At this point, room service arrived with a meal made for two. They delivered it quickly and hurried off, probably feeling the tension in the atmosphere.
Reggie’s shoulders slumped once they were gone, and he sank down on the couch with a deep, troubled sigh. I hadn’t expected him to react that way; frankly, I thought he would insist he’d get me fired given the mood that he’d been in until now.
“Will you still stay for lunch?” he asked, pulling the trolley closer and nodding toward the seat next to him.
“I will,” I answered carefully, sitting down and wondering what was coming next.
Reggie opened one of the dishes, an appetizer of glazed apple and something that I didn’t recognize. Reggie picked at it, looking sadder than ever.
“I’m sorry I’ve been difficult,” he said, pushing the dish in my direction. I took one of the apple slices and ate it while he spoke. “Honestly, I just wanted you around. I guess I went about it the wrong way.”
“Really?” I asked curiously when I’d swallowed the last bite. I hadn’t even thought that Reggie liked my company in the slightest. Most of the time, it felt as if I was simply another obstacle in the way of his whims. But I could see in his face that he was serious, and that there was something else underneath all of his masks that was bothering him.
“Yeah, look, I’ll be honest with you,” he said. All of that usual obnoxiousness had completely disappeared from his voice. His shoulders hung low and his eyes were almost dark. “My birthday’s this week, and there’s nobody around to celebrate itwith me. My family won’t talk to me, and I don’t exactly have friends. Money took all of them from me.”
“Oh,” I answered, nodding slowly. “Well, Reggie. I’m still sticking by the boundaries I was talking about, but I’ll tell you a secret. You’re my favorite guest. Don’t tell the others.”
His smile was sad, but appreciative. “Thank you. I’ll quit being a pain in the ass.”
“Good,” I chuckled. “Now, let’s enjoy our lunch, shall we?”
As soon as I left his room, I rushed down to the kitchen, finding Nolan in the middle of screaming something about flambé.
“We’re having a surprise party for Reggie tonight,” I announced to him, refusing to listen to any arguments to the contrary. “There’s an open dining room, and you have space in your schedule. Make it happen.”
“Ma’am, yes, Ma’am,” Nolan said while rolling his eyes.
That night, I personally went to get Reggie from his room, where he’d been cooped up for the rest of the day. He argued with me that he didn’t want to go anywhere, but I reminded him he’d promised to be nice.
Grumbling, he followed me through the hallways, until I led him through the dining room doors. On the other side, we’d whipped up decorations and a hanging sign saying ‘Happy Birthday, Reggie!’.
“You didn’t!” he gasped, looking at me with bright eyes. “Thank you! This is great!”
“It’s my pleasure,” I answered, pulling out a chair for him. “Landon will be joining you shortly.”
Reggie sat down, and I took the opportunity to catch Nolan at the other end of the room.
“You did a wonderful job,” I said, winking at him. “I should thank you later.”
“No need,” Nolan shrugged, though I could tell he was impressed with himself. “Anyway, it was mostly you.”
“Speaking of me,” I teased. “When are you going to tell me what you and Landon were talking about?”
“Mm, you’ll find out tomorrow.”
22
Adriana
By the next morning, my curiosity was close to bubbling over. I desperately wanted to know what Nolan and Landon were up to. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any time to keep prodding at them for answers. There was an upcoming chartered yacht trip that day with several VIPs, including Reggie and Bryant.
Nolan and Landon were also coming along, which meant that this trip was one I needed to keep perfectly balanced. I remembered the night in the gallery and the intoxicating fun that I had then.
I knew I wouldn’t be entirely able to resist, but I needed to be mindful of when Bryant was around. He didn’t know about the others, and I didn’t think I wanted him to. Especially since Nolan and Landon had only just started getting used to the idea of sharing me.
It was a whirlwind of chaos behind the scenes to get all of the VIPs on board as well as all of the food, drinks, and staff. I found myself running this way and that way right up until I boarded, too. Even then, I needed to do several checks and see to it that everyone was smiling and excited.
Finally, I was able to relax somewhat when we left the port, with the sun and the sea breeze dancing through the air. I stood close to the railing, watching the ocean swell around us, taking a quick breath before everyone was due for lunch. I was excited for that, given that Nolan had something planned that made me put in a lot of effort and several long phone calls to get into place.