by Natalie Ann
“Then just go with it,” Bri said. “Enjoy it while you can and work it out as it comes.”
“I guess that’s all I can do,” Kayla said. And when she was in bed later that night, Hunter called her and they talked on the phone for thirty minutes and he spent most of that time reassuring her again.
Her gut was normally right, too bad it always predicted bad things and she just couldn’t get this nagging feeling out of her mind that this wasn’t going to be as easy or simple as Hunter thought it was.
20
Want More
A few weeks had gone by and surprisingly she and Hunter were getting along well and making their relationship work.
No one had said a word to her about Hunter, so either they had no clue or they knew enough to keep quiet.
As far as she knew, only Patrice was aware and she’d seen her twice in the past few weeks. She’d gotten a smile and a nod, instructions on her job, and not much more from her immediate supervisor. She couldn’t ask for more than that.
Only she did want more. More with Hunter, that is.
She’d been going up to see him on her break a few times a week. Twice they’d made use of that time messing up his sheets. Well, his couch, not his sheets, but the same thing in her mind.
For someone who said she wouldn’t do that, she found if she didn’t, they didn’t get to see much of each other. With the Fourth of July around the corner in a few days and the island getting crazier by the minute, they had to make do with their time the best they could since everyone told her it was ridiculously busy.
She was starting to believe it this week when she barely stood at the desk for five minutes without talking to a guest or running an errand for one. Even the kitchen was staying open all night for the months of July and August, serving simple meals like burgers or sandwiches for those that were night owls and wanted a snack.
“Patrice is on the phone for you,” Tiffany said to her. That didn’t sound good. She’d only been on shift for two hours and it looked as if Tiffany had been talking to Patrice first.
“Hi, Patrice,” she said.
“I need a favor. I know it’s short notice, but Crissy is pretty sick and can’t work tomorrow. It’s hard to find someone to fill a shift on a Saturday in the summer and I thought maybe since you were already there, you wouldn’t mind staying until one or two. Tiffany can come in a few hours earlier and relieve you if you do it. Just tell me the time since she’s already scheduled from six to midnight tomorrow.”
Kayla hadn’t been asked to cover any shifts before, and though the overtime would be wonderful, she knew the weekend would be nuts. And she’d be up for almost twenty-four hours at that point. Sure, she’d done it before at other jobs, but she wasn’t so sure she wanted to here when she was looking forward to time with Hunter.
But if she said no, would she not be asked again? Would it be a mark against her? She didn’t want any more.
“I can do it,” she said. “Is one okay? I got up at three today, so that would be putting me awake for twenty-two hours straight. I just don’t want to make any mistakes if I’m getting tired.”
“That’s perfect. I appreciate it. I do. Thank you so much.”
“What was that about?” Bob asked.
“Crissy is sick and can’t work tomorrow. Patrice has Tiffany coming in early to cover half the shift in the afternoon and she needed someone to cover the morning.”
“You’re going to do it?” Bob asked. “That’s rough. She doesn’t ask me anymore because I can’t stay awake.”
“I’m younger than you. I’ll be fine.”
Tiffany and Bob both laughed. “What time do I need to be here?” Tiffany asked.
“Is one too early for you? It’s just I was up at three and...”
“That’s fine. I could use the money so I don’t have a problem with it, but Joe has to work in the morning so I’ve got to be with the kids.”
That made her realize it had to be a lot on Tiffany to pull a twelve-hour shift. “Are you sure that is okay? I can stay later.”
Tiffany waved her hand. “It’s fine.” Two guests came to the counter so she moved forward while Tiffany continued. “Joe has a meeting on the mainland but will be back by noon. That gives me time to feed them and have lunch with him and then get out the door. Really, I could use the money.”
“Why don’t you work full time?” Kayla asked. “I’m sure they offered it to you.”
“It’s too hard to do it full time. I like just working a few days a week and getting home at midnight most times helps. If I can fill in, I do, but I don’t want to commit to full time. Especially during the school year. I can bring the kids to school and pick them up and not worry about daycare costs.”
All the things that were so far away from Kayla’s mind that she might as well be on another planet.
When eleven rolled around, Kayla texted Hunter to let him know she’d like to come up on her break.
He replied back to come up when she was ready to go on lunch, so thirty minutes later she made her way to the penthouse to see her boyfriend.
She didn’t often think of him that way, but there wasn’t any other way to think of him in her eyes. Lover was too casual though he was definitely that.
The minute she stepped foot out of his elevator he had her in his arms and swung her around. “What was that for?” she asked. Yeah, definite boyfriend move there.
“Just missed you and couldn’t wait to get my hands on you. I’m trying to figure out how we can spend some time together this weekend.”
“About that,” she said. It was hard to talk with his mouth moving around her neck.
He mumbled, “Oh, you’ve got an idea. I like it when you’ve got ideas.”
“Not exactly,” she said.
