July 2015

ZOE

My shift starts off with a bang, and not just because I'm nursing a thumping headache from the amount of wine I drank last night. Will has called in sick, and his cover is useless.

That might be the hangover talking—Morris is fine on a day-to-day level—but Will knows how to get shit done when it hits the fan, and Morris feels that every decision needs to be run by me. Normally, that wouldn't bother me, but today I don't have the mental energy to perform his job on top of mine.

When my phone rings for the fifth time that afternoon, I consider ignoring it. Maybe if he's forced to make his own decision, it will instil a little confidence in him. But then I think about the Hotel Manager position and how every judgement call I make will help strengthen my application.

"Hi, Morris."

"Zoe, hi. We have a small problem. You know those clients you told us we have to absolutely please every step of the way?"

"Uhuh..." I press the phone between my ear and shoulder as I continue with the email I was typing. "If they want to extend for another few days, it's fine. Just tell Jackie to—"

"It's not that. It's that, well, when you say we absolutely have to please them, what should we do if that's in direct conflict with pleasing our other guests? Because we have a couple of people who are a tad annoyed that the gym is closed."

God, this hangover is killing me. Who the hell closes the gym on a weekday? Did they tell me about that and I forgot?

"Why's the gym closed?"

Morris lowers his voice to a whisper. "Because Teddy Stone is using it, and his security team are stopping other people going inside."

Email abandoned, I sit up straighter and lift a hand back up to the phone to hold it properly. "I'm sorry, what?"

"He's got two security men outside the entrance and they're not letting anyone past. It's starting to annoy other guests who want to use the gym and pool."

Plastic creaks as my fingers tighten around the handset. They might be protecting Teddy Stone, but I'd bet my future career here that it's not him who's made this decision. Is a whole floor not enough for Mark anymore? He needs to commandeer other parts of my hotel too?

"I'll be right there."

Anger builds with every stride I take through the corridors. How dare he? Yes, he's paying more than every guest here combined, but that doesn't give him autonomy over the facilities.

Morris is hovering by the water machine when I get into the basement that houses the gym.

"I'll handle this," I say to him. "Go to Front Desk and tell them to give any inconvenienced guests a ten percent discount and one free course at the restaurant tonight."

He scurries off, and I storm over to the two men blocking the gym entrance. The click of my heels echoes off the marble flooring. Normally it's bustling with activity down here, but now it's silent.

One security guy flicks a disinterested glance in my direction. "Can't let you in, Ma'am."

Do I look like someone about to use the gym? I'm wearing a dress and five-inch heels, for heaven's sake.

I point to my name badge. "I work here. Either you let me in, or I kick you all out of the building."

"Sorry. Boss's orders."

My fist clenches at my side. "I'm the boss when you're in my hotel. So let me into my own gym, please."

Like robots, neither of them moves. They don't even look at me. I might as well be talking to a brick wall.

"Okay. I'll give you two options. Either you let me inside yourself, or you speak to whoever is on the other end of that earpiece and tell them to come out here and talk to me. If you don't pick either of those..." I point to the red fire alarm box two feet to my right. "I hit the fire alarm, everyone files outside, and word quickly spreads that Teddy Stone is staying in The Portman Hotel."

One of them looks down at his feet, while the other stares at me, trying to work out if I'm bluffing. I am one hundred percent bluffing—there is no way I'm going to trigger a fire drill—but hopefully they won't want to take that risk.

Eventually, the guy breaks eye contact with me and pinches his jacket lapel between two knuckles. "Boss. Someone from the hotel is here to speak with you." His gaze darts down to my name badge. "Yes." Then he steps to the side and nods at his colleague. "Okay. Will do."

Naturally I don't get an apology—barely even an acknowledgement—as they open the gym doors and let me through. In their view, they're just doing their job. And I'm now going to do my job by finding the idiot who thinks it's fine to turn away my customers.

They're not difficult to locate. After all, they're the only people in the gym. Mark has his back to me, a tight black t-shirt stretched across expanses of broad muscles, but Teddy notices me approaching. The corner of his mouth lifts in a playful greeting as he straightens up from stretching.

