Saving Cinderella! Read online

  She patted his arm, as if he was another guest who needed soothing. For some reason that bothered him. Which was ridiculous. What this woman thought of him was immaterial. He never let others’ opinions of him matter. Except where McKendrick’s reputation was concerned.

  Which brought him full circle to what was really important. This woman had kept things from getting out of control. She’d impressed him in a way none of the temps he’d interviewed had been able to. How had she managed it so effortlessly?

  Wyatt didn’t know, but he intended to find out. With Belinda’s departure, the time for contemplation had passed. In his line of work, the difference between a good businessman and a mediocre one was knowing when to be bold. The door opportunity had opened could suddenly slam shut.

  “Excuse me, Miss…?”

  “Lowell. Alexandra Lowell. But almost everyone calls me Alex.”

  Almost everyone. For half a second he wondered if those who didn’t fall into that category were men. No matter. He cleared his throat. “Alex. All right. If you don’t mind my asking, what do you do for a living?”

  Those big blue eyes blinked. “I work the front desk of a chain hotel and run a Web site promoting the sights and sounds of San Diego.”

  “Ah.” That explained things a little. She already had some of the skills a good concierge possessed. While he, he reminded himself, had an empty concierge desk and no prospects in sight.

  That was a problem. McKendrick’s was known for its opulence, its attention to detail and, above all, its service. This hotel was the project that had saved Wyatt’s life. He’d built it from the ground up and poured his soul into it during the dark days, when he’d come to a fork in the road and realized that if he didn’t channel his anger into a meaningful goal, he would destroy himself.

  These days the resort was a well-oiled machine, but even well-oiled machines could break down without care. A few customers without access to a competent concierge to pamper them could flood the review Web sites and do a lot of damage. Losing Belinda left a hole in customer service that needed to be filled immediately. He could run interference and handle some of her duties, but not all the time. Besides, some guests found him intimidating. He needed to take action. Now.

  Wyatt glanced at Alex, a woman guests apparently warmed to, one used to directing people to the local sights and sounds, albeit those of a different city. None of the candidates he’d interviewed thus far could have done what Alex had done. His instincts were urging him to make a move.

  Still he resisted. She was a total unknown, who claimed she had a tendency to rush in to help people. That meant she could be emotional, which could mean trouble. And she had those incredible vulnerable eyes that he found far too attractive.

  “If you run a Web site, I assume you’re comfortable with Internet research?” he said, probing.

  “The web is my weakness,” she confessed. “McKendrick’s site, by the way, has some great features. The virtual tour of the restaurants and clubs is amazing…although a menu for the ice cream bar at the Slide Pool would be helpful. That is, if you’re looking for suggestions.” She looked suddenly uncomfortable. “I— Please forget I said that. I apologize if I was rude.”

  The woman just offered you a suggestion on how to improve the hotel Web site, McKendrick. At least interview her, his instincts screamed.

  Okay, no avoiding the obvious. Despite his flaws and the mistakes he’d made in his life, he had an unerring instinct about what worked for McKendrick’s. He’d made a fortune following his gut feelings. Randy had been a spontaneous hire, driven purely by instinct, but Wyatt had never regretted the decision. Besides, with Belinda gone he couldn’t afford more time interviewing people who couldn’t handle the job. And this was Las Vegas. Fast. Temporary. A person you met today might be gone two hours from now. And Alex was a guest. Just passing through.

  “I wonder—do you have a minute to step into my office?” he asked suddenly. “I have some questions.”

  Now she looked wary. “I have friends waiting.”

  He nodded. “Five minutes? It’s important.”

  Still she hesitated.

  For a second he thought he heard her mutter something under her breath about the wisdom of counting to ten. But then she nodded. “All right. After all, what difference can five minutes make?”

  A lot, Wyatt thought. A lot could happen, and he had plenty of experience about all the bad things. This time, however, he was hoping for something more positive.

  CHAPTER TWO

  WYATT glanced at Alex as they moved down the hallway toward his office. She was tall and willowy and…restless. Moments earlier she had excused herself to make a call.

