by Nikki Bopp
“Daniel asked me to let him know once I found out…” I trail off, meeting Mia’s gaze. They widen at my statement, her mouth dropping open in shock. I feel like that’s all we’ve been doing this morning, gaping around in shock and awe. It's all I’ve certainly been doing.
“Did you check with the daycare yet?”
“No,” I forgot that’s what I was trying to do in the first place before Mia read through the job description. Hooking the handle, I drag my purse back into my lap while trying to avoid hitting Eva with it. Candy wrappers crinkle and loose change clinks as I hunt for the wayward phone. A sound of triumph escapes when my fingers close on the device, and I tug it free, a dum-dum lollipop stuck directly to the middle of the screen.
Eva lets out a gasp and reaches forward to pull the lollipop free, “I was looking for this!” She pops it into her mouth with no issues. Mia lets out a choked laugh.
Shaking my head in exasperation, I bring up my texting app and the contact for Eva’s daycare. When we went in to tour the place and meet the supervisor, she was nice enough to give me her phone number, email, and mailing address. I thought it was a bit overkill at the time, but now I’m starting to believe that it was a good thing.
Hello Karen. This is Jennifer Ray, Evangeline Ray’s mother. I was just seeing if it would be possible to move up Eva’s start date with the daycare to this Wednesday.
Hitting send, I give Eva a pat on the head, “What’d you think about starting daycare sooner?”
“Tomorrow?!” She sits up with a screech, a smile stretched across her face. Eva was already so excited about going to daycare, so I’m not surprised that she's excited to go sooner. Jonathan was against me working outside of the house, so I never saw a reason to send Eva to daycare. This is going to be a whole new experience for her, and I can't wait to see what she thinks after starting.
“Yeah,” I tell her with a nod. “What’d you think about that?”
“Yay!” Jumping to her feet, on the couch, she begins to jump up and down on the cushions, her shoes leaving dirty footprints on the white fabric.
“Eva,” I warn, my voice serious enough to stop the excited celebration. “Get your feet off the couch.” She quickly obeys, surprising the hell out of me.
“Mia! Did you hear? I get to go to daycare soon!”
“I did!” Mia gushes, bussing her cheeks with an equally excited smile. “And guess what?”
“What?” Eva asks, leaning forward to mimic Mia’s ‘I’ve got a secret’ pose.
“Your mommy is going to come and work with me!” Her words make Eva gasp and turn towards me with a flabbergasted expression.
“How are you going to work with Aunt Mia?”
Laughing, I shrug my shoulders and tell her, “I don't know yet.”
“But,” Eva pauses to cock her hip out, placing her hands on them with a serious look. “Do I still get to go ride on the BIGGG swing?”
Mia bursts into laughter, drawing Eva’s stern glare, which just sets me off.
“Yes, punk-a-doo, we can go ride on the BIGGG swing.”
Chapter 7
Living In A Glass Box
Daniel Price
Closing the door to Edwards’ office, I subtly adjust myself, which probably isn't necessary given that Ingrid is the only person I have to worry about. Jennifer Ray is by far the most frustrating woman I’ve ever met, which only turns me on even more. I'm used to having control over every aspect of my life, and I can already see how much she is going to throw that off balance.
“I can see you like her as much as we do,” Patrick smirks from his position against the wall.
“I thought you had a meeting to get to,” I grunt out, annoyed at being caught fondling myself. My attempt at diversion doesn't go unnoticed if Pat’s chuckle is anything to go by, and it follows me as I brush past him in the direction of our offices. My hope that he would go to his office and just drop it entirely is thrown out the window when he splays himself across the leather couch lining one wall of the office. Unlike Ed’s or even Pat’s offices, mine is clean and basically empty.
One entire wall is glass and looks over the Seattle skyline, the other walls are bare save for a couple paintings I commissioned from my little sister. One of Seattle’s up and coming artists, she painted the forest scenes from our childhood home in Oregon and makes any homesickness a little bit easier. Other than my simple black desk, the only other furniture is a couple of chairs for visitors and the couch Pat so carelessly puts his feet on.
