’am! It’s good to see y’all. How’ve you been
while I was out?”

“Oh, you know… pretty good. Thank you for asking.” Marcy took two steps back
and headed for the kitchen, leaving a few yellow feather bits floating in the breeze
she stirred up.

“Now, then, Tony told me we might have business to talk about. Care to share what
that might be, Randa?” Her voice was molasses, slow and sticky sweet, but something
about her face made Randa reconsider her position. The smile was gone. So was the
twinkle. Now her eyes looked more like what Randa would expect to see in something
higher up on the food chain. They were sharp, like some kind of predator that hadn’t
quite decided whether to play with the food or scarf it down.

Randa cleared her throat. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Willodean pursed her lips. “The hard way, then. Okay.” She leaned back as Marcy set
down tea and ginger ale on the table. “Whitmore. Seems like you might know a thing
or two about hotels. What in the world are you doing in my little place? Tony thinks
you might be planning a little stiff competition.” Willodean tilted her head to the
side. “But you and I both know that your kind of hotels are not in the same class
as my masterpiece. No, it’d be smarter business maybe to come after this actual hotel.
My location’s excellent, my booking rates are solid, and you could be up and running
pretty quick.”

Randa tried not to jerk in surprise. She wasn’t really shocked that Tony had done
his research. Or even that he’d kept his suspicions to himself. What surprised her
was that Willodean had jumped to exactly the right conclusion less than a day after
she’d walked into the place.

Willodean Jackson was nobody’s little old lady. She wouldn’t be talked into selling
with smooth patter and an offer that contained a lot of zeroes. She was shrewd. She
knew exactly what she had with her prime location and established reputation. There
was no way the Rock’n’Rolla Hotel would come at a bargain price. Randa thought about
what it might look like to see Willodean and her father lock horns. Maybe the winner
wasn’t as cut and dried as she thought.

And that was a lovely thought. She hadn’t met many people who even made her wonder
if they could give her father a run for his money.

Willodean traced a finger around the rim of her glass. “Here’s why I’m thinking that.
If I wanted a hotel in the Memphis area, maybe something I could get up and running
fast, something close to one of the biggest draws in town and not too far from the
airport for the business traveler, I might be looking to buy a smallish property with
room to grow. One with an owner who was motivated to sell would be best. Second best
would be an owner you could charm, cajole, or browbeat into a steal.”

When Randa didn’t answer, Willodean said, “Maybe there’s a property that I thought
I might steal at a bargain from some silly lady who has no idea the way a hotel should
be run. Then I could strip it down and make solid money.” She shrugged. “Well,
I
would never do that, but I think some people might give it a try.”

Willodean Jackson might not run her hotel according to Marcus Whitmore’s rules, but
she had a fair understanding of the results.

Randa crossed her legs and considered her position. She might be able to distract
a man and come up with a solid lie. Here she had only her wits, which she had a feeling
were only evenly matched with Willodean, but outgunned in terms of experience and
understanding. Still, she was her father’s daughter, had the best education money
could buy, and she’d been remaking hotels for quite some time. If she was going to
run her own place, she’d have to fight for it. She could do that. As soon as she figured
out what to say. Willodean Jackson had surprised her, something that was definitely
a problem.

Willodean laughed and patted Randa’s hand. “I’m about to give you the benefit of the
doubt. You look like you got no idea what to say to that which tells me I’m too close
to the truth for comfort and probably that you’re only following orders.” Willodean
took a sip of her ginger ale. “Besides, I can afford to be generous. I’m way smarter
than I look.”

Randa couldn’t help it. She had to laugh.

“Thing is, Tony didn’t run you off the minute he found out you might be up to something.
And that’s saying something. Tony’s pretty protective of me and this place, so I have
to ask myself why.”

Marcy set two plates on the table and scurried away.

Randa busied herself with her burger. She contained her groan at the first bite, so
she heard Willodean say, “Imagine my surprise when I ask if you’re pretty. You know,
just testing the waters. And Tony, a man who hasn’t dated a single woman in the two
years he’s been working here, says you’re the prettiest woman he’s ever seen.”

Randa fought to contain the smile.
Prettiest woman he’s ever seen? That was something.
She’d think about that later. A lot.

She picked up her burger, took another bite, and managed not to make her normal face
of ecstasy again. Not that she was fooling Willodean.

“That’s a good burger, right?”

Randa nodded and did her best to answer without confirming Willodean’s guess on why
she was in Memphis. “The first time I had it, I decided two things. As soon as the
menu’s redesigned, the price should double. And second, no matter what else happens
with staff around here, that kitchen has to stay.”

Willodean took a bite of her Elvis sandwich before she answered. “Here’s a thing I’ve
learned in business, not from some fancy degree at a fine school, but from watching
my second husband maneuver some pretty tough waters and then doing my own thing in
a competitive business.” She sipped her drink. “You need to know your adversary.”

She’d heard the same thing from her father a million times. On the list of Whitmore
rules, that one was pretty high. She liked it better in Willodean’s voice.

Randa leaned back against her chair, wondering whether she should give Willodean some
kind of heads-up about her father. Maybe Willodean was smart, but her father was ruthless.

