Page 10 of The Nanny and the Don
“You act like he’s not sexy and paid, girl. Those are my main requirements,” Kelsea stated.
“That’s because the nature of your job calls for you to look for those things.”
“Yeah, well Trent asked me to quit,” my girl revealed.
“What did you tell him?”
“I told him I would think about it. I can’t let a temporary fix come between me and my guaranteed money.”
“That’s what I told Brendan!” I reminded her.
“Yeah, but your money isn’t guaranteed. You don’t have a job either way, sis. I advise you to start looking but have fun with him in the meantime. Who knows you might like him?”
The idea of me actually liking Brendan seemed to float out of the window as soon as a driver showed up to the door to pick me up instead of him. I knew the man had a little money or whatever,but damn, this was our first date. It would seem like he would at least have the decency to greet me at the door. Not only that but for the entire ride, he just kept bragging about his money and how well he could take care of me.
I got that he was trying to impress me, but if he thought he could just buy me, he was wrong.Who was I kidding? In a couple of weeks, I would be dead broke if I didn’t find another job.It didn’t hurt that I had been able to pay my rent for a few months. That didn’t mean I didn’t have to figure out my next steps soon and very soon.
School was out for the summer which meant I could work some extra hours, but first I had to find a job. The day I finally got my degree I was going to dance until my feet hurt. I couldn’t wait to get through this storm. With that in mind, I planned to play nice with Mr. Ego until I could do better.
We arrived at the venue and yet again the driver was the one to open the door and help me out of the car while Brendan was preoccupied with helping himself.
“You look beautiful tonight,” he said, complimenting me as he held up his elbow and waited for me to loop my arm through.
“Thank you,” I muttered.
Once my hand was secured on his bicep, he continued to walk. I was grateful for his acknowledgment because the deeper we walked into the venue, the more out of place I felt. I might have even been underdressed. There was no world in which I would have paid four hundred dollars for a dress then showed up somewhere and felt like I hadn’t spent enough.
I didn’t belong at that gala any more than I belonged in the gentleman’s club. I felt like a fish out of water as I looked around and spotted the Mayor and a couple of people I only knew from seeing them on flyers and billboards across the city. Not only were the people out of my league, but so was everything else.There was a string quartet playing a song I didn’t recognize. There were white flowers and white tablecloths on all the tables.
Everything was just so fancy, too fancy if you asked me. There was absolutely no one in the room that I felt like I could relate to, so I made sure to stick close to Brendan. Not that he seemed to mind as he held onto my hand and greeted a few people that he knew. He didn’t bother to introduce me, and I wasn’t mad about it. The last thing I wanted to do was try to talk to anyone at this party where I already stuck out like a sore thumb.
“You want something to drink?” he asked me.
“Sure,” I said.
Maybe a little liquid courage would help take the edge off. The speck of hope that showed up evaporated as soon as we turned to walk to the bar. There he was. Mr. Jackass that had me fired. If I had known he would be here, I would have turned down Brendan’s invitation.
For some reason, I tightened my grip on Brendan’s arm as we neared him. It was annoying that this asshole of a man who made my blood boil was so sickeningly sexy. He looked like he’d just stepped off the runway dressed in a black-on-black tuxedo. He was as intimidating as he was handsome. How in the world does someone manage to look like an assassin and a model at the same time? This was some black James Bond shit if you asked me.
My heart drummed in my chest as we got closer to him. He must have sensed our presence because he turned to face us before Brendan spoke up. His eyes moved from Brendan and landed on me. I clung to Brendan’s arm for dear life hoping this encounter was quick. He and Brendan might have been friends, but he terrified me. Not only that, but his ass had gotten me fired. I couldn’t stand him. It didn’t matter that Brendanpromised to help me out for a while. I didn’t like the idea of establishing a quid pro quo situation with him or anyone else.
“Look what the cat drug in,” Brendan greeted him.
Although Brendan was the one speaking, Mr. Asshole didn’t take his eyes off me. Once again, he was staring me down like I had no business in his presence. If his eyes were lasers, he would have set me on fire. I had never noticed the scar right next to his left eye until his gaze burned through me like a laser beam. It was crazy how the scar made him even more sexy.
“I show up, when necessary,” he stated flatly.
“I’m making my rounds, but I needed to stop by the bar before I finish hobnobbing with these clowns. I hate these stuck-up bastards,” Brendan noted, causing me to laugh.
Tell me why his little friend’s eyes shot to me again. I shrank under his withering gaze. Brendan pulled me closer but chuckled.
“You remember Devlan. Don’t you? You had me let her go,” Brendan quizzed.
“Vaguely,” his friend snarked.
His eyes never left me as he spoke.What the hell was his deal? Did I know him from somewhere in the past? I couldn’t tell if he wanted to strangle me or eat me alive, but the way he looked at me sent a chill down my spine. Was it crazy that I kinda wanted to find out what he was thinking?
“Is there something I can help you with?” I asked him.
