CHAPTER FOUR - CINDY
I paced the back room of the event center where the Azure Blue event was taking place. It was the first of our galas and my big debut as coordinator for White Linen.
“What do you mean by sick? There’s no way you can tough it out?” I hated to push Arlene, but she was the third person to call out and she was one of my best servers. I needed her to work the tables and see to it that everything went smoothly. Patrick walked up and gave me a wide-eyed stare as she gave me her excuse and diagnosis.
“It’s okay, Arlene. Get better.” I hung up the phone and let out a deep breath as Patrick patted me on the back. “Well, that makes three now. Arlene is out, so that looks like I’m going to be on the floor all night.”
“Oh, honey. It’s a bad night for you to be so busy. The Sister’s Grim need to see you in action hosting not serving. And if one thing goes wrong, what would you do? You won’t have the manpower to take care of everything.”
“They’ll just see both. I don’t have a choice. And as for problems, I will have to make sure that everything goes smoothly. No room for mistakes.”
“Now you’re talking sister! I can always see if I have an extra hand in the kitchen, and if so, I’ll send them out. Make sure you have a shirt.”
“Thanks.” I walked to the door and peeked out into the main room. Things were already underway out on the floor, and the guests were arriving. I had my staff tending their needs and, so far, there were no issues. “I better get out there. Wish me luck.”
“Luck,” Patrick said, with a sympathetic smile.
I stepped out, making my way around the room to greet the guests and kept my eye on the others. Selena and Emily sat in the corner of the room at their own private table and Selena’s eyes burned on me as I crossed the room. I checked to see if all of the tables had been arranged properly as I asked them to be before my parade of phone calls, and that the entire place had been adorned in blue decor, per the theme.
The crowd picked up, and things had managed to go smoothly until the end of the night. As I walked around making sure the guests had everything they needed, a couple of men at a table began laughing. “Hey, baby, why don’t you bring us a pitcher of beer.” The men were dressed in all black and stayed back from the party as if they were there on official business.
I knew some of the guests were important and had security, and by the sounds of this pair, that’s what they had to be. They had no manners.
“I’d be happy to serve you another round, but we aren’t serving pitchers. I’m sure there’s a bar around if you’d like to go somewhere else.” I started to walk away, and the mouthy one grabbed my arm and pulled me down onto his lap. His sweat-soaked face brushed against my hair as it got caught in his stubble. I jumped up, jerked away and hoped that no one saw me as he laughed.
“Come on, sweetheart. Why don’t you join me for a while? I’m sure your boss won’t mind.” He nudged his friend, and they laughed. “You don’t even have to pull up a chair. I got something you can sit on right here.” Their laughter rose to a new level as I backed away and straightened my clothes.
“I am the boss. So, do I need to get security or will you behave yourselves?” My heart raced as they both got the strangest looks on their faces.
“Is there a problem here?”
I turned and found a pair of men standing behind me, both were incredibly handsome, and the tall, fair-haired one stood there with a wicked half grin on his face. He had the look of a European GQ model.
My breath caught in my throat when I found myself eyeing him up and down, well-built with blond hair and an air of confidence about him.
His broad shoulders were outlined by the tailor fitted suite he wore, and I couldn’t help but notice the bulge in the front of his pants. It seemed like his shoulders weren’t the only thing he was working out. I wanted to snort at my joke, but had to remember I was on a job.
His eyes, a deep ocean blue color, penetrated me into the depths of my soul. He was tall, and would easily tower over most people I knew. There was something irresistible about him. I couldn’t pinpoint it besides that my stomach fluttered when he looked at me the way he did.
“Ahem. Are these friends of yours?” I asked.
“Don’t I know you from somewhere?” Mr. GQ eyed me up and down and then turned to his friend. “Where do we know her from?”
Surely these men either had one too many to drink or mistook me for some dumb bimbo. I remembered that I needed to tend to the event and avoid causing any more of a scene on my first real day on the job.
“I’m sorry but I don’t know you, and I don’t know your friends, but I’d appreciate you taking your hands off me. And while you’re at it, I think you should tell your friends not to pull women into their laps. This isn’t that kind of party” His hand left mine, and his brows rose as he stepped back.
“Pardon me? They did what?” GQ turned and gave his handsome friend a serious glance. His gave a knowing node and barked orders to the men in the seats.
“You’re dismissed. Lucas.” He motioned for the others to get up and then he walked them up to the front.
“My apologies for my security. My name is Enzo Roche.” His accent was thick, and incredibly sexy. He had to be one of the main guests; one of the wealthy donors. His tailored suit was probably worth more than my car. I noticed a drink that was situated on the floor and in danger of being a trip hazard and picked it up before I excused myself.
“Thank you Enzo for taking care of your friends. It saved me the trouble. I hope you enjoy the event. Now, I will have to excuse my-.” I pulled away, but he stepped in front of me, pinning me close to the table.
I felt a rush of electricity rush down my spine down to in between my legs. It was an intense feeling being so close to this incredibly sexy man whom I’d only just met. Who was this gorgeous creature. I couldn’t help but feel a sense of connection to him and pictured a steamy scene of our warm, naked bodies together in rhythmic motion. Something told me this same thought was running through his mind and he’d brought me into the same trance.
Crap, Cindy get ahold of yourself.
The glass of liquid in my hand slipped out and I spilled over his expensive suite. “Oh! I’m so sorry!” I held my breath and closed my eyes thinking of how I could quickly apologize and disappear before others noticed that I practically threw a drink on this man.
He stood there with a warm smile and then took a handkerchief out of his pocket to wipe his suite. Apparently he wasn’t completely ticked off by my doofus move.
Before I could thank my lucky stars, a crowd of guests around us stopped, and a hush fell over the room for a moment. He waved his handkerchief at them and nodded as it if were okay. “Again, I apologize for the behavior of my staff. As I said, I am pretty sure I’ve seen you before. I never forget a good acquaintance or a bad attitude.” He gave me a curt nod and headed off in the direction of the bathroom. I glanced across the room as Patrick rushed over to check on me.
“Do you know who you just threw water on?” He looked over, and my eyes followed his, seeing Selena and Emily standing there with frowns.
I suddenly felt like I was going to throw up or pass out or both. “Who?” I winced, not sure I wanted to know.
“He’s the crowned Prince of Aramis. His father, the king, is one of the charity’s biggest foreign contributors.”
My heart sank as his friend came in and looked around. “Where is Enzo?” I pointed to the bathroom and tucked my chin before heading to the back for a breather.
My guess was that day one on the job was also going to be my last.