He leaned back this time. “I don’t like the look on your face. What’s going on?”
“Patrice asked me to work until one tomorrow. So I’m sure I’ll be ready to crash once I’m done. I’ll try not to sleep too long so I can sleep that night, but I’m not sure how much fun I’ll be either.”
He seemed to hesitate. “How about you come up here when you get out of work in the afternoon and sleep? When you wake up, you’ll already be here. We can spend some time together. You could stay the night too if you want.”
This was moving faster than she expected. They’d only spent the night together twice in hotels off the island. Though Hunter said he wanted to do it again, she knew it was hard for him to keep leaving on the weekends without his father or someone else getting suspicious.
“Someone is bound to realize what is going on.”
“So?” he argued.
“Weren’t you the one that didn’t want anyone to know and now you don’t care? What am I missing here?”
“I’m tired of sneaking around. I’m too old for this shit.”
Heat was rushing to her face. “I’m sorry you feel that way, but you’ve got nothing to lose if people find out.”
He snorted. “Neither do you.”
“My job,” she said.
“Which I have the final say on.”
He did, but she didn’t want it to come to that. “How about my reputation? Your reputation when people find out you are seeing me. An employee. Not even a high-level one, but just customer service on the night shift.”
That caused him to open his mouth and then shut it again. She knew she was right in her words, but it hurt to see the confirmation in his eyes. “I don’t care.”
“I think you do. I think you care more than you are saying.”
“Stay the night,” he said again. “If I cared so much I wouldn’t keep asking you to do that.”
It was true and as much as she wanted to stay she wasn’t sure it was wise. “It’s not smart.”
“Who says we always have to be smart? And go eat something before you have to get back.”
She walked into his kitchen and looked around for something to eat. She’d actually left her lunch downstairs
by mistake. She pulled out some eggs and cheese while he grabbed a pan.
“I don’t have any clothes and I don’t want to put these back on tomorrow.”
“Could you call a roommate to bring you clothes?” he asked.
“I could, but then people might see me getting them and wonder what is going on. In the afternoon there will be all sorts of staff around and you know it.”
“Don’t worry about it,” he said. “I’ll take care of it then. Just come up here when your shift gets out. Please,” he asked. It might be the first time he’d said that to her.
The closer she looked at him the more she saw how tired he was. How tense and stressed he’d been about work and the amount of time he put in. He was always trying to make time to be with her and yet she was fighting him on this.
“Fine,” she said. “Only because I like your bed.”
“Whatever works,” he said.
She wanted to reply back, “you work,” but knew it wasn’t the time. Maybe it never would be.
21
The Perfect Son
Hunter was in his home office getting some work done when he heard the elevator door open.
He jumped up quick to see what family member was coming to his penthouse unannounced and hoped they didn’t wake Kayla who was in his bed. He didn’t have any worries that they’d go down the hall to his room and see her, but any noise might disturb her. She’d come up here when her shift ended, her eyelids barely open.
She made her way to his room, went in his bathroom to brush her teeth and put on one of his T-shirts and then crawled into his bed. He’d shut all the curtains and the doors and let her go. That was four hours ago. He knew she was exhausted but hoped she didn’t sleep all night either.
“What are you doing here?” he asked Hailey.
“That’s not a nice way to greet your sister,” she said, smiling. She was in shorts and a T-shirt. He didn’t often see her this casual.
“It is when you drop in unannounced.”
“I was on the island doing some work and figured I’d stop up to see you.”
His sister very rarely did any work at her law office on the island, rather saving it all for her staff. “You don’t look like you were working.”
“I needed to get out of the city to prepare for court on Monday. I couldn’t get any work done in my condo because there is a party on the floor above me. I knew the office on the island would be quiet.”
“Just think of all the work you could get done on a daily basis if you lived on the island.”
“No, thanks,” she said. “I like the city.”
“Yet you came here to get away rather than your office in Boston.”
“That’s what the island is for. To get away,” she said, walking past him and into the kitchen. “Why are you talking so low?”
He didn’t think he was, but it must have been enough for her to notice.
“No reason.”
She snorted at him. “You’re looking down the hallway. Do you have someone up here with you?”
“That is none of your business,” he said.
“Which means yes.”
If his sister knew, he wouldn’t feel like he was sneaking as much and she’d keep it a secret if he asked. She’d understand the most about what he was doing.
“Does it matter if I do? She’s sleeping right now and I don’t want to wake her. She had a long night.”
“I don’t even want to know what you were doing.”
“Get your drink and come to my office,” he said quietly.
Hailey grabbed a bottle of water and then started to open cabinets, finding chips and bringing them in too. “So what is going on?”
“Kayla had to work last night covering another shift and then didn’t get out until a few hours ago.”
“What does she do? Has to be someone on the island. Is she a nurse at urgent care?”
Figures Hailey’s mind would go in that direction. “No. She works here at the hotel.”
