Page 6 of Meant for Them
He smiles at me again, and he’s far too calm for how worked up I am. “I find your extreme attitude quite cute.”
I scream again, this time not muffling it anywhere. “I don’t have time for this. I need to get in the shower and figure out how to get to your sister’s office so I can be at my fake interview on time. Wouldn’t want to make abad impressionon my new boss!”
He doesn’t stop me, so clearly, he values his life.
However, he is packing my shit up when I walk out of my bedroom, hair only half dry, dressed in the nicest jeans I own, and the only non-t-shirt top I have clean. It’s just a cleaning job, I can’t be expected to dress up, right? Then again, it’s not like it’s a real interview, so who the fuck cares? I could probably waltz in there in a bird costume and clown makeup and be hired on site.
Ugh. Now what the fuck is he doing? He needs adult supervision. “Those are library books. I cannot pack those; I’ll have to return them.”
He pulls out his phone and takes a picture of the entire stack, but I don’t have time or patience to ask why he’s being extra weird.
“Didn't realize people still used the library. How quaint.”
“Yes, quaint. It's a free community resource; I need all of those I can get. Have we talked about why you’re here yet? I'm very confused.”
Instead of answering me, he waves me off and starts assembling another box. “You know you don't actually have to do the interview with my sister, right? I gave you that card so I would come off as less creepy.”
“Oh, I'm going to that interview; and if there's any other positions available, you best bet I'm going to take them. It didn’t work as you intended though, I still think you’re a creep.”
I leave without saying goodbye, walking my ass down to the bus stop. I timed it just right, because the bus comes before new mate dearest can stop me from getting on. And the look on his face is absolutely priceless, so I sit in the back and wave at him from the window.
Now, I may be slightly alarmed as he eventually gets back to his car and follows the bus, because every stoplight we hit, he seemsto be right next to my window, whether or not there's room for him to be. At one point he leaves five car lengths in front of him empty so he can sit next to me in traffic, glaring at me the entire time. My phone is a piece of crap, but I still take a picture anyway, because it's too good not to.
Eventually I do have to transfer, but it was fun while it lasted.
Alex parks illegally at the bus stop and throws me over his shoulder, practically tossing me into the front of the moving truck. Points to me though because he doesn't talk to me the rest of the drive.
Ellie assesses me thoroughly when we arrive, and I’m assuming it’s because she’s trying to determine if I’m good enough for her brother. Well, ifshethinks I’m good enough. Together, Alex & Ellie give off a weird energy, but I assume it’s because they’re not the type of siblings that get along frequently.
Ellie is a little cold towards me, almost as if she resents having to give me her time, but that’s kind of on brand if she is in fact related to Alex. They look nothing alike, but maybe they’re half-siblings or something.
Whatever the tension between the two of them is about, that’s their business, and I’m only here to get hired.
I ignore Alex as I enter her office, making sure to close the door behind us as his sister sits down to interview me. “You sure this is the way you want to go about this? You know he doesn't really want you to work, right? Might be easier to just give in and let him do what he wants to do. He tends to be much less of a brute that way.”
Ugh. He would have a cool girl sister that’s stunning and intimidating. “I don't suppose I could get a position somewhere other than his house? I've never done this line of work before,but it's kind of in line with what my mom did so maybe it's in the blood.”
She laughs, but it's not really one of amusement. It's kind of more I'm-amusing-to-her-because-it-was-a-stupid-question-to-ask. “Oh, Morgan, Morgan, Morgan. This actually serves my br—himright. All those years of being an ass, and now he gets amatethat is going to just absolutely keep him on his toes and make him work for it. I love this for him. And no, I cannot place you somewhere else, unfortunately. I mean technically, I could, but that would make my life way too difficult. I like my life the way it is.
“Yes he's a tyrant, but you'll be safe. The second you're ready to stop the ruse and be with him, your transition will be that much easier. I cannot stress enough how much you do not need to do this.”
“That salary is awfully tempting though. I'm going to build my independence back up, and you better believe I'm going to work for it. I'm not going to rely on somebody I don't know and assume that their word is good. I'll agree to stay at his house for now only because he has so many empty bedrooms. As soon as I can find somewhere close by that will rent to me though, I'm out.”
She sighs. “Unfortunately, he's made it quite clear that if you want the job, it has to be as a live-in maid. He has somebody to cook for him, so you don't need to bother with that.”
“Is it another topless provider?”
She shakes her head. “You should know he's never hired anybody from my agency before. Although between you and me, she is young and attractive.”
“You know what? Fine. Let him have some eye candy. I shouldn't care, right? It’s not like I actually want to be with him. Okay, where do I sign?” That seems to relax her for some reason.
Eventually, she sends me out of her office with wishes of good luck, a stipend for what she called uniforms, and her cell phone number to keep her in the loop about the job. I kind of feel like she’s also low-key asking for details about the relationship between Alex & I, but she’s crazy if she thinks I’ll have anything to blab about.
three
Morgan
I decide not to fight Alex on getting the rest of my stuff packed up, because truthfully, there's no way I could have done it on my own anyway. I end up trashing most of my furniture that I bought second hand, nothing worth taking other than my clothes and a few personal items. The truck is far too big for how many boxes I end up putting in it, but that's okay, it's more annoying for him, so I'm into it.
