He clears his throat. “Sorry for the call, but we have a situation.”
“What kind of situation?”
“Alyssa. She seems pretty upset.”
Shit. Just what I don’t need to deal with right now. Unfortunately, I don’t have much choice. “What’s going on?”
“I don’t know. She’s asking to see you, Jared. She’s down here in the office.”
“You mean she’s at the house right now?”
Behind me, the French doors open and Melanie steps out. Fuck. Talk about even more bad timing.
Every article of her clothing is fixed in place as primly and perfectly as it was when she arrived, her clear gaze leveled on me with the same disapproval and mistrust.
The bright flush of color in her cheeks is new, though, and I’m not sure if that heat is directed at me in outrage or something else. After the way I just treated her inside that room, I wouldn’t be surprised to feel the heat of her palm striking my face in another second.
I wrench my focus back to the other problem at hand.
“Did Alyssa say what she needs?”
“You know her. She only wants to talk to you. She looks like shit, Jared.”
I curse under my breath. When I glance at Melanie I am met with a scathing look of rebuke—and not a little amusement.
“I’m sorry,” Nate says. “I should’ve told her you were tied up for the day. I’ll take care of it—”
“No.” My answer is clipped, but firm. “Tell her to stay put. I’ll be right down.”
“Female trouble?” Melanie asks as soon as I end the call, challenge gleaming in her stare.
I’m tempted to explain, but that would mean blurring the line that’s been drawn between us in the sand today. Besides, Alyssa is my personal business. I’m not going to air her problems in public any more than I would my own. Where mine are concerned, Melanie Laurent has already seen more than I’d like.
I slip my phone back into my pocket. “As much as I was looking forward to getting started with you, Ms. Laurent, unfortunately, it will have to wait until tomorrow.”
I can hardly say she looks disappointed.
“Eight o’clock,” I tell her. “I don’t expect you’ll be a second late.”
“Why would I be? The sooner you start your painting, the sooner we can be done with each other.”
I grunt, stifling a smile. “Come, I’ll walk you out.”
She refuses my gesture to accompany her. “Don’t bother, I know the way. It sounds like you have your hands full enough as it is.”
Without waiting for my permission or my reply, she turns away from me and leaves for the elevator on her own.
11
MELANIE
With a large serving tray balanced on my hand, I carry five orders of Thursday’s turkey-and-gravy lunch special out to the group of silver-haired women chattering over iced teas at the back of my section at the diner.
“Here you go, ladies.” I set the heaping plates down in front of them, tucking the emptied tray under my arm while I ask if I can bring them anything else.
I wasn’t supposed to work until Saturday, but with an entire day to kill after my abrupt dismissal from Jared Rush’s mansion this morning, I decided I’d rather pick up an extra shift than spend the rest of the day at home steaming over the infuriating audacity of the man.
I’d also like to forget that I took my clothes off in front of him, but that’s never going to happen. Even though I had almost convinced myself it was simply a requirement of the job I’ve entered into on my own free will, it didn’t feel like a job.
