“Are you fucking serious?” Luke again.
“Very much so.” McKenna stopped talking and watched all three of the men as they contemplated what she was suggesting.
“What’s in it for you?” Tag finally asked.
McKenna smiled. He knew her better than she thought.
“I’ll write up the articles, I’ll get each of you to bless them, and I’ll even get the first one out today.” She paused for a moment. “In return, I want to see why people spend outrageous amounts of money to be members here.” Leaning in closer, McKenna lowered her voice, “And if any of you try to tell me that they’re willing to spend it on an absurdly boring playroom and a miniscule apartment, I call bullshit. I want the real reason. And I want a tour.”
There, at least it was out there.
When Luke smiled, looking directly at Tag, McKenna knew she’d pegged it accurately. Club Destiny wasn’t about the second floor and the sleek, gray slate floors, or the open play area that might draw a few people from time to time. Shit, these people didn’t need to pay the kind of money Club Destiny charged; they could get the same thing for a hell of a lot cheaper down the street. There was something that no one was telling her.
“What do you think?” Luke asked Logan.
“I think it’s not a bad idea.” He too was smiling. “What about you? Anything we need to watch out for?” Logan turned to Tag.
“As long as she doesn’t talk about the lawsuit, you’re good as far as I’m concerned.” Tag didn’t sound thrilled about the idea, but he wasn’t turning her away either.
“And the tour?” Luke asked Tag directly, all three of them pretending as though she weren’t sitting right there.
“I’ll do the tour. Friday night.”
Friday? McKenna wondered why he wanted to wait so long and on her last night there to boot. It was only Sunday, which meant she had to wait all freaking week.
Instead of pouting, McKenna smiled, and then asked, “Which one of you wants to go first?”
Logan and Luke immediately pointed to the other, and Tag just sat back, sipping his coffee. She could feel his eyes on her, but she didn’t look at him.
“You’re the face of the club.” Logan laughed, talking to Luke.
“We have the same fucking face,” Luke barked, but he followed it with a smile. “I guess I’ll go first.”
Intimidating - the first word that came to mind as McKenna sat down in an empty chair, in Luke’s office. Luckily for her, she hid her emotions well because when he sat down behind his desk, he didn’t look at all friendly.
“Interview away, Ms. Thorne.” His gruff voice told McKenna the next hour was not going to be a pleasant one if she didn’t do something about it now.
“Please, call me McKenna,” she told him as she tried to get comfortable in the hardback chair. It wasn’t happening. “Do you mind if we move over to those chairs?” Tilting her head in the direction of a small seating area on the other side of the room, she waited for his response.
Without saying a word, he simply stood, then waited for her to do the same.
Why was she so damn nervous? It wasn’t like Luke McCoy was famous or something? But there was something about him that just made her... apprehensive.
By the time they were seated, and she was a fraction more comfortable, McKenna could see the tension in his strong jaw had only intensified.
“I don’t bite.”
Apparently, her outburst helped to relax Luke a little, at least if his smile was anything to go by.
“I’m just going to ask some simple questions and feel free to respond however you want. Do you mind if I record this? It’s only for my notes. I promise, I won’t publish the recording in any way.”
Luke nodded his head, but kept his eyes trained on her.
“Have you ever done an interview before?” McKenna was pretty sure she knew the answer, but she really was hoping to get Luke to loosen up a little.
“What do you think?” he replied smartly.
“Ok. For the record, your answer is no.” McKenna didn’t need to record that, but she hoped it would make Luke lighten up.
It didn’t. Reaching into her memory banks, she tried to remember some of the funniest interview questions she’d heard or asked before.
“How many pairs of shoes do you own?” McKenna kept a straight face as she asked the question, even when Luke tilted one eyebrow and looked at her questioningly.
“You want to know about my shoes?”
“Me personally? No, not really.”
Finally. Luke cracked a smile. A genuine one. It was then that McKenna truly understood what Sierra and Cole saw in the man. He was beautiful. Especially when he wasn’t brooding.