Family Bonds- Hunter and Kayla (Amore Island Book 1)

by Natalie Ann

  “I wouldn’t either,” she said.

  “Prime rib was a special tonight. I put the charm on for Grace and she told me to help myself and get the hell out of her kitchen.”

  “I’m sure there wasn’t much charm involved,” Kayla said back without thinking. When Hunter laughed at her she knew she put her foot in her mouth. It seemed she was doing that a lot lately around him. “I meant you’re her boss so she can’t say much to you.”

  “She can and she does. But Grace is my cousin. She tells it like it is and I don’t cross her if I want to eat well.”

  “Oh,” she said. “I guess I’ve got a lot to learn about things here.”

  “You will in time. I should have asked—how do you like it so far?”

  “I love it,” she said. “I’m enjoying it a lot. Like I said, it’s just trying to find my way around the hotel. I haven’t even explored the grounds yet and probably should, but I figured at night there isn’t much call for me out there.”

  “Not usually. There are other staff that can move around outside if they need to. Feel free to walk around on your breaks if you want.”

  “Thanks. I might do that. Have a good night,” she said and knew she had to get out of there. She’d been gone almost twenty minutes now and knew Tiffany was going to wonder if she got lost or was just slacking off. Neither would bode well for her on just her second day without supervision.

  “You too,” Hunter said. She walked back to the elevator and saw it was on the first floor and she’d have to stand here and wait, or she could run down the stairs. Yeah, that was what she’d do; it’d be faster.

  By the time she got to the front desk she was out of breath and Tiffany looked up from the phone she was talking on. Once she hung up she said, “Are you okay? Have you been running?”

  “Yes, sorry. I knew I was gone a long time. I ran into Hunter when I was coming back down and he asked how I liked the job and had food in his hand so I asked if he was getting a late night snack. I can be chatty and the next thing I know he is telling me I need to know how to reach him at night and showing me where the elevator is to the penthouse. Then when I went to get back on the elevator to come down it was already down here and I didn’t want to wait because, like I said, I’d been gone so long.”

  Tiffany laughed at her. “Take a deep breath. That’s a mouthful. First off, there is no time limit when bringing things to guests. Oftentimes someone else will stop you or they ask other questions. It happens, I know. Plus I know you’re new and might have gotten turned around. This place is huge. Did you find housekeeping and the towels okay?”

  “Yes, that was easy. I had no problem getting there and to the fourth floor.”

  “Good. You did better than me then. It took me weeks to get from one place to another without making at least one wrong turn.”

  “That does make me feel a bit better.”

  “Second of all. Yes, you should know Hunter is up there. If we have problems at night we need to call him. No one told you that? Or showed you where he was?”

  “No,” she said. “He told me I should ask you to show me where his number is too.”

  Tiffany walked over to a list on the desk. “It’s right here. But I’ve got his number in my cell phone too. You never know if something goes wrong and you can’t get here, but we always have our cells on us.”

  “Good idea,” Kayla said and pulled hers out to program the number in. “Is that Hunter’s personal cell?”

  “No, silly. He’d never put that here. That is to a phone in his place. I’m sure he forwards it to his cell, but it’s not his direct line.”

  At least Tiffany didn’t call her an idiot. “I guess that makes sense.”

  “So, what do you think of Hunter?” Tiffany asked her.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Come on. He’s hot, isn’t he? It’s hard not to notice it, right?”

  There was no use lying. “It is hard. But he’s my boss and I’m here to do a job.”

  “That doesn’t mean you can’t look. Everyone looks. I’m shocked he’s single. Especially living here. Women used to beat down his door for his attention.”

  “Used to?” Kayla asked.

  “Yeah. I’m not sure what happened or when, but he got really private about his life and just kind of stopped dating. Or at least no one sees him with anyone much.”

  “So that’s why you think he’s single?” Kayla asked and wished she didn’t. She shouldn’t be showing any interest in Hunter. Least of all to another coworker.

  “Last I knew he was. All he does is work, for the most part. The island is made up of a lot of his family too or people that work for the Bonds. I’d say it’s slim pickings unless he picks up a guest or someone new on the island since he doesn’t leave it often. I have heard of that before.”

  She wouldn’t be surprised. With the way he looked and the money behind his name, she’d bet Hunter could get anyone he wanted. And if he wanted a fling, all he had to do was walk outside and find someone willing, just like Tiffany said.

  Women were probably lining up to be with him. To warm his bed.

  If she didn’t work for him, she’d be rushing to the front of that line…maybe. He’d never want anything to do with someone like her, so, though she’d rush to the line, she’d probably leave it before he could reject her.

  She’d been rejected enough in life.

  6

  A Dry Spell

  Hunter went up to his penthouse alone like he’d been doing for years. Did he have female company at times? Sure, he did. But he didn’t date often, or even get involved in relationships for the long term. Not anymore.

  Work had always been his motivator. He came from the line of Edward Bond, Malcolm’s son, who was married and stable. Malcolm and Elizabeth Rummer met for the first time on this island where her mother offered Elizabeth’s hand in marriage in an attempt to save the family’s shipping empire after her husband died tragically at sea.

