Jaya shrugged. “I guess I bored him or something. All I know is I came home to find Tamara faking it like a porn star in my bed. No surprise really. He was terrible in bed.”
“Well, at least there’s that. Tamara got what she deserved.”
“Can you believe he tried to tell me he thought she was me? We don’t look that much alike.” She blew out a breath and planted her hands on her hips. “Look. I get it. You think this is some ‘woman scorned’ stuff, but it’s really important to me. I need to get my job back.”
“I know how important this is to you.” He rubbed his hands over her shoulders and she didn’t stiffen. “Though I'm still not sure why you have to get that job back. If things go well with Adele, you'll be able to get any job you want. Why is that one so important?”
She shook herself out of his grip and he let her go easily. “Besides the fact that Derrick doesn’t want me there? This is my family. I belong at Trudeaux. I helped build that place. It's my legacy.” She blew out a breath. “It’s my home.”
A need for home was one thing he could understand. “You can still have a home without being at Trudeaux. Any chance you and your father will work it out?”
“After last night, I doubt it. Without work tying us together, there's nothing really there. After Mom died, he got even more distant. Tams has always been his favorite. But he needs me. He just doesn’t know it. I promised my mother I would look out for both of them.”
Ah, ghosts. She wasn’t the first person to do something trying to please someone who was long gone. He lowered his voice. “She’s gone, Jaya. Do you really think she would want you bending over backwards and making yourself unhappy? I doubt it.”
She softened her chin. “Says the guy who's the perpetual rolling stone and has no responsibilities?”
“Touché.” She did have a point. What the hell did he know about family and responsibility? He’d run from everything that ever mattered.
She scrubbed her hands over her face. “I'm sorry. That wasn’t fair. I'm really keyed up. I need to make this work.”
He shrugged. “But it's the truth, isn't it? I'm the perpetual vagabond. We both know it.”
Jaya eyed him shrewdly. “But you don’t have to be. You’ve already shown you’re smart. You choose the vagabond lifestyle for a reason.” She shrugged. “I wish I knew what it was.”
She was digging too close and it made him itchy. No one ever got this familiar with him except Adele, and he'd already worked out ways to avoid her prying. Jaya was something different. She was getting closer to him than he ever let anybody, and he barely knew her. Good thing he wouldn’t be here long because she was dangerous to him.
“Jaya, I won’t be sticking around.”
Her eyes met his. “I know. But there’s no point in pretending I’m not enjoying myself.”
Chapter Fourteen
When Jaya’s phone rang for the fifth time that afternoon, she considered putting a bullet through it. She should have turned her answering machine off the moment she got home. Trying to appeal to Tamara’s sisterly bonds had backfired on her. She didn’t know what had possessed her to try and reason with her sister. All she wanted was confirmation that Derrick had sabotaged her job prospects. What she’d gotten was a fight. Now she had a migraine looming.
Flopping back on the couch, she covered her eyes. Maybe if she continued to ignore the phone it would just stop ringing.
It was either Tamara, who she didn't feel like fighting with anymore or her father who she really didn’t feel like talking to. Her father thought cellphones were rude so he didn’t ever want to contribute to their noise. Tamara knew Jaya would screen the calls on her cell. Tamara likely didn’t factor in the caller ID on the home phone. But whatever. As Jaya sunk further into the couch with her mug of hot cocoa, she tried not to think about what a disaster her life had become. Her cell buzzed with a text message as the voicemail kicked into her land line. "Jaya Trudeaux, this is Adele Westhorpe’s assistant calling. She would like you to meet with her in her office on Thursday at one PM. please do not be late. Mrs. Westhorpe does not appreciate employee tardiness."
With a frown, Jaya sat up. Yeash! What the hell had she signed up for? Then the word employee filtered into her consciousness. Employee. Holy shit. Adele Westhorpe was offering her the job.
