Page 51 of His Princess Brat
“Ezra.” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing, but I did know one thing. “Thank you for not firing me, and for talking her out of calling the cops. Don’t think I don’t appreciate it, but I’m not coming back. I’m done.”
The silence over the phone was deafening with the old man’s stern disapproval. I could feel the weight of it being cast across his bar all the way to Osei.
“I can’t,” I finally admitted, to both of us. “I’ve been miserable. Not because of you or the other guys, but because of me. I need a change. I need to do something that doesn’t involve me taking my clothes off. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve had good years there. You were my rock and I’ve had fun in the past, but it hasn’t been fun for me, not for a long time.”
I half expected him to argue with me, but he didn’t. I more than half expected him to get mad, but he didn’t do that either.
“You need references?” he finally asked.
Yeah, I love you too, old man, I thought. “I wouldn’t mind them.”
“Don’t be a stranger or I’ll hunt your ass down.”
That was definitely Ezra-speak for take care.
I hung up and then stood for a while just staring at the phone in my hand. Now I really did need to figure out my life.
Mazi had offered me a job, one I was totally unsuited for, but at least it was something. And it came with a car. And it would keep me here in Africa so I’d be able to at least keep an ear on how Pita was doing.
Married to someone else.
Ruling her kingdom while everyone in the know started counting the days to her first pregnancy and whether or not it would be born ‘early’ or not.
I didn’t have it in me to be a deadbeat father.
Stop thinking about it, I mentally chided myself. Especially since I didn’t have much of a choice.
At least I wasn’t a stripper anymore. Whether Mazi hired me or not, I knew in my heart I wasn’t an advisor either.
I sure as hell wasn’t a prince or king, and that was what Pita needed if she was going to run a country.
We’d need a miracle before we could make something this screwed up work, and miracles like that just plain didn’t happen. Not to me.
Jax took the phone from me when I went back into the dining room, then silently excused himself. Mazi and Norah were strangely quiet.
I sat back down, spread the napkin back over my lap, and, this time, made an effort to be sociable. “Thank you for inviting me to supper.”
Norah perked, her gaze shifting surreptitiously to Mazi, before she answered, “Oh, you’re welcome. I’m sorry we haven’t done this sooner. But... you know.”
I did know. She had the baby in her lap while she ate. He wasn’t sleeping, just cooing and now and then she fed him tiny bits of mashed potatoes from her plate.
“Is he sleeping through the night yet?”
“Oh, yeah.” Norah grinned down at him, winning a big toothless grin in return. “He’s a good baby. Which, you know, means the next will be a terror.”
I flashed Mazi a wink. “Already thinking about the next one, huh?”
“We kind of don’t have a choice,” Norah said, the apples of her cheeks flushing pink. She kept her eyes glued on her baby, but Mazi winked back at me.
“You dog,” I exclaimed. “Congratulations!”
“Thanks.” Mazi grinned.
And from her side of the table, Norah said much too brightly, “Maybe if things work out just right, we can have ours close to the same time.”
The unexpected reminder of current problems was a lot like being doused in ice water.
Mazi snapped his napkin off his lap and slapped it on the table. “Norah,” he said sternly. “I said no.”
