Chapter 18 : Making New Friends

**Cat POV "Who the h*ll are you?" the supermodel repeated again. "My name is Cat. Who are you?" I asked, crossing my arms. If Luke had been expecting company, I thought he would have given me the heads-up. As it was, he was trusting me with the safety of his house and the development while he was off-site. I wasn't going to misplace that trust. "Luke never mentioned he'd hired a second maid," the woman said snidely, casting a sharp look at Adelle. "I'm his housekeeper," Adelle said back, crossing her arms too. "Who are you, and why are you here?" I pressed. I wasn't going to get drawn into her insults and get distracted from the real issue at hand. The woman turned her eyes on me, giving me that same condescending look. Like I was a bug she'd like to squash with her shoe if she cared to ruin her thousand-dollar high heels. "I'm Victoria, Luke's girlfriend," she said, smiling widely. "Girlfriend?" I asked, arching an eyebrow. He had mentioned that he was having his own relationship problems. Luke never mentioned a girlfriend, least of all one that could come into his house whenever she wanted. It seemed odd that he wouldn't mention having such a serious relationship with someone. Especially since we'd hooked up recently. We'd talked for hours the night before on the balcony, and he hadn't once mentioned that he had a girlfriend. I wasn't sure if I should believe her. I couldn't imagine Luke not mentioning her. "Yes. Luke and I are together. We're dating. We're a couple. How much clearer can I make it? Do you think he gives just anyone a key to his house?" Victoria asked, dangling the key on her finger. "I'm sorry, I didn't know Luke had a girlfriend," I admitted, nodding and relaxing my arms. "So, who exactly are you? Other than your name. And why are you in my boyfriend's house?" Victoria asked, setting her perfectly manicured hands on her hips. "I'm a new architect at the firm. Luke has me keeping a close eye on the development," I explained. "You're not dressed like someone that works at his firm," she pointed out, eyeing my casual clothing again. I chewed my lower lip. How was it that I wasn't even in the office, and I was still getting condescending looks about my clothes? "I didn't know we'd be having a surprise visit," I murmured softly. "I should get back to work." "Right, you do that. I'll be talking to Luke about getting a better HR person at his office. They shouldn't be hiring people as rude as you," Victoria dumped on me. I bit back my quick retort and glanced at Adelle. She rolled her eyes and went to the kitchen, moving things around like she was cleaning up. "I really do have to get back to work. Luke will be checking in soon," I said again. "Stay as long as you need to." "Oh, I don't need to be here. I was just checking on Luke. I'll go find him now," she said with a half-shrug. Victoria gave a small, snide laugh and turned sharply, leaving just as quickly as she'd come. I stared after her and blinked as the door closed quickly behind her. "Is she gone?" Adelle asked, reappearing from the kitchen. "She is," I said with a sigh. "That woman is… well, she's complicated," Adelle said with a kind smile. "She seems like it," I said, chuckling at Adelle's kind way of phrasing her dislike. "I do have to get back to work, but if you want to keep me company in the office, I wouldn't mind having someone to talk to." "I'd love that," Adelle said with a nod. We headed back to my office, and she pulled a chair up to the opposite side of my desk as I got my computer turned back on. "I wasn't too rude to her, was I?" I asked, checking my email for new messages from Luke. Adelle arched an eyebrow at me and sucked her lower lip into her mouth. "No, you weren't rude to her. She was rude first; you were just responding in self-defense." I laughed with Adelle for a moment. "Thanks," I said. "Victoria is challenging. I've heard some of the fights she and Mr. Carter get into. I can't say for sure, but sometimes it seems like their relationship is more of a business deal," Adelle explained. "I can see that. You seem to know a lot about what goes on around here," I pointed out, closing out of my email and looking at the designs for the current development. I gave Adelle a sly smirk. "Yes, I know a lot. I hear a lot because no one is watching me. I suppose that is a perk of the job," she said, shrugging. "I'm guessing you know more about why Luke is letting me work here than I do," I said, shrugging. Adelle giggled. "Well, I have my theories on that, but Mr. Carter pays me too well to talk about them with anyone but him." "I understand. I don't expect you to fill in the blanks. I'm sure Luke will tell me when I need to know." Sighing, I looked down at my hands and shook my head. "Cat, what's wrong?" Adelle asked. "Nothing, I