by Meg Ripley
“What do you want?” Jackson barked, seated behind his desk with his hands steepled near his chin. He made no move to stand up, shake his hand, or even offer him a drink. This wasn’t a business meeting; as far as he was concerned, this was probably nothing more than another threat—one dressed in a black Clash t-shirt and a chain choker.
The kid sneered. “Alex sent me to tell you that if you won’t deal with him, he’s gonna bring your club down from the inside. He knows plenty of people who are willing to help, and he can get plenty more by greasing a few palms. If you want to go out on a high note, you’d better sell right now before it’s too late.”
Jackson smirked and made no effort to disguise it. “Sorry, but I’m not too concerned. Mac will see you out, and I suggest you don’t bother trying to come back. And that goes for all of my clubs.”
“You’re gonna regret it!” the kid warned as Mac dragged him back out the door and handed him off to another bouncer. But he returned to the office and shut the door behind him.
“What’s the matter?” Jackson asked. “He’s just some dumb kid who would do anything for a buck.”
The bald man shook his head. “I can see why you’d think that, but I’m worried. How did he know you would be here tonight? You could have been working at any of your businesses. It’s not your normal night for Bliss, and you haven’t really even been in circulation much lately. If you don’t mind my saying so, that is.”
“It’s just the truth,” Jackson admitted. “But he could have just gotten lucky. Babcock probably sent a lackey out to every single one of my places tonight, knowing they’d catch me at one of them. And even the ones who didn’t talk to me still caused trouble. Alex still got what he wanted.” It was annoying, and it wasn’t right that it should come at Jackson’s expense, but there was no way Babcock could actually take his clubs down.
Mac shifted uncomfortably on his feet. “I’m afraid there’s more, sir.”
“Okay. Hit me with it.” At least this was getting his mind off of Cathy and the way her lips parted slightly when she had stared at his chest.
“This kid was causing trouble inside the club, but there have been others causing trouble outside. I’ve seen several people distributing flyers for Club Aqua right in front of our doors. It’s a public sidewalk, so I can’t do anything about it.” He handed over a piece of paper.
Jackson studied it carefully. The bright blue paper had Club Aqua’s logo splashed across the top. It claimed to have bigger bands and hotter celebrities, but adjectives like those were debatable. The drink specials were much cheaper than what Bliss offered, but Jackson knew they were probably using the cheapest liquor available. Still, Babcock was doing everything he could to get customers away from him.
“Has anyone waiting to get in our club taken those flyers and then left, presumably to go to Aqua?” Jackson asked quietly. It was a dirty trick, but not an uncommon one in his line of business. Jackson had never personally done it, though.
Mac shrugged. “I really can’t say.”
“Don’t worry about it. If he wants to play dirty, then I have a few tricks up my sleeve. I’ll take care of this.” He set the flyer on his desk and immediately picked up the phone while Mac went back to work.
“Hey, Damien. It’s Jackson.”
“You sound pissed. Don’t tell me you and Cathy aren’t getting along.”
He couldn’t get away from her, no matter what else he had going on in his life. “That’s a whole different matter, but right now I need to talk business with you. I need to book the hottest band you’ve got. The biggest thing, no matter how much it costs.”
“Then I’ve got some killer good news for you!” The smile on Damien’s face was evident even over the phone. “It turns out Blane’s sister can really sing. He came to me with a recording he made of her and her garage band because he thought she really had some talent. He’s right, and we convinced them to come in and do a few numbers. They’re great, and when people get wind of who her big brother is, they’re going to go nuts.”
Jackson grinned for the first time that day. “I knew there’s a reason I’m friends with you,” he snickered. “When will they be ready? Do they have any songs yet?”
“I had a few that were set aside, just waiting for the right person, so I’m having them work on those to start with as well as a few covers. They have some original songs that still need some development. But they’re young and enthusiastic, and they know they have a contract on the line, so I don’t think I’ll have any issue getting them ready to go in a couple of weeks.”
