by J. P. Comeau
“It’s beautiful. I love it,” I said.
She looked up at me with a smile. “You can have it if you want.”
I smiled. “I’ll put it front and center on my refrigerator at home.”
Her eyes grew determined. “Well, in that case, let me add some fishes and my name. Painters always sign their names to stuff.”
I giggled. “Sounds like a plan, pretty girl.”
But as the day passed on, bleeding into another dinner Asia and I planned together, I never got a response from Gavin. Not a phone call, or an email, or even a text message, letting me know what time he’d be home. And it made me wonder if I had ruined everything between us in one sweeping text message.
11
Gavin
The second I read Eva’s message, I had to put my phone down. Anger, unlike anything I had ever experienced, pooled in my gut, and I had to leave Jorge’s set in order to get some fresh air. I burst through the security guards just outside the door and heard people scrambling to get their cameras. I slipped into a darkened alcove before one of the bodyguards stood in front of me, blocking the flashing of cameras and muting the onslaught of questions as people tried to pry quotes from my dying lips.
Why on God’s great green earth would Marissa lie about something so stupid?
Did she not feel she had enough control over my life? Did she want to feel more powerful? More in tune with Asia’s life? Well, she needed to be around to have those privileges, for starters. But what did I know? I was simply “the man who knocked her up.”
“Gavin out here?” Jorge exclaimed.
I sighed as his voice resonated in my ears. “Yeah, I’m out here.”
He pushed his way through the security guards. “You want to get back inside so my set can no longer be a madhouse? They love you, you know.”
I scoffed. “Wish Marissa loved her daughter as much.”
He gripped my arm. “Let’s get you inside before the wrong set of ears hears that shit.”
Jorge dragged me back inside before promptly dismissing the set for a late lunch. But, I knew he wasn’t finished with me yet. He kept pulling me across the damned place until we were behind his office door. And after yelling at his assistant to get us both some lunch, he closed us in.
“All right, spill. What did she do now?”
I snickered as Jorge turned to face me. “That obvious?”
“It’s always obvious when she does something. What did Marissa do now?”
I shook my head slowly. “Well, you know she fired Camila, right?”
He blinked. “Right.”
I raked my hands through my hair. “According to Eva, who heard it from Camila’s aunt, she didn’t get fired. Camila quit because she’s pregnant.”
Jorge’s eyes widened. “I mean, congrats to her. But, why the fuck would your ex lie about something so stupid?”
My arms flopped to my sides. “Beats the fuck out of me! Why would she even lie about something like that? None of this is sitting right with me. The quick elongation of her work contract. Her lying about firing Camila when she really quit. She’s up to something; I know she is.”
“Maybe she wants you back, so she’s eliminating all of the women you’ve surrounded yourself with.”
I shot him a look. “I would rather die.”
He leaned against the wall. “You don’t look any more relieved than you did a few minutes ago.”
“I’ll be relieved when I have answers. And a new daytime nanny.”
“Everything going okay with Eva, though?”
I paused for a bit too long. “Sure, yeah. Why?”
He narrowed his eyes. “Gavin?”
“What.”
He pushed off the wall. “Is everything actually okay with Eva?”
I shrugged. “Yeah. She’s great with Asia. She’s generally nice to have around.”
“But…?”
I sighed. “I wish I could employ your full-time. That would solve all of my issues in one fell swoop. But, she’s still got that job at the spa, and I can’t ask her to quit and come work for me, can I?”
He blinked a few times. “Not what I was getting at, but okay. I’ll play your game.”
“What game?”
He waved his hand in the air dismissively. “Yes, you could always ask Eva to quit. Especially if you can make up the difference in what her paychecks would be. Why wouldn’t you be able to at least ask?”
I knew there was something else on his mind, but I let it fly over my head. “Because it’s rude, for starters.”
“If you want to look at this from purely a practical standpoint, here it is. You could pay her in one job what she can’t even make with two. You could pay her more than that spa ever could, no offense to Guadalupe or Yuslan. So, what do you get by not even proposing the idea?”
I chewed on the inside of my cheek. “You do have a point.”
He put his hand on my shoulder. “The worst Eva can say is no, dude. You’re not asking her to marry you or some shit; you’re just asking her to consider working for you full-time. Employers poach employees with incentives all the time. Just think of it as another business transaction.”
And while I knew it was more complicated than that between the two of us, I didn’t dare let Jorge know that. He was just as bad with gossiping as any woman I’d ever come across, and I knew rumors of my love life would be halfway across the city by nightfall if I mentioned anything.
The idea of having Eva around more did sound fantastic, though.
“Let me shoot her a quick text,” I said.
He smiled and squeezed my shoulder. “’Atta, boy. Just tell her you want to talk with her tonight and that it’s nothing bad. Then, let’s inhale the food I smell coming down the hallway because I’m starving.”
I chuckled as I typed away at my message. “Sounds like a plan.”
Me: Hey. Sorry for the drop-off. Pretty busy here on set. Listen, do you have time to talk tonight before you head out? I have some changes in the babysitting schedule I want to speak with you about.
