Chapter 19
Jodie Sinclair groans when she checks her task sheet and notices, with disgust, that she has an impossible workload for a single person once again. This time it's sixteen rooms, and she knows she won't finish her shift at the usual time. Today, Jodie feels irritable; she spent the night at her place and barely slept. She struggled to fall asleep because she missed Katherine Taylor's warm body next to her. This morning, she spilled coffee on herself, and at the station, the subway left right in front of her face. Now she arrives at the hotel and finds such a heavy workload, debating whether to confront Marjorie or skip wasting time and grab her cart to start the room tour. She opts for the latter and in less than ten minutes is changing the first set of sheets.
"Want to have lunch together?" Sarah asks, running into her colleague in one of the hallways.
Jodie shakes her head while grabbing a tower of towels from her cart.
"No time today, I still have half the work left and look at the time," she explains with an angry expression, "I'll be late to the penthouse."
Sarah presses her lips together. She was the first to advise Jodie to be patient, but now she thinks the head of housekeeping is going too far.
"It's time to complain, Jodie," the other cleaner says, standing in front of her. "It's fine that you want to keep your job, but this is too much."
"I know, but..." Jodie runs her hand over her face and sighs. "I don't want it to look like I'm taking advantage now that I'm dating Katherine."
Sarah frowns and turns her neck to check they're alone.
"Before you started dating Ms. Taylor, Marjorie already had it in for you, but now it seems that fact has increased her annoyance," she says in a low voice. "It's not taking advantage, it's standing up for your rights."
Jodie says nothing, makes a face with her lips, and Sarah understands the conversation is over, so she says goodbye to her friend and pushes her cart to continue working.
More than an hour late, the cleaner walks through the penthouse door, and Katherine's eyes light up when she sees her, but she's had such a busy morning that the Mallois Hotel owner hadn't realized how late it was.
"Hi," the blonde says while getting up to approach Jodie. "Did something happen?"
Jodie forgets how tired she is when she feels Katherine's soft lips and that hand she's placed on her waist to pull her closer.
"No," the cleaner whispers with her gaze fixed on Katherine's lips. "Sorry I'm late."
The middle Taylor sister smiles because she loves Jodie's expression after kissing her, always mesmerized.
"Can I sit for a few minutes?" asks the cleaner, who needs a break.
Katherine finds this all very strange.
"You don't have to ask, you know that," she says and leads the cleaner straight to the sofa. "But you need to tell me what happened."
Again, Jodie's indecision regarding Marjorie surfaces. Her mind splits in two when she thinks of Katherine as her boss, but also as the woman she shares sheets with. If the blonde weren't the owner of the hotel where she works, Jodie wouldn't hesitate to tell her girlfriend everything that's happening with the witch she has for a supervisor.
"Honey..." Katherine calls her, and Jodie reacts to that term of endearment.
"I had more work than usual today," she explains, expelling air through her nose. "That's why I'm late, I had to finish everything before coming here."
Katherine remains stone-faced. On the outside, her expression is serious, but inside a hurricane takes over, and this time she decides she won't let it slide.
"I'll talk to her," she concludes and stands up.
Jodie also stands up, nervous, and stops her by taking her hand.
"It only happens occasionally and..."
Katherine raises an eyebrow and interrupts her.
"How many rooms did you clean today?" she asks in an icy voice.
"Sixteen," Jodie answers after thinking for a few seconds.
"Have you eaten?" Katherine questions her again without getting upset, but wanting to tear everything down in her path.
"No."
"Then, do you think it's normal for an employee to do almost double the work they should and not even have time to eat? Besides leaving later than their scheduled hours," Katherine inquires, but continues speaking, "because I don't want that in my hotel, Jodie. I confess, it pisses me off that she's doing this to you, but if it were another employee, I wouldn't allow it either. This is harassment, and it's not the first thing I've heard about Marjorie, Mike has also received some complaints since he started asking questions about her."
Jodie knows Katherine is right and that if she weren't such a controlled woman, she would have already confronted Marjorie without caring about the consequences, but despite being a tough woman, she has always prioritized keeping this job that pays her so well to handle all her debts and responsibilities.
