by Sierra Rose
“Oh,” she said.
“What?”
“I thought it was business, but I guess it was pleasure.”
“Yes, I was on a date.”
“Oh,” she said again, trying to hide her foolish disappointment. Of course a man who looked like that who had had his own compound and a factory in Indonesia would have a date. Why would she have thought he was single? Because he was waiting for a babbling maid from Arkansas to show up with a high school diploma and a pair of flip flops and clean his sinks? It was stupid.
“She’s a lucky woman,” Bella said.
“She won’t be for long if she continues to pout through dinner,” he said. “I have very little leisure time, and I don’t choose to spend it with mercurial women.”
“Mercurial?”
“Moody. Up and down. A pain in the ass, to put it in the vernacular.”
“Yes. I know people like that. Lots of them.”
“So do I. It doesn’t seem to be a problem that confines itself to one region of the country. They’re everywhere.”
“I’m sorry your girlfriend’s a pain in the ass,” she said.
“I’m sorry, too. Especially since I had a better time eating cake with my employee than I did feasting on salmon with an heiress.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment,” Bella said. She playfully held her nightshirt on either side and bobbed a curtsey. She realized too late that her nightshirt was already halfway up her thighs, so it went up way too high when she did that. Flustered, she told him good night and ran out.
Chapter 6
Harvey was a gentleman and a professional. He would never take advantage of his employees. He would never harass the staff. Bella almost undid his iron control when she curtsied to him and innocently slid the hem of her t-shirt up to the tops of her smooth, strong thighs. In the breathless moment between heartbeats, he had been ready to drop to his knees before her, put his mouth to that soft flesh. He could feel the heat coming off of her body, both her embarrassment and her arousal. It had been a heady cocktail of pheromones drifting in the still air between them.
He could have had her so easily, he knew. But he held himself back in an attempt to be honorable, to act like a decent person. Plenty of women who worked for him had propositioned him, had offered him anything he wanted with no strings attached. And he used to jump at the offer. But he had turned over a new leaf. At least he was trying. He would not sleep with the female staff under any circumstances. He’d been down that road before and it didn’t end well for him. Especially after an affair with a maid that ended in complete disaster. The wounds from that relationship never stopped bleeding. Jenny Harrison was paid by his father to do something very hurtful behind his back that he’d never forget. It still tormented him to this very day. No matter how much he tried to forget about it, he knew the scars would never heal.
He enjoyed dating women, and it was a pleasant distraction. It took his mind off all the pain he felt, off the resentment he felt toward his parents and brother, off the stress of work. So he’d continue to have fun and be carefree, but his office staff and his staff here at the house were off limits. No dating employees. He had to abide by that rule.
He had been following the rules. It didn’t bear thinking about. Until now, until pale freckled thighs showed beneath her t-shirt and left him wanting her, longing to taste her, to open her body to every kind of pleasure he could give. It was insanity. She was the self-proclaimed girl who cleaned the toilets and sinks in his multi-million dollar mansion. The only pleasures he could provide ethically involved a good health plan with dental and use of the employee pool. Nothing personal, nothing intimate.
As soon as she left, he charged up to the library and poured himself a double. His hand shook, and he sloshed some of the Scotch onto the rug. He cursed, then thought she would probably have to clean it up. Should he call her? Did this constitute a cleaning emergency? He entertained the thought for a moment. Bella would rush in, barefoot and in nothing but her t-shirt, ready to serve. Ready to clean up the mess he made because he was so distracted by what was at the juncture of her smooth thighs that he couldn’t pour a damned drink reliably. He would tell her so, in the rawest of terms, and she would flush and stammer, and then take a few steps toward him, tentative but drawn magnetically closer.
She would lean down to see where the amber liquid had dissolved into the Turkish carpet, and he would join her on the floor. He would overwhelm her, kissing her mouth, his hand on the lush curve of her bottom as he reached under the hem of her shirt.
Soon she would be on her back, all eagerness for his touch, and he would shock her, would make her scream rise high and shrill to the ceiling as he put his mouth on her, lapping her with his tongue. A possessive thrill moved in his blood as he thought of it. The mere idea of going down on the new maid was enough to make his trousers uncomfortably tight and his hands shaky. He wanted her. It was obvious that she wanted him. The only question that remained was whether he would allow himself to have her.
That night a few of his buddies came over for a cookout. One brought over his four young children, ages five, six, eight, and nine. Bella had volunteered to watch them so the guys could hang out. She played with them in the yard, and he watched her laugh. She had the most adorable laugh. He knew one day she’d make a great mother. She was so sweet, patient, and understanding.
“She’d make a great nanny if you ever knock one of your conquests up,” his friend, Eric said.
Harvey shook his head. “Very funny. But yeah, she’d make an excellent nanny.”
“I’m not getting along with my current nanny. Bella would be perfect. Look how great she gets along with my kids. They absolutely love her!”
Harvey looked at him. “Bella works for me, and only me.”
“I just might steal her away if I offer twice the salary you do.”
They all laughed.
“I’m going to offer her and the kids some bottled waters,” Mel said.
Harvey patted his shoulder. “I got this. You’re my guest. So relax, drink up. I got this.”
