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“Then do some shit while you’re away, at least. You can do that, right?”
“You want me to make it a working holiday?” I asked, shocked. “You know that’s not a break at all, right?”
“Dad will shit his pants when he finds out you’re turning me down.”
At least, this time, Richard was straightforward and honest about it. And right.
My dad practically worshiped the ground my brother walked on, and if he heard Richard had asked for my help, and I’d said no…hell, he would throw all the support my mom gave me with Ben right back in my face. He’d done it before.
“Fine,” I said through gritted teeth. “Send me the paperwork. I’ll get it done. Make sure it’s all there because I’m not running after you to find out what I’m missing while I’m away.”
“You got it,” Richard said. He rubbed his hands together before he stood. “I’ll get that to you right away and leave you to it. Safe travels.”
“Thanks,” I said dully when Richard walked to the door. “Nice social call. Thanks for dropping by.” The sarcasm was thick in my voice.
Richard didn’t react to it. He didn’t even respond. He left my office without so much as a wave now that he had what he wanted.
Damn it!
My mind spun. I had to figure shit out with Ben now. I had to make a plan to get some work done while we were in Aspen. So much for booking the week off to spend some time with him.
I picked up the phone and dialed Jade’s number. While I waited for the dial tone, I thought about our night together. It had been a mistake to sleep with her. I was more professional than that, but I couldn’t resist her. She’d threatened to quit, but she was still here, and that counted for something, right?
I wasn’t sure what exactly it meant––I couldn’t be with her. She was my nanny. I wasn’t looking for anything. Neither was she if her words were anything to go by after we’d been together. It was just one night that we could forget about.
The problem was that I couldn’t forget about it at all.
“I need you to come with me this week,” I said.
“What?”
“I know I told you we were going away without you, and you were off this week, but plans changed. Work came in I can’t ignore, and I’ll need you to watch Ben now and then. I’ll cover all expenses, of course.”
“I can’t just leave,” Jade said, and there was panic in her voice.
“Why?”
“I…” She swallowed hard, and I tried to envision what her face looked like at this moment and failed. I could only imagine her face orgasmic and full of pleasure, and I doubted that was what she looked like now. “I’ll see what I can do.”
“Get back to me before the end of the day. If you can’t make it, I’ll have to cancel the week altogether.”
“You can’t do that! Ben is so excited.”
“I know,” I said.
She was silent for a moment before she answered. “Okay, I’ll do it. I’ll figure out the rest of it.”
I grinned. “Good. Thank you. I’ll see you tomorrow morning first thing, then. Pack warm. It’s going to be cold up there.”
We ended the call, and I couldn’t help the smile that spread across my features.I’m just glad I don’t have to cancel on Ben,I told myself. My happiness didn’t have anything to do with the fact that Jade was coming along, and we would be in close proximity for a whole week.
It didn’t have anything to do with that at all.
The next morning, Jade arrived at the apartment bright and early with a large bag on wheels.
“Jade!” Ben cried out and ran to her. He threw his arms around her when she kneeled to hug him. “You’re coming with us! Did Dad tell you? It’s going to be so much fun. Do you know how to ski?”
“I don’t,” Jade said. “But I know how to have a lot of fun, so it’s the next best thing, right?”
