Page 12 of Slumming It

"Oh, please. Like you don't know." Again, I glanced at the bed. "I just meant that I wasn't coming in here for…well, you know."

"I know plenty." His gaze raked the length of me. "And we're here to talk, not fuck."

Fuck?In spite of everything, his crudeness stung. "Hey! I was just making sure I didn't give you the wrong impression, that's all."

"Too late for that."

His words felt like a slap, and I fought a sudden urge to slap him back. "And what doesthatmean?"

"It's no mystery," he said. "You're either a thief or a spy."

Well, at least he hadn't called me a pervert.But this was a small comfort, all things considered. "Oh, yeah?" I shot back. "Well, you couldn’t be more wrong." I straightened to my full height, which still put me nearly a foot shy ofhishulking frame. "If you must know, I was only in here to keep other people from spying."

With a cold smirk, he said, "Well, that's a new one."

I wasn't quite sure what he meant. Stupidly, I replied, "Really?"

"No."

Just then, the phone on the night stand gave a piercing ring, making me jump nearly out of my skin. I turned to stare as the phone kept on ringing.Vivian?

Probably.

She reallywasa great sister, even if she would surely kill me after this.

Once again, the guy made no move to answer. But did it really matter?There was no saving my bacon now.

And yet, I couldn’t stop myself from turning once again to face him. "Aren't you gonna get it?"

He shrugged. "Why should I?"

"Because it could be an emergency."

He practically snorted. "Like what?"

"Well…" I tried to think. "Like the hotel could be on fire or something."

His dismissive gaze flicked over the room. "No loss there."

Okay, now Ireallyfelt like slapping him. "Now that's just insulting."

"What doyoucare?" His tone grew sarcastic. "You're just the maid."

"Just the maid?" I sputtered as the phone continued to ring. "I said I was the housekeeper, not the maid."

"And there's a difference?"

My mouth opened, but no sound came out.Was there a difference?In truth, I didn't really know.Was it the uniform?In my head, maids wore little black dresses with frilly white aprons. Me – I wore khaki pants and whatever shirt was least likely to show the dirt.

At the thought, I looked down and almost groaned at the sight of dust bunnies clinging to the front of my faded black turtleneck.Stupid carpet.

Stupider me.

And don't get me started onhim.To think, I'd been trying to do him a favor.

I looked up to meet his gaze. With all the dignity I could muster, I said, "I'll have you know, I'm more than just a housekeeper."

He looked decidedly unimpressed. "I know."