just… I'm not sure if I'm going to be around long enough to understand," I admitted, shrugging. "What are you talking about? Are you worried about Victoria's threat?" Adelle asked, softening her features. I shook my head. "No, I'm just not sure I will be keeping the job. After… well, after everything that has happened, it seems wrong, somehow, to stay." "Don't be silly, Cat. You totally belong here. Despite the things I'm not supposed to know about," Adelle said, winking at me. I giggled and shook my head. "You're too much. I haven't made up my mind yet. There are a lot of things to consider." "Where would you go? Do you have family you could turn to?" she asked. I bit the inside of my cheek and pulled up my email again. Luke had sent me a couple of them, asking about my progress on the day. I answered them quickly, using the excuse to avoid talking to Adelle for a moment. "Cat?" she asked, pulling me back to the question she'd asked. "I have family, though, I'm not sure I'd go back to my mom if I left here," I admitted slowly. "I take it family life isn't all it is cracked up to be for you?" Adelle asked. Shrugging again, I pulled my phone out of my pocket and noticed I had several missed calls and dozens of texts from my mom. My mouth curved down. "Is something wrong?" Adelle asked. "Are you psychic?" I asked. Adelle laughed and shook her head. "No, why?" "My mom is reaching out to me," I said, holding up the phone so she could see the screen. Adelle shrugged one shoulder and bit her lower lip. "What can I say? Sometimes I just know things. Are you avoiding her?" "No. I'm just not sure I'm ready to answer all her questions," I explained with a sigh. "That's understandable. My mom worked for Mr. Carter's parents. That's how I met him. That's how I have this job," Adelle told me. "Do you have a good relationship with your mom?" I asked, setting the phone down as it vibrated with another text message I wasn't ready to answer. "Sure. I mean, moms drive daughters crazy. Isn't that the way it goes?" she asked. I nodded. "Yeah, I guess they do." "Your situation sounds more complicated than that…" Adelle arched an eyebrow at me. "My mom stopped being a mom a long time ago, in favor of pursuing her love life. She had more boyfriends than I could count before I had one," I explained in a flat tone. "Ouch," Adelle muttered. "Well, she is still a mom. If you keep ignoring her, she is going to do something drastic to get your attention." "I know. If I talk to her, she'll just ask too many questions that I don't want to answer. You know, with Aaron and Luke and everything. I'm sure Aaron already gave her an earful," I explained. "You haven't talked to her at all since everything happened with your ex-fiance?" Adelle asked, her eyes widening. "No. Maybe it is time," I said, picking up the phone. My mom had called two more times since Adelle and I started talking about her. I tapped my phone, contemplating answering the call. It wasn't that I didn't want to talk to my mom. I just didn't know what to say. She'd always liked Aaron, and I had the weird feeling that she was going to blame me for what happened. Despite the number of boyfriends she'd had, she'd never been great at offering me advice on my relationships. I wasn't sure what Aaron told her, either, and talking to her would probably mean hours of dissecting the truth from Aaron's lies to set my mother straight. There was a sharp knock on the front door, and I jumped. Adelle started too and looked down the hall. Knock. Knock. Knock. Knock. Again and again, someone pounded on the door. "Well, that can't be Victoria. She's got a key," Adelle said, chuckling. Ding dong. Ding dong. The doorbell started ringing, repeatedly. Adelle bit her lower lip. "It sounds urgent. I suppose I should get that," she said. "My mom is calling again. I guess now is as good a time as ever to answer," I said. I picked up my phone. Adelle nodded and headed down the hall. Her footsteps were slow, and I wondered if she was worried about who would barge in and attack her next. It must have been hard being a housekeeper in a world of such powerful people. I stared at my mom's number on the screen. What did she think was happening? I couldn't remember her ever being so desperate to get in touch with me. Suddenly, I wondered if maybe something was wrong with her. The doorbell was still going, so I ran after Adelle. Whoever was calling sounded desperate, and I didn't want her to get yelled at again. Victoria's visit hadn't been pleasant for anyone. "Geez, who is it that is so desperate to get into Luke's house?" I asked, standing behind Adelle as my phone still buzzed in my hand. Adelle shrugged and opened the door. My mom was standing on the stoop, her phone pressed against her ear. "Mom… what are you doing here?" I asked, staring dumbly at her.