  “My apologies for stealing you away from your friends,” he said.

  “I just had to let them know where I am. They were expecting me several minutes ago. But since I’m here…could you help me forward a card to Belinda? Babies are important.”

  “Do you have children of your own?” he asked.

  “No. I’m not married.”

  Wyatt felt his senses go on full alert, coupled with a slight sense of relief—no doubt a knee-jerk reaction to the fact that this beauty hadn’t been claimed. But there was also wariness because she hadn’t been claimed. He’d never allow himself to pursue a woman who wanted children. His kind didn’t promise forever, so they didn’t produce babies.

  No matter. She would either say yes to what he was about to propose, and their new relationship would create distance between them, or she would say no and he’d never see her again.

  Five minutes, he reminded himself, opening the door of his office. “Have a seat.”

  She looked at the leather chair as if it might have sharp teeth hiding beneath the upholstery.

  “Problem?”

  “No. I was just thinking that I feel a bit like a kid who’s unexpectedly been sent to the principal’s office. Mr.— Mr.…?”

  “McKendrick. Wyatt McKendrick.”

  “Of course. Mr. McKendrick. I’m not sure what this is about, but I have to tell you that I’m pretty uncomfortable.”

  “And frank.”

  She shrugged. “That’s me.” But, despite her discomfort, she sat. She was wearing a white dress, and he couldn’t help noticing that she had amazing legs. He frowned at his reaction.

  “Total honesty does bother some people,” she conceded, and he realized that she had noticed his frown.

  Wyatt shook his head. “Honesty is…” What I demand of my employees, he’d meant to say. But he didn’t want to come on too strong. Starting with employee rules would be the wrong approach. “I’ll make this brief, Alex. I’m sure you could see how concerned Belinda was about her replacement.”

  Alex looked wary. “Ye-es.”

  “She takes her work very seriously, and she excels at it.”

  “A good concierge must be hard to find.”

  “Yes. The job requires someone who can think on her feet.”

  “Of course.”

  “Someone who knows how to make customers feel at ease, who makes them feel that their concerns matter, whether they need tickets to a show or have a plumbing problem.”

  She blinked. Wyatt supposed the plumbing comment had been too much, since she’d handled such a problem only minutes earlier. But he didn’t have any time to waste. She was a guest here. Temporary.

  “Of course a good concierge also knows every detail of the city, but that can be learned,” he said.

  Alex frowned. “I don’t understand. Why are you telling me this?”

  “I find myself temporarily short a concierge.”

  “You told Belinda you’d hired someone.”

  “I lied. She would have worried, and right now she needs to concentrate on herself and her family.”

  A small, pretty smile turned Alex’s extraordinary face even more intriguing. “You don’t sound like the ogre Randy made you out to be.”

  He raised one eyebrow.

  A guilty flush coloured her ch
eeks. “Forget I said that.”

  “Already forgotten. Randy, for all his fussing, is good at what he does.”

  “And as the owner of this…palace of a hotel,” she said, “that’s very important to you?”

  “Absolutely. I only want the best people.”

  Suddenly she looked more relaxed. “Good. For a minute I was worried. It almost sounded as if you were going to offer me a job.”

  “I am. I need a sub for Belinda.” He surprised himself by blurting it out. Even though he was in a bit of a bind, he’d still intended to give the issue a little more thought. Do a quick background check. No matter. All that could be done after the fact.

  “You can’t be serious. I’ve never been a concierge.”

  “And I’d never owned a hotel until this one. Some people are naturals.”

  “You know nothing about me.”

  “I know enough. And I’ll find out the rest.”

  “I could be a total idiot.”

  “No. You couldn’t.”

  “I could be a thief.”

  He shook his head. “I don’t think so.”

  She gave him the kind of look people reserved for small boys who were trying to snow them. “I could live in San Diego.” She glanced at him from beneath very long lashes. Her expression clearly said, Give me an answer for that.