  The island stayed in their possession, then later selling off pieces here and there, but turning it into another profitable venture.

  Malcolm and Elizabeth had five children, most hard working solid family men and women. Except the youngest, William, who was the “rake” of the family. The one that never believed in one true love, being honest, faithful, or upholding the family name.

  But William was not the only ancestor that wasn’t honest or faithful. Hunter’s own great-great-grandfather who started the hotel over a hundred years ago had his fair share of mistresses, was even rumored to have gotten a few of them pregnant. There were plenty of Bonds out there...some of them illegitimate.

  Because Great-great-grandfather James liked his women and was a cad on top of a being a shrewd businessman, the rest of the Bond men made sure they didn’t follow completely in his footsteps. Hunter included.

  That meant not bringing too many women to his penthouse or where others could see him. He’d done it a few times in the past couple of years, thought he was falling for someone and realized he wasn’t. And when he did date, the rumors and gossip started. He was sick and tired of it. Sick of everyone whispering and waiting for his time. Like most on the island did for all the Bond relations.

  When he had female company now, it normally was off the island, and since he didn’t leave the island much, he was in somewhat of a dry spell.

  Maybe that was why Kayla was tugging at his hormones so much.

  It’d been on the tip of his tongue to invite her to the penthouse and show her around, but he caught himself in the nick of time before he went against his plan to not bring a female employee to his penthouse anymore. Too many eyes on him, waiting and watching for him to find his one and only, or turn into a womanizing whore. It’s like there was no in between on assumptions with him.

  Because he lived on site, he tried to keep a separation. Too bad trying and succeeding were two different things that didn’t mesh together any better than Cheez Whiz on grilled salmon.

  He pus
hed Kayla from his mind and opened up his container, put his prime rib on a plate with his mashed potatoes and started to eat his late night dinner while he flipped around the channels on his TV.

  When he was putting his dishes in the dishwasher his phone went off. Who the hell could be sending him a message this late at night? Couldn’t be a problem downstairs. If there was, they’d call and it’d be rerouted to his cell, but never a text.

  He walked over after drying his hands and grabbed his phone from the coffee table to see his cousin Grace sending him a text. Since he’d just seen her thirty minutes ago in the restaurant she probably figured it was a safe bet he was up, so he wondered why she was asking him that.

  “Come on up if you want to talk,” he typed and then tossed his phone back on the counter and went to get a drink. What he wanted was a beer, but knew he’d never sleep if he started to drink now.

  Ten minutes later, the elevator dinged and opened up into his foyer. He looked over to see Grace standing there in black pants and a black T-shirt that almost hung on her from being stretched and sweated through during hours of work. Long gone was her white chef coat and hat. “What do I owe this pleasure to?” he asked.

  “I need to bitch.”

  He laughed. That was normally what Grace did the best. “About what?”

  “Since you’re the boss you are the one I need to come to. Marissa is driving me insane. I think she is driving Jeff insane too.”

  Marissa was the events coordinator for the retreat and Jeff the restaurant manager. “Something with the Johnson wedding?”

  “Yes. I’ve got all the food ordered. Some will be here tomorrow and the rest of it staff are getting in Boston on Friday. Between the rehearsal dinner and the wedding, my hands are full and my mind is in overdrive.”

  “You operate like that every day of the week, weddings or not,” he said.

  He loved his cousin, all five foot two of her, maybe a hundred pounds soaking wet. Family often asked if she ate her own food, but the truth was she never sat still and probably burned it all off.

  “True. But I’m all set and ready to go and in comes Marissa right before the dinner rush tonight to start telling me how to do my job.”

  Hunter grinned. “And we know how much you hate when people tell you anything.”

  She reached for his bottle of water and took a sip, sending him a rare grin. “Except you.”

  “Since I sign your paycheck you tolerate it, but I’m sure you go home and throw darts at a picture of me on your wall.”

  “What are you doing in my bedroom looking at my decor?”

  He burst out laughing. Grace was tough as nails, but not always around him. She was more like twenty-four-carat gold that he could easily bend to his will...when he wanted to. Since they were so close he always felt he could be himself with her.

  “What is Marissa doing?”

  “She came in and told me the bride loved flowers and that maybe I should consider putting edible flowers on all the dishes. Each course.”

  He rolled his eyes. “Edible or not, do people even eat flowers?”

  “No! That’s my point. It’s decoration. And useless decorations at that. The bride and her parents have been to the island and sampled all the plates. They know what they are getting. I’m not stupid enough to change anything based on Marissa. Even if the person footing the bill for this requested it this short of notice, I’d tell them no.”

  “So what do you want me to do?” Hunter asked. “You already told Marissa no.”

  “I did,” Grace said. “I told you, I’m just bitching. There isn’t anything for you to do. Why do you always think you need to solve all the problems? It’s a man thing.”

  “Since I’m a man and I run this place, as you’ve so kindly pointed out, I need to clarify if you want my help or have it covered.”

  “I always have it covered.”

