Page 59 of Reckless

“No. Next Saturday. California.”

“But…”

Madison hung up on me. I stared at my phone for a few moments, then decided it wasn’t worth the battle. So I shot Clem a text.

Hannah: Bachelorette party next Saturday. We are coming to you. Send me a list of people you want me to invite.

I lost my entire day researching. It was nine o’clock when I stood by the microwave in the office kitchen. I was heating the soup a colleague brought me for lunch when the door flung open. I thought I was the last one in the office.

“Hannah,” my boss Amanda walked in.

“Miss Reed,” I paused, surprised to see her here. “Hi.”

“What are you doing here?”

“I am heating my soup.”

She shot me an amused look and I immediately felt like an idiot. She wasn’t asking about the food.

“I didn’t eat my lunch today. I’m behind with my work.”

“Oh?” Amanda took a few boxes out of the fridge. “Do you need someone to help you with the workload?”

“No, no. It’s fine.”

“I don’t want my employees to starve all day and eat their lunch at nine o’clock in the evening. In the office.”

“It’s not like that,” I took my veggie soup out of the microwave. My stomach growled loudly at the smell of it. “I had a lot of personal calls today. Something came up and I am now behind with everything.”

“Is everything okay?”

“Yes,” I stirred my soup torn between my hunger and my excitement of talking with Amanda Reed. Alone. That had never happened to me before. We shared a few sentences at meetings every now and again, but we were never alone. “My best friend is getting married. I am the maid of honor. Her sister called me today and told me I had to plan a bachelorette party for next Saturday. The best man found out he can’t come to the wedding. Which is in two weeks by the way.”

“That sounds complicated.”

“It is,” I nodded. “I spent a lot of my working hours on that mess, didn’t fix anything, but got behind on my work, so now that’s a mess too.”

She waited for the microwave to heat her meal and I wondered why she bothered. The woman was famous and loaded. I had no doubt she could call any restaurant in town and they would find her a table in a blink. Or she could just order in if she was planning on working late.

“Maybe I could help with the bachelorette party. Use my name. I can get in everywhere,” she said as if she read my mind.

“Oh, no. I can’t do that.”

“Why?”

“I could never use your name like that. Besides the party will be in California.” And the moment I said it, the solution just popped in my mind. “I remember you once told me you had a house in California.”

“It’s a villa.”

A villa. It would be perfect. Private. Clem could rest at any time.

“Miss Reed,” a nervous laugh escaped my lips. “Would it be inappropriate if I asked you for a favor?” I felt a little crazy for even coming up with the idea, but what the heck? What was the worst thing that could happen? I didn’t let her answer my question and continued. “Would it sound crazy if I asked you to rent your villa for the bachelorette party?”

“You want to rent my villa?”

“Yes. I will cover the cleaning expenses of course.”

“Oh, no need for that,” she paused, looking a little hesitant. “I guess you could rent it. My realtor actually advised me to try it. I almost never use it.”

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