The Billionaire's Bidding Read Online Free PDF Page A

David?”
    â€œAhhh. The elusive David.”
    â€œI don’t want to learn,” Emma grumbled.
    â€œBlackjack,” said Alex. “I’ll bankroll you.”
    â€œYou’re not going to—”
    His voice turned steely. “I’ll bankroll you.”
    â€œFine. You want to put a tattoo on my forehead while you’re at it?”
    He lifted her hand for a fleeting kiss, his gentle voice at odds with the steely look in his eyes. “No. Just a diamond on your finger.”
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    â€œWe’ve got trouble on the wedding front,” said Ryan, plunking down in a guest chair in Alex’s office.
    Alex looked up from the McKinley Inns prospectus. “What kind of trouble?”
    â€œThe kind that starts with one archrival DreamLodge and ends with Kayven Island.”
    An adrenaline shot hit Alex’s system. “Old man Murdoch knows about Kayven?”
    â€œHe has to,” said Ryan, sitting forward in the leather chair. “There’s no other explanation.”
    Dread crept through Alex’s system. “For what?”
    â€œHe’s putting together a bid for McKinley.”
    â€œSon of a bitch.” Alex rocked to his feet, the possibilities winging through his mind. “The whole chain?”
    Ryan stood with him. “Just the Kayven property.”
    Alex closed his eyes for a split second, wrapping his hand around the back of his neck and squeezing hard. “And the women would keep the rest?” It was a dream come true for Emma.
    â€œYeah,” said Ryan.
    â€œHow long’ve we got?”
    â€œHe’s presenting the offer start of business Monday.”
    â€œWho’s your source?”
    â€œAdam down in accounting mentioned that his brother-in-law over at Williamson Smythe was looking at the same geologicals as we were.”
    â€œHe put it together from that? ”
    Ryan shook his head. “Adam doesn’t know a thing. I pieced it together myself from six different sources. We’re still the only player with the big picture.”
    Alex’s mind clicked through potential scenarios. All of them ended with a DreamLodge win and a Garrison loss. “I can’t let him make that offer.”
    Ryan nodded.
    Alex had to shut Murdoch down. So how did he shut Murdoch down before Monday morning? Marry Emma was the obvious answer. “I wonder how she feels about Vegas….”
    â€œYou can’t marry Emma in the next forty-eight hours.”
    Alex snorted. “The jet’s at JFK—I could marry her in less than five.”
    â€œYou don’t think a quickie Vegas wedding would look slightly opportunistic?”
    Alex’s voice rose. “I’d rather look opportunistic than screw the whole deal.”
    â€œAnd what happens when Murdoch talks to her?”
    â€œBy the time Murdoch talks to her, she’ll be Mrs. Alex Garrison.”
    Ryan shook his head. “Not good enough. We don’t want Murdoch talking to her at all.”
    â€œWe can’t stop him from talking to her.” It was a free country, and DreamLodge owned as many communication devices as anybody else.
    Ryan eased back down in his chair, resting one ankle on the opposite knee. “We can if he thinks there’s no point in talking to her.”
    â€œThere are hundreds of millions at stake.”
    â€œYeah,” Ryan agreed quietly. “And we’re going to make him think it’s all ours.”
    Alex recognized the cunning gleam in Ryan’s eyes. A renewed calm came over him, and he took his seat behind the desk, picking up a gold pen to twirl between his fingertips. “How?”
    â€œWe need four things,” said Ryan.
    Alex was all ears. There was a reason he’d taken Ryan on as a partner. The man was a strategic genius.
    â€œMcKinley’s financial statements,” said Ryan. “Some serious intel on DreamLodge, a quick and dirty marketing mock-up, and a diamond ring on