“Okay.” Hayley suppressed the groan she wanted to let loose and instead headed for the elevator so she could check out the rooftop bar.
Jason softened his tone. “You hanging in there, kiddo?”
“I’m trying,” she said honestly. Jason was one of the few people in the world who Hayley felt she could be real with. “It’s a lot, and I’m pretty sure Dad already thinks I’m going to screw it up.”
“I disagree. I think he has more faith in you than you realize. That’s why he doesn’t want you to tell anybody who you are.”
“But it would be so much easier just to tell people my last name is Markham.” Hayley sounded like a petulant child and she knew it. All that was missing was a foot stomp.
The elevator doors slid open and Hayley found herself in a gorgeous, glassed-in lounge area with freestanding heaters to keep things warm. The 180-degree view of the grounds was stunning, even with the snow melting to reveal patches of matted-down grass. To her left was a well-stocked bar, and a brunette of about thirty that Hayley hadn’t met yet smiled at her as she wiped the surface with a white rag. Hayley gave her a wave, then reentered the elevator.
“Exactly. And then everybody treats you differently and steps carefully around you. Dad wants you to actually do the work, not just coast along on your name.” Their father had said very similar words to her when explaining her new job, but for some reason, when Jason said it, it didn’t sting quite as much.
“What, running up a seven-hundred-dollar tab at a nightclub is coasting along on my name?” she teased.
“When the tab was actually closer to fifteen hundred, it is.”
He had a point. “Fine.”
“Come on, Hayley.” Jason’s voice was even gentler now. “You know it’s all true.” He didn’t come right out and say she’d been spoiled her whole life and acted like it, but it was there. That the nightclub tab had simply been the straw that broke the camel’s back for their father. The words weren’t necessary—she could hear them in his tone.
“Yeah. I know.” She tried not to whine as she reminded him, “He cut off my allowance, though.”
“I know. I think he was at the end of his rope.”
“If I want to buy anything, I have to ask.” The humiliation she’d felt when her father had informed her of this decision reared back up, and she felt the heat in her face.
There was a beat of silence on the phone. Then, “Look, I’m here to help.” Jason perked up, and Hayley could picture him sitting up straighter in his chair, looking all businessy in his suit and tie, his hair—much blonder than hers—cut close to his scalp, his face clean-shaven. “I’ve been doing this for a while, and I can answer pretty much any questions you have. The Evergreen is small compared to our other resorts, so this shouldn’t be awful.”
“I know you and Dad keep saying it’s small, but it doesn’t feel small. I’ve been wandering around for almost an hour and haven’t seen everything yet.”
“Didn’t somebody show you around?” Jason seemed surprised.
“Yeah, the assistant manager did, but I wanted to stroll on my own. It’s hard to remember where things are or how to get to them when somebody else is leading the way.”
“That’s a good point.” There were muffled voices on Jason’s end and then he said, “I gotta run. You hang in there. You’re doing great. Call me if you need me.”
“I will. Thanks, Jay.”
“Any time. Love you.”
They hung up and Hayley stepped out of the elevator and followed the signs for the indoor pool and fitness center. Many people were out and about, and she did her best to smile at each of them, remembering Jason’s advice.
The indoor pool was good-sized. Not as big as the outdoor one, but still ample and, like the rooftop bar, enclosed in glass so the grounds could be seen. Hayley peeked through the glass doors, smiled as three kids were playing Marco Polo in the shallow end. Turning to her right, she saw the fitness center, also enclosed in glass. It, too, was generous in size and boasted quite a bit of equipment, albeit mostly older models. She scanned the ellipticals and stationary bikes—noting two had large pieces of white paper taped to them that she guessed said they were out of order—until her eyes stopped on one of the three treadmills.
Her heart rate kicked up.
