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Somehow, that didn’t have the impact I expected. It was as if my tone and words went unheard. The woman gazed around, slack-jawed, at my office. “Wow,” she intoned. “This is great.”
“I know it’s great,” I snapped. “This is my fucking office.”
“Well, I’m looking forward to working with you,” she said, trailing her fingers over my desk while pursing her very pouty pink lips. “Very much so.”
She perched herself on the desk in a way that forced me to be very careful where I looked. It was almost funny and certainly ludicrous enough for me to suspect that all three of these incidents were pranks by Jason. But he already told me it wasn’t him.
“Who told you to come here?” I demanded, standing just so I wouldn’t have to be at eye-level with all of this woman’s assets. “Who are you?”
She spluttered into a high-pitched giggle. “I can’t believe I forgot to introduce myself. God, I’m so nervous! I’m Maisie Cooper. And I’m here about your open nanny position, obviously.” She gave me honest-to-God “fuck me” eyes, blinking up at me through her synthetic lashes. “Or whatever position you need me in.”
“Here’s the thing you’re going to have to help me understand, Ms. Cooper.” At any other time in my life, I would’ve taken her up on her obvious offer. But right now, I needed to get to the bottom of why strange women were showing up in my office. And besides, Heather was more than—wait a fucking minute.
Why was I thinking about Heather as a reason why I wouldn’t take this woman right here on my desk? It wasn’t as if it hadn’t happened before.
What had changed between now and then?
“I’ll try my best, Graham,” Maisie said, her pursing lips nearly bursting with filler.
“It’s Mr. Hilborne,” I said coldly. “Where did you hear about the position?”
“Through the grapevine,” she said, flapping her hand and smiling at me. “You know how they always say it isn’t what you know; it’s who you know? Well, one of my girlfriends said she was interviewing for this position that she’d heard about from a friend of a friend, and I thought I’d take my chances. You never know when the opportunity is going to strike.”
For fuck’s sake. “Who posted the original job opening?”
“I’m not sure. You know how those things go. It’s like playing Telephone when you’re a kid. The first person says something that gets all muddled by the time the last person hears it.” She brightened. “That reminds me. I’m great with kids. I’m a mother of three myself. Your son is going to have three instant best friends with my boys—they love to play.”
“Daughter.”
“Huh?”
“I don’t have a son.” She couldn’t even get that detail right? “I have a daughter. Collins.”
“Oh, jeez.” Maisie rolled her eyes. “You rich people just love mixing it up on names for your kids. Think of how many problems that will cause her in kindergarten, and all the questions she’ll have to answer throughout her entire life.”
“We’re done here,” I announced, pointing at the door. “Goodbye.”
“It was great meeting you.” She hopped down from the edge of my desk, extending her two-inch acrylics in my direction for a handshake. I didn’t accept it. “So, what time do I start tomorrow? Can you drop her off at my place?”
“Ms. Cooper, you are not starting tomorrow. There is nothing to start, and I am not hiring you for this or any other possible positions.”
“Oh, you already have someone, don’t you?” She shrugged. “No hard feelings. It’s just business, right? Will you keep me in mind if you have anything else open up?”
“Rita!”
My secretary opened the door immediately. “This way, please, ma’am. Mr. Hilborne is very busy.”
I thought I was still hearing the clacking of her heels long after Maisie was gone when I realized I was just grinding my teeth.
Just my luck—another problem.
* * *
And yet therewas a bright spot toward the end of the week, right as I was arriving home to spend the weekend with Collins. I’d cleared my schedule and pushed everything back to the following week to create this precious time when I realized Heather was waiting for me outside the house with her arms crossed over her chest, her foot tapping the ground, and her dog sitting next to her—a cheerful mutt who definitely had some bloodhound in him.
Heather looked fucking furious, and I had to duck my head as I parked to hide my laughter. It meant yet another tangle in the web I was weaving around her was in place.
“What did Collins do now?” I asked, regaining my composure as I walked up to her. If it were physically possible for steam to be coming out of her ears, I would have surely seen it.
