As they moved toward the chairs, Krista took a single step back, gave Pam's hip a little bump, and whispered, "So what kept you two? Were you getting the tour?"
Pam scoffed. "Luckily, no. The only tour he was willing to give me included my room and a paddle."
Krista frowned and grabbed Pam's arm to stop her. "Why? I mean what happened?"
"I got a little lippy about my position here."
Her lips tightening as she glared at Rob, Krista gave a curt nod. "Can't say I didn't warn you."
"I know. But he didn't need to be so emphatic about it.
Hugging Pam in a brief, companionable squeeze, Krista asked, "He didn't hurt you, did he?"
"No." When Krista appeared doubtful, Pam added, "I'm fine, Krista. He wanted to set a few ground rules, and my attitude got in the way. That's all. I doubt he was serious."
With a determined nod, Krista pulled Pam to sit beside her while the two men sat across from them. Rob gave Pam a questioning look, which Pam returned with a smile and a lift of her glass.
Taking the hint, Rob lifted his. "To good friends. Thank you both for being there when we needed you."
Everyone raised their beverage for the toast and drank.
"So, Rob, did you give Pam a tour, yet?"
"No, Krista. I want her to rest. There'll be time enough to explore the house next week."
"Planning to open the room with the red door for her?"
"And what would you know about that, young lady?" Rob inquired, his tone acquiring a note of sternness that seemed out of place with the question.
"Nothing," Krista replied with a scowl to match Rob's. "Because every time I've been here, that door is locked, and you clamp your lips tighter than a clam protecting a pearl whenever you're asked about it."
"Oysters make pearls, not clams, and perhaps I don't discuss it because it's none of your business, Miss Rensler."
"It appears to be no one's business, but your own."
"Precisely my point. Next topic," he answered with a smile that was neither friendly nor welcoming. The CEO in action.
Pam's eyes widened slightly as she wondered what had caused Rob to grow so defensive all of a sudden, but Adam rushed in to the rescue.
"Are you feeling better, Pam?"
"Yes, sir. Much better. I appreciate everything you did, especially when I wasn't aware of what was happening."
"So, how long does Pam need to be on this medicine you're giving her?" Krista demanded.
Pam frowned at her friend. She normally wasn't quite this confrontational with her boss's boss.
"That is between Pam and me, Miss Nosypants."
"Do you intend to even let her out of the house?"
Rob put his drink down. "All right, Krista. You clearly have a problem with me, or something I did, so why don't you spit it out?"
"I don't think you're being fair to her."
"In what way?"
"In every way. You enjoy browbeating her into submission so she'll follow your orders."
He glanced briefly at Pam before turning his full attention to Krista again. "What makes you say that?"
"You couldn't allow her to settle in before threatening to take a paddle to her?"
"Krista!" Adam scolded while Pam studiously kept her eyes focused on her glass. She could sense Rob's scrutiny centering on her and wasn't sure how to respond, so she thought she'd avoid an interrogation by pretending not to recognize anything amiss.
"Pam?" Rob inquired gently.
Silently berating herself for confiding in Krista, Pam met Rob's gaze.
"If I say or do anything to upset you, I hope you'll be honest enough to tell me."
Pam gave a single nod in response.
"Good." He patted his thigh. "Now, come here."
Pam's eyes widened. "But I—"
"No. This is a time for obedience, not excuses."
"She's not a dog in training, Rob."
Rob took a deep breath. "Krista this doesn't concern you. Pam, come here, please."
Afraid of what she'd pushed him into doing, Pam put her drink down and walked over to stand before her boss.
"Thank you." He patted his lap. "Sit down."
She angled herself gingerly on his thighs, keeping her spine stiff and her hands folded. Except, he was having none of that and dragged her against his chest until her head rested just beneath his chin. Once she was positioned the way he wanted, he placed a light kiss on her hair. "Now. Is there something you'd like to tell me?"
"No, sir," she murmured quietly.
"Did our exchange in the hallway upset you?"
