I stood there in the study, trying to endure one of the most embarrassing moments. This was even more embarrassing than the time a dog had chased me all around the hotel where I worked before taking the job. At least, then it was an animal, and the owner apologized profusely after I had fallen into the pool and was drenched.
This jerk did not even bother giving me a second glance before dismissing me so coldly. Who the hell did he think he was? From the study, I could hear the muffled noises of their argument from down the hallway. I leaned into the door to hear better.
"What the hell is wrong with you Lucas? It took me so long to find someone so perfect for the kids, and now you're about to screw it up." Mia yelled at her brother. Her tone dripped with anger and frustration.
"I don't care," Lucas snapped back, "get her out of my house and find someone else."
"Lucas," she scolded. "she's the first nanny the kids accepted without a fight."
"We'll find someone else. For now, get that piece of shit out of my house, I can't fucking stand her."
'Piece...of...shit...' only that phrase stood out in my brain.
I repeated it slowly again and again in my head, and the more I did, the more anger I felt.
That was the last straw. The asshole did not even bother to whisper. But I did not have to stand there and listen to this entitled dumbass run me down when he barely knew me. I picked up my bag and left the study, heading for the front door.
I felt bad that I had to leave without fulfilling my promise of saying goodbye to Aiden and Abigail, but if I had to stay here and listen to that jerk for a few more moments, bad things would happen to that handsome face.
As I stepped out of the study, I crossed one door, and in the next room, they were both standing still arguing.
"Mia, I do not like her, go and show her out." He said and turned his back to the door.
Mia looked confused and really upset.
"Don't worry your poor head. I think I can show myself out." My voice startled both of them, although Lucas recovered much faster from the shock than Mia.
Mia's shocked face is quickly replaced by embarrassment, Lucas does not do so much as flinch. He just continues to stare at me with his cold mean eyes. I wanted to tell him how much of an asshole he was, but I didn't. I would not waste my breath on an asshole like him. I adjusted my bag on my shoulder, and squared my shoulders, and continued walking to the door.
"Chris, please wait, " Mia called after me from the room where she stood with her brother.
"Let her go," that was the last thing I heard before I pulled the door open and walked out.
*** *** ***
"No way, he didn't," Celine's eyes widened in anger and surprise as we folded the towels for the room we were cleaning.
"Hell yeah, he did."
Celine and I had been best friends since we first met at foster care. She had stood up for me by punching Michael Garrett—the biggest bully at the care— in the nuts for pushing me into the mud. While I sat in the pool of mud, crying my eyes out, Celine whom I had never spoken to then came from nowhere, almost the same size and the same age as me, jumped in curled her fingers and gave him a hard punch in the nuts. It was so worth it because, although we had both spent a whole day in detention, the asshole learned his lesson and never came after us again.
Since that day, she became my sis from another miss. We were always there for each other, and all the things I would fantasize about doing to all the people that hurt me, she would make them a reality. She was the balls of our relationship, and I was the brains. In other words, she was the crazy one, and she would not hold back from beating up any asshole like Lucas, I was the rational one that had to talk her out of most of her not so rational ideas. Like when she thought it would be a good idea to throw rotten eggs at my ex-boyfriend's house, for cheating. I thought it was a good idea, except for the part where we would both land in jail with no one to get us out.
"Such a prick." she said as she made a face, "you did give him a piece of your shit right?"
"He is not worth my breath." I put the folded towels into the bathroom closet.
"The hell he is. After work, we're marching there with a bag of stones." her anger was rising, and I had to say something to bring back her back.
"Yeah, that's such a good idea, I heard jails in rich neighborhoods are more polished," I said drily.
"Yeah shit, well I'm not afraid of a few hours in jail." That was Celine for you, although she had never been arrested for anything major, she was arrested at least once a year, for teaching one punk or the other a lesson. And she wasn't affected in the slightest.
"Well, I am. Remember the bitch that tried to kiss me the last time?" That was a distant memory, but it was fresh in my mind whenever I thought of getting arrested.
Celine laughed at this "You can't blame the old woman, it's not her fault you're just a fine ass." she batted her eyes at me and tilted her head.
"Shut up," I said and threw a towel at her.
We both laughed and continued our work. We had to finish six master suites before morning, and we were on our second. Although we both had other jobs, we took night shifts at the hotel to earn some extra cash. Celine had recently gotten a job as an assistant for a startup company, and she loved the job. I was currently working at a coffee shop close to my house. Celine decided to keep up with the extra shift at the hotel till I found a better job despite the good pay at her new job. We were made for each other.