I didn’t expect as prompt of a response as I got, but as Jorge took our food from his assistant and started setting it up, I watched those three little dots bounce before her message popped up.
Eva: I’m sorry if I contributed to how busy things are. And I’ll definitely make the time. See you when you get here.
I wanted to text back, but I wasn’t sure what to say. So, I simply sent a thumbs-up emoji before closing out the message. It seemed so informal, but what else was there? A heart? A winky face? Did penis and panting emojis exist?
“You gonna eat or what?” Jorge asked.
I slid my phone into my pocket and sat down. “Thanks for lunch.”
He shrugged. “Anytime. You usually buy anyway. Nice to know I can treat you every once in a while.”
As I picked up the carton of lo mein noodles, I set my sights on tonight. I had to find the right words and come in hot with a monetary deal; otherwise, I risked her saying no. And I really didn’t want her to say anything other than yes. She was a joy to have around. Asia wouldn’t stop talking about their time together. Having a singular nanny that came regularly would provide my daughter with the stability she didn’t get from myself or her own damn mother.
I just had to do everything in my power to get Eva to play on my side.
The rest of the day soared by, and when I got home, it was damn near nine o’clock. It had been a late day with even later meals, and I wolfed down a chicken wrap as I drove home. I hated making Eva wait as long as she had. Asia had been in bed for over an hour, and I could only imagine how long Eva had been twiddling her thumbs, waiting for me to get back.
When I walked through the front doors, however, I didn’t find an angry woman. I didn’t find anyone harrumphing or sighing because I was late. I didn’t find a scowl or a slew of questions as to where I had been.
Instead, I found Eva at the other end of the foyer, standing there with two coffee mugs fille
d with wine I could smell from the front door.
And with the coolness of an introverted high school nerd with much too big of a crush, I blurted the words out before I even closed the front door behind me. “How much would it take for you to quit your job at the spa and be a full-time, live-in nanny?”
12
Eva
I blinked. “Sorry, what was that?”
Gavin closed the front door and locked it before he strode across the foyer toward me. His blue eyes held mine captive as his blond hair shuffled against his forehead. He looked positively exhausted, but the intensity and the passion of his words portrayed a very different scenario.
He plucked his coffee mug filled with wine before he ushered me down the hallway. “Let’s sit and talk. I had a whole spiel planned before that question,” he said with a chuckle.
I gave him a polite giggle, but his question kept tumbling around in my mind. Was this the “change in the babysitting schedule” he was talking about?
Did he really just ask me to name my price?
“Here. Sit,” Gavin said.
He pulled out a chair for me at the kitchen table, and I eased myself into it. I watched him walk around and sit in front of me, his feet promptly settling against my own. I felt his warmth trickling slowly up my legs, but I tried to keep my wits about me as he drew in a deep breath through his nose.
Then, he launched into his spiel. “So, Asia can’t stop talking about you.”
I smiled softly. “I’m glad. She’s a great girl.”
“And you’re great with her. I’ve never seen Asia so happy and so outgoing around another person. You’ve really done a number on her.”
Just her? “She’s special to me, too.”
He leaned forward. “Which is why you’re perfect for being her nanny. All of this ‘daytime evening time’ shit is just unstable for her. She struggles so much with change, and she’s endured so much of it in the seven years she’s been alive. Having one person here from the time she wakes up until the time she goes to bed will always be the best equation for her. And if we can work something out like that, then I can give you a plethora of incentives and options I’m sure you don’t get at the spa.”
What’s the harm in hearing him out? “Like… what?”
He leaned back against his chair and sipped his wine. “For starters, you name your price, and you’ve got it.”
“I’m still thinking about it. What else?”
“Weekends off and holidays. It’d be a strictly Monday through Friday job, with your weekends only being taken up by an emergency of some sort. I have no issues toggling my filming schedule around something like that, oh! And you’ll need a passport. If you don’t have one, I’ll pay for it.”
I blinked. “A passport? Why?”
He grinned. “Asia loves traveling. We take one major trip a year, and I know she’ll want you to come along. We can work it out later on, but if you choose not to come, you’d be on paid leave, and if you chose to come, I’d not only continue paying you for being with us, but I’d pay for your trip.”
My eyebrows rose. “That’s very generous of you. Thank you.”
“You’d also get your pick of any room in the house. Or, you could set up in the guesthouse and have your own little housing space. I’ll make a space for you in the garage to put your car, you’d have free rein of the house, whether or not we’re here, and I wouldn’t charge you rent.”
I gawked. “No rent? Why not?”
He took a long pull from his wine. “Because the favor you’d be doing me far surpasses a monetary value like rent. Plus, it’s not like the bills are going to skyrocket with you here.”
My mind swirled with so many things. “What about health insurance? I’ve got a very basic plan through the spa, but it’s almost worthless.”
And he had a quick answer to my question. “Since you’d be living here and I’d be paying for your housing and utilities, I could technically put you on an added plan to mine and Asia’s health insurance policy. That isn’t an issue at all.”