When she shook her head, he ran a hand up and down her back but didn't press further. Instead, he returned his attention to Krista. "Do you think I would intentionally do anything to seriously hurt Pam?"
"No," Krista admitted. "But you are still a bully at times, and I don't want to see her unhappy. She's already worried you won't hire her back once she's released to work again." Pam grimaced, wishing Krista wasn't quite so forthcoming.
"Is that true?" Rob asked, giving the top of Pam's head a nudge.
She drew back to gaze at him. "Yes."
"All right. We'll talk about it later. Anything else I should know?"
"No," Krista answered, not waiting for Pam to reply. "However, it's clear to me she's fallen in love with you, so the least you can do is be honest with her."
Pam groaned inwardly at that revelation, but Rob's hand didn't falter in its stroking, and his attention remained fixed on Krista. "Do you think I'm lying, or pretending?"
"I'm not sure. Depends. Are you serious or doing another excellent portrayal of the devoted executive this time?"
"Don't you think my relationship with my personal assistant is a private matter between the two of us?"
"Sure. Except Pam doesn't know how to ask the questions. I'm the one who's seen your assistants come and go like they're the latest and greatest in newly-leased cars. She hasn't, so she's got no idea just how temporary that position can be."
"You're making faulty assumptions, Krista."
"I hope so, Rob. Because if I'm right, you're playing dirty, and that's not fair to Pam."
He opened his mouth, but shut it again when Mrs. Andrews stepped in to announce, "Dinner is served in the small dining room, sir."
"Thank you, Mrs. Andrews. We'll be in shortly."
When the woman left, Rob gave Pam's hip a light pat, so she stood. As soon as she was on her feet, Krista and Adam rose as well with Rob following suit and placing his hand at Pam's waist. "Krista, I'm pleased your friendship with Pam has grown to the extent you wish to protect her. However, I don't appreciate you putting doubts into her head. I took both you and Adam into my confidence, but that doesn't give you leave to interfere in my private life. Challenge me, if you must, but don't parade Pam about as your poster child against domestic discipline. Her relationship with me does not fall under your purview. Am I clear?"
Krista nodded. "Yes, sir. Sorry, Pam. I didn't mean to embarrass you."
Wanting to relieve her friend's discomfort, Pam gave Krista a nudge. "It's okay. I'm sure I'll recover — eventually."
Her expression much lighter, Krista gave Pam a hug, and they strolled as a group into the small dining room.
Pam discovered the small dining room normally sat eight but could be expanded to twelve. Since when was a dinner for twelve considered small? Their repast consisted of a mushroom bisque soup, an endive salad, herb and garlic roast lamb with mint, rosemary roasted potatoes, and sautéed green beans, followed by a crispy-topped crème brûlée for dessert. That meant there were three forks, two spoons and two knives, and this was considered casual dining in this house. Yikes.
Most of the others had wine with their meal, but Pam, of course, was limited to tea, coffee, milk, or soft drinks. Okay, Rob had a good reason for insisting she stay alcohol free, but his limitations still rankled.
The other thing he insisted on was seating Pam on his right with Adam on his left. And Krista on Pam's right,
which was good since it allowed Krista to make side comments to Pam throughout the meal without Rob or Adam overhearing. Although from the way Rob's jaw tightened occasionally, Pam suspected he heard more than Krista intended.
After dinner, Rob asked Adam to join him in his office and gave Pam strict instructions to relax. "That means no tours, no roaming, and no exploring. I want you to sit and rest."
Though Pam agreed, the moment Rob walked out of the room, Krista asked, "So, did His Majesty deign to inform you which room he assigned you?"
"Krista! Rob isn't that bad. True, he can be a little overbearing at times, but he's not a tyrant."
"He can be, let me assure you. I stepped out of line earlier, but sometimes he needs to hear he's acting like a steamroller about to run you over if you fail to hop out of his way quickly enough."
"Yeah, perhaps, but you like him, too."
