The Bridal Bargain (3 page)

“Why is he going?”

“Personal problems.” He sighed, giving vent to some of his frustration. Then with an ironic grimace, he added, “His partner is yearning for the more sophisticated scene in Sydney. Paradise has its limitations.”

“I’m sure I’ll be
very
happy here.”

She twinkled so much happiness at him Tony’s chest tightened against the barrage. He forced his gaze down to the papers in front of him. He couldn’t even hope she might start yearning for city lights and fly out of his life. It was clear from her resume she’d been working in tropical climates for some time— Broome, Darwin, even a six-month stint at King’s Eden in the Kimberley. Port Douglas probably was a paradise to her.

“So what time am I to be at the marina tomorrow?” she asked eagerly.

“Eight o’clock.
Duchess
leaves at eight-thirty and returns at four-thirty. You’ll be provided with a uniform which is to be worn onboard at all times.” Which should cover up her most distracting assets. He glanced at his watch. “If we leave now, I can introduce you to the crew when they disembark this afternoon.”

She immediately leapt up from her chair.

The butterfly pulsed at him.

Tony closed his eyes for one tight moment and rose to his feet, turning to his grandmother and lining up his vision on her.

“Always in a rush, Antonio,” she sighed. “You didn’t eat anything.”

“Sorry, Nonna. Had a big lunch,” he excused, stepping over to kiss her cheek. “Thanks again for doing the interviews.”

“Perhaps Hannah will tempt you with her cooking.”

Her culinary expertise was very low on the list of temptations where Hannah O’Neill was concerned. “As long as she tempts our trippers, I’ll be happy,” he said, hiding his dark thoughts.

“Mrs King, I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your kind consideration and the chance to do my best for
Duchess,
’’ came the fervent flow from the seductive voice, working some more magic on his grandmother who bestowed her most benevolent smile.

“I hope everything works out well, my dear. You must have afternoon tea with me again one day. I did enjoy our chat together.”

“I’d like that, too, Mrs King.”

Oh, great! Tony thought in high exasperation. Next thing you know she’d be invited to family functions and she’d be in his face all over the place. Apart from which, he now had to contend with Alex’s and Matt’s reactions to her being put into one of the Coral King apartments, free of charge.
His
employee!

Nonna had boxed him into a very uncomfortable corner. Somehow he had to work his way out of it without upsetting her and without getting himself into big trouble with Hannah O’Neill.

“Come
this way. We’ll take the jeep down to the marina,” Tony instructed, setting a brisk pace along a path that led around to the other side of the castle.

Always in a rush,
his grandmother had said, and Hannah could see what she meant. Her legs were working overtime keeping up with him. Her heart was racing, too. She hoped she hadn’t bitten off more than she could chew with this job. Living up to Tony King’s standard of excellence was a scary prospect. She was going to have to learn fast, even faster than he walked.

The jeep was parked next to the helipad. Hannah was used to the small bubble helicopters that transported guests at King’s Eden Wilderness Resort. The one Tony King flew was a very sleek machine in comparison. Big money. Big money everywhere she looked. Could a million-dollar-man fall in love with a cook?

Her mind fuzzed with the thought of happy miracles. She shot him her best smile as he opened the passenger door of the jeep for her. Unhappily he didn’t see it. His gaze seemed to be trained on watching her legs swing in before shutting the door again, and he frowned all the way around to the driver’s side.

Business worries? she wondered. It was probably a bit forward to ask, so she held her tongue as they rode down to the marina. He maintained a grim-faced silence until they reached the Kingtripper office where he handed her over to the receptionist with an efficiency that left Hannah feeling somewhat deflated.

“Sally, this is Hannah O’Neill,” he said with almost curt haste. “She will be our new chef on
Duchess.”

“Hey! That’s great! Congratulations!”

Hannah didn’t even get time to reply.

“Supply her with a uniform, give her all the information about our cruises, and let me know when the crew comes in. I need to catch up on the latest figures.”

“Will do,” Sally more or less said to his back as he headed towards a door that opened to a private office. His abrupt manner hadn’t dimmed her brightness. She had a pretty, vivacious face, a very short bob of dark brown hair, and blue eyes that danced lively curiosity at Hannah as she aimed a grin at her. “Welcome onboard the Kingtripper line.”

“Thanks.” Hannah grinned back, then nodded to the now closed door, whispering, “Does he always move this fast?”

“Well, the chef situation is getting fairly urgent with Chris all upset about Johnny leaving,” Sally confided.

“Who’s Johnny?”

“His partner. Who threw an ultimatum at him last week and took off to Sydney. Follow him or else.”

