Hotel queens, p.12
Hotel Queens, page 12
Amelia shivered. An unwelcome awareness spread through her. Closing the door, Amelia launched into a tour of the room’s minimal facilities.
“So?” Amelia finally said when she ran out of commentary. “Does this meet requirements?”
Kai sat on the bed, bounced once, leaned back on one arm, and regarded Amelia with interest. “So far so good. Now tell me, Ms. Hanson, how’s your first day as an undercover grunt working out? You know, I wasn’t sure you’d do it.”
“Do you really have a poor reception issue? Or is toying with me your new game because I turned you down?”
“I recall. My ear’s still ringing.” Kai’s smile was wide. “I wouldn’t object if you turned me down again.”
Amelia rolled her eyes. “I’m here in a professional capacity, Ms. Fisher.”
“Yes, of course. And you do look so uptight and professional right now. Not like the other night. You flirted, too, you know.”
Amelia stiffened, unimpressed at Kai for turning this into an ill-timed autopsy of an evening she was trying to forget. She waited for an answer.
Kai sighed. “I really do have a phone problem. I’ve been putting up with it, but now it’s just annoying me too much.” She waved her cell about, directing it at various points in the room. “Three-bar signal. That’ll do. Thanks.”
“Good.”
Kai tilted her head. “You really do give off a powerful management vibe. I’ll bet Mrs. Menzies has you worked out by the end of shift. Faking it isn’t really you, is it?”
“Are we done?” Amelia ignored the innuendo and headed for the door.
“Sure.” Kai followed. “I do declare there’s a career in reception work in your future.”
“I’m honored to have your approval,” Amelia said with faint sarcasm. “So honored.”
Kai laughed. “There you are.” She headed for the door. “I wondered where that sassy woman I met had gone. She was amusing as hell.”
“She is on the clock.” Amelia closed up behind them. “And I’m the consummate professional.”
“Sure you are.” Kai smiled. “Although your tone might need a little work.” They headed toward the elevators. “But I’m sure Mrs. Menzies will beat that right out of you.”
“She’s welcome to try.” Amelia stabbed the Up button on the elevator for Kai and the Down one for herself. “I’ll book you and your assistant into the new rooms, then send a porter up to assist you with relocating your luggage and supply you with the three-oh-four key as well.” The Down doors opened. “Have a lovely day.”
“You, too.” Kai waved goodbye as Amelia stepped inside, her fingers brushing Amelia’s sleeve. Kai’s sensual laughter, rich as an exotic liqueur, lingered.
When she got back to the lobby, Amelia straightened her jacket, wishing she could smooth away any remnants of her encounter with Kai Fisher.
It would be easier if her arm wasn’t still burning from her brief touch.
Upon arrival back at the desk, Amelia was promptly sent upstairs again, clutching a lurid-pink bag from the Pleasure Chest.
All Mrs. Menzies had said as she’d passed over the delivery was: “Be careful with her. She amuses herself in most direct ways.”
“Most direct?”
“You’ll see. If she wasn’t such a good guest, I’d have shown her the door years ago. When you’re done with her, there’s an executive’s child in forty-nine-oh-two demanding attention. So don’t let Ms. Carson talk your ear off. She will try and detain you for her own amusement.”
Amelia knocked on Room 612.
The door flung open, and Amelia was greeted with a woman about her own age in a short black skirt suit, heels, and a green silk blouse unbuttoned to her waist, revealing a sliver of tomato-red bra. On her face sat bookish black glasses and an amused expression.
Amelia found the effect somewhat confusing. Business attire shouldn’t be exciting, and yet Monique Carson somehow made it tantalizing. How had she achieved this?
“Come in, darling. Package on the counter, please.” Monique disappeared back into her suite, apparently assuming Amelia would follow.
The room was decorated in shades of red. Amelia’s nose wrinkled at the smell of sex, her gaze darting around uncertainly.
A shower was running in the bathroom, where steam escaped from a gap in the ajar door.
