Chapter 2

Pardon my French, but fuck.

Not just fuck, but an exaggerated fuck with a couple extra u's and c's said with a pleasured sigh.

I had no intentions whatsoever to call Kenny and complain. I did, however, have every intention of calling Kenny and asking him who the fuck that perfect-as-hell woman was. That brown hair French braid pulled into a tight bun in the back, those fucking curves for days, and goddamnit, that ass. I have never seen such a perfect fucking ass before. And don't get me started on the respect she oozes. So bloody respectful and a decent human being.

My treacherous cock stands at attention after her departure, and it takes a way too bloody long cold shower to get the blood flow traveling somewhere else. It's best for my head to be clear and prepped for my conversation with Kenny.

I stand under the shower head a moment longer to warm back up with some hot water once my body seems to have finally calmed. I welcome the warm water after the icy water that both calmed what needed calming, but woke me up from my sleepy haze from the night before. Admittedly, I got in late and, therefore, slept in late. I hadn't been awake long before I was in the shower, and literally minutes passed when Kenny calls me and then Cora announces herself.

I wrap a towel around my waist again after drying off and head out of the bathroom. I go for my nightstand and pull my phone from the charger. Collapsing backward onto the bed, I see I don't need to call Kenny to ask him about Cora. He's beaten me to a punch with a text that just says, "Call me ASAP."

I dial his number. I'm not sure what I'm expecting. I didn't do anything wrong, but I sure as hell scared her. That's not the best sign. It's certainly the last thing that I wanted to do.

"Elias," he sighs upon answering. "Think we fucked this one up."

I grimace and pinch the bridge of my nose. This was my worry. The thirty-day test is supposed to be the defining moment of a staff member. It shows whether or not they can handle the job and the stresses that go with said job. It shows whether or not they can think on their feet and come up with solutions. If the thirty-day test goes horribly, it would be repeated two additional times during the ninety-day probationary period. I can't make it to all of these tests or be a part of them, but whenever one coincided with a trip, I was always involved. These people were so new they wouldn't know who I was, anyway.

But this time we went too far. Scared the shit out of an innocent woman.

"Where is she?" I ask with a sigh.

"In the break room. Panicking. I told her to sit there and relax and that I'd come up with a solution. And for once, I'm stumped."

I push off the bed and move to my closet. "Give me twenty minutes. I'll be in your office, and you can bring Cora with you. We'll settle this then and there."

"Go easy on her, would you?" he asks.

"Why?" I ask, thumbing through my suit options.

He doesn't answer right away. I can hear him struggling with the words. "So, you see, she's, um..." He sighs. "Okay, well, she's my niece. I know we frown upon favors with family, but she's had a really rough go and this was the only thing that could help."

I grab a crisp slate gray suit and hang it by the mirror. "Kenny," I sigh. I want to be mad, but I can't. I've known Kenny for over twenty years. He comes from a good place and wouldn't do something if he didn't believe in it.

"I know, I know," he sighs.

"You're lucky I like you and that you do such a bloody good job with this hotel," I reply.

"I know, I know," he repeats. "Cora is an amazing woman. She's down on her luck. This job makes her happy, and it makes my mama happy, and that's all very, very, very important."

I freeze. His mother, his niece... There was a little girl I saw every so often over the years with him and his mother. I thought it was his daughter, but... No way. It couldn't be, could it? The more I think about it, the more I realize... Bloody hell. Cora was that girl? No fucking way. Should I bring it up? Should I bring it up? Should I—

"I have no doubt, Kenny. I respect you for taking care of your family. I'll meet you in twenty." No, it's not worth the trouble right now.

"Of course, sir. I will console her until then."

I hang up and set my phone aside. Is it wrong to have impure thoughts brewing in my head for my hotel manager's sexy-as-hell niece? Yes? No?

God, the fact that I'm even asking that means it's clearly wrong. And yet, I can't stop myself. I can't...

Nope. Nope. I need to get dressed. I don't have time for another cold shower.