Her thudding heart threatened to beat out of her chest and her throat constricted. Even with the blown interview, she still got the job? Maybe Alec had intervened for her. Though as he was a bartender and Guy-Friday he hardly had the kind of clout needed to get her a job. With sweaty palms, she carefully placed her mug of hot cocoa on her coffee table. Unable to resist, she stood up and employed full booty dance maneuvers. Finally, she had something that was hers, no Tamara involvement whatsoever. And she hadn’t needed her father’s connections.
A sobering thought slapped her in the back of her head. If she did this, then it meant she was no longer part of Trudeaux. She was on her own. What if she couldn’t— she shook her head. She could do this. She was good enough to do this. All she had to do was stay on Adele Westhorpe’s good side. How hard could that be?
All she had to do was pretend Dragon Lady was the male version of Pierre. Lord knew she‘d had enough practice trying to please someone who didn’t want to be happy. And this job didn’t have to mean she’d give up her goal of Trudeaux. She’d be on board as an independent contractor. And Adele Westhorpe might not know it yet, but she was just the kind of client Pierre would love. He’d see it as major cache and hire her back in an instant.
Her mood on rocket boosters, she twirled as she scooped up her cell phone off the coffee table. Checking the text message, she couldn't help but smile. Alec.
We should review the plan for the rehearsal dinner. Want to come over?
If he was so kind as to offer her some help, how could she turn him down? Not to mention that her heart skipped at the thought of seeing him again. Those damned butterflies. It wasn’t like she didn’t know better. “He’s not staying, Jaya. No attachments.” He’d been clear with her. And she’d been clear with him. She just hadn’t been so clear on how he made her feel.
To remind her again why he was on her no go list for emotional entanglements, she pulled up her list of all the reasons why she could not go gaga over Alec. One, She did not have time for a boyfriend right now. Especially now that she was working for Adele Westhorpe and even more so when she got her job at Trudeaux back.
Two, He was not sticking around. As boyfriends went, it was good if they had some roots. Three, He was a sex God. And so good-looking it hurt to look at him. A guy like that would eventually cheat. And next time she couldn’t recover.
Four, She liked him, even though he was a sarcastic, slightly pompous ass who was entirely too reckless with his life. She’d vowed to not care about someone more than they cared about her ever again. Five, He drove her bat shit crazy with his complete and utter lack of forethought or planning. Six, She drove him crazy with her complete need for planning and structure. Seven, She liked him. So what if she already wrote that down. It was a good reminder that liking him was a bad idea…just ‘cause. Eight, He was really sweet. And made her feel like she was the only woman in the world. She needed to remind herself that men lied. Point blank. She could not trust anything he said. But what about what he did? Slamming the thought shut in a lock box, she peered at her list. This was good. She needed the reminder that he was just for fun. Nothing wrong with a little fun. A little fun to work out the kinks. Totally casual.
She repeated her reasons again. Huffing out a breath, she realized how screwed she was. She was already willing to make up any excuse to go over and see him. And a “thank you for getting me that job” reason was as good as any that she'd already been able to come up with.
Maybe it was time to relax her rules. So far they hadn't gotten her anywhere except heart broken and fired. What was the definition of insanity again? Why did she think she was going to get different results if she kept trying to
do the same exact thing? Oh, she'd still go to the wedding and she'd still talk to the client, but not so she could go back to Trudeaux. Not for her father. For her. It was about time she started looking out for herself and doing things just because she wanted to.
Starting now, she was going to start living a little by the seat of her pants. In a hurry to get to Alec, she flitted to her bedroom and kicked off her bunny slippers. Now what did one wear for seduction? It wasn't like she was going to completely abandon who she was. Besides, any good seduction needed a really good plan.
***
“So what’s the emergency?” Alec let Adele into his suite. “I’m supposed to be somewhere in an hour. I already told you, I don’t have any additional information on where Max is. Caleb’s on it.” He stopped when he saw the strained expression on her face.
“There was a visitor at the house last night. Several, actually.”
