Chapter9
Nina was already up and ready to go when her first day of work rolled around almost a week later. She opened the door, surprised to see Alex waiting for her in the hall.
“You can come in,” she said. “You don’t have to knock.”
“I know, but I want to respect your space, too. I know that this was a big decision for you, and I think a little respect goes a long way.”
He caught her arm and pulled her in for a quick kiss.
“I thought you were respecting my space.” She laughed.
“I’m a good guy, Nina, but I’m not a damn saint.”
“I’m almost ready.”
“You don’t need to bring anything. I’m just showing you the properties today.”
“I want to get things organized in my laptop. This will help me get an idea of where to start.”
“Suit yourself. Can I help you with anything?”
“You can carry my laptop if you want,” she said. “I’m sorry, that was rude. I would appreciate it if you carried my laptop downstairs for me.”
“My pleasure.”
His crooked smile had her body in knots, but she ignored it. If she gave into the feeling now, they’d never get any work done. She’d spent the better part of the last week in his arms, and it was time for her to buckle down and start earning her keep. She wasn’t here to mooch off the rich guy; she was here to see if they could make it work for the sake of their child, and pad her resumé in the process.
So far, everything was going better than she expected, and Alex was the kind, caring man she’d thought him to be. That didn’t mean she could just give up control and trust it would always be this easy. She was an independent woman, and the best part was that Alex understood and embraced that part of her.
They got into the back of the Maybach and she caught Alex looking at her.
“What?”
“You’re just so different when you’re all business. You’re in control and in your element. I like it.”
She sighed.
“It is refreshing to be around a man who isn’t threatened by my confidence.”
His laughed filled the small space as Jaime pulled the car through the open gate and turned right on Bayshore Lane.
“Are you kidding? It’s one of the things that first drew me to you. You were out there on that floor, dancing alone without a care in the world, completely oblivious to everyone around you.”
“I didn’t realize Jasmine was gone.” She laughed.
“But even when I asked you to dance, you were all class. Look, Miami is a party town and some of the people who come here have no self-respect. They’re just looking for a quick lay until they head back home. And the locals, well, a lot of the women that frequent my clubs know that my VIP section is a veritable who’s who of the wealthy and eligible. They’re on the hunt from the moment they walk through those doors, and it’s painfully obvious.”
“Thirsty.”
“Exactly. But not you.” He put his hand on her thigh, squeezing affectionately. “You give off this vibe that called to me from across the packed room. I could see you right away, even though you were surrounded by more people than that dancefloor is meant to hold. I knew if I wanted to convince you to go upstairs that I would have to do more than wink at you. You’re not like other women, Nina. You’re amazing and I’m so glad you walked into my club. I can’t imagine my life if that moment hadn’t happened.”
His words touched her, and her heart swelled.
“You made quite an impression on me, too.”
“I noticed.” He was holding her hand now, bringing her knuckles to his lips and kissing them softly. “I pulled out all the stops, and you didn’t call me for months. It’s the first time that’s ever happened.”
“I should have been eating out of your hand, what with those chocolates, the first-class upgrade, and everything else.”
“But you weren’t. You did eventually call, but it was completely unexpected.”
“I feel bad about that. I should have at least called you and thanked you for everything.”
“It worked out. You’re here now.”
“Because I’m pregnant.”
“Like I said, it worked out.”
He kissed her hand again, and butterflies started dancing in her stomach.
“How are you for real?”
He shrugged.
“You’re not the only one that refuses to be someone you’re not, no matter what society thinks. Life is too short to leave things unsaid.”
The car pulled off the highway, stopping at a small, but well-maintained hotel within walking distance of the beaches but away from the crowded streets where vacationers tended to gravitate.
“This place is nice,” she said, pulling out her phone and taking a picture before using her maps app to pin the location.
“What are you doing?” he asked, handing her a ginger ale from the mini fridge while they waited for Jaime to park the car.
She opened it and drained the can, then handed it back to him.
“I want to make sure I have a picture and address for each location’s file folder on the laptop and hardcopy.”