"Not as much as you do." Then she took a deep breath. "I realize I revealed some things you didn't want publicized earlier, and I didn't mean to put you on the spot. But when you said he threatened to paddle you simply because you were uncertain about your status here, I saw red."
Pam smiled. "So, I gathered. I took his threat for what it was—a warning to listen to him. He told me more than once he wanted me here, but I continued to contradict him, so he offered me proof. I seriously doubt he would have paddled me, no matter how frustrated he got."
"Well, I presume you understand him better than I do, because I wouldn't put it past him to do a lot worse, if you let him."
"I guess that's the point. I need to agree first."
"Fine. Whatever. Do you know where you're staying?"
"He mentioned it. Why? Do you have all the rooms' names memorized? Just how familiar are you with this house?"
"I've been here about ten times for the Christmas parties and company outings he holds. And, I did my share of exploring."
"So, what's this red door you asked him about?"
"Beats me, but I'm really curious about it. On all my visits, every other room in the house is open, except that one. The red door is always locked, and he gets really tight lipped whenever anyone mentions it."
"Where's it located?"
"It's separate from everything else, over on the right, along with a lot of play areas. This place is unbelievable, Pam. Over on that side of the house, he's installed an exercise room filled with the latest Nautilus equipment, a game room with a billiard table as well as some fancy electronic games, an interior tennis and racquetball court, not to mention squash and badminton in addition to an inside miniature golf course. On this side, he's got an indoor Olympic-sized swimming pool. All supposedly to entertain clients."
"Maybe that's what the red room is for—to entertain?"
"Maybe…. Though I think he uses it for something else entirely. How are you feeling? Want to take a small tour?"
Pam tucked her lower lip beneath her teeth. Rob would not be pleased if he found out she'd disobeyed him. "How long do you think they'll be tied up?"
"Those two? Hours, but I don't want to tire you out, so if you're not up to it, just say so."
"Where would you want to go?"
Krista wagged her eyebrows. "I discovered where Della, or Mrs. Andrews, if you prefer, keeps the house keys. I'll bet one of them fits the red door."
"I don't know, Krista. I feel like I'd be intruding on his privacy. Maybe we could check it out after I've been here a little longer."
Krista shrugged. "No problem. So, why don't we go see where he's intending to stash you away? Which room did he assign you?"
With a grin, Pam repeated, "The yellow room directly off the right front staircase."
"The yellow room? That's one of my favorites. It's so light and breezy looking. Want to see it?"
Pam shrugged. "Why not? So, should we take the stairway?"
"No, silly. Rob would take my head if I made you climb stairs. We'll take the elevator, and I'll give you the penny tour. That's where you stand in one place, while I tell you what you'll find if you go wandering."
"Sounds good," Pam agreed, though she would have preferred the stairs
As they strolled to the elevators, Krista began pointing the different areas out. "The formal dining room is through there," she said, indicating an archway on the right. "I swear the room is a mile long and can seat a small city. A person situated at one end of the table needs to use hand or smoke signals to communicate with the individual seated at the other end. It's so large, it's almost obscene. If we continued straight along this corridor, we'd reach the indoor pool. The far side of the room is all glass so you can look out at the snow-covered landscape while you swim in heated water. At night, with a full moon, the view is breathtaking.
"Just beyond the elevators on the left is the small theater. It contains a full-sized screen and seats about fifty in reclining armchairs. And, if you take the next archway on your right, you'll eventually come to the section that houses the various sports rooms. Each includes its own shower and changing room so you don't need to wander through the house all sweaty after playing."
When they reached the two cramped, metal moving cubes, Krista pressed the call button for the one on the right.
"What's upstairs?" Pam inquired.
"The left side is Rob's bedroom suite sitting room combination complete with a walk-in closet, dressing room, and a bathroom with a tub you could do laps in if you wanted. He also has a long conference room on that side along with a few well-appointed, and by that I mean high-tech, guest chambers."
"You went through Rob's personal rooms?"
