Tears were welling up behind my eyes. I wasn’t used to this kind of verbal abuse on a daily basis.
“Look, I just thought it was a good idea. The space is completely unused. Wouldn’t it be nice to see it come alive again? Bev said it would mean a lot to her. Wouldn’t your parents have loved it?”
As soon as the words left my mouth, I sucked in a breath. Shit, that was crossing a line.
Giles gripped the desk. “You need to stop talking.”
“I’m sorr—”
“Now.”
He stalked off without another word, back through the front door.
I groaned and threw my head back. “Shit, I totally put my foot in my mouth. He hates me even more now.”
Johnny shook off my words. “I’m sure he doesn’t hate you, and you didn’t do anything wrong. Giles hasn’t been himself since the accident.” He sighed. “His parents are a sore subject, but you were right. They would have loved to see the energy being injected back into this place. It was their pride and joy.”
“I shouldn’t have said anything. It’s none of my business.” I hung my head feeling ashamed for bringing up such a sensitive topic.
Johnny reached across the desk and squeezed my arm like we were already familiar.
“Seriously, Mattie. Don’t worry about it.”
I forced a smile and nodded at him. I still felt like crap. For a second, it had almost felt like Giles’s chilly attitude toward me was thawing. Now with the lounge idea, and my thoughtless comment, we were back to square one. Maybe even worse.
The next time I saw him, I would make amends. There was no way I could go through the whole trial with him hating me.
ChapterTwelve
“Here’syour key Mr. Williams. Please let me know if we can do anything to make your stay more enjoyable.” The forty-something man smiled and nodded at me before heading toward the elevators.
Since I arrived a week ago, more guests had started to trickle in. We had also gotten a decent amount of snow since then, and the ski resort was now over fifty percent open.
A few days ago, I had walked to the base of the hill to see the skiers and snowboarders zip down. It was exhilarating watching them. Johnny had said he wanted to take me one day, but I was too nervous to take him up on his offer.
The lodge was running smoothly too. I had already implemented several new processes to improve efficiency at the front desk. Bev and I had also started tackling the project of cleaning up the former restaurant. I was confident the space would be popular with tourists and locals by the time we finished with it.
“Mattie, delivery for you.” Bev walked in and tossed a package in my direction.
I quickly tore open the white paper.
“Nice, it’s the lock I ordered.”
“Lock?”
“For the basement. I want to make sure no guests can accidentally wander down there.”
“Want me to get Giles to install that for you?”
I shook off her offer. “I got this. I just need a screwdriver and the instruction manual.”
“There should be a toolbox on one of the bottom shelves down there.”
“Thanks. I’ll be back in a bit.”
Grabbing the lock, I headed for the stairwell. The basement smelled mustier than I remembered. I made a mental note to buy an air freshener for the space.
I spotted a red toolbox on a lower shelf and sifted through its contents until I produced a screwdriver.
