Beauty and the Boss, page 10
spread her open and teased her clit with just the tip of her
tongue, which started a fire in her that she was suddenly in
a hurry to put out, but Brandi obviously had other plans
because she stopped. She put her hands in Brandi’s hair
and moved her head closer so she could kiss her. When
Brandi pressed against her, she picked her up.
The bed in the one bedroom was an old beautifully
restored four-poster, but right now she was only interested
that it had a mattress. She put Brandi down gently and took
her underwear off. Brandi was absolute perfection, and she
spared a moment to admire her body before pulling her
toward her until her ass was on the edge of the bed.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to finish?” Brandi asked,
but she didn’t sound like she was upset with the situation.
She sucked Brandi in as she reached up and squeezed a
breast. Brandi bucked her hips up and moaned loud enough
that she felt the sound in her chest. This she was familiar
with, had earned a reputation on, but Brandi was no casual
conquest. Brandi was a professional, but her wetness
encouraged Ellis to slide two fingers in.
Brandi came off the bed when Ellis’s fingers were
completely buried inside her, but Ellis quickly pulled out and
slammed them back in. She sucked Brandi’s clit in hard,
sensing this was no time for gentle and romantic. The way
Brandi was moaning made her think she was close, but then
suddenly Brandi’s sex relaxed before clenching her fingers
inside.
“Fuck me,” Brandi said when she fell back on the bed and
her legs came apart as if she didn’t have the strength to
keep them together. “You could be a pro.”
She chuckled at the compliment. “I could, but I’m more
the charitable type.”
“Then your kindness should be rewarded.” It was the last
thing Brandi said as she moved down her body and put her
mouth on her. The way Brandi used her tongue was
exquisite. It was the only word she could think of before she
could concentrate on nothing but her clit. The more Brandi
traced around it with the tip of her tongue before flattening
it and applying pressure was maddening.
Ellis gripped the sheets with one hand and wrapped the
other one in Brandi’s hair. The orgasm took over in a way
that untethered her from reality for a moment before it
burned right through her, leaving her spent.
“Jesus,” she said as Brandi moved to lie beside her. She
put her arm around Brandi and smiled when Brandi draped
her leg over her.
“Hmm. Maybe I should tell the nuns running the
children’s home down the street that I can prompt people to
call out for the Lord.”
“What you should do is thank God you’re no hypocrite.
You’ve lived on your own terms, and you made a success at
it. To hell with anyone who can’t accept that.”
“You’re good for my ego, Ellis.”
“Likewise.”
They didn’t talk much after that, and when Ellis opened
her eyes again, she was surprised to find three hours had
gone by. She’d relaxed enough not only to sleep, but she
had slept hard enough to not hear Brandi get up and make
lunch.
“I’m no chef, but pancakes are my specialty.”
Ellis got up and put on her boxers and T-shirt before
joining Brandi at the table. “Thanks for today. You have a
unique way of putting things into perspective.”
“That’s a new way to describe it.” Brandi offered a bite of
pancake drenched in Steen’s cane syrup, and Ellis opened
her mouth.
“The way I see it, no matter how much ugliness there is
in the world, you can always find that one bit of beauty that
balances it out.”
“Thank you, and I have to say, you’re as beautiful as all
those clothes you create.”
“It’s time to get back to it, and I’m finally in the frame of
mind to do just that.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
“Then what happened, Mr. Rueben?” Everyone in the
house except for the paid staff was in the kitchen making
the simplest dish Charlotte could think of. Rueben had been
entertaining them with stories of previous show
catastrophes. Sawyer had asked a lot of follow-up questions,
which only led to more stories.
“I rushed the poor girl out onstage, and it wasn’t until she
was four feet away that I realized her skirt was tucked into
her pantyhose in the back.”
Amis shook her head but laughed when he imitated the
model’s walk. “It’s not a Renois show unless someone shows
their butt,” Amis said as she shredded lettuce for the huge
salad she was working on.
“Don’t mess with something that works, sister,” Malcom
said, throwing some peas at Amis. “A little behind never hurt
anyone.”
“I guess so,” Sawyer said, sounding like she didn’t know
exactly what was happening but wanted to fit in.
“Sometimes it’s a good thing, sweetie,” Charlotte said,
throwing a pea at Malcom when he laughed. The front door
shutting made everyone quiet down. “I’m sure everyone
wants to talk to her, but do you mind if I go first?”
Amis wiped her hands before waving Sawyer closer.
“Come help me while your mama goes to work.”
