Page 44 of The Billionaire and the Stripper (The Manhattan Billionaires)

I felt a sharp pang in the region of my chest.

I wasn’t Rose’s daddy. But as I saw her gnawing at a teething ring determinedly, I so wished I was. She caught sight of me, and crawled over to me, grabbing the leg of my pants as she tried to pull herself upright. She slipped and fell on her bottom, and found it really funny. I scooped her up and set her on my shoulders, where she played tug with my hair happily.

I turned to find my brothers watching me with knowing looks on their faces.

“Not a word,” I warned.

I was far too conflicted to tolerate any teasing about Celine. Although, if Luke thought he could ask her out, he had another think coming. And I’d be happy to assist the process with my fist down his throat, I thought viciously.

I led Maddie and Rose to the kitchen where I assembled a takeaway dinner for Celine. I knew she wasn’t staying for dinner because she had to get Rose to bed, but she’d be too tired when she got home to cook a proper meal for herself. I knew she hadn’t been eating well lately because her clothes were hanging on her. But I also knew better than to make a big deal about it. As she had expressed so many times, she was a big girl and could take care of herself.

CHAPTER 18

CELINE

Itried not to stare at the door longingly during Tia’s lesson, but I had a feeling she knew I was waiting for Marcus to walk through.

“He’s with the kids,” she said gently.

I shot her a polite smile and got on with setting up the portable pole.

“Is that sturdy enough to hold my weight?” she asked doubtfully.

“Of course, it is,” I replied and proved it by doing a full turn on it, and then an upside-down one.

“I can’t do that,” she cried. “I can’t even lift my leg that high.”

I laughed.

“Of course not. And I don’t even want you to try it right now lest you injure yourself. Let’s start with a simple warm-up.”

As I led her through the moves, Tia’s body became looser and more limber. I showed her a few conditioning exercises and asked her to practice them for thirty minutes every day until she got stronger. By the time I wound up the lesson with a long cool down, Tia was sweating and shaking.

“That was amazing, Celine. Thank you so much. Listen, would you be open to teaching a few of Maddie’s friends’ nannies? I think they’d love to do group sessions with you.”

“Sure, give them my number,” I replied, happy to have more clients.

“And what about your art? Would you be interested in doing painting lessons at a library around here?”

“I haven’t taught art in ages,” I said doubtfully. “But why not?”

“Aunt Fee’s goddaughter is a librarian, and when she told me she was looking for an art teacher for beginners, I immediately thought about you.”

I was a little overwhelmed by the suggestions, but I knew Tia well enough to know she wouldn’t suggest it if she didn’t mean it.

“Alright, you can give her my number as well,” I said, with a laugh.

“You can talk to her right now. Here they come,” replied Tia, as two women walked in. “Aunt Fee, come and meet my friend, Celine.”

The older woman walked towards me with her hands outstretched. I took them hesitantly, and she gripped them tightly.

“Welcome to our home, Celine. I’ve heard so much about you,” she announced, with a twinkle in her eye.

I flushed uncomfortably, wondering what she’d heard. Although, that depended on whom she’d heard it from. I was aware of people judging me and finding me trashy because I was a stripper. But Fee Donovan wasn’t looking down on me. She was smiling at me with approval.

“I just met your daughter,” she said. “She’s adorable.”

I relaxed a bit because she didn’t look like she wanted to kick me out of the house. She turned to the other woman with her, a shy, quiet blonde, who kept looking at the door. I wondered why.

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