  Wyatt allowed himself the smallest of smiles. “You mentioned that. San Diego’s a beautiful city.”

  “I know. I love it.”

  “And…you’re not interested in relocating.”

  “I’m sorry. No. I’m invested in the city. In addition to my Web site, San Diego Your Way, I’m hoping to open a shop of the same name soon. So, while I’m flattered that you would offer to hire me, references unseen, I can’t move.”

  Okay, this was going to be difficult. But then he’d been raised in difficult circumstances. Horrible circumstances involving beating and ego-killing insults. Situations that were merely difficult didn’t faze him at all.

  “You couldn’t be persuaded to relocate even for a few months?”

  Alex shook her head, her sable hair brushing her cheeks. “I’m sorry. It wouldn’t be practical. I have a job.”

  “At the front desk of a hotel chain. I take it that you already have the capital to open your shop? I see.” What he didn’t see was why the thought of letting Alex slip away bothered him. He hadn’t laid eyes on her fifteen minutes ago.

  The best reason he could give for this odd crestfallen sensation was that McKendrick’s was his life. Making it the best it could be, aiming to get it on every five-star list, was what drove him. Anything that negatively affected McKendrick’s messed with his life and his plans for the future. Given that, Alex had seemed like a gift. That must be why he felt let down.

  She had ducked her head, refusing to look directly at him for the first time since they’d begun their conversation. “Well, I’m not actually close to having the capital. It’s expensive living in California. But I’m working on it and getting closer.”

  Alex sounded so apologetic that Wyatt wanted to smile. As if the state of the economy was her fault. Still, he saw one last opportunity—one he would grasp. He’d been called a lone wolf before, a man with no ties, one who followed the scent of whatever he wanted, relentlessly. It was an apt description. He needed to succeed, and right now he felt the thrill of having discovered Alexandra’s weak spot.

  “So if I offered you a better salary—” he named an amount large enough that Alex jerked her head up “—and promised to find you work equivalent to what you’ve been doing if this doesn’t work out, or when you return to San Diego in two months, even that wouldn’t convince you to become my concierge?”

  Somehow that last phrase had come out a bit wrong: too sensual, too possessive. Dammit, it had sounded as if he was offering to put her up as his mistress.

  And she was looking like a pretty sable rabbit that wanted to take the bait but was wary of anything offered by a wolf.

  Suddenly she looked him square in the eyes, rose to her feet and smiled. The pretty rabbit disappeared, replaced by a very human, very lovely woman. “This is very tempting and totally unexpected. When I came downstairs today I was looking for a menu, not a job. I love my home. I have friends there that I don’t want to give up. I have hopes and dreams, and all of them are based in San Diego.”

  That statement alone should have sent chills down his spine. People who used the term hopes and dreams tended to be breakable people. He steered clear of them.

  “Your…dreams,” he said, “may be centered in San Diego but taking this job would help you reach your goals much more quickly. You could raise the capital you need.”

  She closed her eyes.

  “What are you doing?” he asked.

  She didn’t answer at first. For a second he thought he heard her counting beneath her breath. He did hear her counting. But when she got to six, she opened her eyes.

  “What am I doing? I’m trying not to say yes,” she said with a groan. “I need time. Because if I make the wrong decision we might both regret it. This whole situation…it’s completely crazy. I just came here for the weekend. I have friends I’m flying back with.”

  “I’ll refund the price of your airline ticket.”

  She raised her brows. “Somehow that won’t solve the problem.”

  “Problem?”

  “I have a reputation for jumping into fires that burn me. I promised myself I’d stop that. Agreeing to do this… I mean, just look at you.”

  Wyatt waited. She clearly had more to say.

  “I can hear their thoughts already. Some good-looking resort owner asks Alex to please help him and what does she do? She leaps right in. They’ll think I’ve lost my mind. I—no. I need to be smart.”

  Don’t push her, Wyatt told himself. Hadn’t everything she’d told him indicated that she had a tendency to let her emotions guide her? No matter what his gut instincts were saying, that wasn’t what he was looking for. He’d had a lifetime of bad experiences with people whose emotions dictated their actions, and up until he was old enough to be on his own he’d been forced to suffer the bitter consequences.

