Page 8 of Room Service
“I’ll pay you double time.”
Okay, that’s got my attention. “And how long would you expect me to stay?”
“I don’t have a cut off time. The party could go on for a while.”
“I don’t know—”
“Triple time and I’ll have a room free for you to stay in once it’s all finished and cleaned up,” she says, cutting me off.
Triple fucking time and a bed to sleep in after? Jesus, she must be desperate.
“Why the urgency?” I ask, because my curious mind needs to know. It’s not like she’s doing a favour for me, I’m well aware that I am a mere speck in her world.
“Because it’s for the directors of the hotel. Everything has to go smoothly. And as much as I don’t want this to go to your head, you’re the best cleaner I have here,” she admits, and I can’t stop my mouth from dropping open. Well fuck. “So, is that a yes?” she continues, pushing for an answer.
“Wait a minute,” I say as I realise that she didn’t just ask for a cleaner. “Did you say you needed a waitress too?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t you have agency staff for that?” I ask.
“I do, but to get someone here in the next half an hour is going to be a challenge.”
“But I’m just a cleaner.”
“So be more than a cleaner for one night,” she says, and there’s a different look in her eyes… like she can almost see that I could be more, be better… but I quickly shake my head from side to side and dismiss that idea. She’s as cold as ice and is only doing this to save her own arse from the big boss man.
Triple time is something I can’t afford to turn down, and I also wouldn’t need to tell Derrick about the extra money either. Not to mention I’d get a night away from him, on my own, once I’d finished working, of course.
“So, is that a yes?” Hayley says, interrupting my thoughts.
“It’s a yes,” I tell her, and I see the hint of a smile on her lips, but she quickly schools her face and puts her icy exterior back in place.
“Good. Now, follow me to my room and we’ll get you into something more appropriate for the party. You can hardly serve drinks in a maid’s uniform.”
“Oh… uh… okay… but I need to call my husband first,” I stammer, completely thrown off by the turn of events.
“You have two minutes. I’ll wait outside.” And then she turns and walks out, closing the door behind her as I dig my phone out of my bag.
“I’ll only need thirty seconds,” I mumble as I press the call button and wait for him to get his lazy arse off the sofa to answer the damn phone. Eight rings later, he’s managed it and grunts down the line.
“Who is it?”
“It’s me. I’m just phoning to say that I won’t be back tonight, they’ve asked me to work late and do clean up after a party, and they’re giving me a room for the night because they don’t know what time it will finish,” I ramble.
“What? What about me? I’m fucking starving, Elise.”
I roll my eyes at his predictable response. “There’s a pizza in the freezer, I’m sure you can manage to turn the oven on,” I respond sarcastically.
“Fine,” he grits out.
“See you tomorrow.”
“Whatever,” he says before he cuts the call, and I turn my phone off and throw it into my bag, which I quickly put back in my locker.
A night away from Derrick is like heaven, even if it is for work.
I open the door and walk out to see Hayley on her phone, tapping away as she waits for me.