Krista wiggled her eyebrows. "I told you I explored. Since all the doors are open, it's really easy to walk from room to room."
Though Pam didn't say so, she felt Krista had trespassed with all her snooping. Pam considered a person's privacy sacrosanct and wouldn't be pleased at all if someone went through her things without permission. When the elevator dinged, the black steel doors opened soundlessly and they both stepped in before Krista pushed the up button. "So, just two floors," Pam remarked, hoping her unease didn't show.
"In this section, yes. Did you see the two towers on the right when you drove up?" At Pam's nod, Krista said, "They each have four levels with circular chambers and a round elevator in the center. They were all empty the last time I was here, so I'm not sure if he's using them for anything, yet."
"He mentioned servants' quarters."
"I believe Paul and Della have accommodations in a corridor off the kitchen, which is another vast area. I'm not certain how many other rooms are there, since I didn't know if they were occupied or not, so I didn't go through them. Della and Paul rarely attend Rob's parties as guests, but they are present."
The doors whooshed open again, and Krista stepped out with Pam directly on her heels. They stood between the two elevators on the front edge of a balconied hallway that looked down upon the grand entranceway. "Do heights bother you?" she asked before Pam went too much farther.
"Not usually. Why?"
"Looking down from here can make you dizzy if you are sensitive. Just wanted to warn you. Come on," she directed, leading Pam along the balcony to the right. "This is your room."
Krista opened the door, while Pam stopped to glance across the open expanse to the other side with its matching white balustrade. The high open area gave the impression of a grand veranda from an antebellum southern plantation, only carpeted and inside. Pam was struck by a Disney Cinderella sensation as she considered the immense size of the foyer alone. Trying to reel herself back to reality, she asked, "Is that where Rob sleeps?"
Krista followed Pam's gaze. "Sleeps, plays, works, whatever. Yup. Like I said, Rob's suite is separated from the others by a reading room and the upstairs conference room."
"He keeps more than one conference room in his home?'
"Of course. He holds meetings here as well."
Pam shook her head in amazement. "And are there more guest rooms on this side, too?"
"Eight
more. Although your suite is furnished with a small sitting room that separates it from the other guests' accommodations."
"Given that we're looking down at the grand foyer, this area all seems a little...exposed. I guess I won't be running around the halls in my pajamas."
"Sure you can. At night, the place is deserted. No one would see you, unless a guest happened to step out at the same time."
"Just what I wouldn't want to happen." Pam hesitated then glanced at Krista. "I think this 'house' is just a little too large for my comfort."
Giving Pam's arm a gentle squeeze, Krista said, "You'll get used to it. Think of it as a grand hotel where the owner is putting you up for a fabulous, all-expenses-paid vacation. Once you get over the newness, it won't seem so strange."
"I hope you're right. Okay, let's go see what the yellow room has to offer."
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Pam stood in the doorway with her mouth open. This bedroom was larger than her entire apartment, and a lot classier.
Unable to absorb everything at once, she slowly took in the room's pastel colors shimmering in the faint glow of the setting sun.
The upper walls of the room were painted a soft, pale yellow; while their lower half was decorated with matching yellow and silvery white silk wainscot panels. Facing her from across the room were French floor-to-ceiling windows with sheer white curtains, which, according to Krista, also served as doors that led out to a small deck. The double-sized four-poster bed was covered with a striped counterpane to match the panels, silk bolsters, and embroidered white pillow shams propped up against a headboard that coordinated with the other furniture and matching end tables. Beneath the bedspread peeked a white lace bed ruffle.
The bedchamber's elegance gave Pam the sensation of stepping back in time. In addition to a delicate white escritoire, which could also be used as a vanity, and a French provincial chest, the room had a chaise lounge, and two stuffed armchairs with a petite round table between them. Opposite the bed stood a grand fireplace bracketed by an entrance to an en suite bathroom on one side and a closed door on the other. Between the windows and the bed stood an open archway that led to the private sitting room Krista mentioned.
Lessons in Love Page 19