“What the hell do you mean, a visitor?”
“One of those low-life goons your brother owes money to came to the house in La Jolla, looking for Max. They paid a visit to Sue, as well. She called me in a panic after they threatened her and the baby then left.”
Holy shit. “Where was your security team?”
“I don’t need them in my own house. The system was on, but they must have disarmed it.”
That didn’t sound like any kind of goon he’d heard of. After chasing his brother down in LA, he had taken care of Max’s debt in the hopes of accelerating the Max cleanup effort, so who the hell was paying visits? “Are you okay? They didn’t hurt you, did they?”
She sniffed and wrapped her arms around herself. “Don’t I look fine?”
“No arguments, Mimi. I’m having Caleb put some men on you and Sue. At least until I can find Max. Did they say anything last night? Give any indication of what they were looking for?”
“None of it made any sense. They just kept saying they just wanted back what my son took from them. ‘We’ve moved the cash, but we want our file back. No questions asked if he gives us what we want.’”
“It would make it a hell of a lot easier if we knew what they were talking about.” Alec wrapped his arms around her. “I need the video footage from last night. I’ll take care of it. I promise.”
Her shoulders relaxed a little. “I’m not worried about my safety. I’m pissed off. I’ve been dealing with thugs like that half my life. They’re usually wearing nicer suits, but I know how to handle myself.” The determination and grit woven into her age lines reminded him she was a fighter.
“I hope nothing has happened to him.” The quiver in her voice was unmistakable.
Alec knew where she was going. And he wished she didn’t have to deal with this. Max was her son and she wanted to protect him. But she knew the situation Max was in and made no bones about it. She knew what could happen if they didn’t get him home soon. “Mom, I promised you I’d get him home safe, and I will. You can count on me.” It took him several moments to realize he’d said Mom instead of Mimi or Adele.
She must have noticed too, because she waited several beats to respond. “I know I can count on you.”
Damn. He didn’t want to get into their tortured family stuff now. Jaya was on her way over and he didn’t need to be emotionally raw. Brooders were no fun. “I’ll let you know as soon as I have a lead.”
As she turned to leave, she scrutinized him, taking in his freshly washed hair and looking around the suite. “I interrupted something.”
Man, she was quick. “Nope, going out, that’s all. You’ve had me running around so much, I’m taking a night off.” His phone chimed and he knew it would be Jaya confirming their date, just like she always did. Another one of her quirks he was getting used to.
“What’s your fascination with the Trudeaux girl?”
Alec pinched the bridge of his nose. God help him if Adele decided to butt her nose in. “No fascination, Mimi. She’s a friend.” He could hope all he wanted, but there was no way she would let it go.
“When you said you found me an event planner, she wasn’t what I was anticipating. I expected willowy, earth shatteringly beautiful, blonde and not so bright.”
He bristled. “I don’t only associate with models.”
She chuckled. “Relax. I’m teasing. And I’m not implying she’s not beautiful. She is. Especially with that gorgeous complexion of hers. She’s just a tad more substantial than I expected. Also a bit of a klutz. But she has fire and determination. And so organized it makes even my eyes cross.”
“I don’t care if you think she’s beautiful or not.” Although he did, sort of. If he’d been the kind of guy to bring a girl home, he’d want Mimi’s buy-off and respect.
“Or course you don’t. I know you think I’m butting in. But I—”
“Did you give her the job?” he interrupted.
“Touchy, touchy. Whether or not I give her the job has nothing to do with you, right?”
He let out a long breath. If Adele wanted to string him along, he wasn’t in the mood. “If you say so. You’ll do what you want but when you do hire her, don’t treat her like you treat your other assistants.”
Adele laughed. It was a sound, clear and deep, unexpected and genuine. “You do like her. Will wonders never cease?” Laughing again, she added, “She can take care of herself. She’s not some meek little thing who needs you to protect her. Besides, she’s smart so she has nothing to fear from me.”
