Sawyer lets out a nervous chuckle and runs his hand over his gelled spikes. “I’ll call Surrender later. Sorry about that, Maya. Long story.” He takes a seat next to me. “Now, let’s get your interview started. Ethan’s told us great things about you. He doesn’t give his recommendation easily, either.”
The interview goes well. There’s an amiable chemistry between me and these two men that makes us talk easily, as if we’ve known each other for years. I sense we’re wrapping things up when Sawyer looks at Isaiah and an unspoken agreement seems to pass between them.
“Maya, would you give us a few minutes alone?” Isaiah says, and I excuse myself, leaving the room so they can discuss my fate. Sawyer has one of their housekeepers, Sadie, show me to a great room, where I wait and try not to bite my fingernails to stubs.
Ten minutes later, the two men enter the room and approach the plush leather couch I sit on. One takes a seat in a chair opposite me. The other sits beside me.
“Maya, we think you’ll make the perfect nanny,” Sawyer says. “How’d you like to start this weekend?”
“I’d love to,” I say, refraining from jumping into my new bosses’ arms and hugging them both. My anxiety turns to joy as they give me more details on the job. I’ll meet the children when I return Friday evening.
***
“I got a new job!” I shout after I enter my brother and Patty’s apartment.
“What? You don’t say hello anymore?” Patty grins as she waddles out of the bedroom. She’s very pregnant at six months along. She hugs me before we sit on the couch.
My brother comes out of the kitchen looking worried. “What about school, and the daycare?”
“Don’t worry.” I give his shoulder a reassuring squeeze as he sits in the chair near us. “This job is nights, so it won’t screw up my classes at all.”
“What about all your projects? You get a shitload of homework in your courses.”
“My employers are great. Please, don’t worry. I’ll get everything done. I had to give notice at the daycare, though.” I give a little pout at this. “I’m going to miss working with Ethan, but I’ll still see him in our classes together.”
My brother still doesn’t look convinced, and when I turn to Patty she appears concerned too.
“Look, both of you, please just trust me,” I say to them. “I know what I’m doing and the pay is fabulous. I’ll be able to help you two out with the new baby coming.”
Josh gurgles and gives a little shout in his playpen and Patty goes to pick him up. As she does, she says, “We’re happy for you, Maya, really. We just don’t want you to put your life on hold for us.”
I wave her off. “Nonsense, sis. This job is a great opportunity for me. Oh, one thing, though. I won’t be able to move in with you two here. I’ll be living with my new bosses. The job’s a live-in nanny type deal.”
“Who are you working for?” Xander asks.
I give him a wide smile. “None other than Isaiah Jackson, the reclusive tech billionaire.”
“Ohhhhh.” Patty waves a hand while she balances Josh on one hip. “Look at you. Moving up in the world.”
“And I’m taking you all with me.” I plant a big kiss on each of their cheeks. “How you feeling today, Xander?”
He gives a small smile. “I’m doing okay. No more attacks. The pain in my joints and stomach aren’t so bad this week.”
We talk for a while longer, I play with Josh for a while, and then we say goodbye. Butterflies flutter around my stomach as I leave the apartment and think about the prime job I’ve landed. Maybe things are really looking up for me and my family. I can’t wait for the weekend.
***
I drive back out to the Jackson estate on Friday, feeling like a kid on my way to Disneyland. The wage I discussed with Isaiah and Sawyer is more than reasonable, and it will be an immense help when it comes to paying Xander’s medical fees, helping out with Josh’s care, and with the new baby’s needs.
When I ring the doorbell this time, Sadie answers with a smile and a feather duster. She takes me upstairs to one of the rooms where the children are taught their lessons. I learned on my last visit that Sawyer teaches them in the day—math and science and physical fitness. I’ll be taking the afternoon classes, schooling them in English, history, and world cultural affairs. The men also make sure the children socialize with others their age, and this is something I’ll also be expected to partake in with the family from time to time.
Sawyer comes in the room, looking devastatingly handsome and fresh from the shower. He holds out his hand and gives mine a firm shake. Then he plants a tiny kiss on my cheek. “Maya, great to see you. Let me take you to meet our kids.”