  Still, this was short-term work they were discussing.

  “A sensible person trying to save money would go for the gold, wouldn’t she?” Wyatt asked.

  Alex frowned. “Maybe she would. But I… This is a big step. I really should go. I’ll need to think this through.”

  Before he could say one word, she had moved to the door.

  “Alex?” he said, before the door had opened an inch.

  She turned to look at him.

  “Don’t think it through too much,” he said. “Stay here. I’ll make it worth your while.”

  A woman—someone other than Alex—gasped. Alex swung the door wide to reveal three women. Wyatt wanted to groan. He was very careful to keep his personal and business life separate. In fact, he’d opted not to have much of a personal life.

  Alex was blushing prettily, but she held her chin high. “Jayne, Serena, Molly—meet Wyatt McKendrick, my potential new boss. Wyatt, these are my best friends.”

  And obviously very protective of Alex, from the looks of them. He nodded to the three openly curious women. “It’s very nice to meet you. I’m hoping that Alex will make me a very happy innkeeper. I need her.”

  Wrong thing to say. Her friends’ expressions said that he was a wolf and Alex was a tasty lamb. They would try to convince her not to take the position.

  But he was determined to have her. It wasn’t just the way she’d handled Belinda’s situation and the customers. It was how she’d stood up to him. Not many people dared to question him. She was brave without being overbearing. It was a good quality for a concierge.

  Or a woman. He frowned at that out-of-place thought and, leaning down, whispered in Alex’s ear, upping the salary he had proposed earlier. “I really do need help,” he said.

  “What did he whisper to you?” one of her friends ask
ed. Good. They were looking out for her. He liked his employees to have strong support systems. He’d grown up without one, so he didn’t require one, but most people did. It made for a happy, productive employee.

  Still, he was on a mission. “How much time do you need?”

  “I leave tomorrow afternoon.”

  “Then think it over tonight. I’ll meet you here tomorrow morning at eight. And…Alexandra?”

  The startled look in her eyes told him that very few people called her by her full name. Good.

  She waited.

  “Say yes,” he told her.

  “You might regret it,” she said, “but I’ll consider it.”

  Was she right? Would he regret being hasty? Most likely. Alex Lowell was very appealing. That could be a problem. He didn’t make personal connections, and that was an unbreakable rule. Yes, he would regret pursuing Alex.

  But he would also regret not pursuing her. He only hired the best, and his infallible instinct, which had enabled a rebellious, angry young man to build an empire out of nothing, told him that she was the best.

  And he wanted her.

  CHAPTER THREE

  ALEX felt as if she’d just jumped out of an airplane and realized she didn’t know how to pull the cord on her chute. A thousand questions were firing in her brain as she and her friends headed to her room. What had just happened? She had expected Wyatt to ask her to give him a play-by-play of her experience with Belinda. Instead he’d offered her a job and an obscene amount of money. She remembered that much. But mostly she remembered how every time Wyatt had looked at her, her entire body had reacted as if she’d just discovered, at age twenty-eight, the difference between men and women. And why some women got into hair-pulling contests over a virile man or tattooed men’s names on their bodies.

  Wyatt was going to be a problem. And not because of anything he would say or do. Oh, no.

  It was all her. She was the problem. The man made her hands shake with awareness of her body. She’d practically had to sit on them to keep them still, and she couldn’t have that. Her relationships with men had always been awful, starting with her father’s and stepfather’s abandonment of her. She still remembered running after her stepfather’s car, begging him to stop. It had been the beginning of a life of over-achievement, of volunteering to help men with their problems, only to get her heart broken. But her last awful experience with Michael had been the worst. A child had been harmed by that relationship, so she was through. And since she loved being independent with no need of a man, her instant reaction to Wyatt should have been a blaring warning that she was in danger of making a major mistake. The only sensible thing to do in such a situation was—