“I’m not good for you Lee. I can’t give you more. And you’re the type of girl who deserves more. We live in the same house and now you’re working for me. It can’t happen again. I’m sorry if I led you on, or made you think this was more than it is.” I couldn’t listen anymore.
“It’s okay Kyle, I understand,” I whispered, desperate for this car ride to be over, so I could crawl into my bed and die of the humiliation.
“I’m sorry Lee.” I nodded in response.
I jumped out of the truck the moment he pulled up to the house. I needed to get away from him. As I slid my key in the hole, the front door swung inwards.
“Lee? You’re crying. What’s happened?” Cam stood before me, clearly bewildered. I barged past her and ran for my room. I couldn’t talk to her right now. I flung myself down on my bed, just as my bedroom door opened.
“Lee what the hell is wrong with you?” Cam rushed over to me.
“Go away,” I sobbed. This was humiliating enough without an audience.
“No until you tell me what happened?” I pushed myself up on my forearms and swung my head around to look at her. She was sitting on my bed, with worry etched on her face.
“Why didn’t you tell me Kyle owned the hotel? Why didn’t you tell me he was my boss Cam?”
Cam’s face paled. “Who told you?” she asked quietly.
“No one, I discovered that little piece of information all by myself when he called me into his office today.” I pulled myself up and sat facing her. “How could you not tell me? Why didn’t you tell him?”
Cam scrunched her nose. “He fired you didn’t he?” I frowned. Her question sounded like more a statement. “Look, Lee, I didn’t tell you because Kyle is weird about people knowing. He doesn’t like people knowing how much he’s worth; it wasn’t my place to say anything. I didn’t tell Kyle because he doesn’t hire girls as young as you. He had a lot of shit with some girl a while back and it’s like his cardinal rule. When you told me you got the job, I partly guessed he didn’t know. I was just trying to have your back.”
That was a solid explanation. It made much more sense than the crazy theories I had rushing around my brain. “Oh,” I said sheepishly. I felt bad that I overreacted. Cam always had my back. “I’m sorry for being a bitch Cam.”
She smirked at me. “Don’t worry about it babe. I’d be furious if my roommate fired me too.” She stood up and stretched her back out, “I’m gonna go kick his ass.”
She moved to the door. “He didn’t fire me,” I said quickly. He just gave me the time of my life in his office, before ripping my heart to shreds in his car.
Cam swung back to face me. “For real? What happened when he called you into his office?”
I ducked my head to cover my burning face. “Um, nothing, he just told me that my job was safe for now.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Did anything else happen?”
I shook my head. “No, nothing.”
Chapter Twelve
Kyle
I didn’t see Lee around much after our talk in my truck. Well, my talk, she hadn’t said more than a few words. I couldn’t figure out what she’d thought when I told her that we had to stop, but it was pretty obvious from her absence around the house that she was avoiding me.
I saw her at work, but I kept my distance. I didn’t want her to be uncomfortable. Linda had her covering a few shifts waitressing in the main restaurant. I wanted to tell Linda to fuck off and keep Lee upstairs out of harm’s way and out of view of all the bastards who ogled her. I also wanted to rip the tight little black server skirt and white blouse off her hot little body, but I couldn’t do a thing. Linda was already suspicious as to why I kept Lee on, instead of firing her as I originally planned. I couldn’t be angry with Linda for being suspicious; the woman had razor sharp intuition and she knew my ass better than anyone. She was on to me and I knew it. I never could hide much from Linda, not even when she showed up at the McMullen’s Center with my grandfather, to take me away my fifth and final foster home.
I had been a lonely twelve-year-old kid, with a dirty mouth and even worse attitude. I’d never told anyone- because frankly it made me a pussy- that I’d thought Linda was an angel that day, sent down from heaven to take me away from all the shit. She’d helped my grandfather raise me, well, truth be told the woman had practically raised me herself and I hadn’t made it easy. I was pretty fucked up back then and had given both Linda and grandpa hell for the first couple of years.