But Scott wouldn’t budge. “No, it’s safer in here until Mother arrives. I’ll just stay here.”
“You can’t do that,” Kelly protested. “What if what Candace has to say to me is private?”
He shrugged. “What does it matter? You tell me everything anyway.”
Well, almost everything. Right now, there was the small matter of two husbands hiding in her room. “I think you should go.”
“No.” His face brightened. “Tell you what—I’ll just hide until you can get rid of her.”
Kelly resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Yeah, right. Real original idea.
She stopped him when he headed for the bathroom. “Not there.” Though she was quite sure Scott would find the situation amusing if he discovered her husbands in hiding, she didn’t feel like enlightening him right now. Besides, the explanations would be embarrassing, and Scott would never let her live it down.
Looking surprised, he asked, “Why not?”
“Because,” she said lamely. When that didn’t seem to deter him, she said, “I have . . . things in there.” The only “thing” in there was Chaz, but she hoped her vagueness would make him think there were some mysterious feminine fripperies that he wouldn’t want to see.
He shrugged. “Okay, the closet then.”
He headed in that direction, but she grabbed his arm again. “No, not there.”
“You have things in there, too?” Scott asked with a quirk of his eyebrow.
“No,” she said, desperately searching for a reason Scott would believe. She didn’t want to have him discovering Spencer in the dark—she doubted they’d have as much fun as she and Chaz had. “But it’s very dark and stuffy. Trust me—I spent some time there, remember?”
“Okay,” Scott said in exasperation. “Then where?”
“Under the bed?”
He gave her a sardonic look. “I don’t think so.”
“Then . . .” She glanced around, looking for a spot. The drapes. Perfect. As another, more insistent, knock came at the door, she shoved him toward the curtains lining the wall the sliding glass door to the balcony. “If you must stay, then wait behind the drapes. And be quiet.”
He grinned. “Like a mouse.”
Once Scott was safely ensconced in his hiding place and she made sure both the closet and bathroom doors were firmly closed, Kelly opened the door to Candace. “Hello,” she said politely. “Can I help you?”
Candace gave her a tentative smile. “Yes, I have something I want to ask you. Can I come in?”
It figured. Why did everyone object to having a nice conversation in the hallway, for heaven’s sake? But Kelly couldn’t think of a good reason to keep her boss waiting outside, beyond admitting she had three men hiding in her room, so she invited Candace in as graciously as she could.
Candace took the seat where Scott had been very recently, and squirmed a little.
Kelly sighed. If Candace was uncomfortable, that meant she was probably about to say something Kelly didn’t want to hear. Unfortunately, three other sets of ears might hear it as well. “What can I do for you?” Kelly asked with a sigh.
Candace pleated her skirt with her fingers. “I was just wondering . . . do you know much about Amalia Garcia?”
Now that was the last thing Kelly expected to come out of Candace’s mouth. “No, I’m afraid I don’t,” she said stiffly. “You’ll have to ask Chaz about her.”
Looking even more uncomfortable, Candace waved a hand in apparent apology. “That’s not what I meant. I just thought . . . she’s so exotic, different. Don’t you think she’d make an interesting Pizzazz Girl?”
Amalia? The new Pizzazz Girl? Kelly felt herself tense. Interesting wasn’t the right word. Annoying, maybe. Disagreeable. Even ridiculous. Especially since that meant Kelly would have to work with the woman. But she couldn’t say all that to Candace, especially since her boss had kept Kelly on for so long, even though Spencer, the man Candace loved, was pursuing Kelly.
Not knowing what else to say, Kelly murmured, “I’m not sure she’s . . . suitable.”
Candace nodded as if she didn’t care about the answer. Which meant that wasn’t her real question. And the way her rear end was planted in that chair, it appeared she wasn’t going to leave until she voiced her real concern.
With three impatient men hiding in various parts of the room, Kelly figured she needed to speed this up. She would just have to be blunt. “Why are you really here?”