It was all the permission she needed to go in search of
Ellis. The ballroom was empty, so she was about to head
back to the kitchen when she ran into Rueben. “Turn right at
the top of the steps, and it’s the last room on the end.
Remember to not take no for an answer.”
“What exactly is the question?”
“It’s not a question, but more your future relationship
with her.”
“Got it.”
She climbed the stairs and knocked on the door Rueben
had directed her to and got no response. Ellis might’ve been
highly successful but had the temperament of a two-year-
old not getting their way. For all Ellis knew, it could’ve been
Amis knocking, and she’d ignore her as well? “This is
ridiculous.” She tried the knob and opened the unlocked
door.
The room was large, or so she thought from the brief
glimpse she got before slapping her hand over her eyes
when Ellis came in from another room naked. Good Lord.
Who the hell didn’t lock their door if they were getting
undressed?
“Can I help you with something?” The somewhat teasing
tone reassured her that Ellis wasn’t pissed.
“I knocked. I swear.”
“Sorry. I was getting ready for a shower. You can open
your eyes now.”
Charlotte peeked through her fingers, making Ellis laugh
as she tied her robe. “Take a seat if it’s something
important, or meet me downstairs if it can wait. I won’t be
long.”
Ellis disappeared into the bathroom, so she closed the
bedroom door and looked at all the beautifully framed
pictures that lined the built-in shelves on both sides of the
fireplace. The majority of them were of Ellis and her mother
from childhood to now, but some showed Ellis and Rueben
in the early years. Ellis hadn’t had any great love except for
her family, it seemed, so she sat in the old leather club chair
by the window. The chair appeared fairly well used, and the
book next to it was a collection of romantic poems.
The room had nice furniture, but like the rest of the
place, it wasn’t overdone or ostentatious. Ellis seemed to be
a creature of comfort and simplicity when she was out of the
limelight. She certainly was different from anyone in
Charlotte’s world, even though they seemed to come from
the same place.
When the door opened, Ellis emerged wearing linen
drawstring pants and a T-shirt, with bare feet and wet hair
slicked back. “What can I do for you, Ms. Hamner?”
“You could call me Charlotte for one, and you could also
give me a job.” She stood up, but Ellis waved her back
down.
“I thought you already had a job? Isn’t this the part
where you wave good-bye?”
“Well, I had a job, but I might’ve screwed it up by being
too judgmental. Do you think we could reset and start over?
I really want to stay and help you.”
“There’s nothing to reset, and I’m sorry for earlier. I’m, by
rule, not usually such an asshole.”
“You’ve been nothing but nice, so let’s agree to start
over.” She held her hand out to Ellis and smiled when Ellis
delivered a very businesslike shake. “Now that we’ve agreed
to that, how about some meat loaf?”
“Best offer I’ve had in the last hour, so lead the way.”
Their meal was as pleasant as the time they’d spent
making it, only better since Ellis added some twists to the
stories. Charlotte felt very included by the time they cleared
the dishes, only to be chased from the kitchen by Malcom
and his two assistants.
“How about coffee and beignets for dessert?” Ellis
slipped on a pair of loafers and grabbed a small pad and
pencil. “You two can help me walk off the tremendous
amount of meat loaf I just ate.”
“Sure, but I have to admit I pegged you for more of a
foodie.” Charlotte put her arm around Sawyer to follow Ellis
out. The front drive was full of people, and Charlotte got
introduced to the staff that had followed Opal Steele south.
After the brief niceties, Ellis didn’t keep them from heading
to the hotel close by so they could rest.
“Now I believe you called me a simple eater,” she said,
teasing Charlotte. “Meat loaf isn’t glamorous, but it’s not
easy to do well. I order it often, so trust me on that, but I
love it because it reminds me of how much my mother loves
me. It’s the one meal that always cheers me up.”
“Good to know if I’m ever in the doghouse again.”
The three of them sat in the center of Café du Monde and
ordered. Ellis glanced around as they waited and opened
her pad. “Doghouses aren’t my style. I punish all
transgressions with either complicated stitching or ripping.”
“Ripping seams is cruel and unusual punishment.”
Charlotte and Sawyer held their cups the same way—with
both hands—which made Ellis smile when she considered
how hot New Orleans was in the summer.
“That’s the point, Ms. Hamner.” She picked up a beignet
and promised herself to start running in the morning. New
Orleans was home, but it was murder on your waistline if
you indulged every envie, as her mother referred to desire.
Running beat the hell out of deprivation though. “Did you
come up with any ideas, or did you spend the day making
simplistic foods?”
