Page 6 of The Favorite Girl

“Actually, I have an interview tomorrow with this surgeon, Dr. Ivory.” I chewed on my bottom lip nervously.

Jax’s demeanor changed. “Dr. Ivory?”

“Yeah, do you guys know him?”

“Demi, he lives right down the street from us.” Raina squinted at me. “Why don’t you come sit down? I’ll order some food for us; there’s this great Chinese restaurant, and I’m sure you’re hungry since it’s past dinnertime.” She waved me over to the velvet couch. My stomach rumbled loudly as I sunk into the seat, and Raina quickly tugged her phone out to place the order.

Jax finished cleaning up the mess and began walking. But I didn’t hear him. Peering over my shoulder, I looked at his feet.

He was wearing these strange looking white foam slippers. No wonder I couldn’t hear him walking.

“What kind of shoes are those?” I asked Raina, who was finishing up the takeout order on her phone.

“These? Do you like them? They are my favorite slippers,” she replied with a smile. I glanced down at her well-manicured feet covered in pink fluffy slippers.

“No, your husband’s,” I said quietly.

She tilted her head and looked deep in thought. “Jax is intense about his feet staying all soft and clean. He got those from some… podiatrist, I think.” She shrugged and placed her phone on the sleek coffee table in front of us.

Nodding, I put my small grocery bag down on the floor by my feet, even more embarrassed that the man who clearly had a foot fetish saw my nasty feet.

“So, Demi, tell me more about this interview with Ian?”

“Ian?”

“Dr. Ivory.” Raina pulled her legs up on the sofa and crossed them.

“Oh, right. Ian Ivory. I’m interviewing for—” I stopped mid-sentence. Here I was, sitting in front of a gorgeous, successful dermatologist, who was only a decade older than me. Her entire life was a complete contrast to mine. I couldn’t tell her I was going to essentially be pleading for the position of lead toilet scrubber at the mansion down the road.

So, I lied.

“I’m interviewing to be his new assistant. Like medical billing stuff, I guess.” My shoulders were stiff, my chest was tight, and I felt stupid for lying. “Are you guys good friends?” I quickly realized I had just lied about someone who lives only houses away and could potentially be one of their close friends.

“No, no… not at all. They are a bit… eccentric. But I do know Ian and Daphne are very particular with who they keep on their staff, both in their home and at their practice. Do you really want this job?” She laced her fingers together.

“I don’t want this job; I need this job.” I exhaled and just as she parted her lips to say something, the doorbell rang.

CHAPTER

FIVE

Jax, Raina, and I sat around the dining table. Jax had put each item into gorgeous, blue bowls with intricately carved serving spoons.

I’d have been fine eating straight out of the white cardboard cartons, but I guess rich people didn’t do that. I took a sip of my sweet tea and shoveled another oversized bite of veggie lo-mein into my mouth.

“This is delicious,” I said with a noodle dangling from my lip. Jax smiled while Raina watched me happily. Lifting more noodles up with my fingers, I slurped them with no shame. I couldn’t remember the last real meal I had, and this was phenomenal. I also couldn’t remember the last time I had silverware, so it wasn’t something I was accustomed to.

“You know, I was thinking… why don’t you just stay the night here, Demi? I could give you a quick little makeover, we could set out your clothes for your interview, and you could get a good night’s sleep in our guest room. You’d be right on time for your interview with the Ivory family.” She glanced over at Jax, who dropped his eyes back to his plate.

“I don’t want to impose. Besides, my last day at the motel is tomorrow morning, and I have my clothes there.” Raina passed me a napkin. My cheeks felt warm as I looked at my already-cleaned plate. There was plenty of food left in the bowls, considering Raina and Jax both took the smallest portions humanly possible, instead of filling their plates like I had.

“Please take more.” Jax handed me a serving spoon. As much as I wanted to show them I had some form of manners, I also remembered I only had a few bucks to my name left, and if I didn’t get this job tomorrow, I’d be off on another starvation stretch and vending machine meals.

“Well, I’m sure I have plenty of clothes you could sort through. Honestly, I needed to purge anyway, and if nothing is… irreplaceable, then we’d love for you to stay somewhere… safer?” Raina narrowed her eyes as I took a fistful of noodles and shoveled them into my mouth, not even breathing before taking a hefty bite of the spring roll.

I’m sure any other human would have the common decency to wipe their mouth, spread a napkin across their lap, or maybe deny third servings, but when you’ve faced a life I had—one in which hunger was used as a violent way to get you to do things… horrid things for someone—then you don’t think twice.

Closing my eyes, I thought back to the moments in the darkness… when my stomach would be in knots and I’d pray that something, anything edible would magically appear.

---