The Romance Challenge, Complete Series Box Set: BBW Hot Alpha Billionaire Romance (8 page)

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Shadowing the housekeepers turned out to
be fun. The women didn't seem to mind my presence and answered my endless
questions cheerfully. The job was tough, no doubt about that. And I knew it
didn't pay all that well. Sometimes our wage scale in America seemed so unfair.
Anyone who worked this hard should make more money, and most of these women really
needed it. They weren't just working so they could shop and buy new shoes. They
had to pay bills and put food on the table for their families.

 I was glad for the activity, glad to be
busy and keep my mind off Nathan and last night. When Chris texted me and asked
if I wanted to go to lunch, I eagerly agreed. More distraction, and I wanted to
get to know her better. Chris appeared ambitious, but fun-loving and relaxed. Maybe
it was from living down here, or maybe she had another secret. She also seemed
comfortable with her not-so-skinny body, and I for sure wanted to talk to her about
that.

 She picked me up out front, we drove to a
cute place that overlooked the water, and once we got our iced teas, she leaned
on the table.

"So, how's it going?"

"Fine. Everyone is really nice, and
the employees seem to like their jobs. This place is absolutely beautiful, and
I love the suite I've got. Speaking of that, can we stop by a grocery store on
the way back? I'd like to eat a few meals in my room. I've got a refrigerator,
stove and microwave. Might as well use them."

"Sure. Those executive suites are pretty
darn nice. I'm glad to hear work is going well. And are you having a little fun
too? Have you been out anywhere in the evening yet?"

"I went out to dinner last night with
Nathan."

Something must have shown on my face, hard
as I tried to keep it blank, because she cocked her head and gave me a look.
"And?"

"And what?"

"What happened at your dinner with
Mr. Hot and Yummy?"

"Nothing. It was a business dinner.
He wanted to show me around."

"Hmmm." She took a sip of her
tea.

I didn't want to lie to Chris, and I sort
of wanted her input. Without telling her anything. "Why would you think
something might happen? Have you heard any gossip about Nathan, and other
women?"

"Nope, not the least bit. But I get
the impression, the way he looks at you, he's got a thing for you."

My heart skipped a beat. "A thing?
Oh, come on. Guys like him don't mess around with women like me."

"Like you? What, because you're not a
billionaire? Rich men date, and even marry, regular women all the time."

"Like me, like large. The Nathans of
this world goes out with skinny girls. Haven't you noticed that?"

"Nah. Some of them do. Others, the
smart ones, they want a woman with meat on her bones. More to hold onto,
softer, when they get doing the…" She made a crude gesture with her
fingers and I about spit tea out my nose.

"Chris!"

"It's true. You ask most guys, when
it comes down to it, they'd rather be with a real-size woman than a toothpick.
One who's healthy and takes care of herself. Like us. There's two dudes over
there. Let's ask them if they think we're hot."

"Of course they'll say yes. If
there's a chance of getting laid, guys will say anything. But for actual
dating, taking out places, marrying, I don't think so."

"Then let's find out."

Oh, no. She wouldn't. Before I could stop
her, Chris slid off her stool and wandered over to the next table.

"Hey, help settle an argument my
friend and I are having. Do you guys think we're hot? Would you date us if you weren't
hooked up with another fine woman?"

"Shit yeah," the first guy said.

"We're not too big? You don't just like
model-thin little things?"

OMG. Both men looked my way. I didn't know
whether to laugh or slide under the table to hide.

"You're not big. You're just right. I've
got some padding myself." He pinched at his waistline. "And I'm
single, by the way." He waggled his eyebrows at her.

"Sorry, I'm spoken for. A
good-looking guy like you won't be single long, believe me. How about
you?" Chris turned to the other man.

"I'm gay, but I don't go for super
thin men. It's not healthy." He shook his head. "Those models, uh-uh.
They look like malnourished giraffes. Not for me."

"Thanks guys. Behave now."

She sauntered back over and plunked down
in her chair. "You see? The masses have spoken. We're perfect."

I didn't know Chris well enough to tell if
she was for real. Those guys could be her friends, for all I knew, and they
were just having fun with me.

"Men like Nathan though, they've got
an image to keep up. Even if they like how larger women look, they'll go with
the slim, trim ones when it comes time to go out in public, and for sure when
they tie the knot." I took a sip of my tea.

"Hang around down here a while
longer. You'll see. Television has warped everyone's perspective. Real men want
real women. Trust me. So, you thinking about going after Nathan?"

"Heck no. He's my boss. That would
not end well."

"How do you know? You looked into your
magic crystal ball? There's no telling what makes for a happily-ever-after.
Remember that. Words of wisdom from Chris."

"So what about you? Do you really have
a boyfriend or were you fibbing to that guy?"

"I got a dude. Here's our food."

We dug in and Chris said nothing else
about that subject, but chattered on about Key Largo and all the things to do
in the area. I picked up, she didn't want to talk about her man, but if I got
to know her better, I wanted to hear more. She radiated joy, so whoever the guy
was, he made her happy. She had a healthy appetite and ate with gusto and was
fun to talk to. Lunch ended too soon, and we stopped off at a grocery store,
where I picked up fruit, bagels, cream cheese, lunch meats and bread.

And a few frozen dinners. I strongly
suspected Nathan wouldn't be taking me out to a restaurant again.

I finished out the afternoon observing the
laundry service, writing up my notes, and reading. I enjoyed the sunset from my
room this time, then worked on an editing project. Before I climbed into bed, I
stepped outside on my little patio. So beautiful! Bright flowers still bloomed
and the plants held their green color. I couldn't resist a quick walk around,
so I put on my shoes and headed to the water. What would it be like to live
here all the time? To be able to stroll down to the bay and stick my toes in
whenever I wanted to? To not have the responsibility of my sister?