He leads me down the hall of this wing to a large room with double doors. Inside I find a playroom any child would envy. There are colorful, oversized blocks stacked high against one wall. I see what looks to be a tiny antique table with a tea set and dolls gathered around. There are toys of every shape, sort, and variety, plus micro-sized furniture. In one corner, they even have a ball room, like you’d see at Chuck E. Cheese. Giggles and the rustle of plastic balls drift out of this area.
“Marta and Jaden, come meet your new nanny.”
The giggling stops as does the rustling of balls, then there’s a flurry of sound from the room just before two tiny heads poke up and peer out at me from a small window in the enclosure. A small girl with sandy brown hair and blue eyes just like Isaiah’s is first to emerge. She is followed by a taller boy who looks to be about twelve. He wears a cheeky sideways smile, and there’s a hot pink streak running down the center of his kinky black hair.
He rushes up to me. “Hi! Wanna come in the ball room with us? Marta hid one of her toys in there and we’re trying to find it. Think it’s a pink pony or something.”
Sawyer chuckles then puts a hand around the kids’ shoulders as he introduces them. “This is Jaden. Jaden, this is Maya. As you probably already guessed, Jaden likes to talk your ear off.”
They boy’s smirk grows wider, and while he’s chattier than Isaiah I can see a lot of the more intimidating man in this one.
“And this is Marta.” The shy little girl barely looks up at me. She just gives a small wave with short, chubby fingers then buries her face in Sawyer’s pant leg. “Marta likes to play with her tea set and she loves SpongeBob SquarePants. Marta, why don’t you show Maya your tea set and dolls?”
The little girl shakes her head furiously, takes a cautious glance at me, and then runs back inside the ball room.
Jaden gives a trademark big brother sigh and shakes his head. “I’ll go get her. She’s being weird today.” Before he takes off he flashes me another smile. “Nice meeting you, Maya!”
Then the two disappear beneath the colorful balls once more. I share a laugh with Sawyer at their childhood joy as he leads me out of the room.
“Be patient with Marta,” he tells me as we walk down the hall toward another destination. “She’s a sweet child, but after Rachel died…” Pain pinches his face into a frown for a brief moment and compassion sparks through my heart for him. “She became withdrawn. She’s making great progress thanks to her therapist, but meeting new people is still tough for her.”
“No problem,” I say, wanting to reassure him. “She is a beautiful little girl. And that Jaden’s a real charmer.”
He breaks into a wide smile. “Oh, he certainly is. You might not know it from just meeting Isaiah, but he takes after him. When that man wants something, he turns the charisma all the way up and there’s no denying him.”
“I could see it.”
Sawyer next leads me into a smaller room that is obviously the bedroom of a teenager. I can see the silhouette of a posing form through layered sheers that adorn a floor to ceiling window.
“She’s out on the balcony,” Sawyer says, and he gestures for me to follow.
We walk through the lacy sheers and find a young, lithe girl with caramel skin that matches her eyes. She’s in a yo
ga pose and she looks like a graceful swan as she holds the position. Then she notices us and those eyes go wide.
“Shit, you scared the crap outta me!” She loses the pose and clutches a hand to her chest.
“Shanae, don’t swear,” Sawyer admonishes. “Sorry we startled you. Why weren’t you in the playroom? I told you Maya was starting today.”
Like a typical teenager, she shrugs as she pads across the long, wide balcony. She joins us at a table set there, beneath a large umbrella.
“Sorry,” she says. “I forgot.”
She gives me a wary up and down perusal that makes me think of Isaiah’s initial assessment of me. Then she plonks down in a chair opposite me. “Hey, I’m Shanae. The troublemaker of the family.”
I grin. “I thought that was Jaden?”
This breaks the ice between us, making her laugh. “Naw, he’s just our resident clown. Nice to meet you, Maya. Sorry I wasn’t around earlier.”
