Page 7 of Forbidden Fruit

Her face contorts and I already know what’s about to happen. I’m going to lose this job too. Chris will kick me out and I’llprobably end up on the street. I’d rather that than going back to my aunt.

The spiralling thought sobers me, and I steal my spine.

“Babe, I like you. You’re nice and sweet, but I’ve been working here for two years and you’re the worst bartender I’ve ever worked with,” Jade says. I barely flinch at her words. It’s nothing new. I’ve heard it all before.

“I’d have shadowed you all week if I had to. I think maybe you can learn, but the boss saw you. Multiple times.” She winces.

Anger rises because if I hadn’t grown up the way I did, a slave for my aunt instead of being able to focus on my studies, I’d be able to do something with myself. I wouldn’t be here, barely making ends meet instead of studying to take care of people like I want.

When I escaped, the idea was to make enough money to put myself through university. But the chiropractic program I want to do is five years of full-time study. I’m not giving up on my dream yet, but it slips away with every day that passes. My savings account shows no more than the hundred euros I put in to open it.

“She wants to see you,” Jade finally says and I blanch. I don’t need to have worked here for a long time to know that the big boss Jade is speaking of is Alana Moretti, CEO of the Moretti-Bartoli Holding and alleged mafia heir to a huge drug empire.

We climb the winding stairs to the second floor. A few doors are closed but one is ajar, light music coming from it. Jade knocks.

“Come in,” a raspy voice instructs.

This place keeps surprising me. Or it’s just that I don’t know shit about life and this island, but the gorgeous woman behind the desk was not what I expected. She must be just shy of thirty, but she occupies the space like she owns it. Which I guess she does. A large diamond hangs from her neck between her breasts,complimenting a stark two-piece white suit. Forest green eyes ensnare mine when I meet her gaze.

“You can leave, Jade. Thank you. Close the door behind you,” she says without looking away from me. She’s terrifying and at the same time, I know I’m safe in her company, as long as I’m honest.

I take a step forward. “Mrs. Moretti, I’m so sorry about the glasses, you can take it out of my pay. I didn’t expect it to be so dark. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to work here, and?—”

“Vanessa, I don’t give a shit about broken glass and spilled alcohol,” she cuts me off.

I breathe a sigh of relief. “So, I’m not fired?” I ask, hope filling my chest.

“Of course, you are.”

I deflate like a balloon, tears filling my eyes. Alana rounds the desk and hands me a tissue and a glass of water. “However, I have a proposition for you.”

“I’m sorry, but I don’t think I can do sex work. I admire them, but that’s not for me. And I’m almost a virgin, so that wouldn’t work.”

Why the fuck did I say that?

Her laugh booms through the room, like I’ve surprised her and she’s delighted with my bluntness. “I’ve never heard someone say they’re ‘almost’ a virgin before. Not every sex worker gets penetrated, my dear,” she says with amusement. “But that’s not what I had in mind. One of my employees is in dire need of a nanny for his two kids. I thought you might be able to help, considering your upbringing. You obviously can’t pour a drink to save your life.” She adds that last part with a smile that tells me all I need to know. She looked me up.

My eyes widen, fear skating across my skin like oil. “I don’t know what you mean.”

She can’t possibly know that in exchange for living at my aunt’s house, I basically raised my little cousin. I was his dedicated babysitter except it was 24/7 and I barely got a decent meal out of it.

“Come on now, Vanessa, your honesty was so refreshing. Don’t stop now. I can find out anything about anyone. It wasn’t hard to find your birth certificate and your parents’ identities. Your mother died at your aunt’s house a year ago, and you only showed up on the island two months ago. It doesn’t take a detective to know you left in a hurry. From the records I have, you took care of your cousin for years.”

I lower my face, not ready to accept that someone knows how I grew up, the abuse I’ve suffered, the shame I still feel that I stayed for six months after my mother died because I had nowhere to go and I was too scared.

She rounds the desk and approaches me, lifting my chin upwith a finger until our eyes meet again. She frowns. “Did someone hurt you, Vanessa?”

“No,” I immediately answer, not wanting her to pity me. That’s only partially true. Abuse doesn’t only look like bruises.

“Alright then. Can you answer me, then?”

“Yes, I took care of my little cousin.”

“Then, I guess that settles it. You need a job, or else you wouldn’t have begged Jade to let you work downstairs. Mr Marquesi needs someone to start as soon as possible. You’ll take tomorrow off and I’ll introduce you on Wednesday. If everything goes well, you’ll be able to start next week.”

She speaks with the self-confidence of someone who’s used to being obeyed. It’s a good thing I have no intention of arguing with her. Next week is too late for my rent, but I stay silent. This is a normal job, not the service industry, so who knows, I might be good at it. Mr Marquesi will probably pay me at the end of the month and I only worked two shifts here which isn’t enough totop up my measly pay from The Happy Frog. The uncomfortable conversation I need to have with Chris is a problem for another time.

First, I need to convince this Mr Marquesi that I’m fit to take care of his children. Being around them and doing it as a job are two different things. What if something happens and I mess up? It’s not just broken glass. I could risk lives.

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