“I’ve asked her in times past. She never had any interest.” Martin guessed from the look on Edward’s face that the man was itching to argue, and that Edward would jump in like a pit pull and try to tear him apart if Martin tried to defend his actions.
He decided if he brought up the subject there might be less ammunition. “I suppose everyone can tell, things aren’t perfect between Celia and me. We had no idea things were going to escalate so quickly.”
Martin was thankful when Mike spoke next. He must have sensed the hostility from Edward. “Sometimes, nothing you try will fix things. Some people were just never meant to be together.”
“I didn’t know the two of you were having troubles,” Roger stated, pulling his attention away from the bike long enough to speak. “Celia didn’t say anything.”
“Do you think she would?” Edward added. “It has to be humiliating. She throws this big party in this fine house, and now she’s losing it all.”
Martin really wanted to give Edward a piece of his mind, but instead he considered Celia’s feelings. “It’s nothing she did. It's just not working out. We tried, but in the end we want different things. I’m sure she feels regret, just like I do. She feels like she’s wasted her time, but things just had to run their course.”
“Still it’s lousy timing,” Edward added, and the man walked out. Martin started to turn and say something but Mike spoke.
“Don’t waste your time. It’s none of his concern. Things like this should stay between the man and the woman that are involved. It’s hard enough when you lose a relationship without having to try and explain things to everyone.”
Roger, Jerry and William all seemed to agree, but it didn’t take long for the two older men to excuse themselves and take off. Roger, though, stayed. “Hey, life is short. I love my sister, but if you’re not the one for her, she needs to figure that out and move on.”
“You’re wise beyond your years,” Mike said.
“I lost a good friend a couple of years back. It taught me a lot. I don’t think I’ve ever looked at things the same since. Life goes fast, and you don’t get a second chance. You have to try to get it right the first time.”
Roger looked down to the bike, then at his watch, and spoke. “Are we still on for some fishing? I have a feeling we all may be leaving sooner than we planned, but I’m game to stay in a hotel a few days. I need a good vacation.”
“I’m not going to run anyone off,” Martin laughed. “Things may not be as smooth as they could be, but everyone is more than welcome to stay until the New Year, just like we planned.”
“You sure?” Roger seemed to brighten.
Martin laughed. “I may put Edward on a plane, but the rest of you are welcome to stay.”
“I can live with that.” Roger smiled and walked toward the door. “I think I’ll go make sure Edward isn’t in here trying to stir up trouble.”
Once Roger was inside Mike moved and leaned against the counter. He picked up a magazine, read the front cover, and laid it down. “Well, what’s the scoop? Is it over? Celia didn’t seem too broken up.”
“It’s over.” Martin also moved, straddled the bike, sat down, and looked at Mike. “I don’t think she’s broken up. I think her pride’s hurt. I just wish we could have kept this from that bunch. I tried to wait until they were gone, but I just couldn’t. I didn’t want to drag it out.”
“What about the other girl, the maid that thinks I’m Joe?”
“She knows now. I think we’re working past that. I’m not sure. I haven’t had a lot of time to talk to her.”
Mike crossed his arms. “So Celia’s out and the maid's in. Are you sure that’s a good idea?”
“No,” Martin laughed, "but I have to know. I’m not going to rush things. She’s not in, like you mean. We will be dating at some point, when I think it’s safe to ask her out. She’s a little spitfire. You should have seen her when she found out I’d been lying. I had to pin her to the bed to keep her from hurting me.”
“Hurting you?”
“Well, the long and short of it is, Celia set us up. She had me coming out of the bathroom while Randi was cleaning our bedroom. Randi thought the worst. She was waiting for me when I came out. Wearing nothing but a towel, I was a bit worried. She was throwing things at me, so I pinned her down on the bed. Things calmed down quickly.”
“I bet they did.”
“Not like that. It could have been, but I didn’t want to press my luck. She’d quit throwing things so I tried to explain. It didn’t work, but then last night, she was ready to listen.”
“She’s not still here, is she?” Mike laughed when Martin kind of shrugged.
“You’re crazy, having them both here in the same house.”
“It wasn’t all my doing. She was working, and I didn’t want to ask Celia to leave. They did pretty well. Neither of them has started a cat fight.”
“Don’t take any chances. You better get Randi out of here if she’s not gone yet. I think it would be a wise move.”
“You could be right. For a while I wasn’t sure that Randi even wanted me, but now that I think she might. Things could go downhill again.”
Mike nodded. “Is she here now?”
“No, she’s gone to spend some time with her family. I don’t expect her back until tonight to help clean up.”
“Good. Things should be safe for a while. Want to take a spin? I think I’ll head out before the bullets start to fly. You might want to join me, at least till eight.”
Martin laughed and reached for the key to his bike. “Sounds like a plan to me.”
Chapter 64
Catch A Falling Star
Randi felt energized after spending time with her new pups and her family. Everyone was in such a good mood, laughing, singing, and the kids playing with new toys. Even the pups, Lady and Bandit, were enjoying the company.
Randi enjoyed her time but couldn’t stop glancing at her watch. When it was close to six-thirty, she rose and went to feed the dogs. Seconds later she heard someone step into the kitchen. She guessed it would be her mother.
