by Tribue,Alice
CHAPTER THREE
RILEY
I went in a little early to work last night in order to get some baking done, which is something I do whenever I’m in the mood or just need to clear my head. The owners of the restaurant tasted a few of my desserts and liked them so much that they allow me to use their kitchen whenever I want. Oftentimes, they sell my creations as add-ons to the existing dessert menu. They always give me a portion of the sales as payment, and I try to save as much of that as I can. The restaurant was jam-packed once my shift started, yet I still spent most of the night watching the front door to make sure Oliver wouldn’t show up looking for me. He didn’t, thank God. I don’t think I could have handled another encounter with him. I’ve never been so mortified in my entire life, running out on him the way I did … I’m such a moron. I’m not even sure how I ended up in his hotel room to begin with. I was all ready to say no, then I looked into his eyes, and it was as if I was in a trance. At that moment in time, I would have done just about anything he asked of me. I felt it the night we met at the restaurant, and I absolutely felt it throughout our time together yesterday. There’s something about him, though, that makes me think he’s dangerous. Not in the physically hurt me kind of way, but in the emotionally hurt me way. He’s not about love and rainbows; he’s not a one-woman man. Don’t ask me how I know this, I just do. It’s in the way he carries himself, the way he speaks, and the way he demands what he wants. The way his dark eyes lock on yours and tell you exactly what his intentions are with a practiced ease that’s almost scary. A girl like me would not look to get involved with a guy like him and hope for a happily-ever-after. You get involved with this kind of guy knowing he’s eventually going to obliterate you. I am not in the market to be obliterated … no, thank you.
When he kissed me, I was honestly stunned. I mean he barely let me get in the door before he was on me. Though, I must admit I liked it. It was a good kiss—the best, if I’m being honest. I could have stayed there forever, pinned up against the door with his mouth on mine and his arms around me. That moment was perfection, but when he started moving toward the bed, it was as though someone had poured a bucket of cold water over my head. I panicked, and I did the only thing I could think of. I ran like hell.
Thankfully, he didn’t show up at my job, even though I felt the minutest sense of disappointment. But it’s for the best. Someone like Oliver is not the staying kind; Oliver is the love ‘em and leave ‘em kind, so it’s definitely better this way. I stretch out one last time in bed before getting up, using the bathroom and heading toward the kitchen to make breakfast. I’m surprised to see my mom in the kitchen, hovering over the coffeepot as if her life depended on it. This time every day, she’s always at her housekeeping job at the Godwin Hotel, and she never misses work, never. She also waits tables in the evenings at a diner not too far from here, but the tips are shit, and the Godwin is her primary source of income.
“Momma? What are you doing home?”
She turns and jumps slightly, clearly startled by my presence.
“Riley,” she says, sounding winded. “I’m so sorry; I didn’t hear you come in.”
“I didn’t mean to scare you,” I return, still confused by her presence. I know better than anyone does that neither one of us can afford to miss a day’s work. “Don’t you have work today?”
My body goes tight as I take in the worried and scared look on her face. She looks tired, more so than usual, and all of this put together makes her look beyond her years. She sighs but still manages to muster the semblance of a smile.
“I lost my job yesterday.” She tries to make it sound like it’s no big deal, like this doesn’t have any effect on us at all, but she fails. I, on the other hand, try to hide the surprise and fear that invade my body.
“What happened?”
“The Godwin was bought out by a large hotel chain. The new owner came yesterday, and he terminated the entire housekeeping staff.”
“Why? Why couldn’t he keep the existing staff?”
“He said that given the current state of the hotel, he thought it would be best to hire a new team. I mean I agree the place is a dump, but that’s not our fault. I do the best I can in every room but scrubbing a toilet and a vacuum can only do so much.”
“I’m so sorry, Momma.”
“I don’t want you to worry about it, Riley. At the very least, Mr. Parker gave us all a severance package. It’s not much, but it will help until I find another job. And I still have the diner.”
Parker? The name sounds familiar, but I can’t place it.
“Parker?”
“Yes. That’s the arrogant little shit’s name. Oliver Parker.”
Holy shit, I think to myself, feeling winded. That was where I recognized the name—from the credit card when he paid for his dinner the night we met. Oliver Parker of Parker Hotels. Here I was feeling bad for taking his five hundred dollars when that amount of money is pocket change to him. Anger trickles in, and suddenly, I’m beyond infuriated. I don’t know if I’m more upset about my mom losing her job or looking like a fool in front of this egotistical asshole of a man.
“I can try and pick up some extra shifts, or maybe even get a part-time job in the morning,” I tell her, hoping that it might ease her anxiety. But I know that it won’t because I know that picking up an extra shift here or there won’t do much of anything to help the situation.
“Riley, you do enough. I’ll handle this. I have the severance and unemployment pay for now, and I made an appointment with an agency today. It’ll be fine,” she assures me, grabbing her cup of coffee and taking a sip. “I’m going to go take a shower and get ready.”
