Blessed (The Dark Billionaire, #7) (4 page)

“I’m sinking.”

“Not yet but you’re close. Burn out, Jen. That’s what’s happening. You need to take a break and refocus.”

“How? I have all these interviews every day and I can’t find anybody decent. And then, I’m booked every night.”

“I think you focus on the wrong thing. You shouldn’t spend so much time recruiting. It’s getting to you personally and now, you can’t do what you do best: cooking.”

“I don’t like recruiting people, Bruce. I don’t feel comfortable.”

“Then, stop it. Do what you’re good at. Forget the rest.”

“How am I going to get started with my school without any staff?”

Bruce sighed and paused.

“All right,” he said. “I’ll get someone to help you. I’ll contact a recruitment agency to assist you.”

“Bruce, I didn’t mean to bother you. I know you did a lot already.”

“Baby, please. Remember what the priest said? For better or worse...”

Jennifer smiled and wiped a tear rolling on her cheek. “Thank you, baby. I love you.”

“Now, stop looking for people and stop canceling. You’ve worked hard to build your customer base. Your clients love you, don’t let them down.”

“I’m going to call back Patrick to help me. You’re right; it was smoother when I wasn’t trying to do everything alone.”

“That’s right. You’ll be fine, Jen. Don’t freak out and don’t even think about quitting again. You understand?”

“Yes. I don’t know what I would do without you.”

Bruce chuckled and then, he said, “Oh, before I forget. Did you take any new clients recently?”

“No, I refused most of them because I felt overwhelmed. I’m booked for one week and then, I have nothing. But I’ll fix that. I’ll call them back to tell them I’m available.”

“No, don’t.”

Jennifer didn’t know what to say. Did Bruce just tell her not to get more work? It didn’t make sense after the conservation they’d just had.

“Excuse me?” She said. “I thought I was supposed to get back on track now that you’ll help me to recruit people?”

“Yes, I know. But I want you to stop for a while.”

“Why?”

“I can’t tell you right now. Can you do that for me, please?”

Jennifer frowned and bit her lip. Bruce was hiding something and she didn’t like it.

“It would be easier if you just told me what’s going on, don’t you think?”

“I’m not the kind of guy who takes to easy route...”

“Okay, but we’re married now and we both agreed that we should trust each other, remember? Communication?”

“Fine. Let’s just say that I have something very important to do in the following weeks and I can’t do it alone. I will need your help. You’ll need to be available all the time.”

“Isn’t it going to be a problem for my business? I just dropped four clients, Bruce. It was a stupid decision and now, I’m worried.”

“Tell them you’ll be on vacation. Tell them anything...”

“You want me to lie?”

“Well, you just dropped your clients. What did you tell them?”

“Mmm... that I was busy? Okay, I lied to them but I was really lost. I didn’t know what else to say.”

“So just do it again. It won’t make a big difference.”

Jennifer sighed and shrugged. “Okay, I’ll do it. But I still don’t know why I need to do that. I don’t like it when you ask me to do strange things out of the blue.”

“I’ll tell you when the time comes.”

“As usual...”

They hung up and Jennifer immediately called Patrick to check if he was available to work with her again. She hadn’t told Bruce that Patrick had tried to seduce her many times when they’d worked together. That was the main reason why she had decided to let him go. Then, she had been too busy to find someone else and had realized she could handle everything by herself.

Patrick wasn’t bad looking but he wasn’t Jenifer’s type. She had no physical attraction toward him, no chemistry. The fact that he was interested in her was not a problem. Unlike with Enzo, there was no risk this time. She knew she wouldn’t do anything stupid and put her relationship with Bruce in danger. It was more annoying than anything else, but she could deal with it. She just had to make it clear that they were just working together; it would never be more. Plus, she was married now and even though she couldn’t wear her wedding ring when she was cooking, she wouldn’t miss an occasion to let Patrick know.

Patrick didn’t hesitate to help Jennifer again. He was more than happy to work with her and she told him right away that he couldn’t try anything suspicious this time. She was married and had a bodyguard. Patrick kept silent for a while, as if he was trying to decide what to say.

