Authors: Samantha Lovern
Chapter 43
Randi
It was Friday evening and less than forty-eight hours until Christmas. Randi had talked to her mother and promised that she would be by for a few hours on Christmas day. It didn’t really feel like Christmas, but she was getting paid well. As she cleaned up her room, making sure there was no dog hair to be found, she wondered if she’d made the right decision.
If she’d never taken this job, she would never have met Mike. Then again, it was a bit scary that she’d almost not met him. She didn’t know what she should think, or feel. She was falling in love, possibly with a man that was going to break her heart. While she was on her knees cleaning up the last of Bandit’s fur she paused.
She’d never been one to pray -- well, not in years. She considered it, thought it was a terrible reason to all of the sudden start putting her faith in God, but she still sent up a silent "Help me" kind of prayer. She sure didn’t want to be broken-hearted on any day, but especially Christmas.
Slipping out of her room, she emptied the sweeper contents into the trash and then replaced the vacuum into the closet. She’d spotted Emma several times having a talk with Celia and neither time had either of the women noticed her. She felt a pang of jealousy now about Celia that she’d never experienced.
She knew down deep that it was because Mike hadn’t told Celia it was finished. Over and over she’d ask herself, what did that mean? Was he just stringing her along? Had he ever really quit seeing Celia? Would he choose her . . . or not? Randi didn’t like not knowing.
Her dating history only consisted of a smattering of young men. She’d dated a few that went to church, a few that were drunks, and about three that were just plain strange. The only ones that were even close to being marriage material had been the ones that went to church. One of the drunks was nice, too, when he was sober. She wasn’t going down that road though, so he was out of the running.
No one had really hit those strings in her heart, and she wasn’t saying that Mike was the one, but he had potential. She could sigh just thinking about him. Gorgeous, well-built, he liked burgers and fries, he seemed down-to-earth, and he had a pickup that ran, even if it wasn't pretty like his boss' Harley.
Her mother would complain that he didn’t go to church, and that down the line she’d wish he did, but right now she just wanted to fall in love. She wanted to feel the rush she felt when she was in his arms. There was that sigh again.
A smile came to her lips and she wanted to just grab him, jump on the bike and head to somewhere that had snow. Somewhere far away from Celia. Now she went from a smile to a grimace. She knew about Celia, and she had to wonder if Celia knew about her. So far there had been no recognition, at all.
If Celia knew, she’d been hiding it very well. So far Randi hadn’t let Celia enter her mind, but now she couldn’t keep her out. The woman was in her thoughts just about as much as Mike was. It was time to let her brain rest, so she focused on working. She tried to put it out of her mind by going upstairs and checking the other rooms.
She was making sure the towels were in place, that the rooms were well-stocked with soap, shampoo, and toiletries. She worked, going from room to room, trying to stay busy and keep her mind from going to Mike or Celia.
She was on the last room and it was getting close to five. Emma had told her that the Taylor’s would be dining around six. She needed to shower before then and change into the fancy uniforms Celia had bought the maids.
She went to check the upstairs linen closet, seeing that it was filled properly also. It looked fine. Everything was in order and she laughed. This place seemed more like a hotel than a home. There was still a smile on her face as she turned to go down stairs.
That smile was gone quickly as she turned to find the lady of the house, Celia, standing there, arms crossed. Well, now she knew for sure. Celia may have not known who she was, but something had changed. That look wasn’t the look of a boss, but of a woman who all but hated her. Just as quickly as she’d noticed the scowl, it was gone.
Celia smiled now, looking like the beauty queen that she was. “I was hoping that you could run a late errand for me. I’ve noticed that I don’t have enough gifts for a couple of my nephews. I have a list here.” Celia handed her the paper. “I don’t think it will take you long to find the items. Can you read my writing?”
Randi looked at the paper. She could read it, but the question on her mind was, had Mike given Celia the news that he was breaking up with her? “I can read it,” Randi answered.
“Good, and when you’re done I’ll need you to drop the rental off at the airport. Emma will pick you up and you can stay at her house tonight. It’s all been arranged.”
I’ll bet it has, Randi thought. So she does know, and so, it’s going to be like this. Well, there wasn’t a lot she could do about it, so she nodded. “I can do that. Where should I leave the keys?”
Celia nodded, reached into her pocket and pulled out the keys. “At the front desk. Leave them with Sally Jackson. She’s the one I spoke with. Then I want you back here, early, with Emma. Everyone should arrive around lunchtime. We’ll start with some light refreshments, and then the food will start arriving around four.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Randi nodded, and turned to go.
“You can refer to me as Mrs. Taylor when the guests arrive.”
Randi felt a knot in the bottom of her stomach, but she turned and looked at Celia, giving her a slight nod. “I will.” It was all she could manage. She wasn’t about to be on the edge of tears, as some women would be, but she wanted to smack the woman, or give her a piece of her mind. She had a rich movie star lover, why did she need Mike, too?
There was no way that Celia was going to win this battle. She might have the upper hand for now, but things could change, and would. This little diversion had caught Randi off guard, but now that she knew a few more rules to this game, she was going to be a much better player. She would consider her options, determine her abilities and shortcomings, lay out a game plan, and then come out swinging.
Chapter 44
Dinner for Five
Since her mother was in charge, dinner started right on time, as Addison knew it would. The woman was never late for anything. Everything looked and smelled delicious. Even Celia seemed as if she was in a better frame of mind. They sat at the table, starting with Addison, moving to her right, Martin, Celia, her mother, and then Emma.
It was obvious at first that Celia didn’t want Emma at the table, but she wasn’t about to argue about it. The dinner was very informal, just like her mother, and they all sat around the small kitchen table. Surprisingly, things were going rather well.