"How's the head this morning?" Sweat drips from his brow, and he wipes it away with the back of his hand.

"Dealing with your bodyguard is a bigger headache than my hangover," I quip.

Mark sighs and tosses a water bottle at Teddy. "Let's call it a day. I'll meet you upstairs."

Off the pop star strides towards the changing rooms, with all the nonchalance of a guy who has the world at his mercy. I remind myself it's not his fault that his security team are over-protective. And it's definitely not his fault that his security team has pissed me off today.

I snap my glare back onto Mark and fold my arms. "What the hell were you thinking?"

He tips his head towards the double doors that lead to the pool. Then, because he hasn't annoyed me enough thus far, he saunters towards them like I'm expected to follow.

I do follow, but only because I need to let him know how out of order he is. Heat from his chest singes my bare shoulders as I step through the door he holds open for me. I ignore it, because even his perfect body can't distract me from my warpath.

The scent of chlorine wafts through the humid air, and the double doors swing shut with a quiet whoosh. Hands deep in his short pockets, Mark strolls towards me and stops at the edge of the pool.

"It's more private in here," he tells me. "If you want to yell, probably best nobody overhears you doing it."

"Can't you re-program your robots to forget about it?" I raise my eyebrows.

"I was actually thinking more for your benefit," he replies casually. "I didn't think you'd want anyone overhearing you shouting at your top client."

Warmth floods into my cheeks. Crap. I said that last night, didn't I? Somewhere around the time I was feeling him up and moaning about how horny I was, while he stood there still as a statue.

I clear my throat and raise my chin in defiance. I can't let him disarm me. This is about business.

"You might be my top client, but you had no right to shut down the gym this afternoon. I have other guests too, and they're the ones who keep us afloat during the forty-five weeks of the year that you're not staying here."

"Zoe—"

I hold up my palm to silence him. "I'm actually livid that you didn't talk to me about this first. The entitlement is baffling. I don't care how famous he is. You could have given me advance notice. You could have skipped a gym day. You could have—"

"It was two hours." He steps closer. His top is so tight that I can almost see the outline of the hundred abs he hides under there. "The hotel is not going to grind to a halt if the gym is out of action for two hours."

Like fuel to a fire, a fresh bout of rage tears through me. "That's not the point! One pissed off customer only needs to write one bad review—"

"Out of the hundreds of five-star reviews you already have."

My spine stiffens. He just doesn't get it. Too much time with a successful pop star who gets everything handed to him on a platter. He's not used to hearing the word no.

"Believe it or not, I care about my other customers. I care about their experience. And until you have shares in the hotel, you do not get to make any decisions about how it operates." I take a stride towards him. "And I swear to God, if you ever—"

My stiletto snags in the deck drains and I stumble. Right towards the turquoise water. Panic engulfs me, and my arms flail to find balance. Just as my heel comes loose and I brace for impact, a rough hand clamps around my wrist and tugs me away from the edge.

I hit the damp tiling, knees first, but my relief is short-lived. Mark's large body slams into the pool, triggering a wave of water that splashes up and over my back.

He surfaces with a shake of his wet hair and a glower in my direction. Amusement breaks through my anger. I press my lips together and try not to laugh. It's not funny. It's really not funny. That could have been me.

Planting his palms on the pool edge, he pushes himself out. Huge triceps strain against his short sleeves as they lift his body clear from the water. He scrapes his hair back from his face, then plucks out his earpiece and disconnects his mic from the front of his sopping t-shirt. Hopefully that isn't broken. I'm not picking up the bill if so.

I clamber to my feet, kicking off my heels. I'm already wet, but I'm not risking falling in for real. Given the murderous glare in his eyes, I'm almost worried he'll throw me in himself.

Trying to keep a straight face, I point to a sign behind his head. "Pool area is slippery when wet. Take care."

Jaw locking, he balls his fists. "Count yourself lucky I'm a gentleman, Zoe."

The threat sparks a flicker of heat between my thighs. I know what he's like when he's not a gentleman, and I like it. Just as I'm pushing away that inappropriate thought, he tears off his t-shirt and starts to wring out the water.