“Get your feet off my fucking couch.” My words don't surprise him, this is a constant fight between the three of us. After so long together, we've learned each other’s peeves like the back of our hand and typically try to exploit them at every opportunity.
“You're just pissed because she doesn't take your shit.”
“Of course, I am, I’m the CEO. There's a certain amount of respect that should be given.”
Pat’s guffaws of laughter fill the room, making me wince at the loud noise. Most people assume that Patrick is the more sedate of our trio, assuming that Edward, the player, and spender, is the most rambunctious. That couldn't be further from the truth. Patrick is more of a pain in the ass than Edward ever has been. The last three bones I’ve broken have been on a dare from Pat. Between the pranks, jokes, and adrenaline-inducing activities, I almost wish Edward was more difficult to deal with. At least with him, it's always pissing off some big wig by sleeping with their wife or losing a couple million on a horse race.
“Do you sit in here by yourself and just say that over and over? It's good to have someone to mix it up, someone who won't give you everything you want.”
Grumbling under my breath, I grab the report sitting on top of my desk, a neat sticky note on top from Ingrid explaining who’s the fuck up this time. Pat must have dozed off because the room is thankfully quiet, until the door to my office flies open, slamming against the wall with a thud. The suddenness of it all makes me jump in surprise, dropping the report in my hand to the floor, papers scattering around me.
“Guys!” Ed booms dramatically, falling into one of my chairs, his hand clutched to his chest. “Oh, my god, my heart.”
Pat’s laugh hides my groan. “Will you two stop acting like a couple of prepubescent children?”
“Says the one who couldn't get his dick to go down all morning,” Ed snarks back, which only pisses me off more. Did everyone know I was hard the entire time? Did Jenny know?
“No, we just know you well enough to see what's going through that thick head of yours,” Pat answers my unspoken question. Jenny is by far the most beautiful woman I have ever encountered, and I've certainly met a lot of them. Still, there's something about her that's so stunning I can't even begin to describe it. Her heart-shaped face is only accentuated by the full lips that look perfectly plump and ready to be devoured. Most men would say that she's plain, brown eyes and brown hair. Still, looking into her bright smile and shining personality, there's no doubt that she's the most beautiful woman in any room. Even when she’s chewing me out.
I didn't expect to go into that meeting and completely tear her down like that. I was so excited to finally meet her, having been salivating at the chance to just have that smile directed towards me that I did the exact opposite of what I probably should have. My dick twitches at the remembrance of her anger fanned higher with every word out of my mouth.
“Hey! Dan! You here?” Edward snaps his fingers in front of my face bringing me back to the present.
“Yeah, sorry. I got distracted.” Even to my ears, I know how lame it sounds, but Ed and Pat both nod in agreement.
“She has a way of doing that,” Ed chuckles, leaning over to smack Pat on the knee now that he moved to the chair next to him. “You guys should have seen her when she left my office. Completely bewildered!”
Worry washes over me at his words. Did I scare her away? Was the salary change too much?
“You gave her my number?” I inquire, attempting to
keep my voice level and not show my rising doubt.
“I gave her all three of our numbers,” smirking at Pat, he sends me a devilish wink. “She's going to need them eventually anyway.”
“I think we're getting a little ahead of ourselves here,” rocking back in my chair, I steeple my fingers together and meet their questioning looks. “There is no guarantee that she will even be up for us. We barely got her to take the job.”
“Yeah, because you're a dick sometimes,” Pat murmurs under his breath, which given his proximity, is still loud enough for all of us to hear.
“Just sometimes?” Ed chuckles, kicking his feet onto the edge of my desk, which I immediately shove off.
“Have a little respect, will you? She will take the job and be damn happy about it. I upped the salary a smidge.”
“How much is a smidge?” The CFO in Ed questions, his face tightening now that the mention of money is on the table.
