His Paris Affair (The Albury Affairs) (5 page)

At the hotel, the doorman and the bellboys were no better.
They sat at the door smoking while Ruiz pulled out his own luggage from the
trunk. The second he got the last bag out, the car shot off, not even waiting
for him to close the trunk door. Shaking his head, he made his way to the
concierge table and groaned when he found the lady there, sitting with her legs
up on the desk filing her nails.

“Excuse me, I need the key to my room,” he gnashed out,
barely able to contain his rage.

The lady gave him a rude once over then sneered going to
back filing her nails.

That does it!
He
was done! “Give me the key to the Family Suite, then follow that up with your
resignation!” he barked.

The lady jumped off the chair clearly startled. She narrowed
her eyes at him and with a heavy French accent said, “Who is you to fire me?”

“Ruiz Albury. Part owner of the Red Roses hotel. Now where
is my damn key!”

She blanched her mouth opening a few times as if she was
trying to speak, but the words wouldn’t come out. Ruiz took a little
satisfaction in that, but his rage was still flaring.

 
“It’s clear you
speak and understand English so I’m not going to ask you again. Get a bellboy
to take my luggage up then tell the staff we’re having a meeting an hour before
dinner service.”

She nodded then began on a stutter, “
M-monsieur
, the manager lives in the Family Suite.”

Ruiz placed his elbows on the counter and leaned forward,
the lady instinctively leaned back. “Is his last name Albury?” he asked in a
menacing tone.

She swallowed hard then vigorously shook her head.

“What about Barkhurst?”

Again she shook her head.

“Not even Sinclair?”

She shook her head.

“Then get his shit out of my suite and make sure the place
is cleaned up in half an hour. When you’re done, make sure to ask for his
resignation too. Am I clear?”

She nodded, her eyes widening at his harsh tone, but Ruiz
was beyond caring if he’d scared her. He was pissed! He pushed away from the
counter picking up the lady’s panicked voice as she yelled out a name that was
followed by rapid French as he walked away. He hoped once he was done touring
the hotel, he would have at least set one room straight.

When he got back to his room, he didn’t even bother to see
if his orders were carried out. He muttered angrily to himself as he dialed his
phone. Things were worse than what Matthew had thought. He was surprised the
building was still open for business considering it was practically empty. The
few guests that he had met half were on their way out to a better hotel and the
other half was actually hotel staff lazing around. How the hell had things
gotten this bad? It was a shadow—a bad one at that—of what he’d left behind a
year ago. What happened to the manager he and Melody had left in charge and who
the hell was the new guy and how did he get the position? Only Reno, Melody and
he could hire managing staff and he was sure Reno didn’t hire him. Could Melody
have possibly done this?

He shook his head. “No way.” She wouldn’t condemn her gift,
one that had almost cost Allan and Riana their lives to such careless hands.
That would be an insult to them!

“
Ciao
.”

“Dante,” Ruiz began speaking into the phone. “I know you
only operate in Italy but I need your help in Paris and I need it fast.”

A heavy sigh came through the ear piece. “So, you have seen
the disaster for yourself? It’s such a shame all things considering.”

Ruiz flung his jacket off and began working on the buttons
of his shirt. “Shame isn’t the word for it. I need a lawyer, by today if
possible. I’m going to be firing a number of people and I need it handled
legally and fast if I’m going to save this place before Matthew shuts it down.”

“Matthew? Is it not your brother Reno who is in charge?”

Yes, it was, but even as much as Allan owned Sinclair
Enterprises, if Matthew didn’t like something, as small as it may be about a
particular deal it was shut down immediately. His brother and brother-in-law
took his advice seriously as their lawyer. And besides, he was also a part
owner—though a small part—in the franchise. It made sense to Reno to give him
that considering how much work he’d put into it especially when Allan was out
of commission.

“Yes, but we both know it would only take a word from him to
have this place boarded up. And I can’t have my brother worrying about this
right now with Loraine being pregnant.”

