Randa felt a little warm glow at the idea of being adopted into the family. If she’d known it was as easy as changing some sheets and scrubbing a toilet, she might have tried that the afternoon she arrived.
Tony’s voice matched his glare as he said, “She’s a guest, Masters. Not an employee.”
“Well, now, maybe she’s a little bit of both today.” KT squeezed her closer before he stepped back. “Don’t you worry, Randa. Tony knows some of the best people start out that way.” He clapped his hands. “I want Randa as a partner.”
Randa started to agree, but Tony’s vehement headshaking stopped her. He said, “Nope, Consuela’s in charge around here. She sets the pairs and the assignments.” He nodded at a tiny woman whose Hawaiian shirt reached her knees. She had salt-and-pepper hair and shiny dark eyes. And she might actually be a thousand years old. Randa had no idea how old she really was, but she did not wear a floppy hat to the pool, that much was clear.
“Thank you, Mr. Tony. I think we are all here and accounted for.” She wrote a list of names on the small whiteboard behind her. “Sheila, Deedee, and Rosa will work with the temps on the first floor, including the conference rooms and the pool area. Mr. KT and I will be working on this floor. I will keep a very close eye on him and make him scrub all the toilets.” The maids laughed at his pained groan. “And that leaves the third floor for Mr. Tony and his friend, Randa.”
Everyone in the room swiveled to look at her again, and KT winked. She could read the question on every face. They wanted to know why she was there at all. She felt like she should introduce herself, maybe make some reasonable explanation of why she’d help clean rooms instead of lounging poolside or hitting Graceland, but she couldn’t come up with one other than the truth, so she just nodded once.
“Do not forget to vacuum the hallways and make note of things like flowers that need to be replaced. Miss Willodean wants the hotel to sparkle for the Elvis Week crowd. I do not expect you will see much that needs to be done in the common areas because we do a very good job here.” She paused and looked over at Tony. When he nodded, she said, “Do not forget to knock loudly before entering any room. I have a list of the vacancies and early checkouts. We can start with those and finish after the official checkout.” Consuela handed out a list to the other maids wearing the required Hawaiian shirt and to Tony before she clapped her hands. “Do I have any questions?”
KT raised his hand. Consuela said, “Mr. KT, you may ask as many questions as you like while you are scrubbing the toilets.” She pointed at a cart loaded with towels and cleaning supplies and said, “If you please.”
KT wrapped his hands around the cart’s bar and started out of the room. He paused in front of Randa and said, “It was quite a pleasure to meet you, Randa. I hope to have the opportunity to speak with you again sometime this weekend.”
Randa glanced over at Tony. Except for the wrinkle of his forehead, he looked disinterested. She smiled slowly and wet her lips. She tried to purr as she said, “Oh, KT, I certainly hope so too.”
KT gave her a wicked grin. He glanced over his shoulder at Tony and shook his head slowly. “You may have a real problem here, man.” Then he winked at Randa and walked through the door Consuela held open. “Let’s go, Miss Sway. Those toilets aren’t going to scrub themselves.”
Consuela let out a gusty sigh and followed him out of the room.
The others left too, and Randa wasn’t sure she wanted to do this anymore. Tony’s frown had grown, and she wondered why she couldn’t be all hot and bothered over someone like KT, a man who smiled his way through life.
Plus, it would be fun to bring an actor home. She would have a fifty-fifty chance her father and brothers would love him. And KT would have her mother charmed as soon as he opened his mouth.
Bringing Tony home? There would be shouting and a strong possibility of the vapors. And that was just her father and brothers. There was no guessing her mother’s reaction.
Honestly, on the right day with the right attitude, that could be fun too.
Not that she had to worry much about it. Tony didn’t even want to go to the third floor with her. He’d marched through the door, jabbed the elevator button, and was pushing the cart on without glancing her direction. Clearly, if she wanted to get into those rooms, she’d better pay attention.
She stuck her hand between the doors as they started to shut then jumped in the elevator. She glanced up at Tony’s face as the doors slid shut. He stared so hard at the screen showing the amazing list of Elvis Week activities that she was surprised it didn’t start to smoke or at least tremble in fear.