"So what are you going to do now?" She asked as I sauntered out of the bathroom to the main bedroom.
"Get another job," I said as if I would just go somewhere and pick up a job whenever I wished.
"Like it's that easy?" it was like she read my mind.
"Don't worry. I'll find something soon."
"I know you will. I believe in you."
For the rest of the night, we worked together, talking and laughing about random things. Sometime around 3 am we finished and signed out. We said goodnight to each other and parted ways as we entered different cabs going separate ways.
As I unlocked the front door, my phone chimed for the hundredth time. In the last two days, Mia had been called four times and sent many emails and messages, to apologize on her behalf and for her brother's behavior. I believed and accepted hers, I accepted but did not believe Lucas'. He did not look like someone that would apologize to anyone.
According to her previous messages, Lucas had offered me the job seeing that his kids were heartbroken that I left. Although I politely declined the offer, Mia was really persistent. I would have given in if my little shred of pride was not bruised so hard by him.
Every time I thought of going back, those words resounded in my head. "piece of shit." There was no way in hell I would go back to him. Too bad because I was already starting to feel a connection to those adorable kids.
I opened the message, and yes, it was from Mia, but not the same one she had been sending.
MIA: Please, can we just meet for coffee tomorrow? I just want to talk.
I stared at the message for a while, not what I was expecting. But maybe we needed to talk face to face, so I could make it clear that I was not going to take the job no matter what she did.
I sent her a message with the address of the coffee shop where I worked and gave her a time.
The next day, she showed up right on time, it was my lunch break, and I had fifteen minutes to clear it all up and go back to work.
"I'm so glad you agreed to talk to me." She got to her feet and hugged me with a smile. Weird but okay.
I returned the smile with a half-smile. It would be harder to refuse her if she was being so sweet to me. "I'm glad to meet you too."
I sat across her at the table. "I already ordered for us." she pointed to steaming cups of coffee and a plate of cookies.
"That's so nice," I said, feeling thankful. It would have felt weird ordering at the same shop where I worked. I took a sip of the coffee.
"Again, I'm so sorry about my brother's bad behavior the last time." she apologized.
"Is he?" I blurted. Maybe I was wrong, maybe he was sorry.
She looked a bit taken aback by my question, but covered it with a smile, "The kids are asking about you every day,"
She changed the topic quickly, and I got my answer. The asshole was not even sorry.
"How are they doing," I asked, directing my attention to what mattered.
"They could be better, they're both hurt that you didn't say goodbye to them, and Abigail has not stopped sulking since,"
It broke my heart to hear that the kids were not happy. My mood turned sour, and I frowned.
Mia reached out and held my hand on the table. "I know my brother was a major asshole to you when you met, and you don't know how embarrassed I feel for his behavior," she looked sincere as she spoke, "but please, I'm asking you on behalf of the kids to reconsider your decision."
Now I felt bad for what I was going to tell her. The kids had nothing to do with this. They did not have to suffer just because their dad was a jerk. And Mia really looked sorry for what her brother did. But the only missing piece of the puzzle was the person that caused all this mess.
He was not even human enough to send at least an email or a message to apologize. That only meant one thing, if I took the job, he was going to pull that shit again, and my fragile pride could not take another insult from him. I had taken too much in life to be humiliated twice or thrice by someone who knew just my name.
"Have you tried introducing them to another nanny, maybe they..."
She interrupted me before I continued. "They would not even look at another nanny. Before you came, most of the nannies I interviewed were unwilling to commit fully to the kids. The ones that were, the kids were either too afraid of them or did not like them."
She took a sip of her coffee and continued, " You're the first to reach the stage of being approved by Lucas. And that's why I think you would fit perfectly in our family."
She squeezed a little on my hand that she was holding. "Please, Chris. If I have to beg you on my knees, I would. These kids mean the world to me, and I would do anything for them."
"Please Mia," I quickly said, "please don't do that." I was upset but not so upset that I would let her go on her knees for me. "Give me time to think about it. I'll get back to you."
I planned to confer with my advisor/right-hand woman—Celine—before making a choice. She always knew what to do.
Mia's eyes lit with joy as I said the words. "Thank you so much, Chris. This means so much to me."
I smiled back at her and stood up. I still had a lot to do before the break was over. "I have to get back now."
"Thank you again Chris." she hugged me again, and this time I did not find it so weird.
"I'll call you when I make up my mind."
