The All-Star Antes Up
Page 101
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He’d felt the pull of something down deep when Trevor declared how lucky he was to have Jodie. Luke had understood his brother, but he hadn’t known why. Now he did.
You could fall in love with someone in only ten days.
He threw back his head and shouted into the wind, “I love her!”
It felt so good, he did it again, the words whirling away on the currents of frigid air. Yet he felt only warmth soaking through him. Every muscle in his body seemed to relax and stretch and bask in the relief of knowing this was right.
But yelling it alone on his penthouse terrace wasn’t enough by a long shot. He owed Miranda the world’s best apology. She deserved to see him grovel, after how he’d treated her.
She might just tell him to go to hell.
He frowned as the wind yanked at his hair. He’d thrown her love back in her face. Maybe she was done with him.
Once again he clamped his hands down on the parapet.
He needed to come up with something really good. Something that would prove to her he was committed 100 percent. As an idea formed, he started to smile.
Sometimes fame could come in handy.
Chapter 29
On Friday morning, Miranda’s cell phone started a mad vibrating dance on the barn shelf where she’d left it while cleaning the teat cups. She raced over to check the caller ID and discovered it was Erik, her concierge friend. He must have heard she’d left the Pinnacle. She went back to cleaning the milking equipment when the phone rattled again. This time it was Boyce Schmidt, the Pinnacle’s manager. Probably some kind of exit interview. Her hands were soapy and the water was running, so she went back to work. When the phone buzzed for the third time, she rinsed her hands and turned off the water. This time the missed call was from her office mate, Sofia Nunez.
What the heck was going on at the Pinnacle?
Erik usually had the best gossip grapevine, so she called him back first.
“Miranda, sweetie, why didn’t you tell me about sleazoid Spindle?” he asked.
“You mean that he fired me?” Miranda plunked down on a hay bale. “It’s not the kind of thing I wanted to shout from the rooftops.”
There was a fraught silence. “You mean I get to deliver the news?” Erik said, his voice throbbing with excitement. “Your scumbag boss has gotten the sack.”
“What!” Luke wouldn’t have done this after what she’d told him, would he? Although he always warned her that she underestimated his ruthlessness.
“Not only that.” Erik’s words tumbled out at high speed. “He got sacked for firing you.”
It was sounding more and more like Luke had had something to do with Orin’s departure. But she couldn’t believe that he would jeopardize all the other concierges’ jobs.
“And they offered all the people who worked for your scurvy boss the opportunity to stay on at the Pinnacle. Sebastian got promoted to head concierge.”
“Sebastian will be great.” Relief surged through Miranda. No one had lost their job except the one man who deserved it. How had Luke engineered the coup? “How did you hear all this? Never mind.”
“Exactly, sweetie. I protect my sources,” Erik said. “You need to get on the phone to Sebastian right now. He’ll hire you back in a millisecond. And, Miranda, karma’s my kind of bitch.”
Miranda thanked Erik and disconnected. She needed to return Boyce Schmidt’s call first. She hit the number and waited, hope bubbling up in her throat like the fizz of champagne.
“Miranda, thanks for getting back to me.” The building manager’s lightly accented voice boomed through the phone. “I hope you haven’t found another position already, because all of us at the Pinnacle would like to have you back here.”
Her brain was having a hard time processing the sudden turnaround, so she hesitated.
Boyce jumped into the silence. “And we’d like to offer you a raise.”
“A raise?” She’d be able to make the next payment on the loan for Dennis, no problem.
“You have quite the supporters in the Anglethorpes.” Boyce’s voice held a humorously rueful tone. “They insist that you are worth your weight in gold. However, we can’t pay you quite that much.”
Miranda chuckled politely when she wanted to scream with joy. “I’m very grateful to you and to them.” The Anglethorpes had done this?
“And you will be reporting to Sebastian Wyndham, our new head concierge. Orin Spindle has left our employ.” Boyce’s voice was tense with distaste. “We are sorry for any distress he may have caused you.”
“No apology necessary. I’m happy to return to the Pinnacle. It’s a pleasure to work there.”
“Excellent. Please take whatever family time you need, and let Sebastian know when you wish to return. We’re delighted to have you with us.”
Miranda put down the phone in a daze. The Anglethorpes had swooped down like guardian angels and set her world right. Almost.
Orin’s firing would have been enough to make her happy, but getting rehired—with a raise—was beyond amazing.
She couldn’t celebrate with Patty and Dennis because they had no idea she’d lost her job. Instead, she leaped off the hay bale and did a crazed victory dance in front of a few startled cows.
Cheers erupted from the family room as Miranda took the bag of popcorn out of the microwave oven and dumped it in a wooden bowl. She’d volunteered for snack duty to get away from the concerned glances Patty and Dennis kept sliding toward her when they thought she wasn’t looking. Patty must have told Dennis about her broken-off relationship with Luke.
