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“Just wait until next time, when we’re actually in a bed,” Graham said, arching an eyebrow suggestively at me. His arrogance and certainty of a repeat performance felt like he was throwing a bucket of cold water on me. He was so entitled that he thought he could have everything he wanted, like me working for himandsleeping with him.
“This isneverhappening again,” I informed him as I wriggled off his lap and pulled my jeans back up in the driver’s seat. “Repeat after me: one-time deal.”
“We’ll see,” he said, taking off the full condom and offering it to me. “You have somewhere you can put this?”
I laughed at him, outraged and appalled. “Get out. Now. And take that disgusting thing with you.”
“I heard no complaints about this ‘disgusting thing’ during the act,” he said, all smooth and suave and in control. It made me loathe him.
“You can’t get everything you want just because you have a ton of money,” I snapped at him. “And I’m not easy. Whatever madness possessed me to let you screw me in myrentalcar is done. We’re through.”
“See you tomorrow.” He shamelessly tucked himself back into his trousers and got out of the car, thankfully taking the condom with him. It would’ve been a terrible thing to explain to my mom when I got back to her place — or, God forbid, forget in the car when I returned it to the rental agency.
I growled at myself as I watched him saunter into the house. This had to be one of the stupidest mistakes I’d ever made. But I wasn’t about to leave Collins for the wolves, so to speak. I’d made a commitment to help that child, and I was still going to do so while I was here.
And I was lying to myself if I said I didn’t still want Graham, even now. I’d never felt that way before with anyone.
I’d just have to be careful so that whatever this was wouldn’t happen again.
7
Graham
I’d never met a woman like Heather Rainey—someone as intent on denying herself pleasure while being a complete asshole.
Since our hookup, she was dead set on being as unpleasant as possible. She barely spoke to me when she came in the mornings and left every day after taking care of Collins, and she also made a big show out of edging well out of arm’s length from me.
I wasn’t the one who was going to be grabbing at her. Heather couldn’t fool me. She was putting distance between us to keep herself under control.
I was charming; it was one of my best qualities. Everyone told me so. But nothing I could say seemed to charm Heather. She was a thorn in my side, a constant reminder of my various failings.
If she were any worse with Collins, she would’ve been done. That’s the thought I comforted myself with. It was within my power to rid my life of her existence by banishing her back to the East Coast and never so much as think of her even as I plied the streets, restaurants, and venues of the city she called home.
Though I apparently wasn’t going to my favorite fusion restaurant anymore. What the fuck? Where was I going to take business associates to impress them now? That place had been golden.
Collins loved Heather, though. It was the only reason I tolerated the woman’s presence—for my daughter. I’d been appreciative of what Carol had done with Collins. My daughter was well cared for, content, and developing as well as I could have hoped for without the presence of a full-time mother.
Thanks a lot for that, Josie.
My daughter’s birth had perhaps been the most formative moment of my life. The second was when it all made sense—when it had all been worth it.
And even when Josie showed her true colors and left, I never once resented Collins. Of course, my daughter changed things, but I loved her with every fiber of my being. I would do anything for her.
Including, apparently, enduring abuse from a temporary nanny.
A temporary nanny who I was going to convince to work for me full time.
A temporary nanny who made my cock twitch in anticipation even when she was being an asshole.
Jesus. Did I even want Heather here? It was obvious I wanted someone competent whom my daughter enjoyed being around. Heather played with Collins, challenged her, asked her questions I suspected were on some psychiatric forms somewhere, and also encouraged her to grow and learn. You couldn’t ask for much more than that from a nanny.
But Heather seemed to thrive on pissing me off, reminding me of my blessedly few failings, and emphasizing the fact that she was the best-qualified nanny I ever had for my daughter. All without giving me the time of day otherwise.
Physically, we were good together. She couldn’t deny it, and I wouldn’t. It just wasn’t natural to deny something that set off sparks the way we did.
There was some nasty kernel inside me that wondered whether I might be the problem in this situation. Everyone I knew took great pains to chat with me no matter what might be going on. Even the busiest people—like Rita, my secretary—would always spend time making small talk, asking how things were going, or picking up threads of a conversation I’d nearly forgotten about.
Or maybe they thought they had to talk to me.