He walked over to Bella, and she grinned widely.
“Want to help us catch some fireflies?” one of the children asked.
He grinned. “I’d love to.”
The boy pointed to the clear jars with pierced lids so the bugs could breathe. “But we have to let them go when we’re done.”
“Catching fireflies is a fun summer activity.” Bella handed him a jar. When her fingers brushed against his, he felt his stomach flutter as electricity raced through him. Their eyes locked, and she shot him a radiant smile.
“How long can they live in the jar?” Harvey asked.
“A day or two,” Bella said. “But we’ll let them go tonight.”
They ran around and tried to catch the amazing bugs that lit up the dark sky.
The shrill sounds of the cicadas pierced the air while twinkling lightning bugs floated aimlessly around them as the children laughed.
Intermittent flashes in patterns blinked all around them. There were literally hundreds of them everywhere.
Harvey gently caught a firefly as it flew past him.
“It’s pretty cool to watch the fireflies dance? Isn’t it Harvey?” asked little Eddie.
“Yes. I’m having a blast,” he laughed.
“Yeah, it’s a dazzling light show. Fireflies put on a show like anywhere else,” Bella said as she caught one.
They continued catching the flying critters. Harvey laughed and played with the kids, and they all had a riot. He couldn’t remember having this much fun since he was a kid.
When Eddie tripped, Bella went to catch him; she fell into Harvey. All three of them crashed to the ground in laughter.
“Eddie had a soft landing,” Bella said with a chuckle.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I didn’t mean to fall on you.”
“It’s okay.” Bella looked up at Harvey. “And I didn’t mean to fall into you. So sorry.”
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He laughed, and she smiled while Eddie roared in laughter. The other kids came over and playfully tackled them. He peeked over at Bella and saw her golden hair draped over her face. She moved it from her eyes with a chuckle. Her eyes were beautiful and sparkled in the moonlight as he captured her gaze with his.
The kids started a grass fight. Grass flew everywhere as Bella ducked for cover behind him. Bella couldn’t stop laughing and neither could he. It was a carefree moment. And for just one tiny second, Harvey wondered if this is what it would be like to have a family. It was a wonderful feeling.
Harvey reached over and brushed some grass from her face. Her eyes sparkled in joy. She was absolutely adorable.
He got up and swung the kids around. Bella laughed, and he met her gaze. “Want me to spin you around too?”
Her face lit up as she laughed some more. “No, no, no.”
“Yes!” the kids shouted.
“You’re all ganging up on me!” she retorted with a grin.
“Get her!” the kids shouted.
As Bella ran off, they playfully chased her. When their father called the kids over for ice cream, they all took off.
Bella crashed onto the ground to catch her breath. Harvey tumbled down next to her on the grass.
“You’re so good with the kids,” she said.
“I love kids.”
“I can see that. Do you ever want any of your own?”
“Not right now. But I do eventually.”
She turned her head toward him. “You’ll be a great dad.”
Her lips were so close that he knew he could kiss her. He held back.
“And you’ll be a great mother,” he said.
“Why thank you.”
He helped her up and she shot him that alluring, flirty smile.
“Thanks, boss.”
Boss. That’s right. She’s your employee. So stop this right now!
But he couldn’t deny the sizzling connection between them. Their eyes locked. He knew she was attracted to him. He could tell by the seductive way she looked at him. She wanted him without a doubt, as much as he wanted her. This woman had totally captured his attention. He was intrigued by this gorgeous beauty and wanted to know more about her.
“Look how bright the stars are,” she said.
He stared up at the twinkling lights high in the night sky.
Bella looked up and admired the stars. “I love looking at the constellations.” She pointed. “Oh, look. There’s The Big Dipper.”
“Where?”
“It’s shaped like a bowl and a handle. There are three stars in the Big Dipper’s handle organized in a line. There are four stars that make up the Big Dipper’s bowl, like an irregular square. The Big Dipper looks like a kite, with the string being the handle and the bowl being the kite itself.”
“I think I see it.”
“Some Native Americans saw the bowl of the Big Dipper as a bear. The stars of the handle were three warriors chasing it.”
“Really. Oh! I see it!”
It was amazing. Harvey had just spotted his very first consolation with his bare eyes, without using a telescope.
“And if we can see this, then we can see the North Star. That’s one of the brightest stars to spot.” Squinting, she glanced up. “I found it. Now the North Star is the first star in the handle of the Little Dipper. The Little Dipper is not as bright as the Big Dipper. It has a handle made up of three stars that connect to a four-star bowl.”
“I see it,” he said. “It’s not as bright. More faint. But I can see it.”
She grinned as he smiled.
Bella was smart, beautiful, and interesting. He could spend hours here listening to her talk about stars. He had a better time with her tonight than any dates he’d had in a very long time.
“Harvey,” Darrin called. “C’mon. Ice cream!”
He didn’t give a damn about the ice cream. All he cared about was getting to know this wonderful woman in front of him.
Bella smiled. “Come on. They’re calling us.”
He started to follow her. “Thank you for a wonderful evening. You made me stop and enjoy something I wouldn’t ordinarily do.”
