Page 45 of Sexy

“Come in,” I call to the knock at my locker room door in the gym.

“Helloooo?” Tiffy’s BFF, Claudio, calls as he peeks his head inside.

“I’m packing, asshole. I’ll be out of here when I’m done. So tell Miss Preston to calm the fuck down and—”

“Whoa,” Claudio says, putting both hands in the air. “Hold the phone, cowboy. Unpack your bags, take a deep breath, and put on your I’m-not-an-asshole hat because I told Tiffy you had one.”

“What?” I squint as he enters and closes the door behind him. “I got a pink slip in the email this morning. So I’m just gonna do everyone a favor and be on my way.”

“Plans have changed, Fletcher. Randall Preston is coming here tonight to see the show.”

“What?”

“And Tiffy asked me to come down here and ask you to stay for tonight. She says she will make sure you get a bonus if you stay.”

“Tiffy sent you?”

“Mm-hmm,” Claudio says, his lips pressed together tightly in a hard smile.

“She wants her old man to do the honors, or what? She wants to humiliate me in front of him to make herself look better? No fucking thanks.”

“It’s just one show, Fletcher. And he’s not coming to fire you. He’s coming because TravelXpress is going to be here to rate the hotel for a deal they are running next month online.”

I just stare at him.

“Have you heard of TravelXpress?” He looks stressed.

“Sure, it’s like a booking website. They charge a fee though, so I don’t use them.”

“They charge a fee, Fletcher, because they are the biggest online booking agent in the world. And they visit and review every hotel, every flight, every car rental company they put up for special promotions. Cole has managed to get the Landslide up for a review, and they are coming tonight. A five-star rating from TravelXpress would be a very big deal.”

“So now Tiffy needs me.” Bitch.

“They’re here to see the show too. It’s the headline act, so if they rate you five stars, it could be a boon to your… career.”

I laugh at his hesitation to call what I do a career. “Can you be any more condescending?”

Claudio stares at me for a minute and then lets out a deep sigh and turns away. “There’s more, Fletcher. And I shouldn’t tell you this, but you need to understand. Mr. Preston is leaving Tiffy this hotel. It’s all she’s going to get in the will.”

“Will?”

“He’s dying, Fletch. He’s got an inoperable brain tumor and was given six months to live. And that was five months ago. He’s deteriorating fast and he’s made some… unusual decisions about his money in the past six months. For one, Tiffy will get this hotel and nothing else. Not even her trust fund. She will be prohibited from selling the hotel for ten years. If she can make it work, she gets the trust fund once it matures. If she sells it, or it goes bankrupt, she loses everything.”

“What kind of asshole does that to his kid? Jesus Christ.”

“I know what you’re thinking,” Claudio says, shaking his head. “But you’re wrong. I’ve known Mr. Preston most of my life. And I know why he’s doing this. He talked it over with me before that brain tumor was ever diagnosed. So it’s not some whim from an eccentric dying man. It’s got solid logic behind it.”

“So Tiffy wants me to save her hotel so she can cash in on the trust fund money ten years from now? Fuck that.”

“Tiffy doesn’t know, Fletcher. She has no idea he’s made these changes to the will. He sent her here to take things over and learn the ropes before he dies.”

“You just said she sent you down here to beg me to stay.”

“She did, but only so when her father gets here, he won’t be disappointed in her. She wants the hotel to get a good rating, but not for the reason you think.”

“Ah, I see. She wants some bonus money, I get it.”

Claudio grunts. “Wow. You really are an asshole.”