I let out a soft and steady exhale while I continue to maintain full eye contact with Rylan underneath the quiet shroud of the star-filled night. There's no doubt in my mind that my heart is foolishly drawn to him for some strange reason, the attraction that I feel toward him growing stronger and heavier with each silent second that passes by between us. But even when I insist and tell myself not to be captivated by the man's natural charm, it's almost impossible for me to listen to my own advice when he's staring so deeply into my eyes with that sensual look in his gaze. He's just so much more dangerous with those strikingly and deadly good looks of his when he's not trying to get an angry rise out of me for the hell of it. Though I almost wish he would put on his obnoxious act for me right now so that I can at least find a reason to hate and dislike him instead of feeling so grossly lovesick over him.
Yet the heavy clash between my conflicting feelings manages to persist until Rylan rouses me out of my troubled state of mind by abruptly putting his hand right up against my face. His hot touch instantly creates a tight knot within my stomach and a burst of heat between my thighs. My heart flutters as I take a shaky breath. The distinct sensation of his hand and fingers rests directly underneath my chin while the tip of his thumb gently glides across my lips.
"I look forward to seeing how much I actually need you," the older man plainly states with a playful smile before he grabs my hand and rises up from his seat.
The comfortable warmth of Rylan's grasp which has tightly wrapped itself around my hand tickles my delicate heart. I can't help but find myself naturally following wherever the warmth of his hand happens to guide me as my legs slowly get up from the bench to stand beside him. But the handsome man slips his arm right around my waist as soon as I stand up and pulls me toward him as if we were truly in fact lovers, the mesmerizing and intimate scent of his masculine musk engulfing me given how close we stand next to one another. Before I can recover from the assertiveness of his action, we begin to move together as one unit back in the direction of the party, the sound of our footsteps melding into one single noise as I shamelessly indulge in the man's pleasantly arousing body odor which constantly taunts and teases my innate desire.
Unfortunately, the moment I watch Rylan move ahead to hold the door open for me so that I can walk back inside first is the same moment when I realize that there's something seriously wrong with me. The unintended joy and unnecessary emotion that he seems to bring to me by simply being by my side is a deadly double-edged knife. From the natural way he kindly treats me like a lady by allowing me to step in through the doorway first to the particular way his hands and his arms feel when they're pressed up against my body -- I just feel an overwhelming urge to monopolize all of the small things that seem to involve him and only him. Just the mere thought of him acting and treating another woman in the same manner fills me with an ugly and disgusting jealousy that I can neither control nor restrain.
I absolutely hate it. I hate feeling this way.
This isn't like me at all to feel so possessive over a man whom I hardly know, but I can't stop these greedy thoughts and ideas from consuming me.
I lower my gaze from the brilliant older man in shame of my unsightly feelings and quickly step through the opened doorway where I am once again greeted by the unfamiliar and suffocating atmosphere of the very rich and the privileged. The shallow discussions and unknown faces which surround me from every single corner leave me feeling utterly lost and alone. Despite speaking the same language as everyone else in the room, I still feel like I'm in a different world. All I am constantly reminded of as I walk through the hazy crowd is just how much I don't belong here and how much I want to leave. But in spite of feeling like a complete outsider and imposter at the party, there is one thing that remains strangely comforting and familiar to me and that one thing is the warm body and presence which holds onto my waist.
Rylan.
A strong sense of relief and reassurance simply emerges from me being in Rylan's company as he closely walks side by side with me within the walls of the distant and foreign world that he belongs to. I carefully lift my gaze toward the older man and watch him kindly acknowledge every single person who greets him or even looks his way with a professional smile. He actually seems like a reliable and respectable gentleman for a brief moment. The unsettled emotions in my heart are unexpectedly eased by the sight of his sincere grin paired off with the firm grasp of his hand snugly wrapped around my waist. I never could have imagined that I would ever find such solace in his smug presence due to our vast differences in social standing and class, but it's easy to see why I even feel like this toward him in the first place.
I just can't deny it any longer.
It's love.
A crazy, stupid love with the last person on earth I should ever fall in love with -- my new boss.
Chapter 4 - Rylan
"We will be arriving at the airport momentarily. Please be seated with your seat-belts fastened. All crew be prepared for landing."
The loud announcement instantly snaps and wakes me out of my deep slumber. Even though I can feel the firm grasp of my fatigue trying to pull me back to sleep, my heavy eyes gradually open up to the vague scene of airline stewardesses scrambling back and forth between the tight aisles with a garbage bag in each of their hands and a forced smile on each one of their faces. I blankly stare at the women in uniform who busily interact with the rest of the people on the plane. The last thing I can somewhat remember before closing my eyes and knocking out is the sound of the airplane getting ready to take off on the runway. But judging from the way the flight attendants are moving around right now in a slight hurry, I can only assume that we must be about a half an hour away from our destination which is much quicker than I had expected the flight to be.