“Sometimes we get so busy that we forget the wonderful little things in life. You spend countless hours setting goals, planning, working like a perfectly oiled machine. When was the last time you went walked barefoot in the sand, took a vacation, or even took a nap?”
“I get it. I work too much. I’m missing out on so much. But I’ve got too many deadlines. I can’t stop.”
She smiled. “Yes, you can. I’m telling you to stop and smell the damn roses! The purpose of life is to live it, to enjoy it. You are probably the kind of guy who goes to the ski slopes and thinks about nothing but the work at the office.”
He grinned. “But what can I say? I’m a perfectionist like my father.”
“Like the ancient philosopher, Confucius wrote: “Better to be a diamond with a flaw than a pebble without.”
“Duly noted. And you’ve really given me something to think about.”
“You can keep working. But just make some time for yourself. Trust me; you’ll be much happier this way.”
Eddie came over and handed them each a bowl of ice cream. As Bella went to sit down, he pondered. She made a great point. He didn’t want his life to pass him by and have regrets on his deathbed. No other woman had ever made him think about that. He’d never done the little things, like catching fireflies on a hot summer night. Usually, dates consisted of a fancy dinner, wine, and a show. Bella was showing him a completely different look at life. He was seeing how magical it could be through her eyes.
Chapter 7
Bella settled into her job over the next few weeks and found that she had virtually no use for her paycheck apart from buying a new swimsuit and some snacks from the grocery store. She called Madison to offer her money to help with cooking school, but her sister declined, insisting that Bella save the money for college. In a short period, she had more money in the bank than she’d ever known. She got to know Mariel, the stablehand, pretty well and went out one night with her and Greta for a beer.
The women giggled into their Coronas as Mariel arm-wrestled a guy for the next round. She won and he actually paid up. It was a wonderful night, and she, and Greta, and Marion were becoming fast friends. Going out and having a blast was exactly what she needed. She even got a few phone numbers. She met a blond named Ed, a dark haired guy named Paul, and a hot redhead named Frank. All of them were pretty wasted, so she didn’t plan on calling them back.
Bella was an early riser, usually the first of the staff in the main house besides the morning cook. It had fallen naturally to her to sneak any female overnight guests out the back way. She knew now how to send for a car, to offer the girl a cup of coffee or juice to take with her, and be friendly but brisk, hustling the visitor out before anyone could get a glimpse of her. Since Harvey and his girlfriend broke up, Harvey had been drinking a lot and sleeping around. It was seldom the same girl twice.
In only a few weeks, she’d ushered no fewer than seven girls out the back door, leading them to the discreet town car parked by the stables. Only one of them had cried. Several had tried to get Bella to pass on a message or a note to Harvey, and she always nodded as if she totally understood and would do everything possible for them. She’d hand the notes to Harvey, but she was sure he had never called the women again. What on earth did they think they were doing? Going home with a notorious (she’d seen Google results on him now) playboy billionaire wasn’t the road to a lasting romance.
She initially had a crush on Harvey. But this wasn’t the kind of man she wanted in her life. She knew he’d only break her heart. So she went out of her way to keep everything platonic.
Though he never mentioned the morning getaway service for his girlfriends, Bella was positive he knew she was taking care of it. In fact, once or twice, he’d given her what seemed a grateful or conspiratorial nod as he headed
out for a morning swim. She liked to watch him swim (from behind the curtains) while she drank her juice. The long, smooth strokes of his muscled arms, the twist and flip of his body underwater as he changed direction pushing powerfully off the side for another lap always left her dry mouthed and distracted all day.
In fact, she was thinking about Harvey in his black bathing suit, towel over his shoulders, blond hair dripping beads of shimmering water down the line of his square jaw as she worked. She was using cotton swabs dipped in vinegar to clean the tracks on the sliding door when her phone beeped. She finished up the dusty track, discarded the swab, then checked the alert. Marnie and her sister Jade had just checked in on Facebook at a hotel in Phoenix. Bella had barely seen Marnie since they were in school together but they used to play volleyball on the same team, and it would be so fun to see those girls. She tapped out a message to the sisters asking if they’d like to meet up that night since she was living outside Phoenix. Excited, she continued her work, waiting for a response. She didn’t hear Harvey enter the room until he spoke.
“Hunting for lemon cake crumbs down there?” he teased.
“Not at all. I’m cleaning,” she said.
“You’re scrubbing at that like it’s offended you personally.”
“It has. There was a trail of dust and dead bug parts in this track, and it has no business in your home.”
“I salute you. My home is clean and bug-free thanks to you and your colleagues.”
“Yes, without us you’d be overrun with the crispy legs and wings of dead insects.”
“That’s Kafka-esque and disturbing,” he said. She looked at him, feeling uncomfortable that, for all the three semesters of college, she didn’t get what he was talking about. She felt at a disadvantage with Harvey. He was too gorgeous and too smart.
She went and got the newspaper. Her jaw dropped when she saw a picture of Harvey on the front page kissing a married woman. She was thankful she never got involved with him. He was a sweet guy. They joked and laughed and made lots of small talk. But Harvey was good as a boss and friend. Nothing more. She knew that now.