“No hardcopies,” he said. “But I like that idea. It will make it easier to keep everything organized.”
“That was the plan. Did you say there are no hardcopies or that you don’t want me to keep hardcopies?”
“Both.”
She wrinkled her brow.
“Why?”
“We’re a green company.”
“Oh. I didn’t realize that.”
He shrugged.
“I know that people don’t think of hotels and the tourist industry in general that way, but we do what we can. That includes avoiding paper use.”
“I’m glad you told me. I would have had hardcopy files on every property by the end of the week.”
“Glad we avoided that little mishap,” he said, getting out of the car and going around to her side.
She opened the door and took his hand when he offered it, leaving the laptop in the car and taking just her cell phone. The air outside the car was already a balmy seventy-five degrees, even though it was still early in the morning.
“You look sexy in that outfit,” Alex said just as Jaime walked around the front of the car.
Nina caught Jaime rolling his eyes, but she ignored him. He obviously didn’t like her, and that wasn’t her problem.
“I liked that pantsuit so much, I decided I needed one in every color.”
“Well, lavender is definitely your color.”
“You’d say that if I was wearing a paper sack,” she teased, earning another eye roll from Jaime.
“True. Come on, let’s get started. I think you’ll find our operations run surprisingly well, even though I have most of my cash offices running independently.”
“How many properties?”
“Twenty-two,” he said.
“That’s a lot.”
“They’re not all hotels, and some of the hotels are pretty small. The hardest properties to deal with are going to be the three luxury hotels. They bring in a lot of cash every day. That’s why I need you to come through and streamline the process.”
“It’s going to take some time.”
“I understand,” he said. He held the door for her while Jaime scanned the surrounding area. “I’m not looking for miracles, just a better system than the one we have.”
“That, I can do.”
“I’m sure you can.”
Without a word, the man behind the desk jumped up, greeting Alex and hitting the buzzer to let him behind the desk. Alex typed his password into the keypad, making sure that Nina was watching so she could add it to her file. She made a note on her phone, then followed him into the room, which shut automatically behind them. Jaime remained in the lobby, visible from the monitors in the cash room that cycled through the cameras throughout the entire three-story hotel.
Alex watched Nina input names into her phone, taking a picture of the two employees that were in the cash office.
“I thought you were putting all this on your laptop?”
“I am, between properties. My phone has an app that syncs with the laptop program, so I’ll upload all this information as I create each property’s file. It will make it go so much faster, and I can spend my time working on the important things, rather than organizing information.”
“Smart. I’m impressed.”
“Thank you. It makes it easier to work with things.” She addressed the clerks in the office. “Can you show me how your accounting system is set up?”
One of the clerks looked at Alex and he nodded. Nina watched him, chalking his discomfort up to feeling put out. She didn’t blame him; he was probably used to doing things a certain way, and she was a newbie, coming in and shaking things up without warning.
They spent almost an hour at the first property, and by the time Nina was back in the car with her laptop sitting on the little tray that folded down from the partition that separated the rear seats of the heavily armored Maybach from the front seat, her mind was already churning.
“We’re going to visit the rest of the properties, but we won’t spend nearly that much time. I want to make sure everyone knows who you are, and that you have the entry codes and addresses for every property. It will be up to you to visit each property this week and get the files you need.”
“I can do that,” she said, already getting excited. “I have so many ideas right now.”
“Well, don’t push yourself too hard. Like I said, I don’t expect a miracle, but I would like to look at my properties and know exactly how much I’ve profited over all, rather than having to review each property on its own.”
She left the laptop open, sitting back in the chair and watching the palm trees sway out the window.
“This place is magical,” she said.
“Do you feel at home, yet?”
“You know what? I do. Thank you. Everything seems to be falling into place so perfectly.”
“I’m glad to hear it.”
It was several hours later when they pulled into the last property. This time, a gas station. Nina left the laptop on the tray, getting out without waiting for Alex to help her.