“I actually spent the day bonding with Rueben and your
mother so you wouldn’t get rid of me. Tomorrow, though, I
promise to try to put something together for you.”
“We’ve got exactly ten weeks to do this. That’s design,
refinement, and making every piece.” Saying it out loud for
the first time cemented the feeling of just how impossible
the task was, and she dropped the beignet. If she could kill
Jennifer and get away with it, she’d take the time out of her
tight schedule to do it.
“You know what they say about impossible tasks, right?”
Charlotte picked up her discarded beignet and held it up
next to her mouth. “You eat an elephant one bite at a time.”
“One elephant, yeah, but we have a herd to get through
in very short order.”
“What’s first then?” Charlotte shoved the piece into her
mouth, giving her no choice but to take a bite.
“Tomorrow, get to know Opal. I’m sure my mom will help
you with that, but I’ll need you to put some designs together
for me, and we’ll see if they fit into the direction I’m not at
all sure we’re headed.” She started to pick up another
beignet, but the old saying Charlotte had mentioned
sparked something in the middle of her chest. “Damn…
come on.”
“Where are we going?” Sawyer asked, slipping her hand
into Ellis’s.
“We’re going to work.”
* * *
“I told you it’s your job to convince him,” Jennifer said so
loudly into the phone that Dalton came running into the
room. “I wasn’t kidding about what I’ll do if you fuck this
up.”
“Look, I gave him the entire book, and he’s more afraid of
Ellis’s legal team than he is of what’ll happen to me. Her
team, led by Amis, has already put out feelers, along with a
good dose of threats. Whatever she told my publisher made
him break a sweat.”
“Goddamn, listen to what I’m saying and cut out your
pathetic whining.”
“No, you listen, Jennifer. He’s not going to publish any of
it. If you need to burn me to make yourself feel better about
that, then go ahead.”
“Let me think.” She wanted to throw something or hit
something to alleviate the building pressure in her head.
She’d had no way to know how badly this would backfire on
her, and the aftermath it had left was an abyss she’d never
really escape. “I’ll call you back in an hour, so make sure
you answer.”
“Now what?” Dalton asked as he poured himself a
healthy amount of scotch, even though it was eight in the
morning.
“That fucker is going to renege on printing the book, so
we need a plan B before the end of the week. All those
designs need to be in some publication before Ellis has a
chance to show them herself.”
Dalton downed the drink in one gulp and sighed. “Maybe
it’s time to move on and start over. I’ll file for divorce, and
we’ll be together as we find our next spot. Isn’t that what
you wanted?”
“Dalton, get serious here.” She grabbed the bottle when
he started to pour more. “We need to finish this.”
“For what? The more you push and the more ground you
scorch, the more impossible it’ll be for us to get another
job.” He forcefully took the bottle back and poured more.
“We went for it and we lost. If we cut out now, no one can
prove anything, so we’re in the clear.”
“We won’t get anything done if all you do is drink
yourself into a slob. If you won’t help me bring Ellis down,
then run back to that fat bitch you’re married to.” She left
him to his self-pity to get ready. She usually loved her
condo, but these days it was like a stylish prison she had to
escape if only to get the hell away from her cell mate
Dalton.
“There has to be a way,” she said as she stepped under
the hot spray of her shower. The answer would have to
come because she refused to give up. Dalton didn’t
understand that, for as much as Ellis had given them, her
hatred for their former boss trumped all that. Ellis had a lot
to answer for and even more to pay.
“What are you going to do?” Dalton stood outside the
shower, slightly swaying.
“I’m going to save our asses with or without you. If I
continue to be the one doing all the work, then you really do
need to move on.” She finished her shower, not wanting his
eyes on her any longer, so she wrapped a towel around
herself before shutting him out. “The only way forward is
alone,” she whispered to her reflection.
Dalton, like everyone in her life, didn’t deserve her
loyalty, so it was up to her to give Ellis what she had coming
to her.
CHAPTER NINE
“You want what?” Opal asked the next morning. Only a
few people were up, but Ellis wasn’t surprised that Opal and
her mother were already on their second cup of coffee when
she came down.
“Try Epstein’s uptown and see what he has got in stock. If
not, we need an order out of New York as soon as tomorrow.
My goal for today is for you to have something to work with
by then.” She glanced out the window at Charlotte, who had
her face turned upward as if enjoying the warm weather.
This early, the yard was in complete shadow, but the space
had a clear shot to the sky. “I’m headed to the zoo, so call
me if you need anything.”
“What’s at the zoo?” Amis asked.