I smile at her; it’s as forced as hers is, but I give it to her anyway. When she walks away, I try to shake off the feeling of anger, but I can’t. It’s not about me feeling stupid. It’s about the fact I spent the majority of yesterday with this man who had fired my mother just hours before. Even though I had no way of knowing this, I still feel as if I betrayed her. Skipping breakfast, I head back to my room and get dressed while I try not to wonder about what’s going to happen now that my mom lost her job. Then I irrationally consider the idea that maybe I can do something about it. Maybe if I go directly to the source, I can get her job back for her. It’s a dumb idea, but it’s worth a try.
CHAPTER FOUR
OLIVER
The loud fucking banging on the door wakes me up from a restless sleep. The nightlife in Savannah was better than expected and the number of beautiful women was nothing to sneeze at. As the banging continues, I look over at the clock on the nightstand and damn near growl. It’s barely eight in the morning, too early for housekeeping. Annoyed, I carefully dislodge myself from the scarcely dressed woman with her arm draped over my bare chest. She was useless, I think to myself as I exit the bed and head to the door. “Did you not see the do not disturb sign?” I fling open the door, expecting to see a drunken stranger at the wrong door, but it's Riley. Her hand is fisted in the air, looking as if she's about to pound on my door again. The second her eyes meet mine, her face turns bright red.
“What are you doing here, Riley?” I ignore the fact that, red-faced or not, she looks sexy as fuck right now. I’m still pissed about the way she ran out of here yesterday.
“I need to talk to you,” she says, her voice firm. "Now."
“Oliver?” The redhead from last night who was moments ago comatose on my bed makes an appearance at the door, scantily dressed in a skintight green dress. “Who’s this?” she questions, eyeing Riley like an insignificant bug to be squashed. Riley, on the other hand, looks even more embarrassed now—if that can even be believed—but there’s something else. Something I can’t easily decipher as I lose sight of her face when she looks down at her feet.
“Jessica, if you’ll please excuse me. I have to speak to Riley.”
“It’s Jennifer,” she unnecessarily shares, her eyes wide with fury.
I roll my eyes, reach out and grab Ri
ley’s hand, and pull her into the room. Dragging Riley with me, I find Jessica’s purse and toss it to her. I watch as she fumbles, nearly letting it fall on the floor. Once she’s managed to grab a firm hold of it, she looks back and forth between Riley and me.
“You’re really kicking me out so that you can be with her?” she questions, jutting her chin out in Riley’s direction.
I choose not to answer her because her question is ridiculous; it’s also none of her fucking business. “Do you need cab fare?”
“Fuck you.”
“It’s not the first time I’ve heard that before,” I call out as she storms out of the room, slamming the door behind her.
Riley now looks to be a strange mixture of embarrassed and angry as she stares at me in awe.
“What?” I’m short with her, but she continues to stare at me. After a few moments, she shakes her head at me. She might actually look a little disgusted now, if I’m reading her correctly.
“I see it didn’t take you long to find someone else to haul up to your room,” she says flippantly. Her attitude not only pleases me, but it actually turns me on. Yes, I’m a twisted bastard.
“Are you jealous?” I goad her. “I’m touched.”
“You wish,” she snarls, and I want to pick her up and throw her down on the bed. I’m not used to women who go head-to-head with me, at least not until after I’ve fucked them. Strangely, I like it. “I came here to talk to you.”
“I’m listening.”
“Why didn’t you tell me who you were yesterday?”
“Before or after you ran out of the building like you were on fire?”
“You know what I mean.”
I cross my arms. “I really don’t.”
“Oliver Parker of Parker Hotels?” She says it like a statement of fact but it comes out as more of an accusation. As if she thinks I should apologize for being who I am.“And why does who I am affect you or anything that has to do with you?”
“Because my mother works for the hotel that you just bought,” she says, as if this is somehow supposed to mean something to me.
“Again, how—” I begin, only to have her interrupt me.
“And you fired her yesterday, along with everyone else on the housekeeping staff, along with every single employee who depended on that job to make a living. You gave them no prior notice, not so much as a warning, and now you’re standing here acting as if you have no idea what the hell I’m talking about.” she yells at me, actually has the nerve to yell at me like someone would scold a child. It’s way too early for this shit…
“Is that all?” I raise my eyebrow, half confused, half aroused.
I turn away and grab a bottled water out of the mini bar.
“She’s a good worker,” she calls out to me. I turn to face her and open my water as she continues. “How could you just fire her as if it meant nothing?” She cocks her head to the side, narrowing her eyes at me in disapproval.
“The hotel is a fucking wreck, Riley. I have to start from square one, and the staff wasn’t getting the job done.”
“The hotel was a wreck to begin with, Oliver.” She says my name so mockingly that I almost want to laugh at her tone. “There’s only so much they could do to make that place look presentable.”
“Why are you here?” I know why she’s here. I know exactly why she’s here, and I want to hear her say it. I want to hear her ask me for her mother’s job back.