“Can I help?” Jamie, her cousin, asked.
“Sure, grab me the old can opener in that first drawer.”
Jamie did as she asked, and then handed her the dogs' bowls too. “I heard Aunt Dottie talking before dinner. She was telling Uncle Joe why you weren’t here. Is it true you’re working for someone famous?”
Randi let out a deep sigh. She never wanted the kids to find out anything about her work. Dumping the food out into the two bowls she considered what to say. Jamie was sixteen, in love with ever man on the earth, and she wondered if she’d ever heard of Martin Taylor.
“I guess I could tell you a few things, but you can’t tell anyone, and I mean that. This is my job and I can’t have anyone knowing what I’m doing. I get paid well, so even if I do tell you who I’m working for I can’t tell you anything about them.”
“I can understand.” Jamie walked over to the sink and smiled. “What can you tell me? Is it a woman or a man?”
Randi handed Jamie one of the bowls. “If you come outside I’ll give you a name, and if by time I leave this evening the whole family doesn’t know, I might tell you something else.”
“Deal.” Jamie held out her hand. The two of them shook and went out the back door into the yard. The moment the dogs heard the door squeak they came running. Jamie took both bowls, walked over to the dogs, and set them down. She patted each dog before straightening, then turned to look at Randi.
The look on Randi’s face must have shown she wasn’t happy about their conversation because Jamie spoke again. “I promise I won’t tell anyone. I just want to know. Is it anyone really, really cool? Someone I might know?”
Randi sat down on the back door steps and looked out toward the street. “I don’t know, that might depend on what movies you watch, or how much television—”
“I watch a lot of everything.” Jamie walked over and sat down beside Ran
di. Her long black hair was pulled back in a ponytail and it made her look a lot younger than sixteen.
Randi turned from the empty street and looked at Jamie. “You better not tell any of that bunch in there. I don’t want to deal with a thousand questions.”
“I won’t. I promise.”
Randi was pretty sure she could trust Jamie, as much as anyone could trust a sixteen-year-old. She looked at Jamie and told her what she wanted to know, well at least some of it. “The man’s name is Martin Taylor, and he’s been in several—”
“I know what he’s been in! Man he’s hot. Wow, I can’t believe this. Is he really rich? Let me change that. Does he have a really nice house? No details, just is it nice?”
“It’s really nice, and you’re right, he’s really hot.” Randi knew she would have to be careful. If Jamie honed in on the fact that something was going on other than her cleaning the man’s house, the questions would never stop.
“How do you go about getting a job like that? Do you have to take a special test or something?”
“The main thing is they have to trust that you’re not going to get around these famous people and go nuts. Wanting their autograph and things like that. They really have to trust you.”
“How did you get started?”
“Well, you know how my mother is. When I was growing up she didn’t let us have a television in the house.”
“I’ve heard her say that, but I didn’t believe her. She really didn’t let you have a TV? Not even a small one?”
“No she didn’t. Not any size. She wanted us to go outside and play instead of sitting inside all day.”
“She’s still that way, and she’s right, I am starting to put on a little weight.”
“You do need to put a stop to that, while you’re young. Start going out and getting some exercise, play some basketball or tennis. You don’t want to go down an unhealthy path. Not to mention the problems it will cause you in school.”
“I know, I have a couple of friends that are overweight and the other kids make fun of them. One girl has thyroid problems, but the other one is lazy.” Jamie shrugged then looked back to Randi. “So, since you didn’t watch TV, you got the job?”
“That helped, but now and then they put you on this lie detector and make sure you’re telling the truth. The stars would report you if were acting like you were in love with them, too. You know, all gooey-eyed. Oh, Mr. Taylor can I have your autograph?” Randi leaned over, wrapping her arms around Jamie kissing her cheek.”
“I get it.” Jamie said pushing Randi back, and they both started laughing. “That would probably get you fired.”
“Most of the time. It might work for a few. Some of them crave attention.” Randi crossed her arms, resting them on her knees. “When I first started working for Mr. Taylor I didn’t even know who he was, and I hadn’t seen any of his movies. While I was cleaning, I found one of his movies and watched it. That was a bad move. It really changed the way I looked at him.”
“Which one did you watch?”
“Momentum, it was about—”
“I know that one. He’s really hot in that movie.”
“Yes, he is.”
“What now? Since you know who he is, can you still work there?”
“I have to go back tonight and help do cleanup, but I’m pretty sure my job there is about over. It was only temporary, until after New Year's. I may stay on a few more days, but then it’s back to someone new.”
“You do this all the time?”
“Yes.” Randi glanced at her watch. “It’s my regular job.”
“How do you not watch television? I just can’t imagine that.”
Randi laughed. “I read a lot, I rent older movies. I watch the old comedies. It’s not a big problem. You don’t miss what you’ve never really gotten used to.”
“I guess so.” Jamie rose the minute she heard her mother yelling. “I better go see what she wants. She probably just wants me to change Danny. Can we talk more when I’m done?”
“Sure, but I’ll need to leave around seven-thirty.”
