Page 60 of The Au Pair Affair

A muscle popped in his jaw. “Why? You didn’t imply you’d like to make out withme.”

“You’re right.” He looked at Tallulah, hands clasped in prayer. “I’m sorry, ma’am.”

“Please. It’sfine,” Tallulah laughed, wanting to defuse the situation. “It’s fine.”

“But going back to what we were discussing...” Annie and Samara were elbowing each other. “There’s nothing going on between you?”

“You’re just a rich, eligible, attractive man living with his hot au pair, getting back rubs and occasionally making out with her.” This from Annie. “As friends.”

Burgess looked at Tallulah with mock thoughtfulness. “It does sound a little suspicious when you put it all together like that,” Burgess mused happily.

“Okay. Well, this has been nice—” Tallulah started.

“I’m still willing to give him my number,” piped up a woman in back.

“Me too.” Samara wiped an imaginary tear. “It’s slim pickings out here.”

Annie stuck out a business card, followed by three more business cards being stacked on top. “Call me if this”—air quotes—“‘friendship’ doesn’t work out.”

Burgess smiled at Tallulah while the colorful rectangles were piled into his palm.

Tallulah watched them grow in number with a spike in her throat.

“Are we done here?” Burgess asked, voice low.

“Yes,” Tallulah said, weakly.

“Goodbye to everyone except that guy,” Burgess called, hitting Pinstripes with one final glare, before turning Tallulah around and escorting her back the way they’d come. When they reached the path that would lead them to the exit, however, he steered her around the pond and she went, incapable of gathering the wherewithal to separate from the rich, eligible, attractive man who was filling her with a whole lot of confusing emotions. Every one of those phone numbers was like a kebab skewer to the jugular.

“Well.” He nudged her gently in the ribs. “How’d I do?”

“Great,” she said, trying to sound upbeat. “You were just yourself. No pretenses. Which is... which is good, because, you know, you want people to like you foryou—”

“Tallulah.”

“Yes?”

“Look at me.”

She stopped walking.

Burgess stared her right in the eye while ripping the stack ofbusiness cards in half and holding them up, letting the wind take them in eighty directions. “We clear?”

“Oh,” she whispered, feeling suddenly and dizzyingly light. “I don’t know—”

“The only woman I’m calling is you.”

The world just kind of doused itself in lavender. “For au pair reasons. And because I’m your friend.”

He cupped the back of her skull, bringing her forward to kiss her forehead. “Whatever you say, gorgeous.” Her eyelashes fluttered when his lips lingered at her hairline. “You got more classes today?”

“Yes. This whole week is going to be busy. Homework, Lissa...” There went the daylight. Her eyes were now closed completely. “And Saturday afternoon, I have the first session of my study group. I figured the timing worked because Lissa is with her mom. But after that, I don’t have plans...”

“Maybe we need to change that.” Burgess’s arm crowded her in tight to his body, so he could speak beside her ear. “Until then, who is the only man you’ll call if you need a ride? If you need any damn thing this week?”

“You.”

His exhale bathed her ear. “Exactly.”

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