“This place will make a great Whitmore property. My father will make you a good offer
and I’ll make sure it runs with the same efficiency as the rest of the chain myself.
Think of all the traveling you could do without this place to tie you down.” Randa
hoped her voice sounded upbeat but not car salesman. She put on her most trustworthy
smile.

Willodean held up two fingers. “Two more things you ought to know. One, I got more
money’n God right now. And two, this is my home. You can’t put a price on it.”

Randa watched her, this tiny woman who looked like she ought to be baking chocolate
chip cookies or maybe pouring shots behind the bar, and believed every word she was
saying.

And she was relieved. The more she saw of the hotel, the less she wanted to change
it. Her father could go as hard as he wanted but Willodean had plenty of resources
to stand her ground. And if they failed to get the hotel, it wouldn’t be Randa’s fault.
She hadn’t targeted it for acquisition. Her brother had. And he hadn’t done all the
research he should have. Willodean didn’t want to sell and now it was clear she didn’t
have to sell. Misty would keep her lobby. Tony would keep his job.

And Randa would move on to the next place. Maybe that would be her spot, the one she’d
build to suit her. She hoped the kitchen was half as good as this one.

Randa forced herself to relax. Willodean patted her on the hand. “No worries, hon.
I understand doing what your daddy tells you. I had a hard time following my daddy’s
orders and Lord knows my son Charlie’s got his own selective hearing, but I understand
why you’d want to keep your daddy happy. Tony might or might not have wanted to toss
you out, but he was conflicted too.”

Randa munched a sweet potato fry and tried not to imagine her father’s reaction to
her revised report. The one she’d just sent to replace the one she’d sent last night.
The one that said the Rock’n’Rolla Hotel was a no-go.

“He didn’t want to let me in at all. Why do you think he let me stay?”

Willodean snorted. “Come now. You’re a smart girl. Maybe not quite as smart as me,
but bright.”

Randa laughed reluctantly. “He’s got a funny way of getting what he wants, Miss Willodean.
I mean, I’ve offered. More than once. But he’s all…”

Willodean nodded. “Sure, honorable. That’s Tony. Now that the truth’s out, you better
bar the door if you don’t want to get naked.” She shrugged. “I got a reputation.”

“As a hardass?” Randa’s lips twitched as she watched Willodean laugh, coughing out
her ginger ale. When she could breathe again, Willodean pointed a finger at Randa.
“Don’t you go around spreading truth like that. No, my reputation is as a kind of
fairy godmother. I take in the lost and the hurting, help ’em find their place.” Willodean
leaned closer. “I think Laura might have had her suspicions you were one of those.
Tony’s not sure he can identify ’em but I think he’s got the same instincts Laura
and I do. We all needed a little help once upon a time. Ought to make it easier to
recognize it in others, don’t you think?”

Randa snorted. “Right. I’m sure he thought I needed help, most likely of the swift
kick to the pants variety. I’ve done plenty of complaining since I got here. Poor
little rich girl, that’s me. But he’d probably be the best person to tell me to stop
crying unless I want someone to give me something to cry about.”

Willodean shook her head. “You don’t know Tony at all, if you think that, hon. I never
met a man with a wider protective streak. He’s just itchin’ to be a hero all the time.”

Randa squashed a fry between two fingers and tried not to think about how much she’d
enjoyed this same meal with Tony’s company. “Spoiled rich girl who gets back at her
daddy by buying expensive things. And then complains about it.” She rolled her eyes.
“I’m sure Tony is filled with pity for me. Tony, who has no family and who spent time
in a war zone, feels sorry for me.”

Willodean reached over and patted Randa’s hand. “Tony, who has a job he loves and
is damn good at. Tony, who has been adopted into a dysfunctional family that functions
pretty well most days. Tony, who has a chivalrous streak a country mile wide. Tony,
who thinks you’re the prettiest girl in the world. Whatever you said to him, he heard
something that made him want something better for you.”

Randa shrugged. “And that makes me feel even worse.”

Willodean tilted her head. “For lying?”

“For not being completely honest.”

Willodean huffed out a laugh. “Now that’s just splittin’ hairs. You must be damn good
at business. That’s a talent most people gotta build on.”

Randa laughed too and took a big bite of her hamburger. She savored it and twitched
her foot along with the song playing in the background. She thought it was “Can’t
Help Falling In Love.” Even she knew that one.

Willodean looked down at her tapping foot. “Nice shoes. Lucky you haven’t broken your
neck.”

Randa nodded. “Thanks. I brought my best with me, but I’ve been happier in cheap dollar
store flip-flops lately.” She shook her head. “I really like your shirt. Green’s my
favorite color.”

Willodean’s eyes widened and she clapped her hands. “Oh, me too! It’s my signature
color. I wear something green every day.” She flapped her hand in front of Randa’s
face. “I mean, something other than my big ol’ ring here.”

Randa captured her hand so she could get a better look at the emerald then let out
her best whistle. “That’s nice. Is it real?”

Willodean pointed at her. “I appreciate a suspicious mind, but you better believe
it’s real.”

Randa shook her head as she took a drink of her icy sweet tea. Now that the meeting
was in full swing and she’d lined her stomach with premium cheeseburger, she was feeling
a little more sure of herself. Fortunately or unfortunately, that didn’t have much
impact on making this hotel deal work.