Chapter 1
Charlotte Drake placeda palm on the fanciest cooking appliance she’d ever used and shook her head. “This Hamatool natural gas grill is incredible—and I’ve been thrilled to use it these past four days—but it normally costs $50,000 for a brand new one, and you—your staff—paid $75,000 for a refurbished one.” She tapped the stainless-steel grill lid and looked around the pavilion—thankfully, no one else was about—before opening her mouth again. “They’re gouging you.”
Sam sighed, and his chest deflated. “I’ve used these contractors for years—at multiple properties. I can’t believe they’re screwing me.”
“Well, you’ve been taking notes—lots of notes—on discrepancies related to the buildings and grounds of the resort.”
Sam slowly shook his head, his expression even more unhappy. “It’s worse than I imagined. And so many things. The work that was supposedly completed for a new drainage system hasn’t been done—or hasn’t been done right. The terracing looks old and worn and so do most of the retaining walls. I’m not a civil engineer, but I know that much.”
Charlotte couldn’t comment on those issues, but she could provide feedback on the villa’s gourmet kitchen, and there were plenty of discrepancies here. “They have the top-of-the-line everything: the Artemis Forand refrigerators, Racher juicers and Valerie Aforno espresso machines, but it’s all refurbished pieces. Good refurbished but still refurbished.” She crossed over to the pretty prep area decorated with gorgeous Talavera tiles and touched the heavy mahogany knife block. She ran her fingers over the butts of the inserted knives. “These Vescul knives are incredible and in great condition, but, again, they’re not new. And the invoices claim they are.”
“I’m not sure what to do,” Sam grumbled. “I’ve always been satisfied with my on-site crew, who manage repairs and make necessary supply purchases, but I’m having real doubts for the first time. They claim the increased costs are for various upgrades. I don’t know who to trust right now.”
Charlotte stared back at him, and her heart filled with sympathy. Sam had spent years buying and renovating resort properties around the world. His places were beyond posh. The man insisted on the best, the most exclusive, and he didn’t mind paying for it. But these overcharges or what looked like fake charges were insane.
Charlotte had worked for Sam as his personal chef for more than a year, but her responsibilities had evolved into so much more. Nowadays, she managed every part of his schedule, and she loved it. Being organized, helping people made her feel good inside.
“I’m bringing in an independent engineering team next week, and I’ll get their take on things,” added Sam. “But I know this crew. I’d hate to think this is more than a misunderstanding.”
Charlotte pressed her lips together, not wanting to say a word. This seemed like much more than a misunderstanding.
“I’m sure you’ll have answers soon,” she replied finally, wanting to sound hopeful. Sam had fallen in love with this property, Villa Royale, the moment he’d seen it. And as soon as she’d stepped onto the property days ago Charlotte had understood why. The mountaintop resort, with its 32 little houses called casitas, and a score of luxury resort amenities, was surrounded by dense jungle vegetation on one side and a panoramic view of the Pacific Ocean on the other. She lifted her head and closed her eyes so she could better hear the rumble of the ocean waves and smell the tang of the surf. Oh, so perfect.
The place was paradise, and Sam hoped to open to the public in 90 days.
It was too bad someone was messing with it.
“Hey, I was about to make some shrimp tacos.” Charlotte turned back to her food prep area and reached for the bowl of shrimp with peppers and onions marinating in lime juice and cilantro. “Why don’t you sit down? It’ll just be a few more minutes.”
Sam pulled out a stool and sat at the narrow counter across from Charlotte. “I don’t deserve you.”
She grinned back at him and turned on the fancy grill. “Sure you do.”
They’d first met when Charlotte had catered a luncheon for one of Sam’s business associates. It hadn’t been an especially extravagant affair, but Sam had approached her after the event and begged her to become his personal chef. She’d refused countless times—her catering business and cake shop were enough on her already overstuffed plate—but he’d kept upping his offer. When he’d finally offered three times her regular chef fee, she’d caved. The extra money had made such a difference for her family.
And it turned out, she loved working for Sam. He enjoyed simple fare as well as her fancy undertakings. Chicken and dumplings or Coquilles St. Jacques. It didn’t matter. She’d definitely improved and broadened her repertoire while cooking for Sam.
The trickiest part of it all was remembering they came from different worlds. He existed in the stratosphere living in a penthouse and making multi-million-dollar deals. And she resided with regular people.
Every day, she did her best to ignore how handsome and fit Sam was. But God he was handsome and fit. More than a few times, she’d gotten lost staring at his handsome face as he worked on a table in his great room or at the dining room table. Dark hair, green eyes and full, kissable lips. She flinched. Yes, she’d noticed, and those lips looked infinitely kissable. In a different life, in a different world, she imagined more with him.
But he wrote her paycheck—the biggest paycheck she’d ever earned—so crossing over the lines of polite, professional behavior couldn’t happen. Even though they’d skittered over that line once, they’d never do it again.
Nope, never.
And now they were here, and he’d brought her into his confidence.
Her lips curved up as she remembered the conversation they’d had days before arriving at the villa. He’d suspected a problem at his Sayulita property, and he wanted her eyes and her advice. He wasn’t sure who else he could trust now, but he trusted her.
And that meant so much.
But their time at the resort had been an odd mix of work and play. In the evenings, they talked, laughed and hung out in the pool. Just the two of them. It all amounted to a bit too much together time—which she liked a bit too much.
So hopefully, they’d soon get to the bottom of what was happening at the resort and be done. Things needed to get back to normal.
Yes, that’s exactly what she wanted.
She flipped the shrimp and veggies on the grill a few times then placed them onto tortillas in the warming rack. She put several on a plate then handed it to Sam. “Enjoy.”