Olivia didn’t have her back to Hayley, but she was at enough of an angle where she’d have to make an effort to see Hayley where she stood. Her dark hair was in a ponytail, bouncing from one shoulder blade to the other as she ran. Her long, lean body was clad in capri-length black workout pants and a bright green racer-back tank top, black trainers with neon green accents on her feet. Her phone was strapped to her left arm and a purple cord led to the earbuds tucked snugly in her ears. Her arms and neck glistened with perspiration, her cheeks flushed a rosy pink as she pushed herself, and Hayley could do nothing but stand there and stare.
A flash came to her. From yesterday morning. Olivia catching her before she could fall, her arms tightening, her gorgeous face mere inches away…
“Gah,” Hayley said, and shook her head vigorously as she turned away from the fitness center. She headed toward the bank of elevators so they could take her back down to the lobby and her office, where she could hide and hope nobody noticed her flushed cheeks and rapid breathing.
Yeah, that’d be better.
At least that’s what she thought until she remembered that after lunch, Olivia was going to instruct her on the computer.
Hayley stepped into the elevator, which was blessedly empty. When the doors slid shut, she simply let her head fall forward against them and groaned loudly.
Chapter Five
“Okay? You understand?” Olivia waited for Hayley’s response. Since she’d sat down and begun her tour of their network three hours ago, she’d been hoping the bewildered look that had pasted itself on Hayley’s face the very first second would fade away. Into anything that said she had at least some understanding of what Olivia was showing her. “Hayley?”
Hayley blinked, and it seemed to take a significant effort to pull her attention from the screen and shift it to her assistant. “Oh, yeah. I’m good.” She sounded anything but.
Olivia stared at her for a moment, then slapped her hands on her thighs and pushed herself to her feet. “All right. Here.” She crossed the office—God, she wished she’d never decorated it in her head because now, that just hurt—and opened the top drawer of the filing cabinet in the corner. “Everything is online, but Roger was funny about printing things out.” She pulled a folder and took it back to the desk where she’d moved a chair around so she could sit next to Hayley. “This is this year’s budget.” She opened the folder and smoothed her palm over the paper. “It should give you some guidance as you create next year’s.”
Hayley studied the sheets. At least, it seemed like that was what she was doing. Then she began to slowly nod. “Okay. Okay.”
Olivia let another beat or two or seven of silence go by before she couldn’t stand it anymore. “I could go over it with you tomorrow, if you’d like. Help you out a little bit. I pretty much did this one.” She tapped a finger on the paper.
“Oh, my God, that’d be great. You don’t mind?” Hayley looked so hopefully relieved that Olivia felt her irritation draining away.
“It’s not a problem. I’m your assistant. My job is to assist you.” She was reasonably sure she’d kept the snark out of her voice. Reasonably.
“I would so appreciate that. Seriously.” That look again.
“Not a problem. Want to meet at nine? Oh, wait.” Olivia gazed off into the middle distance. “Maybe we should make it ten.”
Hayley rolled her lips in and bit down on them. Nodded as if she completely understood. “Ten’s probably safer,” she said, but she didn’t look happy about saying it. Which was interesting.
“Cool. I’ll see you at ten tomorrow.” Olivia escaped to her own desk. And that was the most accurate word: escaped. Sitting that close to Hayley had be
en…uncomfortable. In so many ways. In an annoyed way. In a confusing way. In a frustrating way. In a sexually tense way.
She exhaled slowly, letting herself accept that the sexual tension was exactly the problem and she needed to find a way to slide that to the side. It bummed her out that she had to do it, though, because the walk in the woods was still very much with her. The conversation, the subtle flirting, the way Hayley felt in her arms when Olivia kept her from falling.
Yeah.
She tipped her head from side to side, stretching out her neck, hoping to loosen the tightness that had intensified the longer she sat next to Hayley. She technically worked for Hayley now, so that sexual tension couldn’t be there. It needed to go.
Problem was, she was pretty sure Hayley felt it, too.
An idea surfaced then. What if she simply did her best to focus on how much Hayley didn’t know about this job? It would piss her off more often than not, absolutely, but at least she wouldn’t be struggling with this not unpleasant discomfort. Because that needed to go away.