A huge yawn escapes me as I allow my groggy eyes to rest again and as I give both my arms and legs a much needed stretch. There's just something about the dreary atmosphere of being on an airplane and flight which naturally puts me in an extremely tired mood where I can barely stay awake long enough to start or finish any sort of work. Though I have to admit that the only good part about my penchant for falling asleep on the plane is that the quality of sleep that I get happens to be much better than what I'm used to when I'm at home. I don't have to worry or focus about answering any work emails or phone calls when I'm thousands of feet up and above the air. It's the one place where I can just let loose and relax.
But right as I am in the middle of finishing my little bodily stretch to loosen my tense muscles up from its stiffened state, that's when I suddenly start to smell the wonderful and particular aroma that exudes from a freshly-brewed cup of coffee. I can almost feel my mouth instantly watering a bit from the initial whiff of it, the strong burnt roast tantalizing my sense of smell. The delectable scent quickly manages to rouse me out of my exhaustion where I open my eyes to find a steaming mug of coffee sitting right in front of me and a young and attractive smiling stewardess standing next to my seat.
How very interesting.
"I happened to notice that you still look a bit tired, so I took the liberty to make you some coffee, Mr. Bennett," the flight attendant states with a flirty smile as she leans her body against my chair. The soft smell of her perfume wafts into my nose as she continues, "I hope it tastes all right. I wasn't exactly sure how you liked it so I just took a wild guess."
A small chuckle slips through from my lips. I can feel the alluring woman's gaze strongly fixated on me as if she were patiently expecting something to happen. She's certainly a bold one for approaching me when most flight attendants know better than to disturb me while I'm on a business flight -- especially since I just barely woke up from my nap only minutes ago. But I have to at least praise her for having the guts and courage to show me that sultry gaze of hers which is so brazenly pointed at me instead of being focused on her more important work duties. After all, there's only one meaning behind that heavy look in her eyes, and I've seen it
more than enough times to know what it is that she wants from me.
"Thank you. I'm sure it tastes as amazing as it smells," I reply with a beaming grin.
The young stewardess tries to open her mouth to speak but is immediately interrupted by one of her fellow coworkers who grabs her attention by nudging her from behind. I can faintly hear the other flight attendant sternly advising her to "stop bothering Mr. Bennett" and for her to get back to work. She quietly apologizes to the upset acquaintance before turning back around to face me with a sheepish expression on her face.
"Well, it seems like I have to get back to work. I really hope you enjoy the coffee, though. Maybe next time you can just tell me how you like it so I can do it better for you," she slyly suggests.
I smirk at the oddly suggestive nature of the young woman's remark as she finally leaves my seat and goes back to work. My eyes loosely follow her tall and slender silhouette which disappears and reappears through the curtained walkway in the front of the airplane before she eventually moves out of my immediate line of sight and toward the direction of the economy seating. I lightly shake my head in amusement while glancing back down at the tempting mug of caffeine in front of me. Creating an opportunity to personally speak to me by surprising me with some convenient coffee at the right moment -- she definitely knows how to make a good first impression.
However, any possible and lingering doubts that I may have had about the intriguing flight attendant's obvious flirtation and advances are swiftly removed once I lift up the cup of coffee and see the numbers written on the napkin that was sitting underneath it. There's a phone number with the name 'Tori' scribbled down next to it followed by a brief message to call her. My lips naturally curve into a wide smile as I take a sip of the hot brew and shove the napkin into my pocket. The temperature of the coffee is just right, not too hot but still scorching enough to hit the spot while it slides down my throat.
I slowly take my time to enjoy the rest of the drink while making occasional eye contact with Tori, the flirty stewardess, for the remaining duration of the flight. But it's not before long that the airplane makes its final descent and landing onto the tarmac, the vehicle gradually coming to a complete halt as it pulls into the airport. I get up from my seat after grabbing my personal belongings and make my way toward the exit of the aircraft while the flight attendants conduct their usual routine of lining up and standing off to the side where they say their farewells to each guest. Tori happens to be waiting for me by the opened doorway where she gives me a little cheeky grin and says just as I am leaving: "Have a nice day, Mr. Bennett. It was my pleasure to serve you."
The attractive young woman's parting words naturally leave a strong impression on me as I navigate through the busy airport with her phone number still safely tucked away in my pocket. I loosely play around with the idea of actually calling her for the sake of having some drinks and some fun tonight, but any thoughts that I have of entertaining that plan are quickly erased the moment I set my eyes on the familiar-faced butler waiting for me by the baggage claim area.
"Welcome back, sir. I presume your trip went well?" Crane asks as he takes the briefcase from my hands.
I nod my head while we walk outside to the car. "Yeah, it went just as I expected. The deal is signed, and big things are on the horizon, Crane. It's going to be an amazing year for us. I can already see the news headlines rolling in."
"Congratulations, sir. I am glad to hear that everything turned out in your favor."
"Of course. I really didn't expect it to go any other way."
A proud smile forms across my lips as I think back to the exact moment the deal was signed and hand shaken on. Sometimes I even end up impressing myself with the huge feats that I somehow manage to achieve with my charm and my wit. I continue to silently revel in my success and pull out a cigarette to celebrate my huge victory when the butler suddenly snatches the smoke right out of my fingers. I can barely react to his swift motion before he quickly grabs the lighter out of my hand as well.
