Page 21 of Culinary Chaos (Hotel Bombshell #1)

Chapter

Sixteen

“ W e need to talk.”

Angelica paused in the doorway to the conference room, Nova sitting at the table and holding court.

There were cameras in there, Rex standing to the side, and one other cameraman.

She had breathed relief as soon as she was out of Hope’s sights.

They were at least scheduled to be in two completely different parts of the hotel today, which meant they wouldn’t have to see each other.

At least not unless Hope decided to have another one of her fits and come at Angelica.

But based on their conversation that morning, Angelica doubted that was going to happen.

But now she was going headfirst into another fight.

One she should probably have anticipated.

“So talk.” Angelica sat down, taking more of a position of power than Nova was probably expecting. This wasn’t Nova’s court. It was Angelica’s.

“John told me what you said yesterday.”

As if Angelica had thought anything else would happen.

“And that he talked with Josef, who assured him that you wouldn’t be leaving us in a bind.”

As if the show was going to leave them in a bind? Angelica pressed her lips together tightly and held the silence. Just what exactly was Nova’s end game?

“John is…” Nova paused, clearly taking her time to come up with an appropriate word.

Angelica easily applied several silently.

An asshole.

Jerkface.

Motherfucking entitled.

Digging his own grave and yours too.

“…delicate,” Nova finally finished. “He’s not used to being confronted like that.”

Angelica had no doubt about that last part.

Men in general weren’t used to being put on the spot and challenged, especially by a woman who was a foot shorter than them and blonde with a decent bust. They looked at her and saw someone who wasn’t competent even if she was the smartest person in the room—something she’d never apologize for.

“I’ll pull the plug on this episode if I have to,” Angelica said, keeping her voice firm.

She hadn’t missed Rex raising a scared eyebrow at her or that he turned on the second camera, no doubt filming this interaction.

Good for him. This might be the best gold mine that they had the entire time they were here.

“I don’t take threats lightly, and John won’t bully me into doing what he wants.

We’ve seen what happens when he’s left in charge. ”

“He gets things done.”

“He lets things disintegrate around him. The issue with this hotel isn’t staff.

It isn’t management. It’s you and John. It’s the fact that you two don’t know what you’re doing, and you refuse to admit that you need help, that you need training, and that you can’t do this on your own.

Isn’t that why you applied in the first place?

Because you knew you needed something to change? ”

Nova nodded slowly, her lips slightly parted as she pushed a strand of her mousy brown hair behind her ear. “But John?—”

“John is being a bully because he doesn’t like being told what to do.

And if he’s going to continue to pull the shit that he pulled yesterday, then I’ll walk away.

I have no patience when asked for my expertise to then not be listened to, and there are plenty of other hotels that Chef Lawrence and I can assist with.

Ones that would be willing and thankful for our help. ”

“But John—” Nova started again.

Angelica held her hand up, stopping her in her tracks.

“If you’re going to find another excuse for his behavior, then I don’t want to hear it.

I’ve heard it all before, and I’m over it.

You can either accept our help or not. I’ll give you until the end of the day to let me know.

Thank you.” Angelica stood up at that point, her shoulders straightening.

She gave Nova a hard stare, waiting for her to get up and walk out of the room.

She hesitated, no doubt struggling to figure out exactly what Angelica had meant, and perhaps finally hearing the dismissal.

But she did get out. She scoffed as she walked by Angelica, rolling her eyes.

Angelica crossed her arms and sighed heavily as soon as the door was shut.

She hated days like these—ones where it felt like the whiplash of emotions was never going to end or that every two seconds there was some other kind of drama.

The door opened sharply.

Angelica froze.

She wasn’t back. Was she?

Hope stepped through, her gaze flicking from Angelica to Rex and the cameras and back to Angelica.

Was that fear? Guilt ate through Angelica’s stomach briefly before she managed to get ahold of it.

She had nothing to feel guilty for. She’d done nothing wrong.

Hope had been the one to initiate that kiss, and Angelica had just been on the receiving end of it.