“I came to ask you to rehire my mother.”
I shake my head. “I’m sorry. I can’t do that.”
“Why not?”
“Because I already have a replacement crew in place,” I answer honestly. The place is definitely a dump, but she’s wrong about what housekeeping could have done to make it better.
“So add one more person to that crew,” she counters.
“It’s a full staff,” I tell her with a finality that she knows is not wavering.
“God”—she sighs with a shrug of her shoulders—“I don’t know why I bothered coming here.”
“Why did you?” I press. Maybe I want to keep her here as long as possible. Maybe sparring with her like this makes me feel alive.
“Because I thought you maybe had a shred of humanity.”
“I don’t.”
“Message received,” she says, heading for the door again.
“Riley, stop,” I command. I watch her walk away, willing her to stop. She does as I ask and turns back to me. I’m thankful because, this time, I might have actually chased her.
“Why?”
“I can’t give her her old job back, but maybe I can give her a different job.”
“Really?” She tilts her head suspiciously, but she can’t mask the hope in her voice. “Why would you do that?”
“Because you asked and because I want something from you in return.”
“What?” I want to smile at the look of skepticism on her face, but I don’t. I need her to know how serious I am about this. I’m stooping to new lows with her, but I can’t pass up this opportunity.
“I want you to keep me company during my time here in Savannah, however long that might be.”
The long stretch of silence makes me uncomfortable before she finally speaks.
“Keep you company. I don’t get it. Like hang out with you?”
“Yes. Precisely like hang out with me, accompany me to dinner, events, you know.”
“So all I have to do is go out with you?”
“More or less,” I confirm, taking a step toward her.
“I’m not sleeping with you,” she states firmly, decisively, but I’m sure she knows that sleeping with her is absolutely part of this deal.
“We’ll see,” I reply vaguely.
““You want me to sleep with you?” she asks, and I watch with fascination as the color drains from her face and her eyes widen in surprise.
“Of course, I want you to sleep with me. You’re beautiful,” I confirm with a grin.
“I’m not a prostitute, Oliver.” She says her words slowly, carefully enunciating every syllable. She’s insulted, and I can hear the anger laced within her words.
“That’s good”—I nod—“because I do not intend to pay you.”
“I’m not sleeping with you.” She again responds, but I’m determined.
“Then your mother will need to look for work elsewhere.”
“What kind of an asshole are you? You just had a woman here not even five minutes ago. You actually think I would give myself to you after walking in on that?”
I put my water down, rest my hip against the desk that sits along the wall, and smirk at her. “I didn’t sleep with Jessica.”
“Jennifer!”
“Who cares? The point is she came back here and passed out drunk. I never touched her.”
She stares at me for a beat, probably trying to decide if she believes me or not. Once she makes her decision, she squints her eyes at me then speaks.
“And if you had slept with her, would you still be doing this?”
“I don’t deal in what-ifs, Riley. What could have happened or might have happened doesn’t concern me. I’m only interested in the reality.”
“The reality is that you’re trying to bribe me to sleep with you.”
She’s a smartass. I didn’t think I’d like that in a woman, but I love it on her.
“It’s not bribery. It’s a simple negotiation. You’re with me when I want accompaniment and other places when I want you there. We enjoy each other’s company, and in return, your mother can have the front desk position that just became available.” As soon as I fire the girl from the other day.
“Front desk?”
“Yes. It’s more money than she was making cleaning those filthy rooms, an actual salaried position, and it comes with a full benefits package.”
“Wow. Front desk. You’re a saint. I should just strip right here for you so that you can give her a job that pays a whole three dollars extra an hour.”
> Her sarcasm isn’t quite as amusing as it was a moment ago. Now, she’s starting to piss me off.
“What is it that you would like then?”
“Make her a manager.”
“A manager?” I ask disbelievingly. “You expect me to promote a housekeeper to a manager? This isn’t a fairy-tale movie, Riley. Shit like that doesn’t happen in real life.”
“Then we don’t have a deal.”
It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell her to leave, to get the hell out and not come back. I can’t do it, though. I want her that badly. After an intense stare down, I finally come up with a more reasonable solution.
“Fine. I’ll agree to make her the housekeeping manager.”
“Housekeeping manager?”
“It’s a lot more money than she was making before, and it’s not that far of a stretch.”
“Full benefits.”
“Yes,” I confirm on a frustrated sigh.
“You would really do all of that, just so you could get in my pants?”
“It’s not a secret that I want you, so it shouldn’t be a hard decision, Riley. From what I experienced yesterday, you like me too. What’s the harm in spending time together and enjoying each other’s company? It’s a mutually beneficial arrangement,” I tell her, trying to make it sound like it’s a no-brainer and no big deal, when the truth is, what I’m offering her is beyond fucked up.
“The harm is that you’re forcing me.”
“I’m not forcing you to do anything. You can walk out that door right now, and I would not try to stop you. You have a choice,” I lie. I’d stop her. I’d go after her. I’d do whatever I could to convince her.