I grab a crisp white shirt, dark brown shoes, a matching brown belt, navy socks, and a navy tie. Along with my suit, I relocate to the bathroom and pull myself together. I pride myself on my appearance. Fresh, dry-cleaned suits, always a crisp shirt regardless of color, a silk tie, comfortable socks, polished shoes, trimmed down five o'clock shadow, and perfectly coiffed hair. I embraced the gray well over thirty years ago. It's a signature look for me. I'm quite proud to flaunt it.

I adjust my tie to just the right place before buttoning my suit jacket. I take one look in the mirror from all directions to make sure I look presentable before I leave the bathroom. I detour for my phone, glasses, wallet, watch, and room key.

There's a small sense of dread and maybe even panic as I head to the elevator. It comes immediately the moment I step on. My journey takes me down to the first floor toward the south side of the building. Kenny's office is theoretically just a hop, skip, and a jump away from the main desk, mostly as a precaution should the attendant at the time need him to defuse a situation.

I give Helen a nod as I pass by her desk and step inside Kenny's office. I move directly to the window to marvel at the surprising view. I wanted to be close to water. The Hudson wasn't the best option, but it's a decent option. I helped build this hotel from the ground up, and as a result, I spent more time here than at all the others.

I hear a clamor outside the office before the door opens. It's Kenny whispering to Cora as they enter and then close the door. He clears his throat, and I direct my eyes just to the left to see their faint reflections in the window.

"Miss Cora Eldredge, as promised," Kenny announces.

I nod and slowly turn to face them both. Kenny's nervous. Meanwhile, I watch Cora's shoulders slump. "You've got to be fucking kidding me," she mumbles.

"Pardon?" I ask, knowing full well what she said. I expected no less of a colorful answer.

"Cora, this is Elias Dabney—"

"I know who he is, uncle," she hisses. "Which makes this all the worse for me."

"Excuse me, but why worse?" I ask.

She looks at me like I'm stupid. "You're joking, right? Am I not the only one who sees this? I fucked up here. I have multiple rules I'm to abide by while working here, and I broke one of the main ones."

I know what she's talking about, but I want her to humor me. "Enlighten me, Miss Eldredge. What rule did you break?"

She sighs, no doubt annoyed, but it's important that I know she knows the rules. I can't just automatically assume like I want to. "No housekeeper should work in a room that is presently occupied. I'm not dumb. I know what's acceptable and what's not. This behavior of mine is unacceptable and inexcusable."

"Cora, don't be silly," Kenny says. "You were told it was okay."

"This isn't a special circumstance. I should have trusted my gut, and yet, I went for it anyway," she grumbles as she begins to pace. "Twenty-nine days of zero blemishes and on the thirtieth day, I get a strike," she mumbles before shaking her head. "What's my punishment?"

Kenny and I exchange a confused look before we look at her. "There's no punishment, Cora," Kenny replies. "You didn't screw up. This was a test, Mija, and you passed."

She shakes her head. "You're wrong. I fucked up."

"Miss Eldredge," I sigh.

"Would this particular incident fly any other time?" she asks, looking at Kenny and then me. "Would it be acceptable for a housekeeper to clean an occupied space under different circumstances?"

I find myself struggling for an answer. She's not wrong. And this is why I hate these necessary tests. There's always a loophole, and she found the biggest one. "No," I finally answer.

She unties her apron and begins emptying the contents of her pockets on the desk. She can't be serious right now.

"You're not fired, Miss Eldredge. This was a test and you passed," I remind her. "You're the perfect addition to the Rowan Laurel."

She shakes her head. She's persistent as fuck, and I'm secretly enjoying this. A woman who knows what's right and wrong and puts her foot down is pretty fucking sexy. "No, I didn't pass. There's no way I could have ever passed. I failed because this wouldn't fly any other time," she replies. "And since you won't fire me for a gross abuse of a very important cardinal rule, I quit. I refuse to allow myself to be tricked and caught up in some other scheme again that breaks my walls down and gets me severely in trouble."

"Cora, think about this," Kenny sighs, trying to intervene. "What would Mimi think?"

She looks him directly in the eyes with a stare that freaks me out three feet away. "That I'm doing the right thing, and you know it. I have to stand for what's right, test or not," she answers. "I'll bring my dresses to you tonight when I come over for dinner, and I'll take the lock off my locker as I leave."

"Mija," he sighs.

