for eighteen months—at least. And even longer if we can get you to extend your program through the third grade.” He waited, as if for a comment from her. She gave none. He folded his tall frame back into his chair. “Ashlyn’s nanny, Olivia, has been with her ever since Ashlyn’s mother died and Ashlyn came to live with me. Unfortunately Olivia is leaving us, going back home to London.”
None of which affected the decision Cleo had already made. “We have a two-year waiting list at KinderWay, but I’ll see what I can do about—”
“Two years.” He was shaking his dark head. “More proof that you need a plan for expansion. You’re losing business, turning people away.”
He was right. It had been four years since Cleo opened her preschool. Demand had grown much faster than she’d anticipated. She couldn’t keep up with it. She regretted that. But she had no intention of overextending herself or her staff.
She told him, “Opening a KinderWay here at Impresario for your employees will do nothing to reduce the waiting list we already have.”
“No. But it will provide a model for growth, get you moving in the right direction.”
She thought, How dare you presume to know the right direction for KinderWay? She said with great care, “You don’t understand.”
“I think I do.”
“The quality of the care we provide is what matters. The last thing I want is growth for its own sake—and you have to have thousands of employees here. Which means we’re talking about a lot of children. I can’t see how we can possibly accommodate—”
“You’re right. Here and at High Sierra combined, we employ over five thousand people. And those thousands have hundreds of children of preschool age. Many of those children are already in satisfactory care situations. And in any case, not all of them could be included—at least, not at first. So this would be a flagship program. We’ll see how it goes, then build on it.”
“A bold experiment. And expensive.”
He nodded, a regal dip of his dark head. “Employees who use the service will pay for it—below cost, which should make it affordable for them. I’m projecting that the expense to the Bravo Group will be recouped in increased worker productivity.”
And she projected that his interest in the program would fade as soon as his daughter grew old enough to move on. “Fletcher, I don’t know any other way to say it. I already have my hands full with—”
“Wait.” He spoke softly, but it was clearly a command.
And how many times had he interrupted her so far? She’d lost count. Tension gathered between her shoulder blades. She ordered it away. Folding her hands in her lap, she waited. Calmly.
Serenely.
Fletcher, meanwhile, had turned his attention to his state-of-the-art flat-panel computer screen. He began click-clicking with his cordless mouse.
As instructed, Cleo waited, watching him, her gaze taking in his wide, powerful shoulders, his strong, tanned throat, the handsome cleft in his square chin, the tempting, full shape of his sensual mouth, the …
Cleo caught herself.
Staring at Fletcher Bravo—bad idea.
She looked past him, out the wall of windows behind him, at the bold, smog-layered sprawl of Las Vegas and the bare humps of the mountains, hazy in the distance. Above the city, the January sky was overcast, an unbroken expanse of gunmetal gray. She ordered her mind to pleasant thoughts: a rainbow forming in a waterfall; the laughter of children; the bright, cheerful room at KinderWay where the youngest students learned and played …
“Come here,” Fletcher said.
She refocused on him, meeting again the paler-than-gray eyes that were somehow sharper than any man’s eyes had a right to be—and hadn’t she read somewhere that his father, the notorious murderer and kidnapper, Blake Bravo, had had pale, wolflike eyes? “Excuse me?”
A corner of Fletcher’s sexy mouth lifted in a hint of a smile. “I said, come on over her. I want you to see this.”
Why? There was simply no point. Whatever he had on that big screen of his wouldn’t change a thing. Why did he refuse to understand that she’d made her decision on this matter? Why couldn’t he accept that she was only here as a courtesy, to let him know in person that she would not be accepting his offer?
As she tried to come up with a fresh, new—and inoffensive—way to tell him no, he said gently, “Please,” making it impossible for her to refuse his request without coming off as rude and impatient.
Damn him, anyway. He was good. Too good. The man knew how to work a meeting to his own advantage—and yes, she’d known he would be good. Just not how good.
Suppressing a sigh, she rose and circled around to his side of the desk. When she got there, she was careful not to move in too close to him.
“All right,” she said. “What is it?” And then she looked at the screen. Her breath caught. “Amazing.” The word escaped her of its own volition.
“I was hoping you’d think so.”
Captivated in spite of herself, she moved closer. The three-dimensional image could have been plucked right out of her wildest dreams. She was looking at the ideal KinderWay facility. Or nearly so, anyway …
“How did you do that?”
“I hired an architect. I gave him several sources on childhood development and early-learning techniques. I suggested he explore the best facilities around the country—KinderWay included. In my far-from-expert opinion, he did his homework.”
She studied the open plan, the large, inviting learning areas: practical life, shapes and forms, mathematics, language …”It’s excellent.”
“I was hoping you’d say that.”
She forgot her intention to keep her distance and leaned toward the image on the big screen, resting a hand on the cool stone of the desktop. “I wonder …”
“Name it.”
She could smell his aftershave. Subtle. Pricey. Not that it mattered. “The open area in the center?”
“Larger?”
“Could you?”
“Watch.” He highlighted the area. Two clicks and the central activity floor was half again as large.
“There should be a sink here.” She pointed to the practical-life section.
He chuckled low in his throat. “I’m not an expert on this program. But I can definitely make a note of that—and look.” More clicking and an exterior view appeared. “Separate sheltered entrance,” he said, moving the cursor, using it as a pointer. “Note that we’d have it off the hotel area, nowhere near the casino. And …” The image shifted, the view widening to take in …”A protected, completely enclosed play yard.”
Enchanted, she leaned even closer.
