Page 135 of The Billionaires

Hmm. Maybe this isn’t a call after all. Maybe this is a movie, and she’s the newest starlet?

“Brucey, sweetie,” she chirps. “Who is that?” She points at me.

So… this is a call after all. And now I get it.She and Bruce must be a unit—which makes sense since outside of Hollywood and runways, you most often find women like this as billionaires’ trophies.

“This is Lilly,” Bruce says. Turning to me, he adds, “This is Angela. She’s invested in Colossus’s life, so she might have questions for you at some point.”

An illogical jealousy burns my chest. It must be that I’m beginning to feel possessive over Colossus, and it bugs me that she has more right to claim to be the little guy’s mom than I do.

Shit. They’re both looking at me expectantly.

“Pleasure to meet you, Angela,” I squeeze out through clenched teeth.

“Likewise,” she says. “I’m glad Peanut finally has a nanny.”

Colossus’s ears perk up. He probably thinks he heard “peanut butter.”

Who the hell is Peanut? Since she’s just mentioned a nanny, I would have to guess it’s a child. Their child? I don’t like the sound of that… purely because kids make dog training harder, of course.

But hold on. If they have a kid, where is he or she? Also, I truly hope Peanut is just a nickname, like Brucey.

“How many times do I have to tell you?” Bruce growls at Angela. “He now goes by Colossus.”

Wait.

Peanut is Colossus… but that would mean?—

“I’m not a dog nanny,” I say indignantly. “That’s not even a thing. I’m a canine training specialist.”

Angela examines me with narrowed eyes. “What’s the difference?”

I narrow my eyes back. “You hire me if you want to train a dog to be a nanny for your child. And I guess if a dog nanny were a thing, you’d hire her if you were too busy to be a good parent for your dog.”

Angela’s stare turns icy—something she must’ve learned from Bruce. “Sometimes you get a dog, but life happens.”

I open my mouth for a violent rebuttal, but Bruce states, “Lilly was just leaving.”

Ah. Right. Dismissed. Lifting my chin, I stomp out of the room.

If those two do reproduce, it will be the spawn of Satan.

CHAPTER 12

BRUCE

As soon as Lilly sashays out of the room, Angela states, “That one is different from the rest of your staff.”

“Oh?” I scratch Colossus’s apple-shaped head, and he closes his eyes in a blissed-out expression.

“She’s attractive,” Angela says. “Suspiciously so. And feisty—which I didn’t think you could tolerate.”

I scoff. “You’re just feeling defensive and lashing out.”

Angela originally bought the dog for herself. Then, after merely two weeks, she begged me to take him—and I couldn’t say no. That’s what she meant when she told Lilly that “life happens.”

Angela sighs theatrically. “You’re brutally honest, as usual. I wonder how Lilly feels about that.”

Not this shit again. “Abraham Lincoln is revered for his honesty. Why am I always getting chided for mine?”

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