And there went Hailey’s eyebrows. Night shift at the hotel wasn’t that many positions. “Front desk?”
“Yes.”
“Does Dad know?”
“What do you think?”
She started to rub her hands together. “The perfect son is doing something that Dad might not approve of. This is great. Fill me in.”
“You think it’s funny because you always go against Dad’s wishes.”
“You’re damn right I do. I don’t want any part of working in the hotel if I can’t have it and since I’m missing the anatomy for it, it’s all yours.”
He found it pretty archaic that the hotel should be run by a male Bond. Even his mother did. Hunter was sure if Hailey wanted this place, his father would have handed it over to her or they would have shared the responsibility.
“You’ve never wanted any part of working here. Or is it because you thought you couldn’t?”
“Nope. It’s just not me. I don’t want to be here on the island.”
“You never did. Why?”
“Too boring. Too many watchful eyes. I hate being watched. I hate being judged.”
“Says the lawyer who is watched and judged in a courtroom.”
“That’s different. That is my job. Not my personal life.”
He laughed at her. “We are always going to be watched and judged in our personal lives because of our name and you know it. There is more to it.”
She shrugged. “There isn’t. Nothing more than I always felt stuck here. You can only come and go when the ferries run. And even then it’s on their schedule. What if I wanted a Starbucks coffee at ten at night? I’d have to run to the mainland for that, but I wouldn’t be able to because we are trapped on the island after nine.”
“We are never trapped here. There are a few helicopters to get off, not to mention several personal boats. Many in the family own boats on top of it.”
“For coffee? Give me a break.”
“That is such a lame excuse,” he said. “What’s the real reason?”
“There isn’t anyone here for me. It’s all family. You can’t find anyone to get in a relationship with that doesn’t know you or your family or about your history. Don’t you ever want to just be anonymous?”
He didn’t want to admit that had been an issue for him.
He wanted to be normal. No watchful eyes on when he’d find love or turn into a man-whore. There was no in between in his eyes.
“No. It’s never going to happen. And if you wanted that, you’d move out of Massachusetts and you didn’t. You stayed in one of the cities that houses half our family. Again, not a good enough reason.”
“I don’t know what my reason is. The truth is, I just don’t like being here that much. It’s fine to visit but not much more. I want to come and go when I please. I want to pick my own man in a relationship too and not worry like you are.”
“I’m not worried,” he argued.
“Sure, you are or you’d let people know you were dating someone. You aren’t the type of guy to bring a woman up here for sex. Plenty in our family are, but not you. So you’re dating her. What’s her name?”
“Kayla. Kayla Rivers. She’s not from the island. She interviewed and moved here.”
“Is she living with you?” she asked.
“No. She’s got some roommates on the island. We barely see each other as it is.”
“What does she think of you keeping this a secret from the family?”
“She doesn’t want her coworkers to know either. She doesn’t want to be judged any more than you think I want to be. But it’s not a complete secret. We go out to eat on the island, people have seen us together, but no one thinks anything of it.”
“I don’t think you don’t want to be judged,” Hailey said. “I know it. You don’t want to be compared to Great-great-grandpa James.”
“I’ll never be compared to him.”
“No, you won’t. But deep down in that perfect world of yours, you think someon
e just might. So you try to do everything you can to please other people rather than just making yourself happy.”
“Is that how you see me?”
“It sure is,” Hailey said, grinning and digging into her chips. “When do I get to meet Kayla?”
“No time soon,” he said. “Don’t even think of hanging around until she wakes up. I don’t even know when it will be.”
“You won’t let her sleep that long. You’ll want to spend time with her. You just said you barely do. Her sleeping in your bed while you are working isn’t spending time together.”
It wasn’t, but it was more than he’d have if she went home. He could go down the hall and run his hand over her hair if he wanted to. Kiss her on the forehead. Climb under the sheets with her.
“It’s more than I normally get.”
“And that bothers you? You’ve got it bad. Are you falling for the myths on this island?” He narrowed his eyes at her, but she only laughed. “Get her schedule changed to days.”
“Talk about letting people know something is going on,” he said, even though it had crossed his mind. But he knew it’d never fly with Kayla let alone the rest of the staff.
“What do you care? You can’t have it both ways, Hunter. That is your problem. Pick a side and plant your feet there firmly.”
He should have known she’d lecture him, but she did get him too. “I think I might have to.”
“Well, let me know when it’s no longer a secret.”
“You’ll be the first. Now take those chips and get out of here. Better catch the ferry before you’re stuck here for the night.”
“I’m staying the night anyway,” she said. “I’m staying at Grandpa’s.”
“Is he on the island?”
“No. But Mom and Dad are and I’m not staying with them. There comes a time when you just can’t stay under the same roof with your parents anymore. I can run around Grandpa’s place naked if I want.”
“Geez, Hailey. Why do you always say things like that?”
“Because I’m not the perfect child like you.”