“I’ll be back in a few.” Jamie went inside and Randi glanced at her watch. It was six forty-five. She knew this evening she would be facing the probability of running into Martin. She wished she could talk to someone about what had been going on. She might be able to tell her mother, but not now, with the whole family here.
Randi rose and walked out, playing with Bandit and Lady. They’d eaten and were ready for an adventure, running around the yard. She tossed the ball a few times, waiting for Jamie. She had an idea her niece wanted to know more about the other people she’d worked for.
Randi had been employed by several famous stars. Some Jamie would know, others names she wouldn’t’ recognize. Randi had some interesting stories to tell, but when you got down to it, there was only one person she wanted to talk about right now, and that was her current employer, Martin Taylor.
Chapter 65
The Long Ride Home
When Martin and Mike parted ways, Martin pulled into a local station to fill up his tank and make a phone call. Something Mike suggested earlier in the day had settled in, and Martin knew what he had to do, or what he should do.
It was time to send Randi home. There was no need to make Celia more uncomfortable or angry by keeping Randi in the house.
As Mike said, it was asking for trouble to have both women in the same house. It was also a bit on the disrespectful side to Celia.
He didn’t want to hurt her needlessly. He just no longer cared to be in a relationship with her. If he was a spoiled brat like some of the stars he knew he’d send Celia and her family packing. Thankfully, he wasn’t raised that way.
Martin took out his credit card, prepaid fifteen dollars, pumped his gas, and pulled over to the side to call Emma. It took her only a few minutes to answer, another five minutes to find Randi’s address.
As he entered the numbers into his GPS Emma spoke. “I can do this for you if you want me to. It’s not necessary for you to go over there. I can just call her and tell her that her services are no longer needed."
“You could, but I want to talk to her and I don’t want to do it over the phone.” Emma paused and after a moment spoke.
“Does that mean you want me to stay, or find someone else to help with the cleaning until the extra company has left?”
“If you can get someone in tomorrow that will be fine, but don’t worry about tonight. I don’t want you staying. We can deal with any mess, and besides, mom won’t care if she has to do a few things.”
“You shouldn’t ask your mother to do something like that.”
“Trust me. She won’t mind. Go home and enjoy the rest of your day. If dirty dishes have to stay in the sink, then so be it. You better not be there when I get home.”
“Don’t worry, sir, I won’t. And I’ll do my best to fill her position first thing tomorrow morning.”
“Thanks, Emma. I appreciate all your hard work during this fiasco. Don’t worry, I’ll pay you for your trouble.”
“Thank you, sir, extra cash is not necessary, but I never was one to turn down a gift, either.”
Martin laughed, "Merry Christmas, Emma.”
“You too, Martin. Goodnight.”
Martin mounted his bike, put his helmet on, and drove off. He couldn’t wait to see Randi. He wasn’t really sure how to handle the "You’re fired" part, but he didn’t want her working for him anymore. Dating was one thing, but her days of being his maid were over.
The night air was a bit cool and he was thankful he’d remembered a jacket. An idea of getting a hotel room somewhere after talking to Randi entered his mind, but there was his family to consider and also it would be in bad taste to leave Celia alone to face everyone.
With Randi out of the house Celia wouldn’t feel as threatened. Hopefully she’d be easier to deal with. Maybe Roger would be right and some of the family members would magically come up with an excuse for ending their Christ
mas holiday early.
Edward would more than likely be the troublemaker if there was one. Shame they all couldn’t be as easygoing as Celia’s brother Roger. He had his head on straight, but going through something like losing a friend could definitely cause you to see things differently.
The GPS led Martin down a small street. The houses were all decorated in colorful lights, and it reminded him of how distracted he’d been from the holiday and its usual merriment. He slowed the bike and smiled as he pulled up to the correct house.
Randi was in the back yard playing with the dogs, and she hadn’t paid that much attention to him as he came to a stop. In a busy neighborhood he assumed one would learn to tune out passing traffic. He stopped the bike, took his helmet off, and called out, “Hey, lady!”
*****
Randi thought she’d heard something, but wasn’t sure. She’d just been digging a ball out from behind the bushes when she heard someone call out. She grabbed the ball, straightened, tossed a fuzzy Santa toy to Bandit, and then turned and began walking toward the back fence.
When she turned she had expected to find the old broken-down Mazda that belonged to Steve and Sherry, neighbors dropping off some presents for her parents.
Instead, she found a gorgeous and very unexpected man of steel. She smiled, thought of her hair and what it might look like after digging for the toy in the bushes, and quickly did what she could without seeming too obvious.
Pulling her hair into submission with one quick motion she kept walking toward the fence. “All you’re missing is a pair of tight leather pants and some dark sunglasses. Should I call you Moses?”
Martin smiled, put his kickstand down, moved off the bike and expertly rested the helmet on the back seat. “I’m just plain old Martin tonight.” He looked up quickly. “I thought you hadn’t seen any of my movies.” He walked to the fence, crossed his arms and smiled.
Randi rested her hands on the fence, feeling like if she didn’t grasp onto something she might just think this was a dream. “I happened across a DVD of Momentum in your TV room. I must say I couldn’t resist when I saw the cover.”
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