"I'm aware of what's happening, but I don't want to lose my job, Katherine," Jodie explains and sits back on the sofa. "I'll file a formal complaint with the director, not just for me, but for all of us who put up with her and are afraid to speak up for fear of ending up on the street."
Katherine presses the bridge of her nose so hard that a shock of pain shoots through her face. She can't believe this is happening at the Mallois.
"You've already filed the complaint, Jodie, and I'll talk to her myself," she answers with such firmness that the cleaner says nothing. "I need you to go to the Magnolis with Mike, the cleaning service has been there all morning, and I want you to supervise that everything goes according to what I've asked. But first, tell him to stop somewhere you like so you can eat something."
Jodie nods and gets up to approach Katherine. They connect their gazes and lose themselves for a few seconds in the tranquility they feel when they're together. They kiss slowly, and when Jodie breaks the kiss to leave, Katherine pulls her back, hugs her, gives her another kiss, and now lets her go.
As soon as the cleaner leaves the penthouse, Katherine follows a few minutes later with the goal of finding the head of housekeeping. She breathes calmly while walking through her hotel's corridors, having turned the matter over in her mind and regretting not having stopped the situation earlier.
"Ms. Taylor," Marjorie says with surprise when she sees Katherine enter her small office and close the door behind her. This isn't normal.
Katherine, with deliberation, sits in a chair across from Marjorie.
"I wanted to settle some issues with you," the hotel owner says and crosses her leg elegantly.
"Yes, of course. Please tell me how I can be useful," Marjorie responds, meekly.
"That would be interesting, it seems it's been a long time since you have been," Katherine replies, leaving Marjorie open-mouthed. "I've received many complaints about you, and I'm not willing to continue tolerating your attitude."
Something in Marjorie's brain activates, and she understands something is about to happen. Whether by pure instinct or not, she plays her riskiest card, willing to do anything to keep her job.
"If you're referring to that girl... Your friend," her voice achieves an ironic tone, "it's clear she's taking advantage of her position, and as you've repeated on several occasions, we're all equal here. She shouldn't have privileges."
Katherine raises her eyebrows to the sky. She can't believe this woman's nerve.
"Jodie Sinclair is the name of that girl you're referring to. It's not that she can't have privileges, it's that you've had your foot on her neck since she arrived at this hotel, and besides her, you also pick on other employees without any reason. That's not the hotel's policy, and since you insist on not following it, you're no longer welcome here."
Marjorie's heart races because her boss is clearly firing her with subtle words, but she won't accept this; what she knows carries weight, or so she thinks.
"And where's that policy and ethics when the hotel owner herself sleeps with one of her employees?" the woman shoots back.
Katherine smiles widely and moves dangerously close to Marjorie. The desk separates them, but that doesn't prevent Jodie Sinclair's supervisor from feeling afraid.
"It's low of you to point that out, but since I assumed you would, I'll clarify it for you. Who I fuck is my problem, not yours," Katherine throws out with crude words and shrugs. "The only thing that should worry you is finding a place that will give you work starting today."
Marjorie turns pale, knowing that at her age it's difficult to get a stable position, especially like the one she had at the Mallois Hotel, where the schedule and pay were excellent, and her position gave her certain power.
"I've been letting many things slide for a while because, honestly, I have no complaints about the service you lead, but you work with people, Marjorie, and in my hotel, there's something called respect and humanity. It's not because you harass Jodie, it's because it seems you've also made it your goal to overwork your staff so much that the girls end up so exhausted they prefer not to continue working here."
"That's not true," Marjorie stands from her chair.
Katherine raises her hand to let her speak.
"It is, and you know it. In the last six months, more cleaners have left than in all the time the hotel has been open. My people have investigated and confirmed they left because of you," Katherine half-lies. Mike has gathered some information, but it was so vague that she wanted to give Marjorie a chance until she insisted on messing with Jodie. "I wish you luck, but I want you out of my hotel. Lamir Kumar will handle your severance and everything related to your dismissal."
Marjorie stands petrified as she watches Katherine Taylor rise from the chair and leave what until today is her office. The Mallois Hotel owner knows she's done the right thing; no one mistreats her staff in her hotel, but above all, she'll never allow anyone to hurt the girl she's falling in love with.