You could fall in love with someone in only ten days.
He threw back his head and shouted into the wind, “I love her!”
It felt so good, he did it again, the words whirling away on the currents of frigid air. Yet he felt only warmth soaking through him. Every muscle in his body seemed to relax and stretch and bask in the relief of knowing this was right.
But yelling it alone on his penthouse terrace wasn’t enough by a long shot. He owed Miranda the world’s best apology. She deserved to see him grovel, after how he’d treated her.
She might just tell him to go to hell.
He frowned as the wind yanked at his hair. He’d thrown her love back in her face. Maybe she was done with him.
Once again he clamped his hands down on the parapet.
He needed to come up with something really good. Something that would prove to her he was committed 100 percent. As an idea formed, he started to smile.
Sometimes fame could come in handy.
Chapter 29
On Friday morning, Miranda’s cell phone started a mad vibrating dance on the barn shelf where she’d left it while cleaning the teat cups. She raced over to check the caller ID and discovered it was Erik, her concierge friend. He must have heard she’d left the Pinnacle. She went back to cleaning the milking equipment when the phone rattled again. This time it was Boyce Schmidt, the Pinnacle’s manager. Probably some kind of exit interview. Her hands were soapy and the water was running, so she went back to work. When the phone buzzed for the third time, she rinsed her hands and turned off the water. This time the missed call was from her office mate, Sofia Nunez.
What the heck was going on at the Pinnacle?
Erik usually had the best gossip grapevine, so she called him back first.
“Miranda, sweetie, why didn’t you tell me about sleazoid Spindle?” he asked.
“You mean that he fired me?” Miranda plunked down on a hay bale. “It’s not the kind of thing I wanted to shout from the rooftops.”
There was a fraught silence. “You mean I get to deliver the news?” Erik said, his voice throbbing with excitement. “Your scumbag boss has gotten the sack.”
“What!” Luke wouldn’t have done this after what she’d told him, would he? Although he always warned her that she underestimated his ruthlessness.
“Not only that.” Erik’s words tumbled out at high speed. “He got sacked for firing you.”
It was sounding more and more like Luke had had something to do with Orin’s departure. But she couldn’t believe that he would jeopardize all the other concierges’ jobs.
“And they offered all the people who worked for your scurvy boss the opportunity to stay on at the Pinnacle. Sebastian got promoted to head concierge.”
“Sebastian will be great.” Relief surged through Miranda. No one had lost their job except the one man who deserved it. How had Luke engineered the coup? “How did you hear all this? Never mind.”
“Exactly, sweetie. I protect my sources,” Erik said. “You need to get on the phone to Sebastian right now. He’ll hire you back in a millisecond. And, Miranda, karma’s my kind of bitch.”
Miranda thanked Erik and disconnected. She needed to return Boyce Schmidt’s call first. She hit the number and waited, hope bubbling up in her throat like the fizz of champagne.
“Miranda, thanks for getting back to me.” The building manager’s lightly accented voice boomed through the phone. “I hope you haven’t found another position already, because all of us at the Pinnacle would like to have you back here.”
Her brain was having a hard time processing the sudden turnaround, so she hesitated.
Boyce jumped into the silence. “And we’d like to offer you a raise.”
“A raise?” She’d be able to make the next payment on the loan for Dennis, no problem.
“You have quite the supporters in the Anglethorpes.” Boyce’s voice held a humorously rueful tone. “They insist that you are worth your weight in gold. However, we can’t pay you quite that much.”
Miranda chuckled politely when she wanted to scream with joy. “I’m very grateful to you and to them.” The Anglethorpes had done this?
“And you will be reporting to Sebastian Wyndham, our new head concierge. Orin Spindle has left our employ.” Boyce’s voice was tense with distaste. “We are sorry for any distress he may have caused you.”
“No apology necessary. I’m happy to return to the Pinnacle. It’s a pleasure to work there.”
“Excellent. Please take whatever family time you need, and let Sebastian know when you wish to return. We’re delighted to have you with us.”
Miranda put down the phone in a daze. The Anglethorpes had swooped down like guardian angels and set her world right. Almost.
Orin’s firing would have been enough to make her happy, but getting rehired—with a raise—was beyond amazing.
She couldn’t celebrate with Patty and Dennis because they had no idea she’d lost her job. Instead, she leaped off the hay bale and did a crazed victory dance in front of a few startled cows.
Cheers erupted from the family room as Miranda took the bag of popcorn out of the microwave oven and dumped it in a wooden bowl. She’d volunteered for snack duty to get away from the concerned glances Patty and Dennis kept sliding toward her when they thought she wasn’t looking. Patty must have told Dennis about her broken-off relationship with Luke.