Candace looked up in surprise. “Why, I didn’t—” She broke off, looking sheepish. “I was just wondering if you’d come to a decision yet. You see, I love—”
“Yes, I have,” Kelly said quickly, not wanting Candace to embarrass herself by unknowingly admitting her love in front of Spencer.
“Oh, really?” Candace said in a tone she tried to keep casual. “Who have you decided on?”
Kelly felt sorry for the woman, but really couldn’t reveal her choice yet. “I’m sorry,” she said as gently as she could. “But I need to let them know first.”
“Oh. Of course—” Candace began, then cut off when another knock came at the door.
This knock, however, was far more imperious than the others.
Mother.
“I’ll just go . . .” Candace said, and rose from the chair.
“No,” Kelly said. “You have to hide.” But where? She couldn’t put Candace in with any of the three men, and she wouldn’t go under the bed. Kelly was totally out of hiding places.
Wait, the chair—there was an upholstered club chair in the corner on the opposite side of the wall from where Scott was hiding. “Over here,” she said. She pulled Candace toward the chair and pushed her down below it until her boss was on her hands and knees, well hidden. “Stay here,” she whispered.
Giving her an incredulous look from her position around Kelly’s knees, her publisher asked, “Why?”
Good question.
Feeling foolish, Kelly wailed to herself, It seemed right at the time. . . .
What had she been thinking? Obviously, she hadn’t been thinking at all. But she couldn’t admit that now or back out without looking like a fool.
More of a fool, she amended silently.
“Everyone else is doing it,” she said lamely. It didn’t seem to satisfy Candace, so she added, “It’ll only be a minute. I’ll get rid of whoever this is, then we can have a private conversation.”
Yeah, right. Private. Like that would happen.
Kelly peered through the peephole again. As she thought, it was her mother. She glanced around the room and was disconcerted to see three male faces peeking back at her from their various hiding places.
No, they couldn’t discover each other now. She froze, not knowing what to do. “It’s Mother,” she said desperately, trying not to look at any one man.
The three faces vanished immediately. Wise men.
Kelly relaxed and opened the door to her mother. “Why are you here?” she asked without preamble.
Grace Richmond raised her eyebrows. “Is that any way to greet your mother? Especially when I’ve only come to help? Aren’t you going to let me in?”
It was a little crowded in there, but hell, why not? What was one more? Kelly opened the door wide. “But only for a minute. I need to find Chaz and Spencer and tell them of my decision.”
As Kelly closed the door behind her, Grace asked, “So you’ve made one, then?”
Kelly nodded. To forestall the inevitable, she added, “But I’m going to tell them first—it’s only fair.”
“Of course,” Grace said. “The sooner the better, so we can all get back to our normal lives.”
“Good,” Kelly said firmly. “I’m glad you understand.” She opened the door once again and gestured toward it, hoping Mother would hasten her departure.
Grace paused. “But you are going to choose Spencer, aren’t you?”
Exasperated, Kelly didn’t bother to be polite. “I’m not going to tell you before I tell him, f
or heaven’s sake.”
“I know, but—”
“And the longer you dawdle here, the longer it will take.”
“Well,” Grace said huffily. But she finally got the point, because she headed for the door.
And came face to face with Amalia, who had her hand upraised to knock on the door. To top it all off, Billings rounded the corner with a sour look on his face, heading directly toward her.
Kelly closed her eyes in disbelief. What have I done to deserve this? she asked the heavens silently.
When no answer was forthcoming, she opened her eyes again to see Grace’s freezing gaze meet that of Amalia’s hot searing one. Kelly was just surprised steam hadn’t formed along the battle front.
“I think I’ll just stay a little longer,” Grace said.
Kelly grimaced. “That won’t be necessary.” Though she didn’t know why she was turning down her mother’s assistance. Mother was very skilled in handling situations like this.
“Where is Chaz?” Amalia demanded with her hands on her hips. “I know you haf him.”
Grace drew herself up to look down her nose at the dramatic woman. “Don’t be ridiculous. My daughter and I are here alone.”
“Ha,” Amalia exclaimed. She tried to shove her way past, but Mother held her ground and Kelly held the door.