My chest tightened, and I froze. How could
I think such a thing? It was my fault she was attacked. My fault she climbed
into that shell. I should be grateful I made enough money to add to her
disability and see that she was taken care of. She wasn't that much trouble. I
resumed walking. Other people dealt with more serious obligations. And anyway,
I would hire a detective soon and we'd catch the man responsible. I had to
focus on that goal.

If I didn't get fired. I wanted so much to
call Nathan and talk to him about that kiss. If I could even tell him how nice
it was, and that I didn't expect anything from him. Just that I enjoyed it and
hoped we'd still be friends. Or at least business associates that got along really
well. I missed him today.

But I shouldn't. I should leave it alone.
He clearly didn't want to talk about it and if I brought it up again, he might
get mad. I didn't know Nathan that well, maybe not even as well as I thought I
did.

Wednesday

According to my schedule, I would observe
the night shift employees on Wednesday, so I slept in late. I ate in my suite
for breakfast, glad I'd bought food. I was technically off duty until later, so
I decided to walk around the island on my own and explore. With this perfect
weather, I wouldn't get overheated or freeze my butt off.

Key Largo was the largest Key and had many
shops, restaurants and things to do. I'd read a lot about the area online and
wanted to get to John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park to check out the divers,
and maybe even take a tour at the Botanic Gardens at Kona Kai Resort. But I'd
need to call Chris for that since they were both some distance away. Another
day. There were places I could walk to today.

A funky consignment store kept me occupied
for an hour, and after that, I visited a few restaurants to check out the
menus. Then, a trip to a shoe store for another pair of flops. I talked with
the owner for an hour, chatting about how much she enjoyed living and working
in this area. After that, I ate lunch in my suite, then plopped on the bed to
nap. My biorhythms would be all thrown off by doing a night shift, but I needed
to see what went on during those hours.

I dozed off and by the time nine o'clock
rolled around, my energy was restored. I strolled around the exterior of the
hotel first, enjoying the quiet. Noise from the road sounded, but not overly
loud. Enough lighting made me feel safe, and I noticed the bulb at my suite had
been replaced. Guests hung out at Tiki Largo, enjoying an evening drink on the
deck.

I picked up my laptop from my room, then I
visited the pool, laundry area, and even tiptoed down the hallways of the guest
rooms. Nothing going on. I set myself up at the front, where the night desk
clerk, David, played games on his phone. I had my editing work I could do and
didn't think Nathan would mind.

David and I chatted for a little while. He
had a full-time job as a grocery store manager and was happy to have this night-shift
work at Bay Paradise to earn extra money.

"Me and the old lady, we take
vacation as much as we can. Going to buy us a camper next month, do some sightseeing
around here local. Then when we retire, we'll hitch that baby to the back of
the truck and take off, for weeks at a time. No schedule, no alarms, no
worries."

"Sounds like fun. I'd love to
travel."

"Get out while you can. Life is too
short. My lady, she had cancer two years ago. Scared the hell out of us. We
swore if she made it through, we'd make more time together. Have more fun,
worry less about the small stuff. Balance. You know what I mean?"

I nodded. David was right. Life was short.
But how
did
you balance obligations with fun? Responsibility with
pleasure? I didn't have a clue. Even before Michelle's attack, I figured my
life would be entwined with hers. That I should stay nearby, in case she needed
help. We'd always been together.

Thea's voice came back to me, suddenly. Telling
me I used my sister as an excuse to avoid relationships. That I needed to
explore my feelings about my parents' divorce, about trust and men, and even my
thoughts with my body image. And that we'd discuss it more in our next session.

Except there wasn't a next session. I saw
her twice, and that was enough, as far as I was concerned. I was too busy to go
digging into my past. Yeah, I had bad feelings about Mom and Dad splitting up.
Everyone got depressed about divorce. But I didn't let it affect me. That
wasn't why I didn't have a man around. I just didn't want a super serious
relationship at this point in my life.

My body image? I remember Thea saying that
and wanting to grab my purse and stalk out of her office right then. How would
she feel if she'd been born a large girl, instead of a skinny little thing? Always
being picked as the goalie in high school soccer, always shopping in the
big-girl clothing section. Listening to her mom introduce her to people as
"my husky daughter." She might have a few issues too.

I got up and went to the bathroom, needing
a break to get my thoughts back onto the job and away from those old ghosts.
When I returned to the desk, David was playing his games again and I resumed my
editing work.

"Hey, I'm going to take a
break," David said after two hours. "I usually have to stay here, but
I could really use a walk tonight, get some fresh air. Would you mind watching
the desk? Nothing much happens this late. Here's my cell number. Call me if it
does and I'll come right back."

I agreed, making a note to suggest the night-shift
desk person be given some type of relief. Little had happened during this time.
A few phone calls, two guests passing by, asking for information about the
nearby park. Still, sitting in one spot for hours got tedious.

Since no one was around, I fell into my
usual pattern of reading aloud as I edited a story. It helped me get a feel for
the rhythm of the words, especially with fiction.

"Help me! My ship has been taken over
by an alien crew. I grabbed this communicator and I'm hidden in the air duct system."

"Sounds serious."

I jumped. Nathan stood off to the side of
the lobby, watching me with a slight grin.

"Good story or real life?" He
strode to the desk and before I could shut my laptop, leaned over to see what I
was doing.

"It's, uh, a story. Not mine. I edit
work. Other people's work."