Page 46 of Beneficial Misfortune

I sent her upstairs to change while I cleaned up the bulk of the mess. She'd had a run-in with the breadcrumb and egg mixture we used to coat the chicken and ended up wearing a lot of our first batch.

“Damn, something smells great!” Alex’s voice rings out in the dining room, and I almost drop the glass mixing bowl I’d been cleaning.

I hadn’t heard the door, either because the house is so damn big or because I’d been too focused on what I was doing. I glare down at Ruby, who lies on the ground not far from my feet.

“Some guard you are,” I hiss, and his ears perk up before he looks up at me. “Next time, let me know,” I whisper, gesturing toward the dining room as if he might understand me.

Great, I’m talking to the dog. Ruby whines as if he’s taken offense to what I said, and I roll my eyes.

With a sigh, I finish rinsing the bowl and lay it out to dry before quickly wiping my hands on a towel and trying to ready myself to face them, only to turn around and come face to face with Nathan.

I choke on a scream as my heart jumps into my throat, and I stumble back a step.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you,” Nathan says, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “I was simply coming to see what the two of you were up to, seeing as the food is on the table, yet neither of you is there.”

It takes me a second to get my breathing under control enough to answer him.

“Addison had to go change. She ended up wearing quite a bit of the ingredients…” I trail off, realizing I probably should do the same. One glance down proves that correct, as I see the mess, which is my clothes.

“Uncle Alex!” Addison’s voice carries to us from the dining room, and I hear her little feet running across the marble floor, no doubt into Alex’s arms.

“Hey, little Princess! Did you have fun with Kat today?” Alex asks, and she excitedly starts to fill him in on everything he missed.

“I’m going to go change,” I say, moving toward the hall that leads to the stairs.

“Of course, take your time.”

I have to work hard to keep a regular pace. Something about being alone with him is so much harder than it should be. It’s as if I’m fighting the pull of a magnet, and my only way to avoid collision is to escape quickly.

Once I'm in my room, I wash up and change. Giving myself a pep talk that doesn’t feel like it does a damn thing. For a moment, I contemplate skipping dinner completely and just hiding away, but I’d already been seen, and if I don’t come back, it would be obvious I’m hiding… which I would be, but I don’t want them to know that.

Splashing some water on my face, I pull on my metaphorical big girl pants and make my way back downstairs.

I follow the sound of their voices to the dining room. There, I find them all sitting at the table: Desmond and Addison, filling Alex, Oliver, and Nathan in on the fun we had in the pool today. The second Addison sees me, her smile grows even wider.

“And we made dinner!”

Nathan, Alex, and Desmond turn to look at me as I stand in the doorway, unsure where to sit. Two seats are open on the side of the table we set. One is to the right of Nathan, who sits at the head of the table, and the other is next to Alex on the other side.

Nobody says anything, waiting to see what I choose. In the end, I decide to sit next to Nathan, which also puts me next to Addison. It seems like a logical choice, given the fact that I’m her nanny, the smart choice.

“So you two made all of this?” Alex asks as I take my seat. He sounds a bit surprised, and when I look at him, I find him admiring the spread of food we set out.

“Yes! It was so much fun!” Addison says, saving me from answering, but I nod regardless.

“You know we have people we pay to do that, right? Are you trying to put them out of work?” Desmond asks with a chuckle, and I feel his eyes on me overtop Addison’s head. I don’t even have to look to know he has that sexy smirk on his face. I can hear it in his words.

“I do, but cooking is a valuable skill, one that everyone should have, and Addison enjoyed it.”

“You're right. Everyone should know how to cook. Maybe Desmond could stick around one of these times and learn a thing or two.”

Alex barks a laugh at Nathan’s obvious dig, and I can’t fight the smile that tugs at my lips.

“Sure, I wouldn't be opposed to a little one-on-one tutoring.”

Crap, how did he make that into something dirty? Is it like a special skill he has?

“Well, I don’t know about anyone else, but I'm starving, and this smells delicious.”

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