But now Billings had arrived. “Is there a problem here?” he asked with a disapproving sniff. “We have had a few complaints about your party.”
“Complaints?” Grace repeated, looking even more haughty than the manager. Taking a step toward him, she said, “Then do be so good as to remove this . . .” She glanced down at Amalia and dismissed her with a searing glance. “. . . this person at once.”
Amalia stamped her foot, seemingly oblivious to Grace’s contempt. “I will not be remofed. You haf kidnapped my Chaz and I want him. I know he is in there.” She peered inside past Grace’s and Kelly’s blocking bodies and said, “Yes, I see shoes.”
She shoved past them so hard that it almost knocked Grace off her feet. Rushing over to the drapes where she had apparently spotted Scott’s feet, Amalia pulled the drapes aside with a dramatic flourish. “Aha!”
But disappointment filled her face when it was only Kelly’s brother.
Never at a loss, Scott smiled at her, smoothed back his hair, and strolled out from behind the drapes as if it were a perfectly ordinary occurrence. “Thank you for inviting me to breakfast, Sis,” he said, looking suave and debonair. “But I must really go now.”
Grace gave Kelly a disapproving look, but thankfully kept her tongue still in front of Billings.
Scott halted for a moment, unholy amusement filling his eyes as he glanced behind the club chair. But, always the gallant knight, he asked, “Have you found your earring yet, Candace?”
Candace rose from the floor, looking sheepish and red-faced. Smoothing her skirt down then fingering her earlobe, she said, “Yes, I did. Er, thanks for asking.”
Scott nodded politely, ignoring Amalia’s narrowed suspicious expression and their mother’s disapproving one. “Then perhaps we should go now. It’s getting a little crowded in here.”
Kelly almost whimpered. He had no idea. . . .
With insouciant ease, Scott put his hand at the small of Candace’s back and steered her out from behind the chair. As he passed the desk, he plucked a muffin from the tray and offered a peach to Candace. “No need for us to starve,” he said with a wicked grin.
Candace merely nodded and took the peach, though she seemed unable to meet anyone’s eyes.
Great—there went any chance of advancement at Pizzazz. Kelly doubted Candace would forget this humiliation for a long time.
“Yes,” Kelly said, her voice rising despite herself. “Maybe you should all go.”
But trying to budge Amalia when she was on a mission seemed impossible. Though Scott and Candace left the room, Amalia made a beeline for the closet and rummaged through it.
“Aha!” she exclaimed once again. “I knew it. There is a man here.” She reached in and hauled him out, looking disappointed once more when Spencer came blinking into the light.
Kelly cringed and raised a hand to hide her face but risked a glance at the two by the door. Mother was looking outraged and Billings’s expression had turned to stone.
Spencer appeared a little ruffled, and when he saw four pairs of eyes staring at him, he didn’t even try to explain. Instead, he just turned bright red and left without saying a word. Smart guy.
“You see?” Kelly said. “Chaz isn’t here. Now, if you could please leave?” She needed to gather the few remaining shreds of her dignity about her.
“No,” Amalia declared. “He is here, I know it.” Then her gaze lit on the closed bathroom door. With another dramatic, “Aha!” she yanked it open.
Chaz stood there calmly, zipping up his trousers. “The bathroom will be available in a moment,” he said. “Can’t you wait?”
An insane urge to laugh bubbled through Kelly, but the sight of Mother’s and Billings’s expressions cured that urge, fast.
“I knew it,” Amalia said triumphantly with a glare at Kelly. “You haf been hiding him from me.”
“Nonsense,” Chaz said, buckling his belt. “I came for breakfast and needed to use the facilities, that’s all.”
Well, it was a really nice try, but Kelly didn’t think the two in the doorway were buying it. In fact, her mother’s expression promised retribution once they were alone.
To add her bit to the confusion, Kelly gestured toward the tray. “Would you like some fruit?” she asked Chaz lamely.
Laughter filled his eyes for a moment, quickly stifled. “No, thank you. It’s a bit crowded in here. I think I’ll take my chances on the restaurant.”