Amelia slid the package onto the counter and turned to go, only to find herself caught in a calculating gaze.
With long fingers drumming against her hips, Monique regarded Amelia. She stood near a rumpled king-sized bed, its sheets looking as if they’d lost an argument with a category-five hurricane. “What’s your name?”
“Lia Hanson.”
“I’m not what you expected, am I?” She looked amused.
“No.” Amelia agreed.
“And you like what you see?” Monique smiled.
Amelia hesitated. Well, there was something alluring about her, an awareness, but Amelia was damned if she’d admit it.
“No need to be embarrassed. It’s my job to make people want me. Didn’t Mrs. Menzies tell you what I do? Women come to me for the CEO fantasy experience.”
Women? Her clients were all women?
Monique’s smile was knowing and seductive. “I boss them around, take them over…or under…the desk if that’s their desire. Rub myself all over them while I reel off my orders for the day, such as how I want my coffee.”
Amelia tried to block the highly specific visions flooding her brain. “I…see.”
Monique smirked. “You’re new, aren’t you? Come closer. I want to see what June Menzies is up to with her latest hire.” Despite her command, Monique was the one to move, her hips sensual as she sauntered closer. She sized up Amelia again, then frowned. “All right, who are you really?”
“Excuse me?”
“You have Fifth Avenue attitude.”
“Fifth Avenue attitude?” What the hell was that?
“It’s in the body language and the air about you.” Monique’s eyes sharpened. “That fancy watch rules out you being a reporter or an undercover cop. Neither gets paid that well unless they’re on the take.”
“You think I’m undercover?” Amelia asked, alarm shooting through her.
“Aren’t you?” Monique cocked an eyebrow. “Do you know what all Hotel Duxton employees have in common? The floor staff? Desperation. They’d have to be desperate to work here and risk having their pay slashed for any minor nonsense.”
She knew about the points scheme? Did everyone?
“They reek of fear. They are all tightly wound, stressed, and nervous. Even a minute wasted talking to me would have them inching to the door in panic. Not you. You saunter in here like you’re on a catwalk. You look at me as though I’m a puzzle that you have all the time in the world to figure out. And you don’t seem to know fear.”
Great. So I really do leak? Quinn would be impossible after this. “That’s quite a theory.”
“Oh, please. We both know you’re no underling.” Monique eyed her thoughtfully. “Are you an undercover boss, checking up on things? Not before time, I must say.”
Amelia stared, astonished.
“You should never play poker, darling. Are you a Duxton then? If I looked that family up, would I find your photo all over social media?”
“I don’t do social media.” A flash of regret filled her—what a pit of hate, shallowness, and mockery that foray into Twitter had been. “Brain-dead waste of time.”
“Oh, I like you. Forthright, aren’t you? And no denial you’re a Duxton. So, why are you here, Lia Duxton?” Her red lips curved. “Looking for some pointers on how to diversify careers? Because I have to say, with your vibe, you could do my job. You’re exactly what my clients love: commanding women with charisma and power. You know, you can’t teach that. Lord, you’d be a star and I’d be rich.” Monique’s eyes crinkled. “So, Lia, are you looking for work with a difference? You can keep your tips.”
Her expression said she wasn’t serious in the least, but still Amelia couldn’t prevent her irritated reply. “Absolutely not. I’m happy with my job.”
“You know, if you want to convince people you do work here, never say you’re happy with your job.” She snorted. “You really aren’t very good at this, are you?”
“What do you want from me?” Amelia asked with a sigh.
“Oh yes, I could blackmail you, couldn’t I?” Monique laughed. “Don’t worry, that’s not my style. Instead, just answer me one thing: aside from dating women—”
Amelia’s eyes widened. “Excuse me?”
Monique waved her hand, “Don’t look so stunned, it’s clear from your appreciation of me that you have a certain preference. Aside from dating women, have you ever done anything wild? Something inappropriate? A little…reckless?”