“That sounds like exactly what I’m looking for. What’s the name of the band?”
“The Villainous Ravens. They’re a bit heavier than what I usually go for, but I think they’re going to be big.”
Jackson jotted the name down on a nearby notepad. “Okay, now here’s my idea: I’ve got a rival club owner who’s doing everything he can to screw me over because he can’t compete with me. I’ll have the Villainous Ravens come play as soon as you have them ready, and if they’re as good as you say they are, I’ll give them continuous top billing in exchange for staying exclusive to Bliss. Sound good?”
“Are you kidding? They’ll love it. I’ll be sure to hold the phone away from my ear when I tell them.”
“Great. Thanks, man.” Jackson hung up, glad that he had mostly been able to avoid the subject of his new nanny while still getting some very professional revenge on Babcock. He wasn’t going to play dirty, because he didn’t have to. He’d built his little empire because he was good at what he did, and it didn’t hurt to have the right connections. Jackson stood up and went to the bar for a drink. He deserved it.
But no amount of whiskey could keep thoughts of the brazen woman at home from seeping back into his mind.
* * *
Several hours later, Jackson pulled into his driveway. It had been a good night at Bliss, but he was ready to go home and relax. A few of the lights were on, and he could see the flickering of the television through one of the windows. For a moment, his mind flashed back to that night he had come home to find Crystal and the children awake, despite the late hour. His jaw tightened as he realized that Cathy might not be any better than his ex after all.
But when he walked into the living room, it was only Cathy who’d been up. The TV was showing some old black-and-white film, and the volume had been turned low. She was curled up in the corner of the couch in a tank top and soft cotton shorts that revealed far too much of her gloriously long legs. Her eyes were closed and her breathing was deep.
Jackson stood there for a moment, unsure if he should wake her. From the lack of noise in the house, the children must have been asleep. He kicked himself for thinking it could possibly be otherwise. The two of them had gotten off to a rocky start, but this Irish woman seemed determined to take care of Jonathan and Jessica to the best of her ability.
Stepping forward quietly, he took a fluffy throw from the back of the couch and gently spread it over her. He planned to then make his escape to the den, but her eyes fluttered open, reflecting the light from the television.
“Jackson?”
“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”
“What time is it?” Cathy sat up and rubbed her hands over her face.
Jackson realized this was the first time he’d seen her without makeup, and the differences were only subtle. As he beheld her natural beauty, a pulse of intrigue rippled through him, and he cleared his throat to quash it. “About two-thirty.”
“Oh.” Her hair, thick and voluminous as always, was a silken cloud around her head. “I haven’t been sleeping all that well. I think I’m still not used to the time difference. I tossed and turned for a while and then came down here.”
“Looks like you’re about ready to get back to bed,” he commented with a smile. She was adorable when she was sleepy.
“I think I’ll make some tea first. I saw some chamomile in the cabinet; would you l
ike any?” She rose from the couch, the blanket falling away.
Jackson wasn’t sure if the offer was an automatic one or a genuine one, but with the way her breasts pressed against the ribbed fabric of her tank top, he found he had no choice. “That would be great. Thanks.” He followed her to the kitchen.
A few minutes later, she set a steaming mug in front of him. “I added a little honey to it. I hope you don’t mind; that’s just the way I like it.”
“That’s fine.” Jackson felt an odd sensation in the back of his mouth. He knew what it was, even though he wished he could deny it. He was surrounded by enticing, half-naked women all the time when he was working at his clubs, but this small-town girl in her pajamas was sending him over the edge. The deep blackness of night outside the windows and the silence in the house made it feel as though they were the only two people in the world. “Tell me what it’s like back in Ireland.”
She gave him that sweet, sleepy smile as she wrapped her long fingers around her mug. “You don’t really want to know.”
