Page 19 of The Billionaire's One-Night Stand Nanny
I rolled over, pulling the sheets up around my armpits and clicking off the bedside light, and tried to ignore the hardness between my legs.
But it was a long time before I finally managed to fall into a restless sleep.
CHAPTER12
Flora
Ididtell Edie.
“I started a summer job, actually,” I said, when she asked me how my week had been. Hers had been incredible: she’d been at her husband’s luxurious mountain house, the two of them going on hikes and staring into each other’s eyes and probably making sweet love against every available tree. “It’s last-minute, but I’m nannying for Ryan’s daughter Maddie.”
“What?Flora, that’s amazing! You’ll love her!” she said, and I smiled.
“She’s great,” I agreed. “And it’s a relief to have the extra cash, because…” I hesitated. Edie was glowing and rested after a week away from the city, looking perfectly at home in the penthouse apartment she and James had been redecorating together. Her feet were tucked up underneath her on the couch and I knew the socks she was wearing were made of cashmere because she’d gotten me a matching pair. And she was married to James, one of Ryan’s Friday night Bankworth thing buddies. If I told Edie that I lost my job… How long until James knew? How long until one or both of them offered to pick up the tab at dinner, to buy drinks? To help me with rent? I would never ask Edie–and therefore, James–to help me like that. Icouldn’t.
“Because?” Edie prompted.
“Because New York is expensive,” I finished limply.
“Itis,” Edie said. “You know, there was this little bakery near the cabin where you could get incredible pastries and coffee, and it was only like, four dollars.Total. It was nearly enough to convince me to move to Maine.”
“And leave the city?” I raised my eyebrows, thankful for the change of subject. “You’d never.”
“Well,” Edie blushed… “We might,” she said after a moment, and I pressed my lips together tight. “You never know.”
“You might move to the suburbs, hm? Find a nice house with some extra bedrooms?” I said, leaning toward her. “A yard for the kids to run around in? Is that it, Edie?” I teased, grinning at her. She was bright pink now, and picked up the half-empty bottle of white wine we’d been splitting with our Pad Thai, hiding behind it.
“Not yet, Flora, I promise, see?” She poured herself a glass, taking a sip. “But… yeah, I think so.”
“I’m happy for you, Edie. I love you.”
“I love you, too,” she said, reaching out with the hand not holding her wine glass to take mine and squeeze. “And hey. If it goes well with Ryan–”
I froze for a moment, my wine glass halfway to my lips, thinking she meantme and Ryan. I imagined for a moment the life she might be picturing: Ryan and me, Maddie between us, a house in Connecticut, a golden retriever maybe. But no–she didn’t even know about my night with him. There was no reason for her to think that we had anything. I was just the–
“You can beournanny, too,” she said. “Then I’d get to see you all the time.”
“Right,” I said, forcing myself to smile.
CHAPTER13
Ryan
I was late to work.I sat down in the leather chair behind my desk, flicking on my computer only to see the digital display reading 8:14. I closed my eyes, exhaling through my nose. I sometimes had to leave work early–when Maddie had a recital, or a parent/teacher meeting, or was sick and Tally was traveling–but I made a point of always,alwaysarriving on time.
But this morning… Flora had arrived just before seven, as she had for the past few weeks, perky and cheerful and dressed down in denim jeans that made her ass look incredible and a simple tee that clung to her perfect breasts. Her copper hair was pulled back into a ponytail. It was an entirely reasonable outfit for a nanny to wear.
I couldn’t stop staring.
I’d offered her a cup of coffee, which she accepted, taking the same seat at the table she’d sat at before. Even as I knew she would haunt me once again tonight, I’d found myself sitting down with my travel tumbler, wanting to linger in her company–this time, with Maddie sitting beside me in her pajamas, eating cereal, oblivious to the fact that the last time Flora and I had been sitting at this tabletogether, she was my–ahem–sleepover guest, not my employee. I’d listened and nodded along as they chatted about their plans for the day for as long as I could, then had to rush to Midtown. My driver Daniel said nothing when I slid into the backseat of his waiting car, late and looking slightly below my usual level of tailored neatness. Then again, I had never known him to be particularly verbose.
As I waited for my emails to load, I reached for my tumbler, and–fuck. I must have left it in the backseat. Or at home, maybe. So, late and no coffee, unless I wanted to brave the canteen or the C-Suite break room. I could send an intern to get it, of course, but that would mean talking to an intern, and I avoided doing that as much as possible. I ran my hand through my hair. There was nothing to be done about it. I would never get through today without a cup of coffee–several, probably–not after I was up all night last night, half hard and irritable. I checked my schedule, scrolling through the color-coded blocks of time laid out by my executive assistant. I had a dinner with the other execs tonight, so the blocks today seemed endless, a cubist rainbow of business, but my first meeting wasn’t until nine, and I had everything prepared… I had time to run to the coffee shop across the street from our building and back…
My eyes caught on another appointment.Shit, I forgot about lunch with Tally.I ran my hands through my hair again, thankful the short hairstyle–the same one I’d worn forever–wouldn’t give away my nervousness. I had nothing to be nervous about, I reminded myself. Tally didn’t know about Flora–neither how we’d met nor that I was spending every night trying not to fantasize about her and every morning trying not to stare at her ass before I rushed out the door.
All I had to do was keep it that way.
* * *