The girl’s softening to me already. I take this as a good sign. Then I ask her about some of the current teenage trends, seeing what she’s in to. Good thing I did some research via Google before I came here. At twenty-two, you wouldn’t think I’d be so out of the loop on what teenagers like. But working my butt off in college and helping my brother and sister-in-law have made me fall behind what’s hot in the mainstream. I’ve only got so many brain cells to stretch so far, after all.
After we leave, Sawyer gives me a pleased grin. “That went relatively well, I’d say.”
“Definitely.”
“Now, let’s go get your things in from your car, and I’ll show you to your new room.”
I wonder, as we walk down to my beat up Corolla, where Isaiah is. But I don’t ask. I figure a good employee minds her business. Instead I chat amicably with Sawyer as we grab my few bags. He’s definitely the socially engaging one of the two men, and I find it easy to be comfortable around him. In a matter of hours it feels like I’ve known him my whole life.
I almost gasp when he shows me my room. It’s a lavish affair, with a four poster canopy bed draped in crème sheers and piled high with satin pillows and an embroidered quilt I’m afraid to touch. A mahogany vanity with an oval mirror sits near one window, complete with a chair that looks antique and has an embroidered seat. My dresser and armoire match it perfectly, and the walk in closet he shows me is almost as big as Xander and Patty’s living room.
“So you think you’ll be happy in here, Maya?” Sawyer asks.
“Deliriously.” I beam.
***
“Okay, Shanae, what was the first rebellion led by Louis Riel called?”
The girl plays with her bottom lip as she screws up her face and thinks. Jaden twitches in his seat, obviously anxious to provide the answer for her. But he keeps quiet and lets his sister answer. Over the last few days spent teaching and spending time with the children, I find they have impeccable manners. They are a credit to Isaiah and Sawyer’s parenting skills.
Her face brightens and she says, “The Red River Rebellion.”
“Very good.” I give her a wide smile. “And between what years did it occur?”
This time, Jaden can’t help himself. “Between 1869 and 1870.”
Shanae scowls at him. “Hey, Maya asked me. Not you!”
He just shrugs and gives her a cheeky smirk.
“That’s right, Jaden. Wait your turn, please.”
He sulks a bit and murmurs, “Sorry.”
“Okay, class is done for today. Let’s go have some fun.”
The children jump out of their chairs and yell, “Yay!” in unison.
Thomasina, Marta’s black and white long haired cat, strolls in the room. Marta’s been dying to show me the cat up close since yesterday, but the wily and skittish feline has eluded the child’s grasp. She gives a little gasp of glee and runs to me, grabbing my hand.
“Look, Maya! There’s Thomasina. Come see her, please?”
She doesn’t wait for my reply. Instead, she tugs me toward the golden eyed cat, who gives us both a cautious appraisal before twining through the legs of a chair in the room.
“She’s a lovely cat,” I say as we bend down to stroke her. “What made you call her Thomasina?”
“Daddy Isaiah bought me this movie about a very special cat with that name. I loved it, so I wanted to call her that. Cause she’s a special cat, too.”
I scratch between the cat’s ears and it begins to purr loudly. Wistfully, I smile to myself, because I remember the old Disney movie Marta refers to.
Jaden runs past us, pretending to be an airplane, and this startles the calmed feline. Her golden eyes grow wide and she scampers out of the room.
“Thomasina, come back here!” Marta calls after her, then she follows her beloved pet.
I follow after her. The cat takes us on a lively run down the hall, down the main staircase, and then she veers to the left, skittering on the tiles as she runs out of the large foyer and heads for the east wing of the mansion.
I briefly lose sight of the cat and Marta, but as I round the corner and come to another set of narrow stairs, I find Marta staring down and wringing her small hands. Thomasina is at the base of the stairs and her glowing eyes peer up at us.
I put a hand on Marta’s shoulder. “What’s wrong, sweetie? Are those stairs a bit scary? I’ll go down and get her for you.”
Marta’s eyes grow wide and she stops me by tugging on my hand. “No, you can’t go down there. Daddy Isaiah and Daddy Sawyer won’t let us. That’s their special secret place.”