As Adele sashayed out of the suite, Alec wondered where he would have ended up without her influence. Somewhere he didn’t want to think about.
Not five minutes later, at the knock on the suite’s door, his palms got sweaty. He looked down at the offending limbs and rubbed them on his thighs. Why was he nervous? He wasn't seventeen with his first girlfriend. He was grown. Done enough things with women to make Casanova blush.
But Jaya's flirtatious text earlier sent his heart thudding in his chest. Schmuck. He had it bad. He'd been all kinds of a moron to think there wasn’t anything serious between them. He should have known on that damn elevator and gotten the hell away from her as quickly as possible. But no, he'd let that voice of hers tempt him into talking that night at the club.
At the memory, his body responded. Blood settled in his cock arming him for battle, so to speak. He blew out a breath and reached for the door. She was just a woman. He'd had dozens. But none of them had her humor, her determination. Her endless lists. How in the world could it be that he found her ridiculous list-making the sexiest thing about her? Probably the way she chewed on her bottom lip every time she added something else to her to-do list. He groaned and drew in a deep breath to settle himself. Get a grip. You’ll scare her off.
Because even though her I’ve got a surprise for you text was flirty, she’d already made it clear she couldn’t handle anything more than a fling. Problem was, Jaya Trudeaux wasn’t the fling kind of girl. She didn’t go around having one-night stands. Or in this case two-week stands. And he clearly wasn't a relationship guy. He knew it better than she did.
Opening up the door, he gave her a smile that said, no, I haven’t been standing on the other side of the door trying to compose myself for the last thirty seconds.
“Hey.” she beamed up at him. “You going to keep me in the doorway, or can I come in?”
Could she come in? His brain tried to work through her words, attempting to decipher into a language he understood. Her voice, as always, melted him and his brain didn't quite kick in the way he hoped. Even wrapped in her Burberry trench and those heels of hers, all he could do was think about her glorious brown skin and how soft it was.
He cleared his throat. “Yeah, of course.” A giggle escaped her lips and his brain skipped again. What had he been saying? Eventually, she reached out and gripped his shoulders, moving him aside.
“What’s gotten into you today?” Her eyes widened even as her brows drew down. “Shit, when you said come over, I thought—” She looked around and her eyes fixated on the La Pe
rla negligee on the chair. Eyes wide, she met his gaze briefly before making a dash for the door.
Confused, he stared after her, but then blocked her path as dawning hit. “Hey, relax. It’s for you. I know it was probably a little impulsive. There’s no one else here. You’re not interrupting anything.” He could have kicked himself. He’d pretty much recreated the scene of Derrick cheating on her. Stupid, schmuck.
Her shoulders relaxed and she let out a breath. She rolled onto her toes, then back on her heels. “I don’t have some sort of claim to you. I know that. I just saw the lingerie there on the chair and, well…” She trailed off and ran out of steam.
Well done, Alec. You’ve cocked it all up. “Okay, totally my bad. We can get rid of the lingerie. No problem.”
She slapped him on the arm. “Don’t be crazy. That looks like La Perla. If you want to see me in it, I can at least try it on.”
He grinned. “Can I actually watch you put it on? ‘Cause God, what a turn on.”
She giggled and his whole body warmed from the inside. “Done deal. But first, I have news.”
He drew her into his arms and nuzzled her neck. “Do you now? Does your news involve you going commando under this trench?”
Jaya raised an eyebrow and played with the sash at her waist. “I got the job. Adele called right before you texted me.” She did a little pirouette and added a booty shake to that right before she launched herself at him.
He caught her, holding on for a moment too long as his body tensed from the contact. What was he doing? Torturing himself. Masochist. “You look happy.”
“I’m thrilled. I mean, I couldn't believe it. Her assistant called me, of course. Not like she could ever call me directly. She's Adele Westhorpe, after all, but it's crazy. I start on Monday. I'm so nervous.”
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