“Never.” That was her brother’s idiotic domain, not hers.
“Hmm. A pity.” Monique’s admiring eyes ran over her. “You are so tasty. I’d give quite a lot to turn you a little wild. I’d love to have you under my expert fingers, chipping that ice off you. Your imperious routine is irresistible, and it takes quite a lot to turn my head.”
“No thanks.” Amelia’s jaw tightened.
“Well, the offer stands if you ever change your mind. Personally, I think doing the occasional inappropriate thing keeps us young,” she said confidentially. “Look, darling, I only say this because you seem so uptight on the topic: Try to remember at some point while you’re so focused on your career, that it’s okay to let your hair down every now and then. Sex is just sex. No one dies if you get your rocks off with another consenting adult. Humans do tie themselves up in knots over these things. One day I’ll write a book about it.”
“A…book.” How had she even gotten into this conversation?
“I’m just suggesting you might remember to live a little. If not with sex, just have fun—run around your house naked, go skinny dipping, scream at the top of your lungs for the hell of it.”
“Sounds cold and loud.”
“Lord, I do love you.” Monique snorted. “Stubborn as a tomcat, thicker walls than Fort Knox, and stunning to boot.” She leaned in, close enough for Amelia to feel the warmth of her, and bopped her nose with a finger. “Lighten up.”
Amelia reared back. This woman was dangerous. A familiar sensation hit her as she processed Monique’s seductiveness, confidence, and faint mocking undertone. Oh. She reminded Amelia of Kai.
The shower in the other room stopped running. “My cue.” Monique kept her mischievous eyes squarely on Amelia when she called out, “Darling, are you wet for me?”
Amelia glared at Monique—so damned inappropriate—and strode from the room.
Outside, she leaned against the wall. How disconcerting. The longer she was in Vegas, the more she found herself distracted by hormonal irrelevancies. Now she’d started seeing Kai everywhere, including in the seductive energy of random guests.
This was not acceptable. Her employees called her an ice bitch for a reason. She was focused, clear-eyed, and didn’t get weak-kneed at the thought of…of…certain annoying people.
Oh no, you just bite their ear instead.
Amelia strode down the hall, frustration fueling her pace. Why was that woman still on her mind? Kai was nothing to her. The matter had been settled two days ago. It was done.
Her brain snickered as Amelia stabbed—repeatedly—the elevator’s call button.
Oh sure.
Chapter 9
Fax and Figures
It had been a long day. Kai picked over her room-service dinner, trying to make sense of her lunch meeting five hours earlier. Between the many courses Hamadani had insisted on, Milly had been excellent at remembering the smaller issues, leaving Kai to read the man before her.
The developer seemed amenable to a deal, if not too interested at such an early stage in drilling down on the specifics, saying that was for his lawyers, later. The main thing was he was actively engaging. Something seemed to have clicked in him, and now he was on board with Grand Millennium.
The only tension had come when she’d asked why his photo wasn’t anywhere online. Was he shy, she’d asked, smiling.
His eyes became slits. “You cannot understand why the son of a billionaire might keep his face hidden from the wider world? All my life, kidnap threats have been made against me and my family. If any photo of me appears online, I pay people a lot of money to find ways to get it taken down. This is no joke to us.”
Hamadani waved an index finger around the room. “I have security everywhere. Be grateful you didn’t come too close to me when you first introduced yourself.” His eyes hardened.
Kai’s eyes darted around the room, wondering who his undercover security detail were. Before she could form any conclusions, her phone rang with an urgent call about a time-sensitive deal.
She excused herself to take it, and when she returned, Hamadani was gone and Milly was gathering up their paperwork, looking pale. Something felt off. Kai’s stomach knotted into worry.
“He received a text and said something had come up,” Milly said, not meeting her eye. “We’ll get his terms tonight from his lawyers.”
Terms? So the deal was still on?