“Sure, I do. I’ve never been, but I’ve always thought it would be a great place to visit.” He just wanted to hear her talk, to listen to that gentle lilt in her voice.
Cathy obliged him, telling of her childhood playing on the rolling green hills with her brothers and sisters. “Things changed as I got older, and then especially once my father passed away. I spent a lot of time taking care of my family. I was glad to help, but I was ready for a change once my mother remarried.”
“And then you came here.” He hadn’t even thought to ask about the circumstances around her leaving Ireland before, and he felt guilty for remaining so distant from someone who worked in his household.
“And then I came here,” she echoed with a smile.
It suddenly hit Jackson just how hard the transition must have been for Cathy. And he hadn’t made it any better. “Then I was a total jerk to you when all you did was ask for a vacuum.”
She had just tipped her mug back to take a sip, and she nearly choked on it with laughter. “I won’t deny that.”
“I’m sorry,” Jackson said genuinely. “I can give you all sorts of excuses, but there really aren’t any.”
“It’s all right. We’ve both been tense. It happens. I’d like to think it will get better.”
Jackson was fighting not to reach across the table and put his hand on top of hers. It was a small gesture, one that could have been interpreted numerous ways, but in the back of his mind, he knew it wasn’t what he needed to do. He couldn’t allow himself to be so attracted to her, but his inner dragon had other ideas. “I’m sure you’re right, and—”
“Did you hear that?” Cathy sat up straight, her eyes wide. “I think Jessica’s awake. She’s been having nightmares.” She was out of her chair and setting her mug in the sink in an instant.
Jackson hadn’t heard a thing, and he knew that as a dragon, his hearing should be much better than hers. “Need me to do anything?”
“I’ve got it!” She trotted across the kitchen and through the swinging door.
Jackson watched her go, knowing it was wrong to be admiring the way she moved and the way her hair brushed against her shoulders. And despite his misgivings, it seemed she really did care about his children. He looked down into his mug, the tea barely touched, and poured his into the sink as well. He didn’t need hot tea—he needed a cold shower. How was he going to distance himself from such a tempting woman when she lived in his house?
Chapter Six
A few nights later, Cathy sat on the edge of Jessica’s bed, and her eyelids felt heavy. She closed the volume of If You Give a Mouse a Cookie in her hand and set it on the nightstand. “Okay, that’s the last one. Let’s get to sleep now.”
But Jessica snatched the book and held it up. “But it’s so much fun! I want to hear it again! And I like it when you make up the words.”
Cathy gave her a tired smile. She’d read the same story to Jessica every night that week. The only saving grace was that it was the one thing in the little girl’s life that didn’t have Rainbow Brite on it, but she was already quite tired of the story. A few times, she had made up her own words. Apparently, Jessica had enjoyed that a bit too much, considering she was supposed to be getting sleepy. “No, sweetie. Not tonight. I’m very tired, and I need you to go to sleep so that I can, too.”
Jessica frowned. “I don’t want to. I want you to stay here and play with me.” She latched onto her new nanny’s arm and refused to let go.
It was getting late, and even though Jackson wasn’t around to see his daughter’s antics, it was no excuse to allow the children to manipulate her. She had made what she felt to be rather large strides with the Caseys, but her patience was wearing thin. It was time to bring out the firm voice. “Jessica, that’s not how we do things. You know it’s time for bed, and so that’s what you need to be doing. No arguments, now. And I don’t want you getting back up once I leave. You’ve gone to the bathroom and you’ve had a drink of water, you’ve had your story and your hug, and now it’s time to sleep. That’s it.” She stood up and headed for the door.
Flicking off the light switch, Cathy counted to five before she flicked it back on again. Jessica had already whipped the covers back and made it halfway out of bed, her little toes dangling down and almost touching the floor. “I’m serious. If you get out of this bed, then there will be no television tomorrow. That means no Muppet Babies. And you know I’ll do it.” She waited until Jessica was back under the comforters before she left.