She started to say something chipper. She had no idea what it would be, but the heavy atmosphere in the tiny space was getting to her. As she opened her mouth, Tony said, “He’s soon to be engaged or married or something. Taken.” His voice held a dangerous rumble, and Randa felt a flash of heat shoot through her. The rumble was sexy. Even when he was being an ass.
She tried one of his disdainful sniffs. “Oh, well, then I still have plenty of time.”
He opened his mouth to say… something. She had no idea what it would be. She only knew she was saved by the bell. Literally. As soon as the elevator bell dinged, the doors slid open, and she stepped out on what looked to be the beach.
TONY LECTURED HIMSELF silently as he shoved the cart off the elevator. Jealousy was stupid. For a lot of reasons. Not the least of which was that KT Masters was a man so far gone in love that he was damned annoying most of the time. He wanted the rest of the world matched up and never hesitated to prescribe love, true love, to cure every ailment. Sure, Randa was enough to make a dead man sit up and take notice. And KT was in love, not dead, but she was only doing what Randa did: making conquests by whatever means necessary. Any man who got tangled up with her would have to understand that. Or he’d lose his damn mind. Since he was counting again while she slowly spun in a circle to take in the wonders of the third-floor hallway, it probably looked like he already had.
He cleared his throat. “Third floor’s Hawaii. Second floor’s Memphis. First floor you’ve seen.”
Randa nodded. “Yeah, I thought I knew what to expect but I had no idea.”
Tony grunted out a laugh. “Yeah, I see that reaction a lot.” And Randa, with her pink and orange flip-flops, too-long skinny jeans rolled up to keep from dragging on the floor, and a bright orange tank top fit right in. The walls were painted the color of the sky and the carpet looked like sand. One side of the hall was ocean and the other side was mountains. Surfers and hula girls dotted the hallway and lush greenery lined the halls lit by fake tiki torches.
“Is it my imagination or do I smell the ocean?” Randa’s nose twitched as she asked the question.
“Genuine imitation sea breeze. Nothing’s too good for the Rock’n’Rolla.” Tony waited for her to meet his stare. “The guy gets under my skin a little bit.” Tony shrugged a shoulder and pushed the cart over to the first vacant room on the list.
He could hear the flip flop of each step she took. In a soft voice, she said, “He seems harmless. And it’s nice of him to help out.”
Annoyed at KT and Randa again at her easy compliment, Tony glanced over his shoulder. She was craning her neck left and right as she waited for him to open the door, no doubt asking herself how in the world they’d top the décor in this hallway. Maybe this would be all it took to convince her that a new Whitmore hotel couldn’t compete with the Rock’n’Rolla.
And then she’d leave.
Tony didn’t feel as relieved at the thought as he should’ve. Getting attached to her was a terrible idea. He’d gone from his usual level of KT amusement to red-hot jealousy with one flirty smile from Randa. He was afraid he was already too far gone to make this an easy break when she left. She was the kind of woman who’d stick in his mind for a long time.
Just like that he was irritated; a little at her for being nearly irresistible, but mostly at himself for not being smarter about this. He knew she was troub
le when she walked in. He should have gone with his instincts and sent her on her way. Now he was going to have a Randa itch he couldn’t scratch and she’d probably move on to her next conquest with a snap of her fingers.
At least he didn’t have to watch her with KT now. They had a job to do. He rapped twice on the door and said, “Housekeeping.” After two seconds, he swiped the key in the lock and shoved the door open. He pushed the cart in and sighed in relief. Not too bad. If all the rooms were like this, they’d finish quickly and he could go home and get some quiet in before he went to help Laura with the late afternoon check-ins.
Maybe he could work on forgetting how Randa smelled while he did so. He had a feeling the bright smell of the hotel’s shampoo would bring her to mind for a long time. Damn it.