Everyone had been eating and sharing in small talk. Martin seemed more at ease, and Celia did too, but something was going on. Addison hadn’t seen any of the help all evening. It was obvious that Randi was gone, and she was itching to ask where. She knew Martin wouldn’t like her bringing it up so she did so in a roundabout way.
“The place seems so empty. I thought there were four girls working around the house. Have they left for the day?” Addison didn’t even think about looking in the direction of Martin or her mother. Instead, she put her attention on the woman who would know, Emma.
After a few seconds, Emma realized the question had been directed at her. She took a sip of her tea, put her napkin to her lips, and then spoke. “All of the girls are gone for the night.”
Addison thought that was the end of her comments, but a few seconds later she went on with her thought. “Maria and Juanita don’t stay here at night. They go home around five, though tomorrow I’ll have them staying until seven. Ann, my niece, has been filling in when she can. She’ll be in tomorrow morning, along with Randi.”
“Randi. I met her. Nice young woman. I haven’t met Ann, and I can’t understand a thing the other two say. Their accents are lovely, though.” Addison picked up her glass, started to take a drink, but spoke again. “Did you say Randi will be back tomorrow? I think she will be the best one to tend to the children.”
“Oh yes, she’s on an errand. She’ll be here in the morning.” Emma nodded with a very likeable smile.
This time Addison let it drop and she glanced to Martin. He was trying to hide it, but she could tell he had no clue Randi was gone, and to where she was running this errand. The table was quiet for just a beat or two, and then he spoke.
“An errand? What did we run out of this time? Dressing?” Martin reached for the bottle of Italian dressing. He was joking, but then again he wasn’t.
Emma didn’t seem too anxious to answer, and much to her surprise, Celia spoke up. There was a catbird smile playing at her lips.
“You know how we are, Martin, we never remember everything. I asked her to do a little shopping this evening, and then she’ll be taking the rental van to the airport. I don’t know what time my parents' flight will be in, so this will make it easier.”
Martin barely let Celia finish. “Who’s going to bring her home?”
Home. Addison didn’t miss that one. Everyone else seemed to, as she checked faces and expressions around the table. Celia was back to eating, seemingly still pleased with her little stunt.
Addison could see a slight tremor in the muscle at Martin’s temple. She hid a smile. This was going to be more interesting than she had thought. Now, did Celia know what she was doing, or had she picked Randi to do her little errand by mistake?
“I’ll be picking her up later,” Emma said quickly.
“Good,” Martin said, recovering rather nicely. His acting skills had kicked in and he seemed calm again, but Addison knew better. She couldn’t wait to talk to him after dinner.
“What time will your family be here?” Ever the peacemaker, her mother chimed in. She looked at Celia and spoke again before she could answer. “My husband and the rest of the crew should be here around two.”
“That will work out lovely. My parents and family are coming in close to lunchtime. I can’t wait to see them. Martin’s never met any of them, and I hope that he gets along with my family as well as I get along with the two of you.”
Addison wanted to choke on her tea for that remark, but she managed not to. She recovered, took another drink to steady her voice, and decided she might as well make her announcement. “I have a guest coming, too, if that’s not a problem.”
This had their attention. “Who might that be?” Martin asked, seemingly happy to have the conversation moved away from Randi.
Addison set her glass down, smiling. “Raffaello called yesterday. He’ll be here Saturday night. I invited him to dinner Sunday. I assumed that would be okay.”
“Of course it will,” Celia interjected. “I can’t wait to meet him, and of course he can stay here. There is no use in him getting a motel in town. We have plenty of room.”
“That’s very kind of you.” Addison gritted her teeth. Very kind of you to offer, as if you have the right to say no.
Celia kept the smile on her face, since she couldn’t see what Addison was thinking and spoke again. “Is he Italian, as his name infers?”
Addison nodded, “Yes he is, but he was born in New York. He normally spends Christmas in Italy, with his family, but this year he was working. He’ll be off from work for just a few days, so he’s coming here. I can’t wait to see him, and for mother to finally get to meet him.”
“I’ve heard so much about him. I feel like I know him already,” Lillian smiled. If she’d noticed anything about the slight tension at the table she didn’t show it. “I love it when families get together like this. It’s always so much fun, and the children -- well, they hopefully will learn the same traditions.”
Addison shared a look of "Oh, no, here we go again" with Martin and, as she guessed, her mother pulled out the "I’m getting old" card.
“Someday, I hope to have several grandchildren to share Christmas with. Hopefully, it will happen before I’m too old to enjoy them.”
“I keep telling my children the same thing,” Emma stated, pushing her plate back. “I just get dirty looks. I’ll just be happy if they get married. I think having children is becoming too much work for this younger generation.”
“You’ve got that right,” Lillian smiled. “They're too soft. Americans are all too soft.”
“Oh no. You’ve done it now.” Addison drank down the rest of her iced tea and rose from the table. “Don’t let her get started on that topic, or Celia will have us all deported.”
Chapter 45
Family Time
The fact that Randi was spending the night with Emma was driving Martin nuts. He wanted to see her, touch her, and hold her in his arms again. It had been tempting to just tell Emma that he’d go pick Randi up, but he knew this was his chance to spend some time with Celia and talk to her. He had to tell her tonight.
After dinner Emma left and everyone else went in and sat around the Christmas tree, having coffee or hot chocolate.
Martin talked to Addison about her boyfriend, and noticed that she seemed relaxed. He wanted to ask if she had made up her mind about moving in with Raffaello, but he didn’t. His mother also seemed in a better mood, he guessed because his dad would be joining them tomorrow.