Jonathan wasn’t any easier. He had changed into his pajamas, but they were the same ones he had been wearing all week. Instead of getting into bed as he was told, he was on the floor playing with his Legos. He barely glanced up at Cathy as she entered.
As much as she wanted to snap at him, Cathy knew it wouldn’t help. She desperately wanted to build up a rapport with the boy, and he already resented her presence in his home. Still, some things had to be taken care of. “Into bed with you. And tomorrow, those pajamas are going in the wash. You can’t just keep wearing the same ones; they’ll start walking on their own soon.”
“Can if I want to.” He tossed down a small blue brick and turned to his bed with a sigh. Instead of climbing in between the sheets, he flopped down on top of the comforter. “Fine. I’m in bed.”
Cathy pressed her lips together. “All right. If you’re comfortable like that. I’ll see you in the morning.”
Heading back downstairs, Cathy knew that she still had plenty of work to do. The last of the dinner dishes had yet to be cleaned up, and she needed to fold the load of laundry in the dryer. But she was exhausted, and she just didn’t feel like it. Considering that the children had plenty of other clean clothes and Mr. Casey had explicitly said the housekeeper would take care of the cleaning, she decided she could get away with a personal phone call. She picked up the cordless and took it to her room.
“Cathy!” Brianna gushed from the other end. “I was just thinking about you! Here I was, thinking we would spend so much time together now that you’re in town, and I’ve hardly even talked to you. How’s the new job?”
She sounded so excited that Cathy hated to disappoint her, but she had always been honest with her best friend. “Really, it’s terrible. Don’t say anything, but I’m thinking about finding different employment. This just isn’t what I was expecting at all.”
“No! Oh, Cathy, I’m so sorry! What’s going on?”
“Don’t be sorry. It’s not like it’s your fault. It’s just that it’s so much harder than I anticipated. These kids aren’t like the ones I’ve dealt with before, ones who have already been taught at least a few manners. But there aren’t any rules here, and it was like pulling teeth to get them to start going to bed at a certain time so that I wasn’t up at all hours.”
“I had no idea. I had met Jackson plenty of times, but I’d never spent a whole lot of time around his children other than when Stephanie had played with them some.”
“I’m about dead on my feet trying to keep up with them.” Cathy’s mind then drifted to her boss and she sighed. He had a handsome face but, admittedly, that wasn’t always the part of him she’d concentrated on. “Mr. Casey and I got off to a bit of a rough start. Every time I’d try to change something about the way the household has been run, he’d blow up at me,” she huffed. “We talked through some of the issues one day and things got a little better, but there are still a few things he’s giving me push-back on. Now, he’s not as impossible to be around, but he’s avoiding me.” They’d had a pleasant conversation that one night in the kitchen over mugs of hot tea, but it was like everything had changed after that. Every time she ran into Jackson, he’d barely look at her.
“What is it that you’d like to change?” Brianna asked.
“Only what needs to be done to make sure the kids don’t turn into wild animals, but I can promise you that’s already quite a bit. I’ve mostly got them going to bed on time, as long as Jessica doesn’t get back up and come find me for extra hugs or to beg for another story. I’m feeding them real meals instead of just frozen waffles and fast food; those I simply won’t budge on. Mr. Casey seemed to accept that well enough, but he absolutely threw a fit when I tried to talk to him about the children doing chores.”
“Oh, I see. Stephanie is still too young for that sort of thing, so that’s not something I’ve dealt with.”
“Jonathan is ten, and he’s more than old enough to sweep a floor or clean up his bedroom. And Jessica could do a few little things as well. At the very least, they need to be cleaning up their own messes. I wasn’t asking for them to become the new housekeepers, but as soon as I said the word ‘chore,’ they went running for their father. He said I was trying to change too much too fast.” She flopped back on her mattress, wishing she knew all the answers. When she had first come to America for this job, she had been convinced it was something she could handle.