Ryan (Members From Money Book 16)

by Katie Dowe

  “Thanks.” Then Abi glanced at Judy and her smile faded away. She bit her lip. “Thanks for coming.”

  “Not a problem at all.” Amanda looked over at Judy, who had gone behind her desk. “What’s going on, Judy?”

  “Abi’s in trouble.”

  “What?” Amanda looked from the headmistress to Abi and back again. “What’s she done?”

  “It’s her grades. They’re bad.” Judy grimaced as she opened the file and looked over the report cards nestled inside. “And I mean she’s almost failing every class right now.”

  Amanda stared. That didn’t seem to add up to the girl she saw in class. Abi was always paying attention, would always put her hand up during discussions. And she always kept her head down while others would be texting or staring into space.

  “She’s one of the hardest workers in class. How is that possible?”

  “Her homework has been coming back incomplete, badly done or not at all.” Judy sat. She didn’t not look happy at all and it took a lot to upset the older woman. “There are also several unexplained absences.”

  “I’ll give you three guesses.” Abi said ruefully.

  Amanda should have known. She had had a feeling Georgina would keep Abi home for whatever reason but hadn’t realized she would go as far as to jeopardize her education. Whenever she saw Abi in class, she was always working. So to hear that she didn’t do her homework at all was a surprise.

  Amanda wondered what else was going on here.

  “Abi’s one step away from being unable to graduate and failing completely. I’ve tried contacting her mother before but she just ignores our calls.” Judy glanced at Abi. “I was going to call Abi’s brother but Abi said she wanted you.”

  “Why?” Amanda frowned at Abi. “Your brother won’t be mad. He knows why.”

  But Abi shook her head.

  “You’re here because I wanted to ask a favor.”

  “Of course. Name the favor.”

  Abi hesitated. She glanced at Judy, who nodded. Then she took a deep breath.

  “I want you to be my tutor. I desperately need one. Mrs Lawton says I might have a learning disability as well and that certainly qualifies me for some help. But Mom…” Her mouth twisted angrily. “She won’t let me get the help I need and it’s all free. I can’t pay you but I can tell Danny.” She went on hurriedly. “He’ll pay you.”

  Amanda was still reeling from the news. She wanted Amanda to be her tutor? Amanda was more stunned that Abi might have a learning disability. It would certainly explain some things if Abi was struggling. And she was the one reaching out for help, not her mother.

  Amanda could feel the anger growing towards the woman. Georgina Chao shouldn’t deserve the title of mother if she couldn’t be bothered to help out with her own child’s education.

  “I hear you want to be a professional tutor, Amanda.” Judy added, leaning forward in her chair. “Fancy getting started now? I’ll even let you have one-on-one sessions here so Abi can catch up. There’s enough time to turn this around if we knuckle down.”

  Amanda was still reeling. This was something she had wanted to be for a long time but had accepted the fact it might not happen. She stared at Abi.

  “You really want me to be your tutor?”

  “Please. I want to do something with my life and that’s not to be Mom’s slave. That’s all she’s setting me up to me.”

  The anger Amanda had been holding on to was rapidly building. But she shoved it down. It wasn’t going to help Abi right now to blow up about her mother’s disgusting behavior.

  She focused on Abi, who was looking at her expectantly. The girl needed her and she wasn’t afraid to admit it. She had a soft spot for her and this wasn’t something Amanda was going to ignore. She smiled.

  “Of course I’ll help. But you must tell Danny first.”

  Abi’s relief made her sag against Amanda as she hugged the other woman.

  “Thank you.”

  *****

  Danny was in a good mood. He had been with a client all day but it was looking like they were coming to a close. The client was friendly and easy-going and was more than happy to have Danny’s services. They had spent a lot of the morning, their lunch date and the afternoon going over the finer details. By the end of the lunch Danny knew he had his man.

  All that was needed was a signature on the contract. Which he was about to get.