“Would it have coverage for yearly check-ups and stuff like that?”
He nodded. “Dental, vision, ER. It’d be comprehensive medical insurance, and it would be one of the best private plans out there.”
“How much would that be a month? And don’t tell me ‘nothing’ if you’re already not charging me for rent or food or utilities. There has to be something I contribute to.”
He chuckled. “If you insist, your ‘employee’ side would probably be around nine hundred or so a month.”
I tried not to choke on my own tongue. “Fair enough.”
“But, I really don’t mind pay—”
I held up my hand, silencing his words. I had so many things rushing through my head that I wasn’t sure where to begin. For starters, could I really abandon Guadalupe and Yuslan at the spa? I mean, they had given me my start. I owed a lot of my life to the paycheck they afforded me. It almost felt like betraying them, in a way, if I quit and jumped ship. But, on the other hand, my student loans would already be crushing enough. And if I could find a way to make enough money to double-up on those payments and get out of my rundown apartment in the process, they’d be happy for me, right?”
Just throw out a number. What do you have to lose?
So, I went with the first figure that popped into my mind. A figure he probably wouldn’t be able to fulfill.
“If I’m going to be living here—which means I’ll always be on-call—and if my responsibilities don’t stop after a certain time—you know, if Asia has an attack in the middle of the night or something—I’d say eight grand is a fair place to—”
“Done.”
I felt my face pale. “What?”
He held out his hand. “Eight grand a month, paid in halves on the first and the fifteenth, and I’ll foot the bill on whatever has to happen to cut your lease at your place. Deal?”
My eyes fell to his outstretched hand. “I mean, I still have to notify my bosses.”
He wiggled his fingers. “They can’t deny a two-week notice if you really want to put it in.”
I swallowed hard. “And everything we talked about stands?”
He nodded. “You have my word, Eva.”
I knew this was a bad idea. I didn’t need to shake his hand. The spa was safe. The spa was my home. The spa didn’t have beautiful Hollywood men with chiseled abs and tailored pecs walking around with deadly smiles while they slung dick around that made me salivate.
But I watched as my hand gravitated to his before I shook it. “Then, it’s a deal,” I said.
The look of relief that washed over Gavin’s face reinforced the fact that I had made a good decision. I just didn’t know if it was a wise one. And now, I had to go to work tomorrow morning with the intent of speaking with Guadalupe about resigning—a conversation I never thought I’d have after they had embraced me like one of their own.
I dropped his hand. “Actually, can this be a hesitant ‘yes?’”
He grabbed his coffee mug. “Don’t worry; I’m not under the impression that you’re quitting tomorrow.”
“I just—Guadalupe and Yuslan, the owners, are like family to me. I don’t just want to spring this on them. I want to make sure they’re going to be okay with me gone first.”
“Trust me, when it comes to family, I completely understand. I’ll need a solid confirmation by Friday so I can make other arrangements if you don’t want the job. But, take your time up until that point.”
“Thank you, Gavin. For your offer, for even considering such a salary, and for your generosity in general. I feel like just the words aren’t nearly enough.”
He grinned. “I’m sure there are other ways you’ll find to thank me in time.”
I felt a flush creep up into my cheeks before his eyes widened.
“Eva, that came out so wrong. I shouldn’t have even said it in the first place. It just kind of—”
I stood to my feet. “What was that?”<
br />
He looked up at me. “I just—I’m sorry for how those words—”
I planted my hands onto the table and leaned over, accenting my cleavage. “Sorry, I can’t hear you. What was that, sir?”
I purred that last word to the best of my ability, and his eyes fell to my tits. I saw his jawline clench as my heart rate skyrocketed, but when I saw that telltale flush creep down his neck, I knew I had him. Those words came soaring out, and they quickly stoked a heat I had been abating in my gut all damn day. And now, I had an opening I wanted more than anything to take.
“Eva, you don’t have—”
I walked around the table, letting my fingertips slide against the distressed wooden top. “I don’t have to what, sir?”
He turned in his chair, his eyes raking up and down my body. “You don’t, uh, just—wh—what?”
I sank to my knees in front of him. “Cat got your tongue?”
His breathing ticked up a notch. “Has anyone ever told you that your eyes sparkle like emeralds?”
I giggled as my hands slid up his shins. “Yes.”
“Have they ever told you that they’re one of your more gorgeous features?”
I fluttered my eyelashes at him as my hands crept against his knees. “Yes.”
His eyes darkened. “Then, has anyone ever told you that they’d look better peeking up from between a pair of thighs?”
I pressed his knees open before I reached for his belt buckle. “Now, that’s a first, sir.”
I stripped him of his belt and quickly unbuttoned his pants. He reached in and pulled his cock out for me, stroking it as his girth leaked from the tip. I licked my lips as I shuffled between his legs, allowing my hands to slide around his body.
Then, after he bounced it against my lower lip, I sucked it into my mouth.