She shakes her head. "I'm sorry for how this turned out," she frowns before looking at me. "And I'm sorry for the intrusion of privacy. You're a priority one guest who deserves better, and I hope the next one can deliver as promised."

I open my mouth. I want to say something, but Kenny beats me to the punch, quietly talking to her as she leaves, but she wants nothing to do with him or the situation. That's when he sighs the heaviest I've ever heard him sigh, and he sits down in the chair in front of his desk.

"This is my fault," he mutters. "I failed her yet again."

I shake my head and unbutton my suit jacket as I sit in the chair across from him, his usual chair. "You didn't fail her, Kenny," I reply. "I admire that she knows the rules of the brand so well. And for that, I'm not accepting her verbal proclamation of quitting, nor will I be firing her. For now."

He looks up at me. "For now?" he asks.

I nod. "I'm giving her three days of unprecedented PTO to get her affairs in order. I need her back here the morning after the third day, promptly at nine o'clock. She and I need to have an important chat. If she doesn't show up, then I will indeed and very much so fire her."

There's hope in his eyes again. This is a man greatly affected by adversity. I knew the matters of his personal life. I knew it was a rough go for him, that he hoped that helping Cora out would make the world okay again for him. The fact that today happened kind of put a damper on that progress.

"Thank you, Elias," he says softly. "This means a lot to me."

I lean back in the chair. "Why?" I ask. "Why does it mean so much to you? What do you owe Cora?"

He chuckles and shakes his head. "It's not Cora I owe. It's Carlotta Eldredge, formerly Ortega, my older sister. She and her husband died when Cora was six. She always told me that if something were to happen to her or to her husband Martin, that I needed to be there for Cora if I could be. So when they died, Mama brought her back to New York from Los Angeles and officially adopted her, I was an active part of her life. Helping her get this job was to provide her with security."

A lot of questions swim through my mind, and I realize each of them is not my place and therefore, I don't ask any. Except for one: "Security? What kind?"

"Job security," he says. "Cora went to college for sports medicine at Stony Brook and modeled to help pay for school, but it seems that those opportunities are drying up, and she can't stay local like she wants to for sports medicine. She's at a crossroad, and we decided being here with a steady job would allow her to figure out what to do next."

I'm learning more about Cora than I expected to, but it all explains a lot. Her work ethic, her respect, her level head, her good heart, and a lot of other things that like to fuel those impure thoughts I've been fighting. I mean, her body is the perfect example of her dedication to physical health and well-being, and that's where I will leave my impure thoughts. I can't let them win again.

"So," I say, standing. I button my suit jacket and clear my throat, "talk to her, please. Let her have the rest of the day and tomorrow and maybe a bit of the next day and then try talking to her again. If you need to bring me into the mix before then, please give me a ring. I'd be happy to lay things out for her." And eventually lay her out too.

Fuck, stop it.

"Of course," Kenny says, standing too.

I walk around the desk to shake his hand firmly. "You're a good man, Kenny," I declare, patting his back with my free hand. "Keep up the good work with this hotel. I swear I need one of you at all of my hotels. The Rowan Laurel is the best run hotel in the brand."

Kenny squirms a bit. He's not one to take praise very well. It makes him uncomfortable. "Thank you, sir," he mumbles, giving me a weak smile before we both leave his office.

"I'll be around today, but maybe not necessarily at the hotel," I remark as we stop just in front of Helen's desk. "I have some matters to take care of, but if you need anything today, please do give me a ring."

He nods and smiles. "Will do. Thank you again," he replies.

He disappears, and I glance over at Helen. "Keep an eye on him today," I say, knocking on the corner of her desk. "He's frazzled today."

She grimaces and nods. "I will certainly do that."

I give her a nod and pull my phone from my pocket as I walk down the hallway. I have a business meeting outside the hotel with, well, my bloody parents, and I'm already late and they're going to chew my ass. But it's never a casual get-together with them anymore. I wrote them out of my life almost twenty-two years ago when I was forced to take over the Dabney-Aparo brand because my grandfather's health was failing and my bloody father wished not to be a part of the chaos. But this is good. This is the anger I need to get my mind right and push the thoughts of Cora to the side. I can't let her distract me. It's unfair, especially to her. She deserves better than myself, even if that's all I want to give her.