Escape With Me (Love With Me 1)

“Sir, I'm doing everything I can to remedy this situation. Mr. Landers checked out hours ago. I'm sure the photographers will leave soon.” She hurried back to her desk, carefully putting the stapler back where it belonged.

“Unfortunately, Corporate doesn't agree.” His frown deepened as he looked at her. “They've asked me to tell you to take some personal days until this is settled.”

“What?” Cassie had to steady herself on the chair.

“In light of the current situation, Corporate feels it would be better for the hotel if you were not here causing a disruption,” he explained. “I'm sure this will all be over in a few days, but we need to think of what's best for the hotel.”

“What's best for the hotel...” Cassie sat down hard in her chair. There was still so much that needed to be caught up on from her vacation. The schedules needed to be posted. There were repairs that needed to be ordered, the kitchen required new staffing, and a multitude of other small issues that only a manager could deal with.

“Please, Cassie, I'm sure you understand. Corporate doesn't feel this meets their policy guidelines.” Lenny's mouth thinned. “Take a couple of days. You have vacation days still saved up.”

Cassie nodded slowly. “Of course. I'll take some time and let this all blow over.”

“I'll look after the hotel,” Lenny assured her. “I can manage. As long as you've been following corporate policies, everything will be fine.”

“Right.” Cassie didn't feel like everything would be fine. She felt betrayed by the company. She'd worked here for years, and at the first sign of trouble, they were forcing her to go home.

She stood slowly and grabbed her purse from the shelf on her desk.

“The manager's binder is in the front drawer of my desk,” she told Lenny. “It's up to date through yesterday. I'm afraid I haven't had time to update it for today.”

Lenny sighed. “It's supposed to be at the front desk. And it really should be updated for today. You know the policy, Cassie.”

Cassie just shook her head. There wasn't a place for it at the front desk, and she'd been busy all morning. It was a stupid policy. “Good luck, sir.”

She managed to sneak out through the back kitchen exit without the press seeing her. Luckily, they didn't know her car, so she just kept her head down, wore big sunglasses, and went the back way out of the hotel parking lot.

All she wanted to do was go home and relax. She planned on taking a nice shower and putting on a clean outfit before heading over to the address on her phone for dinner with Wyatt. At least that part of the day would hopefully be better.

Despite it all, she knew seeing him would make her feel good. Just thinking about him made her smile.

She turned into the street of her apartment building and stared in shock. There were cars everywhere. People filled every square inch of open space leading to her apartment. At first, she thought there must be a party for a neighbor, but then she saw the cameras.

They were all there for her. They wanted her photograph, and they were going to wait in front of her house to get it.

She parked on a side street and tried to come up with a plan.

Her phone rang with the apartment complex's name and number on the screen.

“Hello?”

“Ms. Turner, it's apartment procedure to notify you when someone wants into your apartment. I have your mother here, and she says she left something inside. May we let her in?”

Cassie hadn't spoken to her mother in months. The last she'd heard, she was at some casino in Florida and was going to “win big” any day. Her mother hadn't called since Cassie stopped sending her money.

“Whoever it is in your office is not my mother,” Cassie informed the office staff. “No one is allowed in my apartment. Not even if they're my long lost twin.”

“Of course. Is everything okay?”

“It's fine.” She sighed. “Actually, I'm going to be out of town for a few days. Will you tell whoever is pretending to be my mother that I'm going to visit her in Florida? And have security keep an eye on my place while I'm gone?”

“Of course. Thank you for letting us know.”

Cassie clicked off the phone and tried to come up with a plan. She couldn't go to her apartment. They were watching. She looked at the address on her phone. At least she could go there.

Her stomach felt sick. She wasn't safe. There were people trying to break into her house. They were trying to find her secrets, and while her secrets were arguably mild, they were hers. The idea of someone going through her underwear drawer had her sweating and ready to throw up.

She didn't know how to handle this. Two days ago, she'd felt safe in her home city. Now, it felt like everyone might turn on her. She needed someone to show her how to live this kind of public-eye life.