And she’d put a stop to it before it went any further.

“Oh, I didn’t realize you were filming,” Hope said, nervously biting her lip.

It had been adorable when Ansel had scolded her for it. Angelica shook her head. “I think we’re finished.” She looked to Rex who nodded but stayed silent. “What did you need?”

“You uh… left this.” Hope whispered those last two words as she stepped closer to Angelica.

The iPad was held tightly in her hand as she thrust it in Angelica’s direction.

How the hell had Angelica managed to forget about that? She lived by that thing, and yet she hadn’t even thought of it once.

“Thanks.” Angelica swallowed the sudden lump in her throat, reaching for the iPad. She maneuvered her hands strategically so that she didn’t touch Hope’s fingers or accidentally brush against her in any way.

“What did she want?” Hope asked, looking toward the door and indicating Nova.

Angelica let out a small chuckle. “To try and get me to apologize to John is my guess.” She put the iPad onto the table and straightened up to focus on Hope.

She seemed so nervous to be in this room, so different from the way she’d been that morning in the elevator.

Had Angelica scolded her too much? She really should have been more careful in what she said and how she said it.

“I don’t think he’s the one who deserves an apology.” Rex’s voice shocked through the room.

Angelica’s spine straightened instantly, not expecting the attack to come from him of all people. He hadn’t even been there. He hadn’t even been the one to witness what Angelica had said, though she suspected it had gone through the crew like wildfire.

“Excuse me?” Angelica asked, turning toward Rex and the one lone crew member who seemed to shuffle his feet and want to disappear.

“You owe an apology to me, to Hope, to Sy.” He threw his thumb over his shoulder. “To every single one of the crew.”

Angelica ground her teeth together, not sure how to entertain that conversation. She hadn’t expected this at all, and to go from Nova’s anger to Hope’s tenderness to Rex’s outrage was throwing her for a loop.

“For what exactly?”

Rex snorted, wildly shaking his head. “We depend on this job. And if you can’t see that, if you can’t respect it, then you shouldn’t be a producer on it.”

“I’m trying to save this show any more belittlement or ostracizing. I won’t let us fail because Nova and John refuse to listen to us, because if they fail, then we fail.”

“No, we won’t.” Rex shook his head. “Maybe you haven’t gotten it yet, but this show that we’re making isn’t about fixing fucking hotels.

It’s about drama and entertainment. It’s about finding the market audience and making sure they’re satisfied, which is something that we can do whether or not John and Nova actually follow through with what you think they should be doing. ”

Angelica’s back went up. She knew what he was talking about.

She’d done the research right along with Josef from day one when she entered into the conversation, and well before she decided which type of role she was going to take on the show.

She wasn’t an idiot. But that didn’t mean that she still didn’t care about her work and the fact that she wanted to save the livelihoods of the people who worked at this hotel.

She did care.

Even if she didn’t want them to know that.

“So you should apologize to all of us.”

“Rex,” Hope tried to interrupt.

“No, I’m not staying quiet this time.” Rex crossed his arms and gave Angelica a hard stare. “You can start with apologizing to Hope.”

Angelica looked from him to Hope, who seemed as though she was drowning in embarrassment.

This wasn’t going to be easy to navigate, and it was a huge part of why she’d been so unsure about Hope being on the show in the first place.

This was playing favorites, and Angelica had no desire to dip her toes into those waters.

She’d done it before, and someone always ended up hurt.

Or was this because Hope had told him about last night?

Angelica locked her eyes on Hope’s face, trying to discern if she had spilled the beans about that awkward kiss in the hallway. She wouldn’t have told him, would she? And if she did, how the hell could Rex be taking Hope’s side? Surely, he’d find what Hope had done despicable, unless Hope had lied.

Sliding her tongue across her lips, Angelica focused back on the problem at hand. Navigate this and she could figure out the rest later.

“I’m sorry… Rex.” Angelica focused on him, putting everything she had into this apology because she wasn’t entirely sure what exactly he was looking for or what he knew.

