Been Loving You Too Long Read Online Free PDF

for real luxury now, Vincent!   They want a discounted rack rate and the illusion of grandeur!   As long as the pictures look good when they post them on Tweeter or what the hell ever it is, they don’t care!”
    “I care! DuChamp Hotels might be a small chain in comparison, but we have an impeccable reputation and I’m not going to see it tarnished by plummeting to the lowest common denominator!   And stop throwing Melina Tate at me. I have no interest in her romantically or financially!”
    “I was wrong—you’re not just like Thomas.   You’re just like your father.   Cold as ice!”
    The fury hit him so quickly that he couldn’t contain it.   His fist was drawn back and only the fear that crept into Claude’s face in those last seconds stopped him.   “Get out of my office, Claude and don’t ever interfere with the way I run DuChamps Hotels again.   If you want out, I’ll find some way to purchase your shares and then you can go into business with whoever the hell you want.”
    Claude left, muttering something under his breath that sounded like ‘hotheaded asshole’.
    After a few moments pacing, which did nothing to alleviate the tension that coiled inside him, Vincent barked at his secretary.   “Ramona, I’m out for the day. Let the foreman know I’ll be checking in at the Royale later to see how things are going.”
    Ramona just nodded and gave him a thumbs up.   She wasn’t a traditional secretary.   He’d inherited her, and all of her quirks, from Thomas.   What she lacked in social skills she made up for in sheer efficiency.   She didn’t talk much because she viewed it as a waste of good air.  
    Shaking his head, Vincent headed for the elevators and a long walk to clear his head.   After exiting the building, he strode down Canal Street and then turned onto Esplanade.   He’d work his way towards the Royale and enjoy a little bit of the French Quarter along the way.
    There was something soothing for him about the sounds and scents of the city.   The distant wail of a saxophone could be heard over the din of traffic.   He focused on that, moving toward it.  
    Vincent hadn’t walked more than two blocks when he stopped dead in his tracks and watched the woman peering into a shop window only a few yards away from him.
    It was rare to see Ophelia not wearing one of her retro styled dresses.   With her hair in a thick braid and those ridiculous glasses perched on her nose, she looked so much like she had as a teenager that he couldn’t help but smile. “I thought for a minute I had traveled through time. Or did the fifteen year old Ophelia Broulliard come forward?”
    Ophelia gasped and turned towards him.   “Oh, my God!   What are you doing here?”
    “Walking,” he replied, moving closer to her.   Looking at the shop window, it was easy to see what had caught her eye.  
    There was a necklace on display, a ladylike confection of diamonds and pearls that looked like it should have graced the neck of Elizabeth Taylor during her heyday.
    “Thou shall not covet, Ophelia. But it would look amazing on you.”
    “It’s stunning, but I could never afford it. I could sell everything I own, including both kidneys, and never afford it.”
    “Then, let’s not spend any more time thinking about things we can’t have,” he offered.   It was as close to an acknowledgement of the previous night’s mistakes as he wanted to get, at least until he knew where things stood with them.    
    “Wisdom from an unlikely source,” she shot back, though her tone was teasing.  
    “Walk with me? It’s been one of those days, and I just don’t want to be in the office anymore. I’ll buy you beignets and chocolate milk.”
    She laughed and fell in step beside him.   “I’m not twelve, Vincent.   I’ve finally developed a taste for coffee. But I’ll pass on the pastries.”
    “You already had them, didn’t you?”
    Ophelia blushed. “Okay.   Yes.   I’m guilty.   Happy