"Don't tell me you forgot your promise to the young miss?" Crane smirks while carefully pocketing the cigarettes and lighter. "She will be heavily disappointed if she were to smell the smoke on your body."
Oh, right. That promise. The one where I told her that I would make an effort to stop smoking because it's bad for my health and because it makes me smell like I "need a shower." The promise that I made on a complete whim which I probably never would have remembered in the first place if Crane didn't just bring it back up to me.
What would I honestly do without him?
I bitterly scoff at the sight of the butler's extremely smug expression as I ask, "Speaking of Teagan, how have things been working out between her and the new nanny? I mean, is there even still a nanny to talk about or do I need to start interviewing for a new one again?"
"Actually, sir," Crane begins with a bit of a chuckle that turns into a big smile. "In regards to the current nanny, I am very pleased to say that Miss Scott has been the most successful hire that we have had so far. Both the child and the nanny have almost been inseparable since you've left. I truly, in all of my years of watching her grow up, have never seen the young miss so attached to someone before."
The overwhelmingly positive news forces me to raise a doubting brow at it. Not only is Crane speaking rather highly of Audrey but he's also telling me that the young and inexperienced woman is actually getting along with Teagan without having any problems. But knowing my daughter and her natural tendencies to cause trouble on a daily basis, I just can't believe that things are going well for the first time. There has to be some kind of catch to this -- there has to be.
What is it that she has that no one else does to be able to win Teagan's favor so easily?
I refuse to accept it.
"Is that so? I find that a little hard to believe given Teagan's perfect track record with all of the other nannies I've hired. But you're telling me Audrey is working out with her? Really?" I say in a skeptical tone.
"Yes, it is all true, sir," the man confirms with a nod of his head. "I do understand that you have some misgivings in regards to Miss Scott, but from my close observations, it seems that Miss Teagan definitely enjoys being under the young woman's constant care and company. I can almost say without a doubt that this is the happiest I've ever seen that child. And I am certain you will notice it as well once we arrive back home."
"I see." My eyes watch the black car as it pulls up to the sidewalk and stops right in front of me. The butler swiftly opens the passenger door for me where I step inside and add before he closes the door behind me: "Well, if that's the case, can you call her up to the study for me when we get back home?"
"The young miss, sir? Certainly. I will be sure to-"
"No," I interrupt with a shake of my head. "I meant Audrey. I want to speak to her."
Crane pauses in a bit of surprise from my request before quickly responding: "I understand, sir. Please leave the matter to me."
***
A loud knock sounds against the door as I quietly catch up on the latest unread emails that were sent to my inbox while I was on my flight. I pause mid-sentence to lift my eyes up from the computer screen and toward the doorway where the visitor slips and peeks her head through the opened door in a discreet manner. But instead of walking through the door like everybody else would upon knocking, the young woman stands by the entrance as if there were some kind of a physical barrier preventing her from moving forward. It's almost like she's trying to keep her distance from me.
Why?
"Welcome back, Mr. Bennett," Audrey states with a stiff smile. "It feels like it's been a while since we've seen each other. I heard your trip went well. I can't say that I know much about what you do, but congratulations."
"Thank you," I respond in a hollow voice while I continue to watch and observe the dark-haired woman awkwardly stand by the door for no good reason at all.
But after dancing around the
matter for a few long seconds in absolute silence, she eventually clears her throat and asks the question: "I also heard that you were looking for me?”
"Yeah,” I nod. “Why don't you come inside instead of standing over there? Just come in and take a seat."
I can see the brunette practically freeze up in place upon hearing my proposal and invitation to her. She looks reluctant to accept my offer, her gaze dropping down to the ground as she considers her options as though she had any other choices. However, in spite of her initial display of hesitation toward entering the room, Audrey makes the eventual decision to walk through the doorway where she slowly begins to make her way toward me. But it’s the moment that she starts to move closer to me that I suddenly realize why she was so unwilling to enter the room in the first place.
Messy tied-up hair with loose strands that hang to both sides of her face. Huge, visible dirt stains on her light-colored clothing that clearly need to be thoroughly cleaned and washed off. And the slight smell of her body sweat after a long day of being outside and underneath the sun. Even though it has only been about a week or less since I last saw her before I had to leave for my trip, the young woman looks so much more disheveled and unkempt than she usually does.
The sight of Audrey's unsightly appearance naturally leaves me at a loss for words. The only reaction that I can come up with in response to her startling look is in the form of a light sigh and exhale of disbelief. I try not to stare at her too much as she walks up to my desk to take a seat in front of me, but it’s difficult for me to ignore the apparent fatigue in her expression -- especially once she sets her mud-brown gaze on me after she comfortably settles down into her seat. I am almost instantly captivated by the weariness that is captured and written across her face.
Billionaire Daddy's Contract: A Single Dad and Nanny Romance Page 9