“I should have consulted with the other producers before making such a wild threat, but I stand by what I said to John. I will pull us from this hotel if it’s not a good fit for us or them.

I won’t tangle the threads of our livelihoods with the failures of theirs.

And I’ll protect all the people who work on this show, and as much as I can, I’ll protect the people who work at Chateau Orleans. ”

Rex’s jaw dropped.

He hadn’t expected an actual apology, had he? And while she was genuine in what she’d said, she had also meant the last part more than anything. This wasn’t just about the crew’s jobs. It was about everyone involved in the show, those they were helping and those who directly reported to her.

She turned to Hope, parting her lips, but Hope put her hand up to stop her.

“Don’t…” Hope said softly. “I don’t need an apology.”

Angelica pursed her lips, crossing her arms and turning back to Rex. “Satisfied?”

He didn’t answer.

Turning to Sy, Angelica made eye contact with him. “Did you get what you wanted on your camera?”

His face turned bright red.

“Good.” Angelica frowned, snagged her iPad and left the room.

There was far more fighting and drama than there needed to be.

And she needed a break from it. She could get some work done for a few minutes where no one would be able to find her, and then she could find herself back into the fray of the world they were filming.

“Angel—” Hope stopped short.

Angelica spun around, her eyes locking on Hope’s. “What?”

“He shouldn’t have done that.” Hope walked closer to her. The space between them never seemed to be enough lately. No matter how many steps she would have to take for Hope to touch her again, Angelica swore they were only standing inches apart.

“I’m tired of wives apologizing for the scruples of their husbands. Stop rescuing him.” Angelica turned again.

Hope snagged her wrist sharply and pulled her back around. Then she stepped away, putting that much-needed space between them. “He’s upset.”

“About what?” Angelica asked. If they were going there, then they were going to deep dive into the mess that Hope had created. “About the fact that I’m his boss? Or about last night?”

“I…” Hope blanched. “I didn’t tell him about last night.”

Well, that was one thing put right. At least Rex didn’t know that his wife had kissed her. Which meant he really was just pissed off and emotional about the fact that Angelica had barreled through all the bullshit to get exactly what they needed from this episode.

“I don’t know if I will,” Hope whispered, stepping closer.

She clearly didn’t want anyone to accidentally overhear her.

And to that point, neither did Angelica.

It was the last thing she needed. Josef had to remain completely in the dark.

“But you have to realize that if we lose our jobs, that’s both of us, and our household won’t have the income.

This isn’t something that we take lightly. ”

“You’re a celebrity chef, Hope,” Angelica answered. “You have your own show.”

“I do,” Hope agreed. “And I’m sure that Rex will easily be able to find another directing job, but that still doesn’t mean that it’s not scary. You have to consider what the crew is feeling when you’re throwing around these threats.”

“Throwing around?” Angelica shifted in closer, her voice deadly quiet. “I meant every word that I said. I don’t expect you to understand it, but I meant it. I’ll do my best to save this hotel and to save the show no matter what. But I can’t do it by myself.”

Hope’s jaw went slack. “What are you saying?”

“If I’m fighting the crew, then I’m fighting two battles. Not one.”

“Then get them on your side.”

Angelica shook her head with a light laugh. “You hear what they say about me. They don’t trust me. And they won’t do what I need them to do unless I push them into it.”

“Did you ever think that you’re creating your own insanity? That maybe if you communicated more effectively, got to know them, let them in on what you’re thinking and planning, that maybe they might learn to trust you eventually?”

Angelica stilled, her gaze locked on Hope’s. “I don’t work like that.”

“You might if you just tried.”

“No.” Angelica stepped away, finally finding that freedom that she wanted and desperately needed.

“I’m going to get some actual work done.

” She didn’t look over her shoulder as she walked directly toward the front lobby.

She needed to get outside, she needed to take a deep breath, and she needed to figure out what the fuck that was all about.

Because Hope couldn’t be right.