they wore nothing with the Hamilton Inn name on it. That I didn’t like.
Even though they could spend the entire five hours there without seeing a single guest—there was always a possibility that someone would need something. The guests should know—without question—who was there to assist them; I wanted to make up simple T-shirts, polos and sweatshirts with our name and logo for that purpose.
Three people worked in the kitchen, all of them were guys. Two of which ranged in age from 40 to 50, but the other looked to be early 30s. He was definitely an attractive man I couldn’t help but notice the muscles in his body as he worked with the food to prep. Jase was his name, he wasn’t a lean muscular guy like Corey. Instead he was built with the bulging arm and chest muscles—a guy like that was fun to look at but not my preference to date, though he did have a great face. Not to mention how cocky he was—from the moment I entered the kitchen, he took it upon himself to explain every little thing about the space and their tasks to me. All the while taking every opportunity to touch my arm or place his hand at my lower back. At one point he even cornered me into doing some of the vegetable chopping, while his arms caged me in and his breath was hot on my neck.
The whole time I found myself silently comparing Jase to Corey. Jase’s smile didn’t light up his face while he spoke, the smell of after shave was too potent and my body didn’t react at the slightest touch. Since I promised myself nothing serious though, I decided to keep this guy on my repertoire, just in case the dynamic between Corey and I changed. Not that I saw it happening anytime soon but I also didn’t want to commit to one person. The whole reason I went searching for some attractive guy the other night was to embark on something casual so I wouldn’t have to experience yet another heartbreak. Maybe I’d have to consider throwing in a couple nights with a different guy. For right now though, my body only craved Corey’s.
It was a little after one in the morning, when I left the Inn. Everything seemed to be under control, providing me with a sense of ease that this staff truly was fantastic. By the time I returned home I was completely exhausted. I sent a quick text to Bailey that I would be in a little later the next morning. When I passed by the answering machine it blinked with a few new messages. I was far too out of it to check them. So instead, I took a hot shower and passed out the second my head hit the pillow.
Unexpected Encounters
The next morning I sat with my cup of coffee and listened to the automated voice, telling me someone at the Prison was calling to talk with me. There were three similar messages that my mother left throughout the day. It wasn’t as if it was new to me that my mother was in there, but It was still bizarre to receive calls from her as an inmate. The calls left an unpleasant feeling coursing through my body and I wished more than anything that I could forget about them. Unfortunately, I knew it wasn’t possible to forget something of that magnitude.
It took me longer than usual to get ready for the day, with my mind still at home, stuck to my answering machine. As simple and harmless as the messages seemed, it left me completely scatterbrained. After making my bowl of cereal, I first put the milk in the cupboard and the cereal in the fridge, but thankfully caught that. Unfortunately, that was just the beginning of my very long morning. I attempted putting my legs through the armholes of my long sleeve shirt and almost began brushing my hair with my toothbrush. With a day starting like that, I should’ve done society a favor and gone back to sleep; except that wasn’t the type of worker I was.
My cell phone buzzed a few times with text messages from Bailey, Corey, and Gabriella. The only one I chose to read at the time was Bailey’s, to make sure the Inn wasn’t burnt to the ground or something equally as devastating. The text was just a reassurance that the Inn was in good hands and to take my time