This sudden change of behavior made her realize that he had accepted simply because he was expecting something more personal. Jennifer felt flattered but she had to make sure their cooperation was based on a solid foundation.

“I’ll double your salary,” she said after a while.

“I don’t care about the money. I think we work great together and we would be a lovely couple.”

“Didn’t you hear what I said? I’m married.”

“And then what?”

“Are you serious?”

“I can be your lover, I don’t mind.”

“Patrick, you don’t get it. I’m not interested, okay? Our relationship will never go beyond the kitchen and we’ll never do anything more than cooking together. If that’s a problem with you, I’m sorry I called you, please forget about my offer.”

Patrick kept silent. Jennifer shook her head, convinced that he would refuse. She would have to find another assistant and she didn’t like the idea.

“I’ll take your offer to double my salary,” he finally said.

Jennifer sighed. “Deal. Can I count on you tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow night. Deal.”

J
ennifer gave the final touch to her last dessert of the night. It was also the last client she would have for a while. As Bruce had requested, she had stopped taking new reservations and her agenda was empty for the month to come. She wasn’t comfortable with this situation, well aware that she had to get as many clients as possible before it was too late. There was absolutely no sign that her business would slow down any time soon, but she was very cautious, almost paranoid to lose everything.

She shared a glass of champagne with her clients, following her usual networking routine, and got ready to leave. Patrick helped her to clean everything and to load the mini-van.

“Well, thank you, Pat,” she said, shaking his hand. “It was a great night.”

“My pleasure,” he said, slightly bowing his head.

“Patrick, there won’t be any work for you for a while.”

“Why not? You just called me back a few days ago. I thought I’d be working for a few months at least.”

Jennifer sighed and nodded. She felt embarrassed to let him down again. “Something unexpected happened. I won’t be able to take any new reservation.”

“For how long?”

Jennifer had been thinking about the same question and had pressed Bruce to let her know the answer. “At least a month,” she said. That was what Bruce had told her. It was better than being totally kept in the dark but it was still pretty vague. It wasn’t a month exactly - it was at least a month, meaning it could two or three or even more.

“So what do you want me to do?” Patrick said. “Should I wait for you? Or can I take another job?”

Deep inside, Jennifer wanted him to wait. She knew she could count on him. He was punctual, fast, smart, reliable, and could handle a conversation with clients if needed. After her disastrous attempt to recruit people for her cooking school, Jennifer knew too well how difficult it was to find good employees. She certainly didn’t want to experience another round of interviews with unmotivated and incompetent candidates. Patrick was an asset and she was now fully aware of his worth.

“I’m not going to lie,” she said. “I don’t want to let you go but I know you have other opportunities to work. You can take anything you want.”

Jennifer didn’t really mean it but she couldn’t be selfish. She didn’t know how things would turn out and couldn’t ask him to wait with false promises.

“What happens after a month? You won’t take any new clients?”

“Of course I will.”

“How are you going to do then? You told me you didn’t need me anymore a few months ago. I thought you would do everything by yourself. And then, you asked me to assist you again. What is it going to be next month?”

“Patrick, I’m really sorry. We were supposed to keep working together this time but my husband needs me. It seems to be very important and I have to put things on hold.”

“Okay, what if I wait for you? It shouldn’t be more than a month, right?”

“In theory. I don’t really know.”

“But what if I wait? Do you promise you’ll hire me?”

“Absolutely. I promise.”

Then, Jennifer had an idea. She had saved quite a bit of money and was pretty comfortable now. Patrick relied on her to pay the bills and he was in an uncertain situation.

She retrieved an envelope from her purse. It was her pay for the night. She made a quick calculation in her mind, took half of it and handed the money to Patrick.

“Take it,” she said.

Patrick raised an eyebrow and stared at her. He didn’t touch the money. “What?”

“I want you to wait for me but I know you also need a salary. This is a bonus in addition to your pay.”

Patrick winced and seemed to hesitate. He was tempted. “Are you sure?”

“Yes. You won’t need to find another job while you wait for me. Take it, please.”

Patrick glanced at Alfonso and smiled. He was still uncomfortable with the idea of Jennifer having a bodyguard. “Is he going to shoot me in the back if I take the money?”