“Good,” Amalia exclaimed. “I go with you.”
By this point, Billings had stiffened so much, he resembled a marble statue. Deliberately not looking around the room, he addressed the air just above Kelly’s head. “Are there any more . . . people in this room?”
Kelly smiled weakly. “No, I think that’s it.” She thought for a moment. Yes, that had to be it. No more hiding places were left.
“I should hope so,” her mother said. Apparently, she just couldn’t contain her indignation any longer. “What were you thinking?”
Giving Grace a shark-like smile, Chaz moved toward her and took her arm. “You aren’t criticizing your daughter in public, now are you?” he murmured. Not giving her a chance to answer, he propelled her out into the hallway where Scott, Candace, and Spencer had stayed to watch the show with varying levels of disbelief on their faces. Naturally, as Chaz moved out the door, Amalia followed him.
That left only Billings in her room. It was feeling kind of empty now. And Kelly wanted it emptier yet. She stepped toward the man, and as she expected, he edged backward into the hall, not wanting to be contaminated by her presence.
The hotel manager glared icily at all of them. “The Pourtales does not condone this sort of behavior—” he began, only to be interrupted by Chaz.
“What sort of behavior is that?” he asked. “Is there some law against people having breakfast together?”
Yeah, sure, that was all that was going on. And they played hide and seek just to whet their appetite.
Apparently reluctant to call him a liar, Billings said only, “We have had several complaints about the noise level and conduct of those in this hallway. I’m afraid we cannot countenance it any longer. If this goes on, I’m afraid we will have to ask you to leave.”
Mother looked thoroughly affronted. “I’ve never been thrown out of a place in my life.”
“There’s a first time for everything,” Scott said with a grin and a gleam in his eye.
Kelly wouldn’t put it past him to do something outrageous right now, just to have the experience of seeing their mother tossed out on her can.
“It won’t happen again,” Kelly assured Billings quickly. “They’re just all anxious for me to make a
decision. Once I have, we’ll all leave.”
“And will you be making that decision soon?” Billings asked in a tone that implied he hoped it would be very quickly.
“Actually, I’ve already made it.”
He raised his eyebrows. “Would you be so kind, then, as to favor us with the result?”
“I, uh—” As Kelly stood in the doorway of her room, they all stared back at her with expectant expressions. But no matter how much they all wanted to know, this was not the way she was going to announce her choice.
And, damn it, they shouldn’t expect it of her, either. Drawing herself up in righteous indignation, Kelly said, “I don’t think so.”
And closed the door firmly in their faces.
11
Startled, Chaz laughed. It was so unexpected, so unlike the Kelly he remembered.
Grace gave him an incredulous look. “This is not funny.”
“Oh, but it is,” Chaz exclaimed. “Just like one of the old black and white comedies.” The kind he and Kelly had loved to watch together.
Scott grinned back at him—the only other person in the hallway who got the joke. Kelly slamming the door in their faces was so perfect, so marvelously apt, exactly the right thing for the spunky ingénue to do at exactly the right time.
“I didn’t know she had the guts,” Chaz said in delight.
“Nonsense,” Grace said. “It was cowardice.”
Chaz couldn’t let that misapprehension stand. “On the contrary. It took a great deal of courage for her and hell of a lot of moxie to slam that door in our faces and break a lifetime of your conditioning.”
Grace bristled, preparing for a comeback, but Billings stopped her with a gesture and a pained expression. “I beg your pardon, but could you please take this discussion somewhere more . . . private?”
“Fine,” Chaz said. “I’m more than willing to leave.”
Deuce frowned. “But I want to hear who Kelly chooses. And I assume the rest of us do as well.”
His voice and expression implied that he wondered why Chaz didn’t feel the same.
Chaz shrugged. It wasn’t that he didn’t care—he did, very much—but Kelly would choose her own time and her own way to tell them. And she’d certainly earned the right to do that. “We should all leave her alone for a little while. Let her get her bearings back.” And recover from the embarrassment of being caught hiding four people in her room.
My Favorite Husband Page 14