It had only been a day since I promised Mia that I would think about her offer. I had not gotten the chance to talk to Celine since then, and I planned to talk to her as we worked in the hotel tonight.It was almost 6 pm when my shift ended at the cafe. I stood at the counter, wiping spilled coffee off it. There were fewer customers at this time on weekdays. And most of the customers that came around this time sat outside, So I was a little surprised when I heard the doorbell ring, signaling a customer's entry.I looked up to see the person and was immediately taken aback by him. The moment I set my eyes on him, the energy in the room changed. The same tall and imposing presence and the same cold eyes that betrayed no emotion.
"Baron?" I almost screamed at the sight of him as I pushed my door open. The broken lock explained how they got in.He was sitting on my favorite couch in a black jean and black shirt—the only color I had ever seen him wear—, legs crossed, cigarette in one hand, and the other hand flexing a gun carefully.Baron was a tall and big man. He was not fat per se, but all those large muscles and heavy-looking chest made him look bigger than most guys—Lucas excluded. He had chestnut brown curly hair, and otherwise his mean and murderous personality, he was a very handsome man with black eyes and a very pointed nose.When we had first met, we were both really a
"Oh my God, what happened here?" Celine gasped as she walked into the living room.I was still on the floor where I was when Baron left. Following their boss's orders, the goons completely brought the house down. There was not a single item in the room that was not destroyed. The table had been broken, the contents of the almost empty fridge poured out, all the dishes in the kitchen were broken and turned upside down.In the sitting room, the couch was turned upside down and broken, the table at the center was broken to pieces and some of the shreds of glass had even splattered on me. I had not gone to my bedroom to see the extent of the destruction, but I knew there would not be much left to use.
The Red Ferrari drove into the parking lot sometime around Five. From the cafe counter where I stood taking orders, I could see him inside the car, through the glass. Lucas kept yanking his hand through his hair, and I could tell that he was nervous, which was weird because I only saw the asshole side of him, and it was hard for me to believe he ever got nervous too.As usual, we had only a few customers to attend to before my shift was over. At 6 pm, my shift was over, and I was replaced by one of the new girls that had joined the cafe recently. I changed my clothes quickly and headed out through the back door.Just like the last time, he leaned on the car, waiting for me like a creepy stalker. I tried to push my dislik
Early the next morning, Celine and I headed back to my place to pick up whatever had not been destroyed by Baron's men. The landlord had estimated everything that was destroyed, and it amounted to a lot of money. Thankfully I still had enough money left.By the time we finished cleaning the house, it was already noon. We had to throw almost everything away as they were either broken or badly destroyed. Thankfully they had not destroyed all of my clothes, so I still had a few stuff to pack."Ughhh, I'm so hungry," Celine said, slumping on the bed. We had come here as early as 7 am and had only had coffee since then. So it was expected that she was hungry."Now that you s
After savoring the beauty of the room, I put my clothes in the closet, took a bath, and put on some fresh clothes. I called Celine to let her know I had arrived safely, before heading downstairs as Mia had asked.As I stepped out of the elevator, I could hear the loud excited voices of Aiden and Abigail, coming from the other side of the hallway. It was my first day and I would still need a few days to be able to find my way without getting lost.Following the sound, I walked down to the source and was led to one of the largest kitchens I had ever seen. The space between the island in the middle and the refrigerator alone was enough to fit my entire kitchen back at home.
After losing my way only two times, I finally ended up at the door Mia described to be Lucas' office. Only a matter of time before I would be able to know my way around here without getting lost. I took a deep breath, and gave myself a few seconds to clear my head, then knocked on one of the large double doors. I expected that he would be here since I took a damn long time to find it.His deep voice boomed from inside, "Come in."Well, here goes nothing, I thought as I pushed the door open.As I walked in, my eyes quickly took in the surrounding. Like every other room I had been to in this house, it was large, with a desk covered in stacks of folders, and a lap
My eyes fluttered open at the sound of my alarm the next morning. I had barely gotten enough sleep, which could explain why my eyes were still heavy and sleep-filled. The lack of proper rest was probably due to the unfamiliar environment or the conversation I had heard last night. I had so many questions I wanted to ask, but I had to keep them to myself. If they did not tell me about it, it meant I had no business with it, and I was not going to poke my nose into their matters.I was tempted to go back to bed and sleep for at least one more hour, but I knew that was a bad idea. The last thing I wanted was to wake up late on my first day.As the rays of the sun filtered into my room through the open window, I dragged myse