As he watched Randa stare in wonder at the beach bungalow theme of the room, he memorized the way her hair fell on her shoulders in a golden wave. Her hands were propped on her hips, and he wanted to run his hands down the smooth skin of her bare arms. When she walked over to the window and bent over to see what was below it, his eyes were drawn to her butt like a magnet to true north. He figured skinny jeans were a dangerous proposition for a lot of women. Every curve she had was outlined. And he wanted to trace them with his hand.
“So where do you want to start?”
Right at the top. He wanted to slide his hands into the pocket of her jeans and squeeze.
But she was talking about the room.
She walked over to flip on the bathroom light and tried to whistle. She did a lot of things well. Whistling wasn’t one of them. This one was a breathy wheeze but he got the idea.
“You thought black was something. All the bathrooms on this level are gold. Solid gold.”
Randa shook her head. “Who decorated this place? Liberace?”
Tony shrugged. “This is all Willodean’s style. And it’s actually classier and better organized than it was when I started. We just finished a room renovation so everything’s in the best shape.” Tony watched her closely. He couldn’t actually see the calculations on her face, but he thought she was measuring the square footage.
Randa walked over to the cart and took a look at the contents. “Where does she get her ideas? Is there a place in Hawaii with a gold bathroom?”
“It’s all Elvis all the time here.” He stopped on the other side of the cart. “I expected a big fan like you would know where the gold bathroom idea came from.”
Randa shook her head. “Gold records?”
That was a damn good guess. For someone who didn’t know a thing about Elvis or Graceland.
He shook his head. “Lisa Marie.”
Randa pursed her lips. “Had a golden bathroom?”
Tony opened a trash bag and put it in the can on the side of the cart. “The plane. Has gold fixtures in the bathroom.” He glanced up at Randa’s face. She was thinking hard. He could tell by the small frown on her forehead.
“Oh, of course. The plane… named after Elvis’s daughter. Got it.”
Tony didn’t shake his head. Didn’t sigh loudly. She sucked at pretending to be an Elvis fan.
“Which you will see when you actually make it over to Graceland.” He watched her closely. “I’d have expected a big fan like you to make more than one visit. What are you waiting on?”
“I want to get the full Elvis Week effect, you know. This may be my only trip. Besides, it was on my list of things to do today, but I decided to help out instead.” Randa raised her eyebrows to make sure he got the message then pointed at the bathroom. “How about I scrub, you vacuum. We’ll make the bed and move on to the next?”
It was a good plan. He was surprised she’d offered it. He hadn’t expected her to be any better at scrubbing toilets than KT Masters.
“Fine.”
She’d surprised him again. They worked well together. He’d sort of expected her to complain or ask a million questions or stall or something to get out of doing the hard work. But she didn’t. She asked questions the first time she did something. Otherwise, she worked. And the gleaming golden bathroom was spotless by the time he did the final walk through and set a stack of clean black towels on the shelf behind the toilet. “Good job, Randa.”
She flushed a little and looked pretty pleased with herself. She shrugged a shoulder, and he had to force himself to watch her face. “Thanks. I mean, it’s not brain surgery.”
He tilted his head. “Sure, but a lot of people would do a half-assed job because it wasn’t. And it’s not your job at all. I wouldn’t think you’d have a whole lot of experience at work like this.”
She rubbed her nose and yanked open the door so he could push the cart out in the hallway. “Any job’s worth doing well, I guess. Love it or hate it, I’ve still got to do my best.”
Tony walked past her, close enough to smell the hotel’s ginger shampoo and something that was all Randa. “Sounds like your father talking.”
“It’s the Whitmore way.” One corner of her mouth curled up. “Make sure you tell KT what an awesome job I did, okay?”
He frowned down at her and yanked the vacuum cleaner a little closer. When her eyebrows rose a fraction, he had the idea that was the exact reaction she was hoping for.
They worked efficiently down the list. At each new room, Randa had to pause to absorb the décor. They went through a surf shack, a deserted island, a romantic grotto that was sometimes used as a honeymoon suite, and one room that looked like the bottom of the ocean floor.
As Randa pulled the door shut on a tropical rainforest complete with dripping waterfall, she looked a little shell-shocked. “You know, it would be a lot more cost efficient to pick one or two of these themes and stick with them.”