They ran through much of the same information they had at the small hotel, the general manager of the gas station friendly and just a little loud. Nina instantly liked him. She took the information she needed, including the location and code for the cash office, then headed outside ahead of Alex to get some air before they got back into the car. They’d been in the car most of the day, and even with a lunch break, Nina was starting to feel the effects of sitting in a moving vehicle all day.
A single SUV pulled into the parking lot, but the station was otherwise deserted.
That’s odd, she thought. There was another gas station across the highway, which seemed to be doing plenty of business. She thought it was odd, but chalked it up to direction. Traffic was heavier on the southbound side at the moment, which meant it was probably pretty packed on the northbound side in the mornings, which was where they were.
It made sense since easier access from the highway would affect business. She made a note in her phone to always visit this station after the morning rush so she didn’t get stuck during a busy time, then she headed for the car.
A man got out of the SUV, pressing the buttons on the pump, then grabbing the nozzle. Nina realized she must be exhausted, because she hadn’t even seen him put a credit card into the slot. She watched him for a second, wondering why he looked so familiar, but she couldn’t place him before he turned around to pump his gas.
Alex opened her door for her and she got in, syncing the information from the station before finally leaning back and putting her feet up.
“Sorry about the long day,” he said when he got into his seat.
“It’s only been eight hours.”
“Yeah, but I’d prefer it if you kept your days around the five-hour mark.”
She pursed her lips, then shrugged.
“I guess I shouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth,” she said. Jaime pulled out of the parking lot and she caught a glimpse of the gas station sign. “Wow, gas is high in Miami.”
“Fill up is free here,” he said.
“Does that guy in the SUV work for you?”
“He does.”
“That’s why he looked familiar.”
Jaime eased the Maybach onto the highway, heading southbound in the heavy traffic. Nina was looking absently out the window when she spotted the other gas station’s sign and wrinkled her nose. It was almost fifty cents lower than Alex’s station. She almost said something, then thought better of it. She had no idea why the prices were different, and the brand of gas Alex sold wasn’t one she’d heard of. It was possible it was a high-end fuel, which would explain the difference. Besides, she wasn’t there to tell Alex how to make the money, she was just there to count it.
“You’ll see a lot of my guys at that station. I prefer to fill my cars with my gas.”
“That makes sense. You wouldn’t want to have your money going to the competition.”
“Exactly. Anyway, like I said, I don’t want you working more than four or five hours a day, and this week, you can just focus on getting everything together. Once you have a system worked out, we’ll figure out how to link the properties with your laptop so you don’t have to do too much driving around to get the job done.”
“I can do that.”
“I know you can. Now, that’s enough talk about work.”
“What do you want to talk about?”
“You. How are you feeling?”
“I’m good.”
“That’s it, just good?”
“Trust me, ‘good’ is great when you’re pregnant. I feel better than I have in a few weeks. I’m entering the second trimester, so I think that’s why I’m starting to feel like myself again.”
“That’s more like it,” he said, leaning across the seats and kissing her on the cheek.
He opened his mouth to say something else, but before he could, his phone rang. He sighed.
“My apologies,” he said, then answered the phone in Spanish.
Nina listened, wishing she’d paid attention in her high school Spanish class, but the only things she could pick out were yes, no, and good. Not exactly helpful. Excited to have something to challenge her outside work, she decided to download an app on her phone. Might as well learn Spanish while I’m working part-time, she thought, turning the phone so Alex didn’t see what she was doing.
She wanted to surprise him. If they were going to raise this baby together, it only made sense that they would teach the child Spanish. It wasn’t Alex’s native tongue, but she could tell growing up with a Cuban stepfather had shaped who he was as an adult. Their baby was due around Christmas, and if she worked really hard, she might be able to surprise him by then.
She smiled, setting the permissions and starting an account. The app even came with a voice recording feature, which meant she would be able to record herself attempting to copy the prompts. It was worth the ten dollars she’d just paid in the app store. Now all she had to do was contain her excitement until she was alone so she could get started.
Alex was going to be so surprised, she just knew it.