“The more I hear about these men, the more my opinion of them drops.” I lower my voice. “I’m working with Flynn Kelly right now, doing photos for the website and new brochures. What’s your opinion on him?”
“Quiet. Good for that group. Seems to keep them from going completely out of control. He’s the one that will stay sober and put his mates in a cab when they’re so drunk they don’t know which way is up. I don’t know what he sees in them, why they’re so close. He’s like the black sheep of the group, the odd one out.”
“I heard a rumor that they once all got together and were found unconscious in Jayden’s place with bottles of blood
around them. That they’d been doing some ritual stuff, like devil worship or something.” The other receptionist said moving closer to me.
“Really?” My ears pricked up. This was something I could work with; if the party boys took their partying too far if they got bored. I wondered if they’d ever done anything with a female like Leonie present, like a blood sacrifice? It sounded very much like four bored men with no limits on excess.
“Well, it certainly sounds like they aren’t boring.” I said. “But I’ll be having a word with Mr. Henderson.” I looked at the receptionist who’d told me the first lot of gossip. She bit her lip.
“Don’t worry, nothing I’ve been told tonight will be divulged. I like to make my own opinions on people, but thank you so much for confiding in me. If we’re going to keep The Dream as the place to visit we can’t do with a constant turnover of staff.”
I said my goodbyes and returned to my room. There I made a note in my personal diary of the time and then opened my laptop and went into my online diary which was viewable by my colleagues. I altered my working day so that I was off Thursday and working Saturday instead. The advantages of flexible working—Ted had told me that as long as I covered my hours and they were in the best interests of the hotel, I could work when I thought best. Thursday morning I now had a date with the spa—and Smith Henderson, although he didn’t know this yet.
That just left Jayden Bryant. I figured he would be the hardest one of all to infiltrate. He’d fucked and abandoned Leonie without seemingly pausing for breath. The more I read about him, the less he endeared himself to me. I guessed I’d really have to act when it came to him. Make sure my true feelings stayed off my face.
My cell beeped, and I picked it up.
Carter: Want to come to a party Friday night and meet the gang? You can check out the room I offered you ;)
I quickly typed a reply.
Serena: Maybe to the first; you wish to the second.
Carter: Just friends remember?
Serena: Hmmm, with benefits though…?
Carter: No, but thank you for asking :D
Once again the word ‘asshole’ sprang to mind, but I couldn’t help but smile, because it looked like Carter Cole had offered me an in to the whole gang at once. Maybe I’d have to push the envelope a little and see if they offered more than friendship once the alcohol was flowing.
My heart skipped, my stomach fizzed with excitement and a large smile stretched across my face. This job couldn’t have been going better if I’d developed magical powers to bewitch them all. It was only a matter of time before my expose was done and I was back in New York being put up for prestigious awards.
And if I had fun in the meantime with any of the four hot guys to get that story? Well, I’d suffer for my art!
Chapter Seven
Serena
I stretched out my limbs, grateful of the extra hour or so in bed my day off brought. I showered, ate breakfast and read for a while before grabbing my gymsack and heading to the Spa.
“Morning, Serena.” The receptionist chirped looking as fresh as the sparkling countertop she stood beside.
“It’s my day off so I’m going to check things out for myself. I could do with some chill time.” I said. She handed me a toweling robe.
“Fresh towels are available in the changing rooms, you can use as many as you like and there are hampers around for the used ones. Showers are stocked with Bliss products. Fresh water with lemon is in the relaxation area, along with fruit. Anything else you need just let me know.”
“Thanks. I’m looking forward to it.”
Once inside the female changing room, I dressed in my swimsuit and placed my belongings in a locker. I placed the locker key chain around my wrist and went straight into the relaxation area. Not only was this an ambient temperature room where you could relax and read magazines and rest between using the steam and sauna rooms, but it was where clients waited both pre and post treatments. So, just as expected, Smith Henderson sat there, taking a slug of a tall glass of water.
His head turned toward me as I looked around for a place to sit. After pretending to deliberate, I sat directly opposite him. I made sure to cross my legs so that my robe opened to reveal a shapely thigh. My blonde hair was in a side pony this morning.
“Morning.” I said to him, barely giving him a glance before reaching over for a magazine. To my delight it was a copy of Revealed magazine I picked up.
“They shouldn’t stock that here.” His voice washed over me like an ocean wave, its cadence cool.