The Billionaire's Widow

70

The next morning, I arrived at the hotel earlier than usual for the shoot and to make sure everything for the wedding was running smoothly. Thankfully, the couple had hired a wedding planner, which made my life easier—she was handling most of the logistics.

To my surprise, Mrs. Clemons and her crew were already at the venue, setting up their equipment. Talk about great timing.

“Miss Carson, good morning.” She approached with a warm smile.

“Good morning, Mrs. Clemons.” I returned her smile and extended my hand. We shook as I gestured to one of the staff nearby. “Please take my bag to my office.” She nodded and walked off. “Thanks.”

“I’m glad you arrived earlier than expected,” Mrs. Clemons said, gesturing around. “We’re actually almost done setting up.”

I glanced around at her crew bustling about. One of them, a reporter, was already getting her makeup done. “I can see a lot happens behind the scenes,” I said, impressed.

“It really does,” she laughed. “Our makeup artist will be ready for you in five minutes. But for now, please excuse me.” She walked away to supervise her team.

After makeup, the shoot began. I tried to stay calm and composed—even though being on TV still felt surreal. Thankfully, the reporter was kind and down-to-earth, which made things easier. I’d also gotten used to cameras following me around, so that helped.

Just like Mrs. Clemons predicted, everything wrapped up by 10 a.m. I was relieved. That meant the wedding schedule wouldn’t be disrupted, and since the hotel was still quiet in the morning, the shoot went off without a hitch.

“Okay, Miss Carson, we’re ready to head out. Thank you so much for your cooperation. We’ll be sure to give Mr. Hall very positive feedback.”

I smiled. “Thank you for your kind words, Mrs. Clemons.”

“You’re welcome.” She surprised me with a quick hug. “Have a good day.”

“You too.” I closed the door behind her and let out a breath. “Thank God that’s over,” I muttered, grabbing my phone and heading out to continue with the day’s work.

“Ryder, where’s Max?” I asked as I scanned the floor.

“He’s around, serving guests, ma’am,” she replied.

“Then why are some of the tables still unattended? How many staff did I assign to serve the wedding guests today?”

“Ten, but Sandra disappeared,” she admitted.

“What do you mean she disappeared?” I asked sharply.

She shrugged. “Just vanished. No one’s seen her for almost an hour.”

“Fuck.” I exhaled deeply. “Okay, carry on with your work. I’ll handle it.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

I moved around the hotel, searching, until I ended up near the bar where I found Kim chatting with Charlie. If Kim was here, drama wasn’t far behind. I couldn’t even remember if she was on the schedule today.

“Hey, have either of you seen Sandra?” I asked.

Kim shook her head. Charlie, however, replied, “She said she was running over to her mom’s shop to drop off some money. That was almost an hour ago.”

“During working hours? Are you kidding me?” I swept my hair off my face in frustration. “When she gets back, tell her I want to see her immediately!” Charlie jumped slightly. “Understood?”

“Y-yes, ma’am.”

I turned to walk away, but Kim spoke. “Paige, is something wrong?”

I paused and faced her. “Yes, Kimberly. Something is very wrong. A grown woman thought it was okay to sneak out of work to run errands on one of the busiest days of the year.”

She sighed and stood from her stool. “You don’t have to yell. I can cover for her.”

I blinked. “Did you just offer to help… calmly?”

“People are waiting. Can I go?” she asked, expression unreadable.

I nodded, still caught off guard. “Yeah… sure.”

She walked past me and I stood there, baffled. The Kim I knew would’ve made me beg for her help. “Strange,” I murmured before heading back to my office.

A few minutes later, there was a knock at the door. “Come in.”

Sandra walked in, looking anxious.

“You know you’re in trouble, right?” I said flatly.

She nodded. “I’m so sorry, Miss Carson. I got an urgent call and thought I’d only be gone a few minutes.”

“It turned into an hour, Sandra,” I said, arms crossed.

“I know, and I’m really sorry. I promise it won’t happen again.”

I stared at her for a moment. Part of me wanted to scream, but then I remembered how scared I had been when I was late once—and Hailey had come down on me hard. Yet she still forgave me.

She gave you a chance. Give her one too.

“If it happens again, you’ll leave me no choice but to fire you.”

She nodded quickly. “Yes, ma’am. Thank you so much.”

“Get back to work.”

She hurried out and I let out another sigh.

Kim’s POV

“Thank you,” the woman said after I handed her her drink. I nodded and headed back to the kitchen with my empty tray.

Sandra came rushing in, out of breath. I chuckled and shook my head. “Paige was looking for you.”

“Charlie told me. I already went to see her.” She paused. “He also said you volunteered to fill in for me.”

“I did,” I said, lifting the tray slightly.

“I wasn’t expecting that. Thank you, Kim.”

“I know.” I gave her a small smile. “Anyway, now that you’re back, I’ll head out.”

I left the kitchen, keeping my pace steady. I wasn’t even scheduled to be here today. My shift had ended early, but I wasn’t ready to go back to Logan’s place.

His efforts were… too much. And sometimes, too perfect. I didn’t trust it yet.

He was being decent, and that helped, but the reality of our situation—this forced marriage—still haunted me. Part of me still feared him. Some nights I even had nightmares about him. How was I supposed to live with someone I wasn’t sure I could trust?

Was this real change, or just another act?

I appreciated his effort. I really did. But comfort? That was still a long way off.

If the fear was still there at the end of these two months… I was leaving. No matter how charming he tried to be, no matter how nice the house was, I wouldn’t stay somewhere I didn’t feel safe.

I just had to hold on until then.

_____________________________