Page 75 of Get Lost

“Minuscule?” He asked again. “Je ne pense pas.”

How had she gotten herself into this predicament?

More importantly, how would she get herselfoutof it?

He turned around and grinned at Nessa. “Ah, Chef Alex, bonjour.”

No, he grinned at Alexander.

Shit.

Kelsey’s pulse sped.

“Hey, Chef, I was just looking for…” Alexander’s words trailed off like he’d just noticed Kelsey standing there, less than an arm’s length away from Jean-Luc.

She hung her head, praying for a hurricane.

“Have you met Kelsey? She is, uh, how you say… planificateur de marriage… uh…” Frowning in frustration, Jean-Luc placed his hands on her shoulders and turned her around. “Mariage de—”

“Wedding planner,” Alex said, his voice tight. “And, yes, we’ve met. We gowayback.”

“Bon! We too go way back.” He looked at Kelsey and waggled his eyebrows.

Oh, God. Why?What had she done to deserve this? Kelsey closed her eyes on a long blink, then met Alex’s hard stare. His eyes tightened as he looked back and forth between Kelsey and Jean-Luc—who stood much too close for comfort.

Kelsey looked at Nessa, eyes wide.Help.

“Jean-Luc?” Nessa hurried into the kitchen, stepping in front of Jean-Luc to distract him. “Tell me what kind of cake you’re making? Is it chocolate? Berries and cream? Oh…” She groaned. “I love crèmé brûlee, can you make that? I bet it’ssohard.”

Surprised by Nessa’s interception, Kelsey almost missed her chance to escape, but as Nessa turned Jean-Luc away, Kelsey ducked past them and joined Alex in the hallway.

His nostrils flared as he looked down at her. “Drew and Renee have arrived. I was just coming to find you.”

She smiled up at him, heart beating rapidly. “Okay, thank you. I was just on my way to come find you, too, when I…” She trailed off, unsure of what to say.

Anger rolled off of him in waves. Alex wasreallypissed.

A muscle jumped in his forehead. “When you…?”

Kelsey searched his gaze; for the first time in her life, she didn’t know how to respond to Alexander Arroyo. “When I…?” What had she been saying?

“When you forgot you don’t mix business with pleasure?” He turned and began to head toward the front door of the villa.

“Alexander, wait.” Hurrying to catch up, she grabbed his arm.

He spun to face her, his jaw set in stone. “You two looked friendly.”

“I can explain.”

“You don’t have to explain anything to me.”

“Please, I want to—”

“Don’t.” The sharpness in his voice sent ice through her veins. He breathed deeply, then pinned her with a dark, uncaring gaze. “Actually, you know what? Go ahead. Tell me again how you don’t mix business with pleasure even though last night you were practically fucking my hand and this morning you’re looking like you want to fuck that limp-wristed French fucker.”

Kelsey’s breath caught in her throat. She quickly scanned the hallway. If anyone heard what he’d just said, she’d be fired for sure. “That’s not… let me explain. I met Jean-Luc two weeks ago, at a wedding I planned in La Quinta…” Her words trailed off as she tried to figure out how to explain what she’d done with Jean-Luc. She’d broken her ‘Don’t sleep with staff’ rule for him, and then did it again last night with Alexander, and now she was standing here in this predicament, with an angry man staring her down, her heart aching strangely in her chest, and no one to blame but herself.

And no idea how to rectify the fact that Alexander’s opinion of her was something that suddenly mattered to her. Immensely.

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