A roll of the eyes. “Chris would be better off without

Johnny, if you ask me, but I guess gay relationships are just as demanding as any other.” She grimaced. “I took this job as therapy after divorcing my overbearing husband. What about you?’’

“Me?” Hannah’s mind was still buzzing through all these new bits of information.

“Well, you’re obviously a stranger in town since you didn’t know about King’s Castle. Are you escaping from something?”

“More looking around,” Hannah said blithely, realising Sally was a gossipy person and it paid to be wary of giving out too much before she knew the lay of the land. Besides which, the ex-love of her life had receded into the far distance since she had met Tony King. She could almost wish Jodie well of Flynn. Almost.

She pasted a smile over the niggling sense of betrayal and elaborated on her carefree theme. “I wanted to get work here and stay awhile. It’s a beautiful part of Australia.”

“Sure is,” came the ready agreement. “And the perfect base for bouncing off to other great places. Have you got accommodation?”

“Yes. All fixed up.” A strong sense of discretion told her to keep quiet on that front, too, so she rushed on, “What I need now is all the info on
Duchess
and...”

“A set of uniforms,” Sally said obligingly. “Come on. I’ll fit you out and feed you facts.”

They only had ten minutes before
Duchess
glided in to dock at the marina. They watched it from the double glass doors that opened out to the promenade deck. Even to Hannah who’d seen many expensive boats in Fremantle, it looked fabulous; a sleek, stylish, black and white catamaran that exuded power and luxury.

“By far the best,” Sally said proudly. “Only launched last year. Air-conditioned saloon and bridge, the most up-to-date entertainment systems, walk-in easy water access for diving or snorkelling, and for you, a fully equipped galley, including an espresso coffee machine and a dishwasher.” She gave Hannah a droll look. “No plastic plates on
Duchess.
It’s all top class.”

Hannah nodded, observing the stream of day-trippers emerging onto the wharf—the clothes they wore, the bags they carried, all classy casual gear. These were moneyed people who paid for the best and expected it as their right. They looked happy and satisfied, which meant the five-star service had not fallen short today.

She took a deep breath, retiring her determination to ensure her service didn’t fall short of the standard Tony King wanted maintained. The strong need to please him—more, to delight him—went far beyond what she should feel for her employer, but there was no point in trying to deny he’d put a new zing in her life. She got an electric charge just bringing his image to mind.

“Does...uh...Mr King ever go out on
Duchess!”
she couldn’t stop herself from asking.

“Oh, yes! He skippers it most Saturdays and Sundays. And also when it’s chartered by a special party. We’ve had a few celebrities with their entourage wanting
Duchess
to themselves for a day. Tony likes to take personal care of VIPs. He’s a terrific host, and of course, they spread the word to their friends. Best publicity we can get.”

Tony...
Sally spoke the name so familiarly, Hannah reasoned it must be okay to use it in front of the staff. It was silly to suddenly feel awkward about it. It had felt right when they’d been at the castle. He just seemed to have distanced himself from her since they’d left his grandmother. But she was probably being over-sensitive where he was concerned, not wanting to put any foot wrong.

Today was Wednesday. She had two days to learn all the ropes, practise her cooking and have everything down pat before
he
came on board. Tomorrow she would bring a notebook with her and jot down everything Chris did, everything she had to know about the galley and how it worked. Once the overall routine was fixed in her mind, she could add her own special touches, show Tony he’d really got a prize in his new chef. Then he’d give her that heart-buzzing smile and...

“Crew’s coming off now,” Sally announced, jolting Hannah back to the immediate situation. “Eric and Tracy and Jai do the diving. They’re the first three. Next comes Chris and his assistant, Megan, then the skipper, David, and the first mate, Keith.”

Five men, two women, all of them young and looking very fit and full of vigour. Soon to be four men and three women, Hannah thought. She saw Chris— hair very peroxide blonde—hurrying past the others, an urgent intensity driving him as he headed for the office.

“I’d better get Tony,” Sally muttered, and made a dash for his door.

He emerged just as Chris bounded in, clearly pumped up with his personal problems, his frown lifting as he saw Tony. “Did you get someone?” he burst out, so intent on his own needs he didn’t even give Hannah a cursory glance.

“Calm down, Chris.” The strong, authoritative voice warned the chef he was out of line. “You have just walked past the person I’ve hired as your replacement.”

“Sorry, sorry...” He spun to face Hannah, relief breaking a smile through his anxiety. “Hi!”

“Hi!” she returned with smile inviting fellowship.

“This is Hannah O’Neill,” Tony introduced. “Chris Walton, who’ll show you precisely what’s expected of the chef on
Duchess
over the next two days.”