“Ah
si
. I will
find you the best law firm France has to offer. You can count on me, Ruiz.”

 
Feeling a little
relieved, Ruiz thanked him and hang up. He finished undressing as he walked
into the master bedroom and went straight for the shower. He was tired, but he
wasn’t sure if he could afford sleep at this point. A relaxing hot shower would
have to do.

Twenty minutes later he came out of the bathroom to a man
yelling and the familiar voice of the concierge. The manager, he guessed and
his jaw clenched tight. He had a few choice words for the frog, three of them
being ‘you are fired’. He tucked a towel low around his hips and marched into
the living room where a man in his bathing suit and a towel hang over his
shoulders yelled at the concierge who was dishing as much as she was getting.

“What?” he yelled immediately silencing the room before he
lowered his voice to a cool and harsh tone, “Are you doing fighting in my
room?”

The man glared at him, his lips curled in a snare. “You mean
my
room.”

Ruiz folded his arms over his chest and looked down at the man
who was a half a foot shorter and a few sizes smaller than him. He hadn’t had
to use his size advantage to intimidate someone in years, but since that was
what the ass had been trying with the concierge Ruiz wanted him to be at the
receiving end. The beady eyes moving up and down his form and the cautious step
back told Ruiz the guy was thinking about his next words, carefully.

“You’re not a Sinclair or an Albury or a Barkhurst, so I
find it hard to see how this is
your
room.”

The man smiled smugly up at him and announced in a heavy
Italian accent, “No, but I’m married to a Sinclair.”

Ruiz felt like he had been punched in the gut, but he
schooled his features to hide his emotions.
He
was married to Melody? How?
Ruiz looked him over carefully and he
immediately recognized him. It was the man he’d seen Melody with after she’d
told him she didn’t want him in her life anymore. That he had been a mistake
and the biggest regret in her life. She’d followed that up with throwing the
key he’d given her at the bridge out the window. That had hurt immensely and it
felt like salt to a wound staring at the new man in her life, but how could she
let him do this to Red Roses and stand idly by?

Ruiz fought to cover his pain with cool indifference.
“Congratulations and where is your beautiful bride?”

Before beady eyes could answer, the concierge spoke up. “She
lives in the manager’s house
monsieur
.”

Ruiz pulled his lips in a smile, “Well then, that’s where
your
room is. Now get out of my suite
before I throw you out. Oh and another thing, you’re fired, married to a
Sinclair or not.”

He sputtered with indignation, “You can’t do that!”

Ruiz dropped his arms to his sides in tight fists as he
approached the man, forcing him to back pedal. “I can and I just did. Get. The
hell. Out!”

The man spun around and rushed out of the room leaving Ruiz
and a smug concierge behind. The look in her eyes told him there was more to
that relationship than coworkers between her and the manager. And when she
turned to look at Ruiz, she confirmed it with the lecherous perusal of his
naked torso. He could guess how she got her job and how she intended to keep
it.

“Don’t you have a desk to get to?”

“
Oui monsieur
,”
she purred strutting towards him, but he signaled to the door with his chin.

 
“The exit is
that way
mademoiselle
.”

She stopped in her tracks and for the first time since he
entered the room in his state of undress looked him in the eye. She must have
read something there because the seduction was gone and she nodded curtly
heading out the door. Once the door was shut and he was left alone, Ruiz fell
into the couch rubbing his chest over his aching heart.

“Married to a cheating beady-eyed bastard? Is that how much
you hate me Melody?”
                   

Chapter Three

Melody rocked in the rocking chair staring down at her
beautiful daughter as she nursed. She loved the rosy bud of her lips, her
button nose the mass of jet black hair atop her head and her eyes. Her eyes
both excited and haunted her. She had the signature Albury eyes—brown with
flecks of green. Melody’s heart beat heavily under her rib cage at the thought
of Ruiz.

Has it actually been a
year since I last saw him?