There was another hour of the workday left, but Olivia had zero desire to stay in her office, in danger of Hayley coming to ask her a question. Leaning close. In her space.
“Damn it.” She slammed her desk drawer shut, grabbed her cell and slid it into her blazer pocket, and left her office, heading for Split Rail. Along the way, she waved to a couple of guests, then noticed Gary Shields heading her way.
“Hi there, Mr. Shields,” she said with a smile.
“Olivia. How many times have I told you to call me Gary?” His voice was kind, as were his blue eyes. He was a regular guest at the Evergreen and had been with them over Thanksgiving for the past two years, this being his third.
“Sorry.” Olivia bowed her head in recognition. “Gary.” She took in his ski jacket and boots, gloves and hat, the rosy color in his cheeks. “Were you snowshoeing?”
He pulled the ski hat off his head, revealing a mess of curly salt-and-pepper hair that seemed to do whatever it wanted. “That was the plan. It’s kind of messy out. Didn’t need the snowshoes after all. It was muddier than I like, but still nice.”
“Nothing like that fresh November air, huh?”
“Nothing.” He smiled as he moved past her. “How are you? Hanging in there?”
Olivia turned to face him as she walked backward. “Busy but good, thanks for asking.”
With a wave, he was off and Olivia continued toward the restaurant.
Dinner prep was in full swing in the kitchen, Tessa shouting orders, and Olivia loved to stand in an out-of-the-way corner and watch. Tessa was loud, but she was never mean. Never disrespectful. She was a kind boss and wanted her underlings to succeed, not cower in her presence.
“Joey, keep those mushrooms in a single layer or they won’t brown.” She stood over one of her sous chefs as he shook a frying pan filled with sizzling mushrooms. “Single. Layer. Got it?” Joey nodded as Tessa looked up and saw Olivia. She smiled widely.
She always looked so amazing in her chef’s coat and hat. Olivia loved the whole look. Tessa was gorgeous anyway, with her deep complexion and her big, brown eyes that saw everything, and the white uniform just elevated her presence somehow. She was the one in charge, no matter where she was. When she walked into a room, you just knew that. It was a little intimidating at first, but it eventually became awe-inspiring. At least, that was how it had been for Olivia when they’d first met a few years ago.
Tessa approached her, wiping her hands on a white rag. “Hey, how’s it going?”
Olivia simply gave her a look.
“Ah, that well, huh?”
Olivia simply shook her head.
“Come with me. I need halibut.”
Olivia furrowed her brow but followed Tessa until they reached the walk-in cooler where the fresh items that were delivered each day were stored. Once inside, Tessa turned to her and folded her arms so her bare hands were tucked into her armpits.
“Tell me quick before we both freeze to death.”
Olivia mirrored Tessa’s position, then shrugged. “I’m honestly kind of shocked by how little she knows about the business. I don’t think she’s an idiot by any means, but she just seems so…” She looked around the cooler, as if the word was propped on one of the metal shelves. “New. She seems really new to the running of a hotel, and I don’t understand it.”
Tessa made a sound somewhere between a grunt and a groan. “What can you do, though? Right?”
“Right. I’m doing my best to show her the things she doesn’t get, and she’s a good listener and a quick study, so there’s that. But I’m starting to worry a little bit about this place. You know?”
“Yeah,” Tessa said, but it was clear she wasn’t sure what to say.
Olivia shrugged again. “Oh, well. All I can do is the best I can, right?” When Tessa nodded, she went on. “How are things looking for next Thursday? You have everything you need?”
By unspoken agreement, they exited the cooler, and Olivia was happy to be back in the heat of the bustling kitchen.
“We’ve got a few more deliveries coming, but aside from those, we’re good. I’m proud of the menu.” And Tessa looked it. She was notoriously hard on herself, so to see her looking content and satisfied made Olivia’s heart happy.
“Great. I look forward to it.”
