Page 23 of A Billionaire for Christmas
‘Yeah, so you said. Winner of the British Bangers Weekly. That doesn’t explain why I keep seeing you everywhere I go. Did Freda invite you? Are you and her friends?’
‘Freda? Who’s that? Your wife?’
OMG.Why would a thing like that come out of her mouth? It didn’t even make sense. A man she barely knew should be able to mention any female name without her yelling ‘Is that your wife?’ like a jealous ex-girlfriend.
‘Never mind,’ he said simply, putting his hands on his hips. ‘What are you doing here?’
‘Petra hired me,’ Molly wailed, not proud of the way she was throwing the hotel kitchen manager under the bus, but she was flailing big time. ‘She said it was money for old rope. A few meals here and there and loads of time to myself to relax. And a huge Christmas bonus at the end for basically not doing anything.’ What happened to her filter? Where was it? Had it evaporated with the heat?
Levi let out a low groan. ‘You’re the chalet chef?’ He sounded incredibly disappointed. He rubbed his hands down his face. ‘But you said you ran your own company.’
‘Am I going to be fired?’
Levi didn’t answer. ‘How did you end up in this chalet?’
Good question.
Molly had no idea where to begin. How could she explain such a chain of events? That for eight years she had been too busy cooking happily behind the scenes to live an actual life, while Ava went out and dazzled clients? Or that when they had bought the failing restaurant from Ava’s French great-aunt, they’d left the UK to embark on the adventure of a lifetime? Or that together they had turned the restaurant around and amassed a small fortune, but Molly couldn’t access any of it because of some ridiculous legal oversight? And that now it was almost too late, and Molly was in danger of losing everything, and that was why she was standing spreadeagled, naked in his sauna? ‘The family made a special request after I catered a business lunch.’
As though sensing the shift in energy, Levi cleared his throat. ‘And where does my sauna fit in to all this?’
Molly felt her cheeks flame. Her words deserted her. She had no idea how to answer that. Should she reveal just how much of an emotional and financial mess she was in, or would he run screaming for the hills? She suspected herbaggagemight be too much, too soon.
‘When you feel like being straight with me, I’m all ears.’ He shifted in his seat. He was going nowhere.
She stroked the hair from her face, heat rising from her chest. ‘Toby suggested this. Not the naked part, but he said that nobody would be around until tomorrow evening.’
‘I’m not sure I believe you.’
‘Well, it’s true.’
Levi regarded her. ‘Sit down.’
Molly did as he instructed. ‘I assure you. After the other night, I have no interest in you. I’m just here to work. That’s all.’
‘So our meeting at the Cigar Lounge wasn’t a coincidence?’
‘Yes, it was. Absolutely.’ Molly bit her lips together. ‘However, there might have been some rogue manifesting involved.’
Levi didn’t even try to hide a baffled look. ‘Can you see why it’s incredibly hard for me to believe a word you’re saying now?’
Molly held up her hands. ‘I know this looks bad. But to be fair, I thought you were here on holiday andsingle. Then that redhead you’re seeing said that you couldn’t resist the hired help.’
‘She saidwhat?’ Levi said, astounded.
Molly’s cheeks were on fire. ‘I mean, what were you doing kissingmeif you’re not even available?’
‘Who are you talking about? What redhead?’ Levi asked, lines creasing his brow.
‘The burlesque dancer. The one full of lip filler and collagen implants.’ How many redheads was he familiar with, for goodness’ sake? ‘She warned me to stay away from you. She more or less implied that you and she are… that you, erm, you are, well, might be intimate with one another.’Why? Why are you saying these things? Please stop saying these things.
Levi shook his head. ‘Don’t concern yourself with her.’
‘Why shouldn’t it concern me?’ Molly fiddled with her towel.
‘It shouldn’t concern you because none of what she said is true.’
‘Well, good.’ Molly was furious at herself for sounding so pleased.
