Page 32 of Daddy's Pretty Baby

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Melly

A month later …

“Hey,” I greeted the girl sitting on the lower bunk. The blonde completely ignored me, continuing to text on the phone, her hair a ratty mess, sweats stained. I only hoped her hygiene was better, seeing that I was gonna be her roomie for the foreseeable future.

But her unkempt state wasn’t surprising because most girls who stay at a hostel aren’t exactly in the best position, so I could understand if she letting it all hang out. I myself wasn’t much better, completely heartbroken, my eyes and nose red, the bounce gone out of my curls. So I tossed my small bag onto the top bunk and climbed into the blankets, burying my head in the thin pillow, willing the hot tears to stop rolling once I had the sheet over my head, blinking with hurt and sadness.

Because yeah, I’ve left Valley Pine. I’d been living the good life, so happy, so content, so satisfied, that I almost forgot what I was there for. It was like I existed in a cocoon of love, my days with Mr. Lancaster filled with fun and games, our nights sensual and steamy, both of us orgasming constantly, wrapped around one another, the big man filling me with his cum again and again.

But that’s the thing. It was just physical. There was no love, no real emotion. My mind had been playing tricks, I was living in a dream, and an unexpected visit Angela, Mr. Lancaster’s right hand, drove home just how detached from reality I was.

She’d appeared silently one day while I was cooking in the kitchen. Robert was away at a meeting in the city, leaving me home alone for a couple hours. So I’d taken the opportunity to be Melissa, the adult me, and was merrily stirring some tomato sauce in a pan, watching it simmer as I envisioned a juicy lasagna. But then Angela showed up silently at the doorway like a ninja, scaring me half to death.

“Hello Melissa,” she said pleasantly, unperturbed. As usual, the woman was dressed impeccably in a gray suit with her hair wrapped in a tight bun.

And I was surprised to see her, for sure. On the one hand, of course I knew that she was here somewhere, working behind the scenes. Angela is Robert’s right hand man, his personal aide-de-camp and has been with him for years. But still, I’d had such an amazing time at Valley Pine that I’d almost forgotten her presence. It’d simply slipped my mind, little girls don’t worry their pretty heads about things like business. So I was surprised to see the brunette standing there, intruding on my dream.

“Hi Angela,” I stuttered, wiping my hands on the apron. Of course, I had a little girl dress on underneath just in case Rob got home early, but Angela didn’t blink an eye. She knew how her boss rolled.

“Things have been going well I trust?” she asked formally, seating herself at the kitchen island.

“Yes, I think so,” I replied, taking off the apron. My plaid jumper underneath was cute, and I loved wearing it. But right, this was a time to be grown-up. So I mustered as much poise as I could manage and said politely, “Can I do something for you?”

Angela nodded, opening her portfolio.

“In fact there is,” she said, voice smooth. “You have a week left at Valley Pine, and there are several formalities to be taken care of. We have your direct deposit numbers, your bank account,” she said, murmuring, shuffling through some papers. “But here, we need you to sign these,” she said, taking out another sheaf.

I sighed. Oh god. More fine print.

“Angela,” I said firmly. “Would you kindly tell me what this is for? What are these papers?” I asked gesturing to the spread before me. Secretly, I was hoping that Mr. Lancaster wanted to extend my stay, that he was going to ask me to live with him longer, maybe even forever.

But the brunette smiled politely, all business.

“They’re exit papers,” she said. “We have all the girls who stay sign non-disclosures, Mr. Lancaster values his privacy very much.”

And I gaped then because the world had just cracked open. Oh god, this was the opposite of what I wanted, the opposite of what I’d been hoping for. My vision grew blurry for a moment, knees weakening before I caught myself.

“Exit papers?” I croaked. “Non-disclosure agreement?”

“Yes, like I said, it’s standard,” replied Angela without batting an eye. “Mr. Lancaster values his privacy and is prepared to offer you a bonus for your silence. Fifteen thousand on top of the fifteen thousand that you’ve earned. That’s thirty thousand total.”

And there was complete silence in the kitchen then. Because yes, that was a huge sum of cash for three months work, but even worse was the mercenary aspect of this transaction, like it was all about money. But I shook myself then, the error of my ways becoming obvious. Because this was just a transaction and had never been anything else to Robert. I wasn’t special to him, there was no “love,” no “feelings,” no emotional connection. This was just three months with a female body that he’d paid for, and now those three months were up. In fact, suddenly I realized why he’d disappeared for the day. Maybe he had a business meeting, but maybe not. The real reason was because he’d sent his minion to get me packed off, to make sure all the loose ends were tied before I was left for good.

And my heart crumpled then. I shouldn’t have expected more. I shouldn’t have expected the alpha male to declare his love for me, to be my Prince Charming, to be my savior. Because he wasn’t, and that had never been part of the bargain. The alpha male had paid to use my body, to provide food, shelter and money in exchange for a sexually willing female, and now that bargain was done. He was done with me, and the only thing left was to leave.

So with a numb hand, expressionless, I took the pen from Angela and signed on the dotted line.

“Thank you,” she said briskly, plucking the instrument from my hand once I was done and snapping her briefcase shut. “Thank you Melissa, it’s been a pleasure working with you. In, oh, six days to be exact,” she said, glancing at her phone quickly, “I’ll have a car waiting for you out front, ready to drive you wherever you’d like to go. In the meantime, please enjoy,” she said with a nod, making her way out of the kitchen.

And suddenly, I felt like an intruder at Valley Pine, like this beautiful manor was once more just a strange place. My world tilted, vision literally growing blurry with tears, heart crumpling. What did I expect? I really had been living in a dream world, and the thud back to reality was a jarring jolt to the system. But suddenly, there was one more thing I had to know.

“Angela,” I called to her departing back. “Angela!” I almost shrieked.

The woman turned on her heel, shooting me a somewhat annoyed look. I’m sure she had better things to do than to cater to emotionally unstable females.

“Is there another girl?” I stammered. “I mean, does Mr. Lancaster have a new girl lined up?”

And Angela didn’t even pause. With a brisk nod of her head, she confirmed my worst fears.

“Yes, the new girl arrives the same day that you leave,” she said. “So please be sure to be ready to go, Michelle needs your room.”

And my heart broke then, literally cracked in two, chest pains making me gasp for air, painfully leaning over the counter. But thankfully, Angela had already walked away, her heels clacking on the marble floor like nothing was wrong. Because it was over. My time was up. My replacement was ready and waiting, eager to do her job, and I was nothing but yesterday’s news now. Although my heart shattered once more, chest pains making it hard to breathe, there was no way to hide from the stark truth that Mr. Lancaster didn’t love me. He didn’t care about me, and wanted me gone from Valley Pine, out of his house and out of his life.

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