I tilt my head to the side as my curiosity grows. What could Isaiah and Sawyer have down there that would be so off limits to the children? Is it a secret stash of porn, I wonder, and naughty thoughts invade my head that are entirely inappropriate for me to be thinking when I’m still in nanny mode.
“You’ve never been down there?”
Marts shakes her head furiously. “Oh no. Our daddies would ground us forever if we went down there.”
“Well, your daddies didn’t say I couldn’t go down there. I’ll go get Thomasina for you.”
Her little eyes grow even wider with fear. “Be careful. If Daddy Isaiah catches you, he might ground you too.”
The concern wrinkling her innocent face is too cute, but I admit I’m borderline worried as well as intrigued about what waits at the base of this winding staircase.
I make it to the first landing where Thomasina waits, and as I bend to pick up the cat she bounces off around the corner and down to a black door that appears to be metal and has antique hinges. There’s a panel at the top of the door and a slice of light spills out of this.
Marta waits at the top, and I peek around the landing to find she still looks fearful. It’s as if she wants to be as far from this landing as possible. Renewed concern flurries in my lower belly.
“You go on upstairs,” I tell her, giving the girl permission to leave, which I sense she wants. “I’ll bring Thomasina to your room once I catch her.”
“Okay, but be careful when you pick her up. She doesn’t like her belly squished.”
“I’ll be careful, sweetie. I promise.”
And then Marta disappears out of my line of sight, so I continue on my quest to catch the wily feline.
Nearer to the door, I catch voices drifting through the small panel in the metal. Isaiah and Sawyer are inside, but I can’t make out exact words just yet.
“Do you think Surrender is snubbing us?” Isaiah’s words are punctuated by pacing footsteps.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Sawyer tells him. “If Surrender Inc. wants you out, they kick you out. They don’t passive aggressively snub you. You’re being paranoid again, sweetie.”
“It just doesn’t make sense.” Isaiah’s deep baritone rumbles through the small bars across the panel in the door. “Why wouldn’t she want to work with us?”
As I touch the door, Sawyer’s frustrated sigh drifts through. “They didn’t say she didn’t want to work with us. She’s ret
iring from Surrender altogether. She and Dom Xavier are eloping.”
As I dare a peek inside the room, Isaiah huffs. “Well why did she agree to the interview then?”
“She was keeping up a ruse,” Sawyer tells him. “She and Xavier didn’t want anyone to know. Dmitri only found out after he had a PI track them down.”
“Silly dramatics if you ask me,” Isaiah growls.
And when I focus on what the two are doing inside this forbidden room, I let out a loud gasp. Isaiah is clad in tight leather pants, his brown, hairless chest bare and rippling with muscle. He stalks back and forth in front of Sawyer, who is bound to a cross in some quasi-crucifixion pose. He’s naked, and some strange apparatus is twined around his cock, which juts up in a rock hard erection.
My gasp gives me away, and both men look toward the hole in the door. Isaiah glowers.
“Maya? What’re you doing down here?”
Thomasina lets out a meow and bolts back up the stairs, abandoning me as Isaiah stomps toward the door. My gut flip flops between anxiety and pure fear. My legs grow weak and I edge backward toward the stairs.
“Stay right there,” he demands, and I stop, though my brain screams RUN!
“Isaiah, leave her alone,” Sawyer calls after him. “It’s our fault. We should’ve warned her about coming down here.”
Isaiah doesn’t listen. He opens the door and stalks closer, stopping in front of me so I’m pinned against the wall. His male heat hits me in a powerful wave and I struggle to keep my breathing regular.
“How much did you hear, hmmm?” He props one arm on the wall and leans over me. A mixture of sweat and spicy cologne tease my nostrils, making warmth spread out from my belly and move lower.
“I… Not much.” I look into his crystalline eyes and feel I’m being swallowed. “Thomasina ran down here. I was just getting her for Marta.”
He twines a brunette strand that’s fallen from my high ponytail between his fingers. His touch skims over my shoulder when he does so, and I stifle a gasp as shockwaves of chemistry pass between us.
“Do you know what we’re doing in there?” He nods back to where a bound Sawyer watches us.
BDSM Mega Boxed Set Page 82