Which jerked Chris’s head back to Tony. “Do I have to? Can’t Hannah...?”

“No.” Very firm. “You stay till the end of the week. As agreed, Chris.”

“But Megan could show her everything.”

“It’s your responsibility.” The grey eyes were very steely as he added. “Don’t let me down, Chris.”

Me, too, Hannah thought on a panicky note, her nerves instantly protesting the prospect of being thrown in at the deep end without a life raft.

“You now have a cut-off day,” Tony went on. “You can book a flight to Sydney on Friday evening. You’ll forfeit your pay and a reference if you leave before then. Understand me?”

Chris crumpled. “Yeah, yeah. I just thought...”

“I want a smooth changeover, Chris.”

“Okay!” He sighed and turned back to Hannah. “Don’t get me wrong. It’s a great job. I just need to be elsewhere.”

She nodded sympathetically. “I will appreciate your staying on to show me how to handle everything, Chris.”

“No sweat,” he muttered, but it obviously was. The absent Johnny definitely had the screws on him.

The others streamed into the office and having settled the departure issue with Chris, Tony proceeded to introduce her to the rest of the crew. They seemed a cheerful bunch and Hannah felt only good vibrations coming her way, no reservations about her fitting the role she’d taken on.

She was very conscious of Tony watching, and hoped he was pleased with the quick and easy connections made and the positive mood engendered by them. In any tourist business, it was important to promote an air of friendly approachability. Keeping a happy face was second nature to Hannah and today it was very easy for her to exude happiness.

A lovely new place to explore.

A new job to keep her going.

A new man who might just be Mr Right...if her heart was telling her true!

“Hey! Great dimples!” David Hampson, the skipper remarked. He was the last one to be introduced, the senior man on the crew, and very good-looking with bright brown eyes and a charming grin which he swung from her to Tony. “I think you’ve picked us up an asset here.”

It earned a frown. “What we need is great cooking.”

“Granted,” David cheerfully agreed, returning a sparkling gaze to Hannah. “But give it to us served with dimples and it’ll put a fine edge on our appetites.”

She laughed, liking his good-humoured teasing.

“Are you ready to move now, Hannah? Got everything you need?” Tony shot at her, cutting off the laughter.

“Yes.” She quickly picked up the plastic bag which contained her uniforms and a pile of print-outs on the Kingtripper cruises.

“Right!” He addressed the crew. “I expect you all to look after Hannah tomorrow, without her becoming a distraction to what you should be doing. Just keep everything running smoothly. Okay?”

They chorused assent.

His gaze sliced to her. “Let’s go. I’ll take you to your accommodation now so you can get settled and ready for work in the morning.”

“See you all tomorrow,” she tossed at everyone and quickly accompanied Tony out to the walkway through the shopping mall, her heart fluttering at his rush to be on the move again.

“Where’s your luggage?” he asked.

“This way.” She waved to the left and he was off at a stride that demanded she keep up. A glance flashed at his profile told her his mouth was grimly set again. “Thanks for your support back there,” she said tentatively, grateful for his stand with Chris.

“I hope you’re not going to be trouble, Hannah,” he grated out.

“Trouble?” she echoed, flustered by this negative reading which she hadn’t been expecting.

He beetled a warning look at her. “David Hampson is married. He’s got two children.”

“Well, that’s very nice for him,” she replied, still mystified by the almost accusing manner.

“Yes. Let’s keep it that way.” His chin jutted forward, along with his gaze as they walked on.

It took a while for his meaning to filter in. Tony King saw
her
as a threat to David Hampson’s marriage? Why on earth would he think that? Because David had made a comment about her dimples? That was ridiculous...wasn’t it?

“You know, it’s not my fault I’ve got dimples,” she said testingly. “I was born with them.”

“And a lot else, besides,” he muttered darkly.

It was too much for Hannah. “Do you have a problem with me?”

“No.” His chin jutted even more forward. “Why would I have a problem?”

“I don’t know.” She frowned over the puzzle. He’d been distant towards her ever since... “Maybe if you’d been making the choice, I wouldn’t have been given the job.”

“I have the utmost faith in my grandmother’s judgement,” he declared as though not the slightest doubt had ever entered his mind.

“Well, that’s a relief!” She heaved a sigh to get rid of that bit of unnecessary tension. “It’s not a good feeling working for someone who doesn’t want you.”

“No question that I
want
you,” he said very dryly.

“That’s okay then.” She felt much better, and to relieve any worries he might have about her, she said, “Generally I get on very well with people.”

“So I noticed.”

“And I don’t believe in messing with anyone’s marriage.”
Not even Flynn’s and Jodie’s.