Page 28 of Off Limits (Alpha Billionaire)

“How many steps do you take in a day?” she asked me.

I laughed. “I don’t track steps. Sarah at the office is obsessed with them. She tries to get in ten thousand a day.”

“That’s quite a bit. Five miles. I used to be able to do that. It’s been a long time, though,” she said.

“Dylan, darling, what's troubling you?" she inquired, her voice soft but insistent.

How did she know? I sighed heavily, taking the next slow step, I rubbed my free hand over my face. “It’s Jessica. She… she told me about her past with Ryan," I confessed, the words heavy on my tongue.

“Do I know this Ryan?” she asked.

I shook my head. “No, I haven’t introduced you. I don’t think so. He’s been to the house. I’ve known him for years, from my Boston days. He’s made a proposal for a development partnership.”

“Sounds like someone you would work with. What’s the problem? Why does it bother you that Jessica also knows him?”

“They were together,” I said sharply.

“Dylan, you are going to have to give me more than these simple answers if you want me to understand. You are clearly upset. Why does it matter if the nanny has dated someone you are considering working with? She is an adult, and you are acting like a jealous lover.”

I grimaced. Jessica asked me not to say anything, but if I were to trust Mother, she would have to know.

“So, you have feelings for the nanny? And you got angry when she told you she knew that man?”

“There’s nothing wrong with your brain,” I muttered.

“It’s my body that is problematic. My brain is fine. So, you have feelings for her? Good. I like her. But that doesn’t explain all of this.” She waved a finger in my face.

“All of what?” I asked.

“Your scowl. You are positively grumpy.”

I harrumphed. “She said she didn’t know him at first. And then she told me she had a relationship with him, and now she doesn’t like him.” I left off the part where she said she was afraid of him.

My mother’s brow furrowed in understanding, her gaze never wavering from mine. “And how do you feel about that?” she prompted gently. “Not everyone gets along with the people from past relationships. She’s not a child, and I’m not so old that I don’t know that relationships can burn out and turn sour. I do know she hasn’t been here that long, so whatever it is between the two of you is new, and so your emotions are on edge.”

I hesitated, grappling with the confusion of emotions raging within me. "I don’t know, Mother. It’s like… like I’m caught between what I know and what I feel,” I admitted, frustration lacing my words.

Mother reached out, taking my hand in hers with a comforting squeeze. “You’re overthinking this. Dylan, my dear boy, sometimes the heart sees what the eyes cannot. Trust in your feelings. Trust in Jessica,” she urged, her voice filled with conviction. “Love is not always rational, but it is always worth fighting for.”

“No one said anything about love,” I bit out, maybe a little too fast.

But her words resonated deep within me, stirring something primal and profound. I nodded slowly, a sense of clarity dawning upon me. “You’re right, Mother. I need to trust Jessica, trust myself,” I affirmed, determination coursing through my veins.

Jessica’s opinion about her ex-boyfriend didn’t need to have any bearing on my business dealings with the man. There was no reason for them to ever be in the same place at the same time. He was work. She was home.

Warmth spread through my chest at that thought. Jessica was home. I hadn’t ever felt that before. Mother was family. Max was my very existence. And Jessica was home. I wanted to be home for her as well. I wanted to be where she turned for safety and comfort. I wasn’t living up to that very well.

My mother smiled, her eyes shimmering. “Now, go to her before she quits and you regret your words.”

“Let’s get you back to your rooms, and then I’ll head upstairs,” I said, patting her hand as she held onto my arm.

“I can make it back on my own.”

“Not without Clara, and you dismissed her.”

“Clara!” Mother called out.

“Yes? Are you ready to go back?” Clara popped out of nowhere.

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