“Eh…,” my shoulders shrug, uncaring about the amount as long as it gets Jennifer Ray in the building long-term. “Forty or fifty thousand more?”
“Don't you think that's a little too much?”
“I don't really care. She worked her ass off to get here. First, by leaving that asshole husband and now jumping back in the workforce to help support her daughter and herself.”
“Well, aren't you the hero in a shining suit,” Pat laughs, his left arm cocking out, his right aimed towards the ceiling in a classic superhero pose.
“More like Mia, that’s the savior. If you hadn't seen her picture, who knows what would have happened.”
My body immediately recoils at the mention of Mia, bitterness blooming like a foul taste in the back of my mouth. Pushing away from my desk, I grab my laptop and give Patrick and Edward a glare. “I've got some things to do, don't destroy the place while I'm gone. And make sure to send a driver for Jenny tomorrow morning, I don't want them walking in the rain.”
“Aye Aye Captain!” Pat calls behind me, Ed’s answering laugh cutting off when I slam the door closed. Inhaling deeply, I force myself to let go of the regret clinging to me like a veil and make my way towards the elevator. Ingrid briefly looks up when I pass but instantly goes back to her work, and that's precisely why I hired the woman. Best damn employee PRI has had in its employment.
The rest of the afternoon goes quickly, and before I know it, I'm entering another elevator, this one to my penthouse on the twenty-third floor. The day went relatively quickly, from meetings with prospective investors to a quiet lunch in my favorite little hole in the wall bakery. What I certainly don't want to see when the doors slide open is the female perched against the wall outside my door.
“Sierra, what are you doing here?” My words and the anger quickly rising, don't phase her. She pushes off the wall, her hips rolling seductively with her approach. The blood-red nail that lands on my collar is like a snake, trailing across my body in search of prey. “I told you not to come here again,” brushing past her, I shiver in disgust. So beautiful, but so deadly.
“We both know you don't mean that,” Sierra purrs, her lips pouting in a way that would have had me hard before. Not even trying to close the door in her face, I’ve certainly tried that before, I leave it open so she can say what she wants and get out.
“What do you want?” I demand, pulling my tie loose to hang around my neck before turning to face her.
“We both know the answer to that,” not bothering to look at me, she kicks off her heels and tosses her coat on one of the kitchen barstools. “I want you.”
“You can't have me.” It’s as simple as that. Sierra was beautiful and exotic, a rare beauty that I had to have. That was before I found out that she was married to one of my own employees. The best friend of the very woman I can't seem to get out of my head. My only saving grace, or so I’ve thought of it, was that I never cheated on anyone before. That includes helping someone else cheat.
Lying in bed after fucking for what felt like hours, I was pretty goddamn surprised to see Mia’s face pop up on Sierra’s phone. Even more surprised when Sierra tried to brush it off as, ‘Oh, it's only my wife.’
I've never been up and out of bed so quickly. Ever since then, she just can’t seem to get it through her thick fucking skull that it was a mistake, she was a mistake. Of course, I can’t ban her from PRI because that would just make matters more complicated. Not to mention, she's sleeping with the head of HR too. I can only imagine the shitstorm that would cause. No more afternoon delight makes Nick a dull boy.
“Why are you still being difficult?”
“Why’re you still cheating on Mia? Why are you such a fucking slut?”
The crack of her palm against my cheek is nothing in comparison to the victory that rushes through me. Sierra is the master of not showing emotion, a brick wall if you will. Seeing her angry shows me that she's not such a cold-hearted bitch and that I’ve found a particular sore spot. So, of course, I need to prod it a bit.
“Ouch,” I continue, grinning evilly. “Did I hit a sore spot? Was it that Mia deserves better than you? Or that I'm surprised you haven't gotten chlamydia yet?”
“Shut your fucking mouth,” Sierra growls, her perfectly straight teeth barred with her anger. “You're just as guilty as I am.”
