Page 7 of Cold as (N)ice

“You are no bother,” her boss interrupted her, replying easily and gestured for her son’s benefit. “Stephen, do you like games?”

Yes!

“Let’s go inside, and you can play a video game while your mother and I speak,” Barrett said evenly, giving her the ‘I-sucked-on-a-lemon’look again. Without another word, he turned and led her through the garage entrance to the doorway that led to his home.

As Irene stepped inside, she swallowed.

Thiswas the place she was supposed to clean for him? The housewasclean – because it was nearly empty. He walked into the kitchen and got out three bottles of water, handing one to Stephen and one to her, before nodding to her son and gesturing slowly.

Come on. I’ll set you up on the game. Just don’t push any buttons on the remote because that controls the speakers and lighting.

“Mr. Coeur…” she began, instantly panicking and worrying that something would get broken. The man didn’t have much, but that television alone would be enough to break herfinancially for the next several years. “Mr. Coeur, wait. Maybe this is a…”

“Barrett,” he replied bluntly, not bothering to look at her as he patted the couch for her son and turned on the entertainment system. The screen glowed brightly – almost as much as Stephen’s smile.

Mario Cart?

Stephen nodded.I’ve never played it. I’ve got Pokémon Red in my Gameboy.

That’s a cool system,Barrett said and looked over his shoulder at her before turning back to Stephen. Irene stood there silently, her arms wrapped protectively around her as she watched their conversation, her mind filled with confusion.Who was this stranger?

Have you used this before?

No, sir.

It’s fun. Pick your car and play for a little bit. If you need me, I’ll be close.

It’s okay?

Yes.

Will you play with me?

Irene sucked in her breath, ready to answer, and saw Barrett look at her again – giving her a quelling look that silenced her.Was he judging her? Mad at her for bringing Stephen with her? Why didn’t Theo tell her that her new boss was grumpy?

Maybe she would have asked the neighbor to babysit Stephen, but she hated to do so because that meant a few hours of zero communication for her son. Her neighbor couldn’t sign, but was a good backup for her simply because she never charged.

Barrett rose to his feet as the game loaded on the screen, giving Stephen a thumbs-up, before turning to her. He walked into the kitchen where she was standing in the open-concepthome. Immediately tensing, she felt herself bristling on the defensive…but about what?Her new boss made her feel antsy.

“Do you want some coffee?” he said coolly.

“N-No, thank you.”

“Something wrong?”

“There’s a lot that’s wrong,” she blurted out and hesitated. “You don’t need a maid. You barely have any furniture here, and it’s fairly clean. I mean, I can go over it, but you don’t need someone here for maybe one or two days…”

“Five – maybe more,” he interrupted bluntly, staring at her. “And I’ll be the one to decide what I need. You’re not a bother, but youareunexpected; that much is for sure.”

“What?” she whispered, confused. “I don’t understand.”

“You need a job – and I need this to feel like more of a home. I thought Batiste explained that to you?”

“He said you wanted me to do your laundry,” she nodded and rubbed her arms. “Is it just me, or is it chilly in here?”

“Sorry. I’m usually pretty warm. Feel free to adjust the thermostat and make yourself at home.”

“No. I’ll wear a sweater.”

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