  If his cell phone wouldn’t keep ringing itself long enough to go to voicemail. Danny had been trying to ignore it for the past ten minutes, even stopping the call with the press of the hang-up button. But whoever was calling him wouldn’t let up.

  Although Danny had a feeling he knew who was calling of him. A quick glance at his phone a moment later told him who the twelve missed calls were from. He sighed in frustration and gave his client an embarrassed look.

  “I’m sorry, I’ve got to take this.”

  His expression must have said everything because the client gave him a sympathetic look.

  “Family, eh?” He grunted with a wry smile. “Wish you could choose them.”

  “I know.” Danny stood and moved around his desk. “Sometimes I could handpick a new mom.”

  “I hear you. My wife’s been saying that about my mother-in-law for years.” The client held up the folder in his hands. “You deal with your mother. I’ve got this portfolio to keep me quiet.”

  Wishing all of his clients were as understanding, Danny slipped out into the outer office. One look from his personal assistant told her that her boss needed some moments alone and scampered, signing she was going to get him a coffee. Danny wished she could fetch him some vodka instead.

  His phone started ringing again just as he was finding his mother’s number.

  “What is it, Mom?”

  “Why won’t you answer your phone?”

  “Because I’m in the middle of an important meeting. It’s something called work, Mom.”

  Not that Georgina would know what that meant. She had been a stay-at-home parent as long as Danny could remember. He had no idea what she did with herself all day as she claimed she was always busy. It was mind-boggling.

  “You need to talk to your sister. Right now.”

  “First of all, no, I’m at work. Second, why would I need to do that?”

  “She’s just told me that she’s hired that woman as a tutor and they’re going to bunk her grades up.” Georgina was seething. “I told her there was no way and I’m not paying for a tutor.”

  Danny looked at his phone, wondering if he had heard correctly.

  “What’s wrong with having a tutor? Abi’s been struggling lately and if she wants one she can. It’s good she’s realizing that she needs one.”

  “She doesn’t need a tutor.” Georgina snapped.

  “You would stunt her education, Mom.”

  “I’m not stunting anything. She’s too lazy for a tutor.”

  Danny couldn’t help himself. He burst out laughing.

  “Too lazy for a tutor? That’s a stupid reason for not having one. Just admit you don’t want her to get an education and leave because you don’t want your scapegoat out of reach.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous, Danny. I’m telling you, Abi isn’t having a tutor. And certainly not if that woman is going to be doing it.”

  “What woman? And why do you keep on emphasizing that part?”

  “The gold-digger.” Georgina sneered. “Lucy’s sister.”

  Danny blinked. She was talking about Amanda? She had agreed to tutor Abi? Danny felt his admiration for Amanda go up several notches.

  “What gave you the impression Amanda’s a gold-digger? You’ve only met her once.”

  “Lucy said she’s declared that she wants to marry a rich man so she doesn’t have to work. And she seems to have set her sights on you by getting her claws into Abi. I won’t have it.”

  Danny wondered how he had ended up turning out as he did with a mother like Georgina Chao. It was days like this
he wished his father was still alive.

  “And you believe everything Lucy tells you, do you?”

  “Why wouldn’t I?”

  “Because you two are the same brand of crazy. What you’ve said doesn’t make sense. And have you seen Abi’s report cards lately? She’s nearly failing every class and she knows it. You gave me a tutor when I was struggling and yet you refuse to give her one.”

  “You were struggling.” Georgina protested. “Abi’s just being lazy.”

  “We’ve both got dyslexia, Mom. You call Abi lazy and you’re calling me lazy.”

  “But you’re not lazy, darling. You’ve never been lazy.”

  “I don’t get you. I was tested and it was confirmed I had dyslexia. I got the tutor I needed and my grades went up significantly.” It was actually his father who had pushed for the testing. His father was the one who had noticed something different. But Danny wasn’t going to go into that. “You’ve kept Abi from school because you didn’t feel like doing the housework. You just want a slave and to make sure Abi isn’t able to get a job. You’ve done what you can to stop her from studying so you can have your favorite puppy around to kick.”