Yes, it had. Their daughter was two months old, a full term
baby. She’d actually stayed longer than ten months and Melody kept thinking she
was waiting for mommy to call daddy so that he could welcome her into the
world. She’d been tempted a few times, to call him, but she always chickened
out, afraid of the repercussions, too scared of Antonio. He had been the worst
thing that could have ever happened in her life and if it wasn’t for her baby
she wasn’t sure where she would be.

Esmeralda Mélodie Albury was the only thing that had held
her together that year. She named her precious bundle after Ruiz’s grandmother
and herself but in French. Ruiz had driven her crazy pronouncing her name ‘the
French way’. She teared up just thinking about how it moved from being a means
of torture to sighs of pleasure when he’d finally made love to her taking her
treasured virginity. The memory of his touch on her skin made her shiver with
residual delight. She craved his touch, but only had his memories to hold her
over. She felt foolish now over their last fight. Compared to her current
situation, it was ridiculous! But the hurt had left her open, vulnerable and
that’s when Antonio swooped in for the kill. Now she was married to him, with
no way out unless one of them died, but it couldn’t be her—it wouldn’t, not
until her daughter was safe, so that meant doing whatever he wanted. She was
just glad his threats to bed her were just that, hollow threats meant to
torment her, but to be on the safe side, she locked her bedroom door every time
he was in the manager’s house and she made sure she had the only key to the
room.

Esme’s suckling grew slow as her eyelids began to droop.
Melody smiled, completely enthralled by her. She was finally falling asleep and
Melody could now—
could what?
Antonio
had made sure she had nothing to do with the running of the hotel. In fact, the
last time she went out was when she went to the hospital to give birth and
she’d been all alone. She’d cried for Ruiz, her brother, Riana, and Loraine.
Hell, she’d even cried for Reno. She wanted to go home, she wanted her family
back. She didn’t want to spend the rest of her life under Antonio’s control.

The banging on the door made her jump and so did Esme, her
eyes flying wide open and she began to whine. Melody held her to her shoulder
and tried to calm her, but that was impossible with the banging and shouting.
Melody buttoned up her shirt with one hand as she stood up and moved to the
door, rocking Esme.

“What do you want Antonio?” she demanded careful not to
shout.

“Get out here now!”

“Why?”

“Because I said so,
merde
!”

Melody rolled her eyes, unlocking and swinging open the
door. Antonio stood at the other side, in just his swimming trunks and a towel
slang over his heaving shoulders and judging by his ugly glare clearly mad
about something.

“What do you want Antonio?” she repeated her first question.

“Your stupid lover is back and he has fired me!” he yelled
making Esme jump again.

Melody glared at him. “Keep your voice down or—” Then his
words sank in and she felt her body go cold. “M-my my lover?”

Antonio smirked at her. “Oh yes. Your lover—well, old lover
because I mentioned that you were my wife and he didn’t seem to care. He didn’t
bat an eyelash. I believe your love has forgotten you. He was quite happy to
keep Cheri in his room once I left—”

“Enough!” The last thing she wanted to hear was the antics
of the hotel’s personal whore. And Ruiz, how could he? But what did she expect?
She sent him away, slept with someone else hours after their break up. Did she
expect him to remain celibate? God it hurt just thinking about him with another
woman but she’ll be damned if she lets Antonio see it.

Keeping her expression neutral she asked with a cool tone,
“Why are you telling me all this Antonio? Get to the point.”

He gave her a menacing glare as he moved to stand right in
her face. “Get rid of him Melody. Tell him to go back to where he came from,
that the hotel is in good hands. I want him gone tonight!”

Melody shook her head with a sad chuckle. “I can’t do that,
unless you want the hotel shut down. Ruiz, I’m sure was sent here to either
save or board up this place. I ask him to leave and the board of directors will
gut this place up and sell it for scrap, then what will you do?”

He growled under his breath and stomped away. Melody walked
back into her room and laid Esme down. While on Melody’s shoulder she had
burped and fallen asleep. She looked so precious in her sleep that seeing her
that way never failed to warm Melody’s heart.

“Convince him that I can revive the hotel.”