Jennifer laughed. “Hell no. If he does, I’ll shoot him back. Come on, it’s yours.”

Patrick finally extended his hand. “Well, that’s very generous. It’s way more than I could earn in a month with anyone else. Thank you, Jennifer.”

“You’re welcome. Go home now. You have a month to forget about me,” she said as she patted him on the arm.

“Thanks. Good night, Jennifer.”

Patrick turned around and left. Jennifer was relieved to know that she would still be able to have him as an assistant whenever she was back. She turned to Alfonso and nodded.

“Okay, Alfonso,” she said. “It’s been a long night. Let’s go home.”

“I’m not sending you home, Mrs. Wilson.”

“What are you talking about? If this is a joke, it’s not funny at all, I’m sorry.”

“This is not a joke.”

“All right, you’re freaking me out. Please, tell me you’re not going to blindfold me and drop me in a warehouse again.”

Alfonso smiled and shook his head. “No, Ma’am. Not this time.”

Jennifer sighed and brought her hand to her chest in relief. “Where are you supposed to send me?”

“I can’t tell you. It’s a surprise.”

Jennifer’s curiosity made her giggle internally. It was a surprise from Bruce. The night was going to be very interesting.

“From Bruce?”

“From Mr. Wilson, yes. Now, will you please get in the car?” Alfonso said, holding the door for her.

She climbed in the mini-van and buckled up. She could feel and smell her own sweat underneath her clothes.

“Can I take a shower, at least? It won’t take more than ten minutes.”

“I’m not supposed to drop you home, even for ten minutes. I’m sorry.”

Jennifer didn’t insist. Alfonso would probably be in trouble or even lose his job if he didn’t follow orders. She couldn’t push him and she couldn’t blame him for doing his job.

She leaned back in the passenger seat and waited. There was nothing she could do and the idea of Bruce having a surprise for her was quite exciting. After such a long week of back breaking work, she dreamed about a good massage. Two hours on a table under the expert hands of an experienced therapist would be heaven and she prayed the surprise wouldn’t disappoint her.

After half an hour, Alfonso left the main road and entered a facility that Jennifer didn’t recognize. There was nothing around, except a few low buildings and warehouses.

“Where are we?” She asked, now slightly worried. “Are you sure this is where I’m supposed to be?”

“Don’t worry. You’re safe.”

“I don’t feel very confident to be honest with you, Alfonso. Don’t take it personally but I’ll call Bruce, just to hear his voice.”

Alfonso remained cool and didn’t seem object. “Sure.”

She took her cell-phone and got Bruce immediately.

“Baby?” She said. “Where are you taking me? I don’t know where I am and I’m getting nervous.”

“What do you see around?”

“Nothing. It’s all dark.”

“You should see a runway pretty soon.”

“A what?”

“I’ll take you on a little trip tonight.”

“What? We’re going to travel? Now?”

“Yes. Excited?”

Hell yeah, she thought. A vacation! That wasn’t what she had expected but it was actually a pretty damn good surprise.

“Where are we going?”

“Come on, Jen. I wasn’t supposed to tell you anything about the trip. I’m not going to tell you where we’re going or there won’t be any surprise anymore.”

“Please,” she said, trying to use her most charming voice to beg him.

“Huh huh. Nope. You’ll have to be a good girl and wait.”

Alfonso slowed down and Jennifer saw Bruce’s private jet waiting for them, ready to take off.

“I’m here,” she said. She didn’t wait for Alfonso to open her door and climbed out of the mini-van while they were still moving.”

“Hey, be careful!” Alfonso said behind her.

Jennifer was on the tarmac of the runway and could smell kerosene being pumped into the plane. It was slightly windy and she felt her hair stuck on her face.

“Where are you?” She said on the phone. “In the plane?”

“I’m in a different plane...”

“Are you kidding me? Why?”

“I need to be ahead of you to take care of a few details.”

“So you’re already flying now?”

“Yeah but she should be right behind me in a few minutes.”

Jennifer stopped walking around and stood there, disappointed.

“That’s not what I call a surprise, Bruce. Not a good one.”