Page 77 of My Not So Wicked Boss (My Not So Wicked 3)

They all looked at me to confirm.

“It was amazing,” I sighed. “But . . . it will never happen again.”

Each of their shoulders sagged.

“Do you think this Penelope woman has something to do with it?” Shelby asked.

I shrugged my shoulders. “I think so, maybe. And his no dating the nanny rule. Please just tell me, though, if I’m one of those women?”

“The hot kind that most women would chew their foot off to become?” Emma asked. “Yes, that’s you.”

I reached over and nudged Emma. “That’s not what I mean. I don’t want to be the woman who is constantly picking the wrong guy. Or the unobtainable one. Or worse, the one who always wants someone else more than her.”

Emma pushed herself out of her beanbag chair with some effort. She knelt in front of me and got right in my face. “Listen here, I’ve been waiting for years for this to happen to you. Does this mean Miles is the one? I don’t know. But I know you’re intelligent and you’re not a teenager anymore. You of all people wouldn’t let just anyone in. The fact you’ve let him in at all is a miracle. So there must be something about him.”

There was something about him.

She smooshed my cheeks too, but harder than Henry. “If he’s not smart enough to see what he has in you, then let him have Penelope. But,” she smirked, “I’ve seen you two together, and if Penelope is coming here hoping to rekindle something or keep something alive, she’s going to need a really big match.”Chapter Twenty-Nine“How quaint this is.” Penelope ran her hand along Miles’s back before she took a seat next to him at the table. Her tone indicated she thought our “family” dinners were anything but quaint.

I wasn’t sure why Miles insisted we keep our usual routine with his friends in town. I thought for sure when they arrived a couple hours ago Miles would want to go out to dinner like Penelope suggested. After an elongated hug, I might add. I wouldn’t be surprised if Miles had claw marks on his back where she’d marked her territory with her sharp black nails.

She’d immediately marked me as her enemy. Her violet eyes had been shooting daggers at me since the moment Miles introduced us. What did she say? “You are not matronly at all.” She squeezed my hand like she was hoping I would bleed. “Miles’s description of you did not do you justice.”

Miles had given me an uneasy smile and responded, “I said she was motherly.”

What the heck did that mean? I was under the impression he thought I was beautiful. But who knew? He’d been acting odd ever since his friends arrived. He was following me around everywhere and insisted on helping me make dinner. His friends found this to be entertaining. They all perched around the island while Miles and I made rosemary chicken and roasted vegetables. Thankfully, Oscar and Molly were my kind of people—funny, a tad off color, and kind.

“You are so domestic now,” Molly had teased Miles. Molly came as a bit of a surprise to me. She was supposed to be this award-winning stylist, yet she wore a sweatshirt and yoga pants without a hint of makeup. She even had gray roots in her mousey brown hair. But her personality was attractive, so that’s all that mattered. And she didn’t look like she wanted to stab me, unlike her friend Penelope.

Oscar, on the other hand, made up for Molly’s outward lack of style. The hair guru was overly dressed for the occasion in a form-fitted royal blue jacket with matching pants and a white button up. His hair was gorgeous, dyed platinum on the top with dark undertones, and styled to messy perfection. He called everyone lovey, even Miles, but I had a feeling it was an inside joke between them. Either way, I loved his easy manners.

There was some definite tension at the table when we all sat down. Miles tensed under Penelope’s touch, which admittedly I was happy about. I noticed too how Oscar and Molly shook their heads at their friend as if they wished she would keep her hands to herself. That was a wish I could full-heartedly support. It didn’t help that once Penelope sat down, she gave me one of those smiles that said game on. I wasn’t playing games and refused to participate in any she might start. I planned to focus on Chloe and Henry. Miles seemed to be of the same mind.

“How was school and football practice today?” he asked my daughter while I served Henry and cut up his chicken into bite size pieces.

Chloe took a sip of her water before answering. “They were both good. You should have seen the save I made. I had to dive and when I caught it, I slid so far across the grass.” She was all grins talking about it.

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