Page 30 of The Rogue and His Flower

“I have made no effort at all, but Daisy clearly has. In fact, as far as I can tell she has bent over backwards to assist you, and I think what would be appropriate right now is for both of you to thank her for all her efforts, then graciously accept herrathergenerousoffer of complimentary meals in our five star restaurant for the remainder of your stay.”

“Well… I… This is most—” Octavia blusters, her face draining of colour.

“Awkward?” I finish for her.

Geoffrey and Octavia exchange nervous glances, clearly caught in their web of lies. I glance at Daisy who stands silently behind the desk, a mix of amusement and satisfaction flickering in her eyes.

“Well?” I persist, not letting them get away with their rudeness.

“Thank you, Daisy, we appreciate what you have done for us,” Geoffrey mumbles.

I stare at Octavia until she gives her apology too. “Thank you,” she says tightly.

“Excellent, have a good day,” I retort, turning my attention away from them as they both scurry off.

As soon as they are out of earshot, Daisy bursts into laughter, unable to contain her amusement for a moment longer. “That was well played,” she giggles, but her smile falters when I glare at her. “What?”

“How often have you been offering freebies to arseholes who pretend to know my father?”

She blanches. “Are you seriously getting angry at me for trying to manage this situation in a professional manner? Would you have preferred it if I told them to fuck off and take their business elsewhere?” she replies, bristling.

“Of course I don’t expect you to tell them to ‘fuck-off’, Daisy, but I will not tolerate people trying to manipulate freebies with lies.”

“And somehow their behaviour is my fault? I’m just doing my job,” she hisses as the lobby door swings open with new arrivals checking in. “What’s that saying, thecustomeris always right?”

“You don’t need to bend over backward for those kinds of people who think dropping my father’s name will get them special treatment. This is a business, not a free-for-all,” I counter, not sure why I’m pissed off with her given she’s done nothing but try to handle the situation diplomatically.

“And how,exactly, should I have handled the situation?” she presses, folding her arms across her chest.

“How about running it by me first?”

“I tried to. I sent an email earlier today when the complaint first came to my attention, and I also tried calling you, but you didn’t respond to that either. I had to make an executive decision.”

“You’re not in a position to make anexecutivedecision,” I retort sharply. “You man the reception, not run the bloody hotel.”

“Why are you being such an arsehole?” she snaps, her eyes flicking to the people approaching.

“In future, make sure you come to me first,” I snap, striding off towards my office wondering why the fuck I’m so angry.

An hourlater I hear a knock at my door. “Come in,” I say, my eyes fixed on my computer screen, not bothering to look up.

“What the hell was that all about earlier?”

My head snaps up as Daisy steps into my office, slamming the door behind her. She’s clearly not gotten over our earlier interaction given the furious glint in her eye, but rather than give her an apology for acting the way I did, I find myself narrowing my eyes at her, enjoying her anger a little bit too much. It’s always been fun to push her buttons, and even though I know Ishouldn’t, I can’t help myself. After last night and the way she cut our conversation short, it’s the least she deserves.

“It’s not your break time yet,” I say, folding my arms across my chest and leaning back in my chair, eyeing her.

“Since when did you pay attention to when I have my break times?”

“Since the moment I took over running this hotel. It’s my job to know where my staff are at any given point in the day.”

“Oh, don’t get your knickers in a twist, I’ve swapped my break with Samantha,” she retorts just as sharply as she takes a seat opposite me. “So?”

“So what?”

“So why were you a complete dicksplash earlier?”

“Firstly, what the hell kind of cuss is ‘dicksplash’, and secondly, I told you why I was pissed off. I don’t like you making decisions like that without my approval, and especially not to people who name drop. We’re a business–”

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