“Sure, but it would be a lot less fun. I already told you there are some things more important to Willodean than making money. Having fun is pretty close to the top of the list.” Tony shrugged and stopped in front of the last room on their list. He’d have to call down to the front desk to check on the rest of the guests scheduled to check out that morning.
Randa shook her head and waited for him to knock. “I just don’t get it. I mean, she’s in business to make money. Fun’s good, but there should be some way to find the best mix of both.”
Tony rapped, called out, and swiped his key when there was no answer. “I think she thinks she’s got plenty of money. And there’s never too much fun. Besides, I’m not sure she sees this as a business.”
Randa frowned. “How does she see it then?”
Tony started to wonder if he was telling too much. He’d gotten pretty comfortable with her as they worked. She was good company. Hard-working. Efficient. “It’s almost like this place is her… gift, maybe.”
Randa watched him and he could feel the heat of a stupid blush in his cheeks. Him. Blushing. Unbelievable. “Like she’s been given so much and this is her way to help others.”
He turned away, plugged in the vacuum, and flipped it on. There was no talking over the noise now. By the time he finished vacuuming the suite, Randa had already scrubbed, wiped, polished, emptied, and refilled the golden bathroom. She was getting faster. Or he was stalling— one or the other.
He wrapped the cord around the vacuum and watched her fuss with the cleaning supplies on the cart. No doubt they’d be more efficient if organized another way.
Tony walked over to the window and straightened the curtains to buy time. He couldn’t figure out what his own problem was. She had to be confused for sure. Jealousy wasn’t like him. And he’d been jealous. He might not have spent a lot of time with the emotion, but he’d been pretty sure he recognized it the moment it reared its ugly head when Randa had batted her eyelashes at Masters. Ridiculous. She could bat her eyelashes at any man she wanted. She was a guest, not his girlfriend. He’d spent too long keeping a firm grip on his own emotions to let something stupid like jealousy impact his professionalism. And if he didn’t get a grip soon, it would ruin his day.
“Are you going to tell me what
your main issue is or should I just get used to thinking deep thoughts all on my own?”
Tony turned slowly to see that Randa had completed her organizational attempts. She was seated on the end of the bed, one long leg crossed over the other, while the top foot bounced hard enough to make the fake flower petals twitch.
“Surely you know jealousy when you see it.” Tony shook his head. “I shouldn’t take out my bad mood on you. I’m sorry.”
“Sure. What I don’t ever see is a man who apologizes. That’s… really nice, Tony.” Randa smiled and a slight blush covered her cheeks as she glanced around the room and said, “I’ve never been on a sailboat, but this seems pretty nice.”
The suite was… woody. The bed was surrounded by wood paneling, suggesting a very cozy cabin. A huge seascape hung behind the bed and attempted to look like the view of the Hawaiian mainland. Smaller porthole paintings dotted the wall, and the window was covered in canvas. The sitting area was a deck with comfortable chairs and the television was mounted on the horizon.
The bathroom was gold. All of it.
Tony nodded. “Sure. Every sailboat I’ve ever been on looked like this. Only smaller.”
Randa rolled her eyes. “Har har. So neither one of us has ever been on a boat. I think maybe I could get used to living like this. Sail the world. Captain my own ship. Master my own fate.”
Don’t you mean captain Daddy’s ship? Master the fate he buys for you?
The questions were on the tip of his tongue, but the smile on her face was mesmerizing. He didn’t want to lose it. And he didn’t want to have to make another apology. He’d regret the words that were only a defense mechanism about two seconds after they left his mouth. Besides, he had the feeling she could do all those things. All she needed was a little faith in herself. And maybe a small push.
Randa looked happy. Content. She looked like everything was working out just right, even after she’d been scrubbing toilets for hours. He, on the other hand, felt the reins slipping through his fingers. The hotel was still running like clockwork, but around her he was losing his tight grip on his control. He didn’t do jealousy. Never had. Life as the poor kid with no family would have been hell if he’d let himself dwell on what other people had but he didn’t.
Can't Help Falling In Love Page 10