Tessa scanned the kitchen, watching over her staff, which—as far as Olivia’s non-cooking eyes could tell—was moving like a well-oiled machine. Chefs had their heads bowed over blue-flaming burners with pans on them. Waitstaff came in through the swinging doors, grabbed plates, left again. The air was filled with so many delicious smells, Olivia could only pinpoint a few: onions, garlic, beef. “Your mom coming to Thanksgiving dinner?” Tessa asked, pulling Olivia’s focus back to her.
“She’s talked about little else lately.”
“Tony and Ann Marie, too?” Tessa asked, referring to Olivia’s younger siblings.
Olivia nodded. “And Tony’s bringing Priya.”
“He’s still with her, huh? That’s new for him.”
“I know, right? I don’t think my mom knows what to do with it.” They stood quietly for another moment, watching the show before them. Finally, Olivia said, “Okay, go work. I just needed a break. I’m going to go wander a bit, make sure things are running smoothly.”
“It’s what you do,” Tessa said. “Thanks for checking in. Go.” Tessa waved her away as she dove back into the action of the kitchen.
Olivia watched for a few more minutes before leaving the kitchen. She waved to Mike behind the bar and headed out into the open lobby area of the Evergreen, which was humming with activity. This was good. She could throw herself into the mix, chat up the guests, make sure everybody had what they needed.
Anything to keep her from going back to the office.
She’d had enough of Hayley today.
* * *
Hayley’s brain hurt. Literally hurt. She had this crazy image of it as a bag of some sort, and she’d just crammed it way too full of computer instruction and tidbits about the resort and rules about the staff and the intricacies of the budget, and now the brain bag was bulging at the seams—which culminated in a pounding headache for her.
Olivia had been beyond annoyed with her, but Hayley had to give her kudos for her patience. She’d been pretty good at masking her annoyance. It was only because Hayley was used to ticking people off, used to the irritated expression she’d become a pro at causing to appear on people’s faces, the closed-up body language, that she’d had any clue. Olivia really was a consummate professional.
A consummate professional who smelled incredible.
With a literal shake of her head, Hayley pushed herself to her feet. “Enough of that,” she muttered.
Her body needed a good stretch, and she reached over her head and did just that: stretched as high as she could, hands over her head, then she tipped from one side to the other, working out the kinks that had formed in her back
over the past few hours. She squeezed her eyes shut—they were burning a bit from staring at both the computer screen and the small numbers on the budget printout—and wanted to rub them fiercely. She avoided doing that but blinked several times until they felt better.
A glance at her cell told her it was after five—and also that she’d missed texts from both Serena and Guin. She had no energy to deal with either woman, so she ignored them for now. She opened the door to her office and was surprised to see not Olivia but a young girl, maybe eighteen, sitting at Olivia’s desk, nose in what looked like a textbook. She glanced up at Hayley, then tugged one earbud out.
“Hey,” she said, in that tone all teenagers had that said they were completely bored with life. And you.
“Hey,” Hayley said back.
The girl put the earbud back in and returned her attention to her book while Hayley squinted at her. When it was clear that was all she was going to get, she headed out to the front desk where Stephanie and another girl were busily working.
Stephanie tapped away at her keyboard while an older, extremely well-dressed gentleman stood at the counter and waited. Hayley inched up behind her and said quietly, “Who’s that girl in Olivia’s office?”
Stephanie jumped and Hayley laid a hand on her shoulder.
“Oh, my God, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.” She grimaced as Stephanie turned to her, that same subtle look of irritation Olivia had sported clear on her face.
“That’s my daughter, Maddie. She comes to pick me up at the end of my shift and always does her homework at Olivia’s desk.” She turned back to the gentleman and apologized.
“Oh. Okay.” Trying hard not to feel dismissed—but feeling exactly that—Hayley decided she’d had enough for today and headed toward the elevators. She was starving and, after looking at numbers for much of the day, was seized with a burning need to do something creative rather than logical.
How the hell was she going to survive this for four months?
One Walk in Winter Page 5