  “I don’t do that to my daughter!”

  Danny was amazed he hadn’t lost his temper by now. It was bubbling and ready to explode any second now. His mother was the worst person he had ever met. If it hadn’t been for Abi, he would have cut off contact a long time ago. Thankfully, Abi was now eighteen and once she was out, they didn’t have to see her ever again.

  Danny was looking forward to that.

  “Anyway,” Georgina sniffed haughtily, “She won’t be able to pay for it.”

  Danny didn’t say anything about Georgina not allowing Abi to get a job. The last job Abi had managed to get, Georgina had taken her whole paycheck. That job hadn’t lasted long.

  “I’m going to pay Amanda to tutor my sister. I’ve heard a lot of good things about her and she’ll be the best for the job.”

  It would be good to see her again. Danny had been thinking about Amanda a lot since they had seen each other at the event the week before. Her eyes had sucked him in and they were hard to shake off. Plus, the way she had protected Abi and looked after her endeared him to her. She was fond of Abi and cared about her.

  She was perfect.

  “I forbid to let that woman into my house!” Georgina shouted.

  “Who said she was going to your house? Now, if you’ll excuse me? My client is waiting.”

  Danny hung up. He could hear Georgina screaming at him not to hang up as he did. Suddenly the silence was there and it was welcoming. He closed his eyes for a moment and sighed.

  It was saying something if he welcomed silence after listening to his mother. Never contacting that woman again couldn’t come soon enough.

  *****

  Amanda couldn’t stop herself from staring at she pulled into the driveway going up to Danny’s condo. Well, it must have been a condo at some point. It looked more like a one-story sprawling mansion. Brand new stone, floor-to-ceiling windows and two smart cars in the carport.

  It certainly told her what Danny came from.

  Amanda knew from what Lucy had told her years ago that Danny’s family was old money. More on his father’s side than his mother’s. But Danny had his own successful business, which ranked up his millions to billions. And he had worked hard for it all. He wasn’t the most sociable of people but Amanda could only guess how many public events he could attend before he got fed up with them.

  She had always got the impression Danny liked his privacy and hated cameras in his face.

  Amanda pulled into the carport, aware that her little car looked tiny compared to the BMW and the Mercedes beside her. It was only then she felt like she was out of place. Her clothes, her car, everything. It seemed to remind her that she wasn’t even on the same level as Danny Chao and his family.

  He could ruin her life just by snapping his fingers if he wanted.

  Realizing she was being stupid, Amanda forced the thoughts out of her head and climbed out of the car, adjusting her skirt back down her thighs. It was a nice day and she was wearing a sleeveless yellow sundress with a matching headscarf. It wasn’t overly sexy, more like simple and flattering. The skirt wasn’t too high and it wasn’t too tight.

  Even so, Amanda felt like she was slightly underdressed.

  Then those fears melted away as she walked across the carport and Danny came out of the house. He gave her a big smile and jumped down the steps to meet her. Amanda’s mouth went dry. Holy hell, he was gorgeous. Jeans hugged his legs and the black t-shirt could have been sprayed onto his body. He looked like he had just stepped out of the shower with damp hair and a slight sheen to his skin.

  He could have walked off a modeling catalog and no one would have batted an eyelid.

  “Hey, you made it.”

  Amanda could only smile back as Danny reached her and kissed her cheek in greeting. It was only brief but it was enough for Amanda’s cheek to heat up. She shrugged.

  “Not exactly hard to find up here.”

  Danny chuckled.

  “Come on in.”

  Amanda followed him into the house. She couldn’t help but stare as they went through into the lounge at the back. Everything was state-of-the-art, right at the top end. Beautiful but disgustingly expensive.

  But Amanda’s attention was grabbed by the view from the lounge. Danny had a back yard and a huge pool but it dropped away just beyond his fence to show the city below. Up in the mountains as they were, you could see right across the city. In the late afternoon, there was that slight orange glow as the sun began to think about descending.

