Page 4

Melanie

“C ome on, Mel. Just come out with us. It’s one night, it won’t hurt.” Lucielle nudged my shoulder with hers, grinning at me. We’d both just entered the staff room, where our coworkers were taking their seats. Though she was the manager of the fifty people that made up the cleaning teams at Knottinghill Spa, she was good at making friends along the way.

“But I’m visiting Mum after work, and I’m on an early shift tomorrow,” I said, twisting my lips with a guilty look.

“Well, come after you’ve visited, then. I’m working this weekend too—we all are. It’s a Friday night and we need to celebrate!”

Lucielle was one of those ‘life of the party’ types. She’d been that way since we became friends in high school. Her wiry black curls and bright sunshine smile had never changed, whereas I grew heavier over the years, both physically and emotionally, mostly after Mum’s stroke.

I loved going out with Lucielle, but it had been nearly six months since I’d actually done anything like that.

“I can’t really afford to.” I could barely cover my food costs, and I’d asked for an advance from work too many times.

“No worries! My friends and I know this super cheap beta bar, and we can do pre-drinks beforehand.”

“But—”

“Mel,” she burst out. I flinched as heads in the staff room turned to us. “Stop making excuses and just come out with us!”

I opened my mouth to reply, but I suddenly realised I was acting like my sister.

Rosa always had an excuse for every little thing and she would fight nonstop to make sure she got her way, especially when she didn’t want to do something.

“I’ll think about it, okay?” I said. It was easier to cancel on her at the end of the day than argue with her. Which is exactly what my sister did…

It just got harder and harder to come up with reasons why I shouldn’t enjoy myself.

“You better!” she laughed before striding to the front of the room, slipping on her manager’s hat.

“Alright, cleaning team!” she called, clapping her hands as the room fell into silence, and I took my seat. “Here’s the schedule for this week.” She tapped the whiteboard to her left. “We’re mostly looking at ground floor work again, so Team A, I want you down there.”

They split us into three teams. As a member of Team A, I had the joy of being the first to enter the empty nests of our clients. Richmond House at Knottinghill Spa was for packs who wanted a space for their omegas to go through their heat in comfort and privacy, while being provided with everything they needed. Knottinghill prided itself on running the most exclusive establishments in the country, not only offering packs heat suites and other luxury treatments at their Spas, but allowing guests to live out their fantasies at the Studios, and offering night and daytime entertainment at their Clubs in the city.

Which was a great marketing speech, but it didn't change the fact that the main thing Knottinghill sold was sex.

Plus, the guests never knew how much work we had to do when they left.

Most of my job was cleaning up after the hosts—the alphas, betas, and omegas guests purchased to fuck whenever they wanted. They were called whores by guests, who never thought about the fact that hosts were all people that were forced to sell themselves. And we all acted like it was a normal business because the staff needed the work, too.

I was basically damage control for the Spa. I got rid of any evidence left by guests before the main cleaning team prepared the room. I’d seen so much since I’d first arrived that I was surprised if the rooms weren’t a mess.

Team A paid the most, though it had messed a few people up enough that they quit. But it was enough to make sure Mum was taken care of, and that was what mattered.

Team B would come in after me for the surface clean, then Team C prepared the room; carafes, fresh sheets, flowers, and so on.

“Here’s your individual schedules.” Lucielle lifted a stack of A4 papers. “I’ve left a quarter of you on reserve, so, the rest of you, call them when needed.”

Reserves were allowed to stay in the staff room with full pay, but they didn’t get to choose which floor they worked on when they were called in for extra help on the really bad jobs on the top floors.

I took my sheet from Lucille, doing a brief scan, breathing out a sigh. I only had four rooms to do today, and that would take me up to lunch. I liked working in a group, especially on some of the bigger suites, but I was at the point in my audiobook where Amanda was surrounded by all seven rogue alphas, and it was time for the orgy scene.

After that, I was on reserve. I’d need to add hydrogen peroxide to my cleaning trolley just in case there were bloody stains to rub from the carpet like last time.

“Okay, thank you, everyone! Have a good day.” Lucielle ended the meeting as quickly as she’d started it.

Everyone rose from their seats, chattering and clacking the chairs against the plastic floor while Lucille called out names as she updated the work board. She was a fearsome organiser and could tell you exactly which rooms were already booked six months away.

“Well?” Lucielle rounded on me with a wide grin once most of the other staff had filed out of the room. “Come on, you never have any fun.”

“How do you know that?” She barely gave me any space to think about it.

She flicked her eyes over me before raising a brow. She was completely right. The bags under my eyes were permanent, my weight came from endless microwave meals, and I honestly couldn’t remember the last time I really laughed.

“Fine, okay.” I rolled my eyes. “I can be at yours by seven p.m. But I’m only staying until ten.”

“Yay!” She laughed, dragging me into a hug. “You promised. You have to show!”

“I will, don’t worry.” I replied with a soft smile as I pulled back from the hug.

She opened her mouth to say more, but I waved the paper between us.

“I have to get to work.”

Lucielle pressed her lips together in a thin line, her brow creasing, but nodded, releasing me.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“Oh, it’s nothing,” she chuckled, her attention suddenly flicking to someone else to my left. “I’ll leave you to it then!” she said as she strode off to talk to more members of the team.

I brushed it off as I folded up my schedule and slipped it into the front pocket of my pink maid’s dress, running my hand over it just to make sure I had my phone, keys and earbuds.

All I had to do was grab my trolley and then it would be me, Amanda, and hours of smutty fun.