Page 31 of A Suite Temptation
“Chloe!” A voice rang out from within the house. When Jordan looked to Chloe, she shook her head. It was clear that she didn’t wish to be found. Or at the very least not yet.
“Who is that?” he whispered.
“Marta. My number one personal assistant. If she knew I was out here with you gorging on sweets, she’d go ballistic,” Chloe whispered back.
I wouldn’t call eating one or two handcrafted chocolates gorging, but this is Hollywood.
Thetak takof a pair of high heels clicking over the smooth surface of the driveway reached his ears. Was Marta actually hunting for Chloe?
He remembered who Marta was— she was the woman who had demanded the top shelf booze in Berlin. She was also the person who had called Chloe at the apartment in Paris and shouted down the phone at her boss. His skin crawled at the memory of hearing Chloe’s almost Pavlovian response of “I love you too” when Marta had offered her those empty words of so-called affection.
The clicking came to a stop on the other side of Jordan’s car. It was replaced by atskand a heavy sigh. “Who has dared to park a hire car in the driveway? Seriously. I bet it was one of the cleaners. Who do these people think they are working for? It’s just not good enough. Chloe has standards to keep.”
Marta and her angry shoes disappeared back into the house. Her exasperated screeches soon echoed off the stone walls of the mock Spanish dwelling. It was clear, that at Chloe’s house, she was the one in charge. That didn’t sit at all well with Jordan.
Chloe offered him the box of chocolates once more. “A last one, then we had better head inside. If Marta doesn’t find someone to blame for your car, she will march back out here and turn over every last stone until she finds the guilty person.”
Jordan selected two more of the contraband treats and stuffed them into his mouth. If he was going to die today, it would be with Belgian chocolate on his lips.
CHAPTERFIFTEEN
As soon as she and Jordan made it into the house, Chloe’s attention was grabbed by what was happening outside on the patio. Through the open glass double doors she could see Marta along with the rest of the household staff all gathered by the pool. Her stomach dropped.
Marta stood ramrod straight with her hands clasped firmly behind her back. She was going from person to person. Her hard words drifted into the house. She was conducting an interrogation as to who had parked the offending motor vehicle out front. It looked like a scene out of a war movie, any minute now someone would confess their crime, and Gabriela would be given the job of dragging them away to be shot.
Not this morning. Not in front of Jordan. Please. This is so embarrassing.
“Ah, there you are, where have you been?” snapped Marta, as Chloe led Jordan out onto the patio. Her assistant’s disapproving gaze immediately switched from Chloe to him. She could almost hear the last piece of the puzzle as it snapped into place. Marta immediately hurried over to where Jordan stood. “Is that your hire car in the drive?”
Oh, no.
Jordan gave the dark haired Marta a slow withering looking up and down. He sniffed his obvious disapproval of her. “Yes, it is. Why? Do you have a problem with youremployerhaving visitors to her home, or is your issue with the brand of vehicle? I’m sorry to say they were fresh out of Mercedes when I arrived at the airport, and the Kia seemed a perfectly acceptable alternative. I didn’t realize that there was a dress code for motor vehicles. I will remember that fornexttime.”
Marta’s face registered the obvious challenge in Jordan’s words. Her hazel eyes widened, and her red painted lips became a thin, hard line of disapproval. She might think she was in charge of things here, but Chloe’s guest was making it clear he was not going to be bullied.
Chloe really ought to say something, but from the way that Jordan and Marta looked one another in the eye, it might be better if she simply held her tongue. These two seemed more than capable of taking care of themselves.
An interesting silence now descended. Interesting to Chloe, because Marta’s authority was being questioned by a stranger in front of the rest of the household team. Knowing Marta, she would be running several scenarios simultaneously in her head in an effort to come up with the most effective way to keep her iron grip on power. She would also be thinking of how she could put Jordan firmly in his place. Marta excelled at this sort of conflict.
“I’m happy to move the car if it’s a problem,” offered Jordan.
I really should do something. I should, but …
Chloe was utterly riveted by this encounter. Spellbound. Two strong minded people, seeking to gain an edge.
A smile lit Marta’s face. Her expression was victorious. No one ever won against her. And she was going to make certain that Jordan knew his place.
“Would you mind moving it to the visitor car space farthest from the front door? Ms. Fisher doesn’t like the driveway to be crowded.”
Invoking Chloe’s name so formally was Marta’s sly way of letting Jordan know that if he refused her request, it would be due to his lack of manners. And by not moving the car, the only person he would be offending was the lady of the house. Chloe.
Ms. Fisher, my ass. That’s not what you called me when you found me eating a tiny handful of French fries after the concert in Berlin.
Her assistant excelled in name calling and put downs. All in the supposed noble cause of making sure that Chloe fitted her costumes and looked fabulous. If Foster and Marta weren’t as thick as thieves, Chloe would have rid herself of the woman long ago.
Then again if I changed managers …
With the fragile peace hanging by a thin thread, Chloe turned to Jordan. This moment was all about everyone saving face. If Marta was forced to back down, the rest of the staff would be made to pay. Jordan sadly was the only one without a lot to lose.