That's the truth, and it stings just as much as it did the first day. I may claim ignorance, but it still doesn't negate the fact that I helped her cheat on Mia. The thought makes me deflate, a wash of exhaustion running over me.
Taking off my suit jacket, I toss it over the back of the couch, “Be gone when I get out, or I'm calling the cops, and I will press for a restraining order this time.”
Chapter 8
First Day Jitters
Jenny
“Baby girl, are you ready to go?” I call to Eva, leaning around the bathroom door to make sure she actually hears me. When she doesn't, I let out a sigh of frustration. I’ve already had to corral her back into her room several times to get ready for daycare. “Eva! You better be getting ready.”
“Oh yeah,” her little voice reaches me, followed by the shuffle of movement from the direction of her bedroom. Trying to keep my annoyance at bay, I focus back on my reflection in the mirror and the minimal makeup I’m applying for my first day with PRI. I was honestly quite surprised when the daycare supervisor messaged me back yesterday to let me know that they would be more than happy to take Eva on four days earlier than expected. I wasn't surprised when she said it would be charged at a drop-off rate, which was an extra fifteen dollars a day, but given the money I have saved up, and the excellent salary I’m about to receive, I don't think it'll hurt too much. If so, I'll just have to be careful with excess spending.
Yesterday evening when I called Daniel to inform him of my availability, I was caught off guard by a female voice answering the phone instead.
“Hello?” Her voice was smooth as silk but with a deep, seductive vibrancy that made me question if I dialed the right number, to begin with. “Hello?” She said again, this time with a voice full of irritation.
“Oh, um, hello!” I spoke a little too loud, sounding about as uncomfortable and unsure as I was feeling. “I was calling to speak to Mr. Price.”
“He’s currently...indisposed at the moment. Can I take a message?” Her pause is pretty apparent and made me rethink the gay suspicion from earlier.
“Yes, if you could tell him that Ms. Ray is happy to accept his offer and that I will be in the office tomorrow at nine a.m.”
“I'll let him know,” the woman responds shortly, the line ending with a definitive click.
Shaking myself from the unusual phone call, I brush on a light blush on the apples of my cheeks, turning my head back and forth to make sure it's even. My hair is still in a braid from the night before, so I'm able to quickly unwrap it and brush the locks out until they rest on my shoulders in loose curls. Most people spend the time to curl their hair with an iron, or even curlers, but I always found that it was easier to simply shower
and toss it in a braid and the next day, voila! Curls!
The pattering of feet up the hall informs me of Eva’s arrival. When she rounds the corner, it’s to find her in a pair of shark rain boots, neon green pants, and a pink shirt with her favorite paw patrol pup on the front. “Mom, I want to wear Marshall today.”
“That’s fine baby, come here and let me brush your hair.” My words cause her face to scrunch up in distaste, but she turns away from me so I can go to work on the rat’s nest that's taken root in her thick brown hair.
“Ow, ow, ow,” she mutters with each pass of the brush through her locks.
“I know, I'm sorry. It’s so tangled!”
“You're hurting me!” She usually lets me braid her hair before going to bed so we can avoid this, but by the time she was able to crawl into bed, she was out like a light.
“I shouldn't have let you go to bed with wet hair and not let me braid it.”
Eventually, I'm able to untangle the rest of her hair and place a pretty orange bow right up front so that everyone in her daycare will be able to see her pretty new bow.
“Do you think my new friends will like it?” Her tiny hand reaches up to pat the pretty ribbon that she was so excited to bring home. The insecurity and worry on her face make my heart clench.
“I think everyone is going to love it,” crouching down in front of her, I smooth her bangs back so I can cradle her face in my hands. “Everyone is going to love you, okay? You are strong, kind, and giving. You will make so many amazing friends, I know it. And if you want me to, mommy only works a little bit away so I can come and see you.”
“You will?”
“You bet I will! Just tell Miss Karen, and she will call me, okay?”