Page 13 of My Ruthless Neighbor

She glares at me before tilting her chin. “Yes. I did that for a while. The gig included assisting them. I learned pretty cool tricks. Tricks that might come in handy someday.” She looks proud of it.

I continue reading. Then stop at one thing that makes me curious. “Professional mermaid.”

“Oh, yes. I work at a resort in West Hollywood. But only on weekends. You should visit sometimes.” She grins at Janet. “I am a great swimmer. Oh, and if you have children you could come by the aquarium I work at. Kids love me!”

Is she for real?

Janet smiles widely. “I will. My seven-year-old daughter absolutely loves Ariel.”

“Fabulous!” She takes out a card from her backpack. “I do shows in this aquarium every other week. Bring her along, she’ll love it.”

Janet pockets the card eagerly. “Will do.”

“I hate to interrupt your fun little chit-chat, ladies but can we get on with the interview?”

Janet winces, then mouths sorry. Summer on the other hand looks as if she is seconds away from giving a rebuttal. I speak before she can. “Ms. Donovan, while we can see that you have many talents—”

“I sure do.”

“Like I was saying, despite your skills we can’t—”

“Your agency is lucky. You won’t get this opportunity again. I am an all-in-one package. I can even do the cleaning duty. I am a fast learner. So when do I start?”

Despite myself, I feel bad for her. “We have cleaning services for that. We can’t hire you.”

She swallows hard, color draining from her face. “You are making a huge mistake.”

“Am I?”

“Yes. You don’t understand. You won’t meet a hardworking person like me ever again. I might not have a degree, but I am smart. I have creativity. I can be helpful.”

Now it is getting uncomfortable. Any other person would have gotten up and fled. But not this one. She is downright begging for the job. “I don’t doubt it. But we don’t have any other vacancy except for the position of Archer’s assistant—”

She leans forward, placing her palms on the glass table. “You can appoint me as his assistant. I am his friend after all.”

“Don’t cut me off again,” I say tersely.

“Huh?” She touches the sunglasses hooked on her blouse nervously before continuing, “Did you forget who I am? I am Archer’s—”

“You are not Archer’s friend.” My temper is flaring once again. Just when I was feeling bad for her, she goes ahead and starts with her lies.

She lowers her hand, her eyes narrowing. “Did you just accuse me of lying?” She asks sharply.

I am so close to losing my shit. Instead of speaking, I regard her for a long time. She squirms in her seat.

“I asked something, Mr. Kim. Answer me or—”

“Or what?” I incline my head.

“Or you might have to face the wrath of your boss.”

I’d really like to see how she would make it happen. Swiveling my chair closer to hers, I lean closer. “Is that a threat?”

She doesn’t pull back. Her eyes fall to my lips for a second before she whispers, “It’s a promise.”

Chapter Four

Ismirk when her gaze blazes. I am surprised my body didn’t catch fire. Because the flames in her eyes are scathing. “One phone call.” She holds her index finger. “And he’ll come running. I won’t be responsible for what would happen next.”

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