Christy Barritt - Squeaky Clean 04 - Dirty Deeds by Christy Barritt Read Free Book Online

me. I’ve never spouted off like this to a guest before. Please forgive me.”
    “There’s nothing to forgive.”
    A look of worry crossed her face. “If the executive housekeeper finds out, she’ll fire me.”
    I raised my hand. “Really, I find your honesty refreshing. I’m not reporting anyone.”
    The maid put a hand over her heart. “Thank you. I think it’s just that I work this shift by myself. I mean, there are others working as well, but they’re all on different floors on different wings. Only four of us work the nightshift. It’s hard to vacuum when guests are sleeping and all, but we clean the spa and take linens to guests who need them in the middle of the night.” She shook her head. “Believe me, I don’t even ask. Anyway, I get so tired of being alone with my thoughts.”
    I smiled. “I’m Gabby, by the way.”
    “I’m Deanna.”
    “You work here long?”
    “Five years. They recruited people from all the counties around Healthy Springs to work here. It turned out my deadbeat boyfriend had just left me, and I was looking for a change. And some money. I’m from a coal-mining town, and all the jobs there dried up when they closed up the mines. Allendale Acres provides housing for its staff and a decent pay, so I grabbed up the job. I can’t complain.”
    I shoved my hands into my jean pockets, not in a hurry. “I bet you get to meet some interesting people here.”
    She raised her eyebrows and kept dusting. “You better believe it. We’ve had movie stars and politicians and everyone in between. We have a dignitary staying here now, for that matter.” She paused. “Of course, I wasn’t supposed to say that. Privacy and all.”
    “I won’t tell.” The woman was seriously making me chuckle. On the inside. But a silent chuckle was still a chuckle. I raised a hand, as if taking an oath.
    “Thank you. Again, I’m running off at the mouth. I probably wouldn’t have said anything, but I can’t get the man out of my mind. He’s so handsome.” Her hand went over her heart and a dreamy look filled her gaze. “And rich.”
    “Does he speak English?”
    Deanna burst into laughter. “Does he speak English? Of course. He’s from some country in the Middle East. Or was it Asia? I can’t remember. But he’s hot.”
    “Dignitary just makes him sound so … foreign.”
    Deanna laughed again, much louder than I expected. “You are so funny. I like you already. You’re different from a lot of people I meet here.”
    I’d never been insulted at the thought of being different. In fact, I took it as a compliment. Why would I want to be like everyone else?
    “Is he single?”
    Deanna shrugged. “No idea.”
    “Why don’t you ask him?”
    Her mouth gaped. “I could never do that, for more than one reason. Staff is not supposed to ask anything personal of the guests here.”
    I leaned back onto the arm of an ornate couch and crossed my arms. “Is this a nice place to work?”
    “They’re pretty good to their employees. I mean, Mr. Allen is kind of uptight and nitpicky, but I guess you’re supposed to be like that if you run a place like this. I’ve only seen him lose his cool one time, and that was because he saw a snake. I guess he’s kinda terrified of them. Besides, after you’ve been here a while, everyone starts to feel like family.” She sobered. “We were all heartbroken last week when we heard about Maurice. I felt like I’d lost a brother.”
    “Maurice?”
    “Oh, you must have just gotten here, otherwise you would have already heard. One of our bellhops died last week. It was so sad. He was one of the nicest guys. He was always cracking jokes and talking about all the places he wanted to visit. Top of list? Detroit. Who wants to visit Detroit?”
    I pushed myself up straighter. “What happened to him?”
    “It was just terrible. He went kayaking. His boat must have hit a rock and flipped over. The police found his body washed up in the river. It was so strange