  She did. He’d have to get over the idea that he had to fix everything. He wasn’t sure if it was a man thing like she’d said or a Bond thing. Either way, not everyone appreciated it whether he tried to be firm or nice.

  “You do. So is that all you’ve come here to say?”

  “Pretty much. I’m sure you’re tired. It’s going to be a crazy few days. This is the biggest wedding you’ve had here.”

  “Do you have enough help for the meal?” he asked. “Two hundred and fifty people to feed at once is a lot. Not to mention the restaurant is still open too.”

  The money they were making this weekend was going to be massive. Maybe his grandfather was right—it was big business and starting the season right. Not the love. And why was that popping into his head again? Because he saw Kayla?

  He put his hand to his head to see if he was running a fever or getting sick.

  “Are you okay?” she asked. “You just flushed like you were going to puke.”

  “I’m fine,” he said fast, changing the subject back to the wedding. “So you’re set for the weekend?”

  “I’ve got all hands on deck. Jeff does too. We called in temps like we always do. There are plenty of other staff that are willing to work some extra hours for weddings, but we might want to get some extra summer help. I could use some in the kitchen and I think Marissa might be hitting you up for more for events too.”

  “I’ll keep it in mind,” he said. “Run your numbers and let me know what you need. I’m sure we can work it out. If service is slow it hurts business too.”

  “That’s what I like about you,” Grace said as she stood up. “You listen and don’t say no. At least not right away. I guess I got that gene instead of you.”

  “No is your favorite word. We’ve always known that.”

  She laughed and started to walk back to the elevator. “It is. Thanks, Hunter, for listening to me.”

  “Never a problem. Go home and get some sleep. I’ll talk to you later.”

  He watched Grace get in the elevator and when the doors closed he started to shut the lights off in the penthouse that was way too big for him alone. His parents had stayed here for years but never every night. On the weekends, they often went back to their home in Boston to just get away, leaving the running of the hotel in other senior management hands.

  Not Hunter. He wanted his finger on every pulse. He didn’t have the urge to get off the island like others in his family did. Like his sister, Hailey, who lived and worked in Boston as a lawyer. She had an office on the island with a full-time attorney and some clerks and came here once a week if needed, but it wasn’t her life and she didn’t want it to be.

  He often wondered if she was running from the island as much as he was trying to embrace it.

  Hailey was happy to make her mark in the big city and the island life wasn’t anything she ever wanted to be a part of.

  Too bad the island was in their blood as much as their last name.

  7

  No Win Situation

  Kayla was thrilled she made it to the end of her shift on Saturday morning and that she had the rest of the weekend off.

  She’d thought for sure the night shift would be a piece of cake, but she was wrong.

  People had been coming to the island since Thursday for this wedding booked at the retreat. It was a good thing there were three people on all night, as two of them seemed to be running nonstop.

  She clocked out a few minutes after six, grabbed her purse and keys, and left to go home and get some sleep.

  Her first weekend off and she planned on exploring the island a bit more since she hated that she couldn’t always answer people right away when they asked her questions about the island, often having to research it on the computer.

  She was getting into a rhythm with her sleep too and was curious how it was going to work out going back to a normal schedule for a few days.

  Once she was in the house, she made her way to the bathroom and, as quietly as possible, brushed her teeth and got ready for bed. Then she went to her room and changed into a T-shirt and shorts, pulled the blac
kout curtains closed and climbed into bed.

  The next thing she knew, she was turning over and it was four in the afternoon. She’d slept over nine hours. She’d been getting up easily at three each day and thought she’d have no problem today, but she guessed she was more tired than she’d realized.

  Or maybe she was feeling comfortable here and that she might be able to make this her home? A place to stay for a while? She hadn’t felt that way about any place in her life, not even a sliver of a thought, and here she was after only two weeks. Strange.

  Kayla threw the covers back and walked out of her room, almost bumping into Sidney in the hallway. “Sorry. Are you going into the bathroom?”

  “Just for a second. I’m leaving for work in about thirty minutes and just want to put my makeup on. If you need to pee, go on in and do it. I can get ready with you in there if you want.”

  “No, go ahead. I can wait,” Kayla said. She liked her roommates, but not enough to drop her shorts and squat on the toilet while they could see her.

  “I’ll hurry,” Sidney said.

  Kayla walked into the kitchen and saw Amanda baking. She realized now it was the scent of cookies that woke her. “Oh man. Who are those for?”

  “For us,” Amanda said, picking up a big chocolate chip cookie and handing it over. “I like to bake. I told you I’m the mom of the house. But not only that, it’s your first full week on nights and I thought we could celebrate with cookies. I figured everyone liked chocolate chip.”

  “Everyone who is normal does,” she said, bringing the slightly warm cookie to her mouth and taking a bite. When she pulled it away the chocolate chips spread out like melted mozzarella cheese on a piping hot pizza. “These are ridiculous. Best breakfast ever.”

  “If you have a glass of milk with it, it makes up for cookies as your first meal.”

  “Thanks, Mom,” she said and Amanda laughed. “Bri home? I just ran into Sidney going into the bathroom.”