Cooped Up for Christmas - Sabrina York Page 0,28
the ropes.”
“You’re saying I should make more of an effort to mentor them.” Hell, you couldn’t teach someone my job. It was pure instinct.
“Or relate to them. Either works.”
I snorted my affront. “I relate to them.”
“Do you know their last names?”
“What?” Why was that relevant?
“Or where they grew up? Or if they’re single? Missing someone?”
“In case you didn’t notice, we don’t actually have time to sit down and chat.”
“Some effort would be nice.”
“I’m here to work. Not make friends.”
“You’re here to work—” he flourished his hands— “amongst people. Why not enjoy your time with them?”
I kind of stared at him for a while. So he continued. “Did you know Olivia sings opera? And Wren can rap…in sign language?”
Impressive, but… “We don’t have time to sit around and chat here.”
“Seriously?” Now he gaped at me. “Do you even remember when we were here? We would sit around and talk for hours when the guests were out.” He winked. “Or sleeping.”
“I remember that.”
“What else do you remember from when we were here? How super clean we washed the dishes? Or the picnic we all took on a river float—”
“And Santino fell in,” I said on a snicker.
“Right. And then we fell in saving him.” We both laughed at the memory. What a fun day it had been. “That’s what we remember. That’s what we take with us. The way we felt. About those people… Our friends. That’s what matters.”
“Well, these people are not my friends. They’re employees.”
“You and Molly were friends, back when we were here.” Damn. The man was relentless.
“That’s different.”
“I don’t see how. You were Olivia. Molly was you.”
There’s nothing I hate more than a man who makes a valid point. So annoying. I gusted a sigh and attacked my food in lieu of a response.
“I heard the girls talking about you,” he said after a minute, apropos of absolutely nothing.
I looked up at him over my rib. “Really?” Awesome. “What did they say?”
“They think you’re a little uptight.”
With great resolve, I did not snort again. But I thought the snort. “Of course I’m uptight. I’m an executive.”
“Hmm.”
I glared at him. “What?”
He shrugged. “It’s just that you didn’t used to be uptight. In fact, if memory serves, you were…very flexible.” The glint in his eye was irritating. “Do you ever think about leaving?”
I gaped at him. “Leaving what?”
“All this?”
I had to laugh, though it kind of got caught in my throat. “My job?” Was he crazy? “This is all I have. All I am.”
“Yeah. I get that. But is that the way you want it?”
I frowned at him. “I don’t understand what you’re asking.”
“Are you happy?”
“Happy?” What kind of question was that? “Are you happy jumping off mountains for a living?”
“I jump onto them. From planes. Very different thing. And you’re avoiding the question.” I had no idea why he was so bloody persistent.
“I’m the VP of Hospitality for the most popular mega luxury resort company in the world. It’s a great job.”
“It is. But do you ever think of leaving?”
Seriously?
I was saved from answering when Olivia popped her head into the room. “Hey, Vic,” she said cheerily. “Chef’s on fire again.”
Did I ever think of leaving?
All right, I have to admit that I did, on occasion, think about chucking all this in and winning the lottery. But where would I go? What would I do? Who would I be without this job?
And why on earth could that man not flambé without setting himself on fire?
* * *
I thought about what Coop had said as I went back to work, spelling Olivia who was covering the great room, which, at the moment, played host to all of the adults—drinking cocktails and pretending to play Cards Against Humanity.
He was right. I did used to enjoy other people. I used to have a sense of humor.
What had happened? Had I become old and crusty in my quest to command my career? And when had my job become my everything?
Was this what I really wanted in life?
If I was being honest, my life wasn’t as perfect as it seemed. I was lonely. I did have walls—battlements, really—that kept people at bay. If I wanted something different, I had to do something different.
I decided to make an effort to be friendlier with the staff. Or, at least, try to understand them. They were a completely different generation and had a very different world view, so it might take some effort.
Take Jed, for instance.
His work ethic was really great. When there was something that needed