Kai had been checking her emails constantly ever since, and now she caught an odd expression on Milly’s face. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
It didn’t sound like nothing. Kai realized Milly hadn’t been herself since lunch. “Did Hamadani say something when I left to take that call?”
“No.”
“Did he…Was he inappropriate with you?”
“God no.” A pinkish tinge began to rise up Milly’s cheeks. “Definitely not possible.”
Kai frowned. “What does that mean?”
“Nothing.”
“Tell your face that.”
Milly shook her head. “You’ll make a big deal out of it. It’s fine.”
“Now you’re really scaring me.” Kai gently placed her hand over Milly’s to stop her writing. “Tell me?”
“It really isn’t much. When you left to deal with that call, I pressed him on a few points, small things I was afraid he might forget to include in the terms.”
“Okay, and…?”
“He asked where I’d studied management. Or finance. Or law.” Hurt flashed in Milly’s eyes, along with embarrassment. “I said I hadn’t studied any of those things. That I was an assistant.
“And he said, exactly.” Milly sucked in a breath. “He wasn’t obnoxious or rude. But he stared at me hard and told me that The Closer has a reputation for a reason. You’re a dealmaker and he highly respects you. Only you.” She swallowed. “He said I had to understand that he only deals with his equals, not juniors pretending they’re important, and therefore we had nothing to discuss. Then he got up and left.”
“Asshole.” Kai muttered. “You’re my right hand for a reason. You’re brilliant, Milly.”
“Thank you. He is right, though. I was sort of negotiating with him when it wasn’t my place.”
“In my absence you have every right to speak for me on a deal.”
“Mr. Hamadani doesn’t see it that way.”
“What he said is not acceptable—he belittled you. Why are you defending him?”
“I’m not. I just don’t want to be the cause of problems. It’s fine, Ms. Fisher.”
“It’s not fine. If I’d been there, I’d have…” What?
“What could you have done?” Milly asked curiously. “You wouldn’t jeopardize Mayfair Palace. Or shouldn’t.”
“You’re worth it—don’t doubt that.”
“I appreciate you saying that, but I think you’re beating yourself up for something that bothers you more than me. Why does it upset you so much?”
Because I’m supposed to fight for the underdogs, not side with the powerbrokers screwing them over!
It was so unsettling, this truth. It wasn’t the first time she’d dealt with a businessman whose attitude or morals were borderline. It was the first time one had attacked one of her own.
“I should tell him to screw his deal. Let the Duxtons have this one. I could tell Mr. Stein he wouldn’t be budged. The Duxtons and Hamadani deserve each other.”
“Ms. Fisher?” Milly gaped in shock. “You can’t throw this deal away over nothing.”
“You. Are. Not. Nothing. People who treat others as beneath them make me sick.”
“I know. That’s what Scorched Earth is all about: justice for the vulnerable.”
Kai opened her mouth to refute that. She’d been telling Milly for years it was only about vengeance, but she had no energy to lie today. “Hamadani had no right to treat you like dirt.”
“Thank you,” Milly said quietly. “I love that you care.”
“Well.” She rolled her eyes. “Of course I do. Just don’t make a big deal of it. I have a reputation.”
“Absolutely.” Milly said earnestly, her eyes sparkling. “But Ms. Fisher, even if he does this again, please don’t end this deal over something I consider so minor. In the future, I’d be proud to be able to say I was on the team that won Mayfair Palace.”
Kai hadn’t considered that. From Milly’s point of view, this would look extremely good on her CV. “All right. But I’m never leaving you alone with him again.”
“Okay.” The word was quiet and understated, but the relief in Milly’s eyes was clear.
The room phone rang. Milly reached for it. “It’s Reception,” she mouthed.
Kai’s heart skipped. Was Lia still on duty?
Milly put the phone down. “That was Graham. They’ve received a fax from Mr. Hamadani’s lawyers for us. It’ll be our terms.”
“Why fax us? His people could email me direct.”
“Security? Emails can be hacked, but it’s nearly impossible to crack a fax.”