My mouth dries as my eyes fly down to naked torso. Holy crap. He's shredded. I guessed as much when I felt him up last year, but my imagination could not have conjured this. Thick, smooth pecs beneath taut, bronzed skin. Shoulders carved out of marble. A ladder of at least eight abs, water trickling through the deep grooves that separate the hard slabs. Two lethally sharp lines leading down to his shorts in a V-formation. All muscle. Power. Sex.

I want to run my tongue all over that stomach. I want to be pinned against the wall by those sinewy arms. I want the massive muscle between his legs to ram into me over and over again while I grind my clit against those chiselled abs.

His body was good before, but now... Now he's a statuesque masterpiece. And I've forgotten why I was mad.

"How do we get shares in the hotel, then? We're currently paying a hundred grand a week, but if that's not enough to earn some decision-making power, then by all means... Tell me what is."

Ah, yes. That's why I was mad.

"Communication. I know it's never been a strength of yours, but I think you'll find it will serve you well."

One dark brow slowly rises, like he can't decide if he's amused or pissed off that I've called him out.

"I see." He folds his mouth-watering arms beneath those delicious pecs. "So, this tantrum you're throwing. Is that because a guest has failed to communicate or because your friend has failed to communicate?"

The insinuation relights the anger inside me. He hasn't made this any more personal than I have, but it's the principle. This is my hotel. My rules. He can't just waltz in here with his unlimited budget and assume he's the one in charge.

As much as I want to give him a piece of my mind, I need to keep this professional. For the sake of the Hotel Manager position. CCTV records everything that happens in this pool. So I bend down to pick up my shoes and let my bare feet carry me into the showers. Predictably he follows.

But what isn't predictable is him flicking on one of the shower heads and crouching down to untie his shoelaces.

I brought him in here to continue the argument in private. Not for him to shower. Surely he's not going to actually get naked in front of me?

"Mark." Warm water splatters against the floor, spraying my calves, and I take a step back.

He hums in acknowledgment, but his shoes are off and his socks are following. Rising to stand, he nudges them to one side with his toes.

"This conversation isn't over." I keep my tone firm. Business-like. Professional.

"Do you want to join me in the shower, Zo?" Emerald eyes drop down to mine, blazing with promise.

He hooks his thumbs in the waistband of his shorts and drags them over his legs. Every instinct screams at me to glance down, to see if his boxers have come off with his shorts. To see if he's as impressive as I remember.

No. This is exactly why he's doing this. To distract me.

"The answer to your previous question," I say through gritted teeth, determined to get back on track, "is both. I'm pissed a guest has acted this way, and I'm pissed my friend doesn't have enough respect for me to ask my permission first."

"Respect." He repeats the world with a bitter chuckle. "Don't ever accuse me of not respecting you, Zoe."

Still keeping my eyes on his, I gesture to his body. "You're naked in front of me when I'm trying to have a conversation. How is that respectful?"

"Was it respectful last night when you groped my dick outside the toilets during a professional business meeting?"

He reaches for the shower gel and squirts a dollop into the palm of his hand. Soapy suds spread across his chest as he massages it into his body.

"You've crossed a line today, and I want it to be known that I'm not happy about it."

"It's known."

"Next time, talk to me first and we'll sort something out." I take another step backwards, towards the changing rooms, ready to leave.

"I will. But, Zo?"

I pause mid-turn and twist back to face him.

"Let's cut the bullshit next time. You're not offended I'm naked in front of you. And I wasn't offended last night when you touched me. I'll keep things respectful in a professional capacity, but don't pretend that's all I am to you."

Pressing my lips together, I nod. Then, I finally let my eyes drop to his crotch.

He's still wearing his boxers. 

***

Thank you for reading :) xx

***

I loved writing this chapter. That scene with the swimming pool was one of the first ones I planned out. For any Heart of Stone readers, you'll start to see some background to Ed soon, like how he got his 'Tapper' nickname and why he lived in a hotel. 

If you don't want to wait for the updates, remember this book is complete on Ream 💜