  “Wow.” Amanda approached the window in awe. “This is beautiful.”

  “Thanks.” Danny leaned against the window frame and folded his arms. “I like the view.”

  “I don’t blame you.” Amanda smiled, still staring at the scenery. “You’ve picked the perfect place.”

  They weren’t even close enough to touch but Amanda could feel Danny as if he was standing right next to her. She could sense his presence and it brushed over her skin. It was all she could do not to shiver.

  Her body seemed to be ramping up the temperature all of a sudden.

  Chapter 4

  “Abi will be here shortly.” Danny pushed away and sat on the ottoman. “Mom’s being a child and hiding her keys. Abi said it took her half an hour to find them.”

  Amanda couldn’t believe a mother could be so childish. She turned to face him.

  “Why is your mother so mean? She reminds me of the bullies at school.”

  Danny sighed. He waved her over to the couch and Amanda obliged. After a brief hesitation, she kicked off her sandals and brought her feet up underneath her. It was more comfortable and saved her possibly flashing Danny. Even so Danny watched her legs for longer than he should have. Then he tore his eyes away and rubbed his hands over his hair, water spraying across the ground.

  “She only wanted one child and that was me. This pregnancy was a complete accident and a complete surprise. Dad refused to let her get an abortion and made it clear he would divorce her if she did anything to lose the baby.”

  “Sounds a bit harsh.”

  “He’d always wanted more children and he didn’t want to lose a child if they were perfectly healthy. Mom didn’t want to lose the money from Dad’s wealth and his job so she did as she was told. Abi was born and Mom pretty much ignored her. Thankfully, Abi preferred formula to breastfeeding otherwise she would’ve ended up in a worse state. It was Dad and myself who ended up raising Abi.”

  “How old were you?”

  “I was a month off seventeen when Amanda was born.”

  Amanda could sympathize. Any changes at that age would have made anyone struggle, even the most well-adjusted teens. She wondered what Danny had thought about his mother being pregnant while he was in high school.

  “She does everything to stunt Abi’s development.” Danny was s
till ranting. “Won’t help with her homework, won’t let her go to soccer or track and refused to let her go on school trips. If I wasn’t around, Abi would be in a completely different place. Ever since she started school, especially middle school, I’ve been stepping in to take her to activities and get her homework done with her. Hell, I’ve even driven her to prom.”

  Amanda frowned.

  “Hang on, if you helped her with her homework, how did you not know she was failing her classes?”

  Danny looked embarrassed.

  “Things have got very busy lately. And Abi said she had it covered. I kept asking about her grades but Abi kept putting me off until recently.” He looked down at his hands, clasped together with his elbows on his knees. “When we got back from the hospital Abi confessed that her grades were very bad. She told me she had even started weed to block out what was going on and she had been slowly becoming dependent.”

  Amanda wanted to get off the couch and go to him. She wanted to give him a hug and tell him everything would be okay. But she stayed where she was; she didn’t trust herself not to do something stupid.

  “Has she been off marijuana since?” She asked.

  “Absolutely. Hasn’t touched the stuff since and I won’t have drugs like that in my house.”

  That was something, at least. Amanda knew the school did random bag searches and the stench of weed wasn’t exactly hard to miss. Somehow Abi has managed to slip through the cracks but she was, for the moment, clean.

  Then she asked about something that was bothering her.

  “How come Abi hasn’t moved out yet?”

  “Because she’s a minor.” Danny’s jaw tightened. “Mom has everyone believing that she’s the perfect mom and Abi is the problem child. We could try emancipating her but Mom can make anyone believe her façade is the real her. Only Abi and I, so far, have seen that slip. I don’t even know if Dad’s side of the family know about it; she cut us up from all of them years ago. Abi and I agreed one she turns eighteen she can come live with me. I’m closer to school and there’s a job at the bowling alley she wants right around the corner so it would work out.”