CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER ONE
The Pitbull is on board.
S HE SENT THE text off quickly.
Woof.
That was the response from Irinka, which was liked by the rest of the chat.
Auggie, short for Augusta, looked down at her phone and allowed her lips to twitch, just slightly. Then she looked up at her boss and his current companion of choice.
Auggie didn’t judge women for associating with Matias.
A light shone upon him.
He was the single most beautiful man Auggie had ever seen. Tall and broad shouldered, with hair black as a raven’s wing, and eyes like the night sky. They were different sorts of black, she had always thought.
The raven’s wing spoke to the glossy, sleek nature of his hair.
The night sky spoke to the perils of space and the inevitable destruction a woman might face if she were to be pulled into his orbit.
Still, though, she couldn’t blame the woman.
Matias was responsible for his own appalling behavior.
Though the media enabled him, in her humble opinion.
Glorious Golden Retriever Matias Balcazar Seen Out and About With New Woman!
Golden retriever, her well-rounded behind.
The man was a pitbull.
He would eat your children.
It was how he’d gotten his nickname in the group text, which was appropriately named Work Wives.
Because Irinka, Lynna and Maude were her work wives. And best friends. They’d started Your Girl Friday five years earlier with nothing but a dream, fantastic organizational skills and determination, and it was thriving now.
They were freelance assistants who operated with the utmost discretion. They assisted the richest of the rich with their lives, from managing their personal affairs—Irinka’s specialty—to providing culinary brilliance—Lynna—to the rehabilitation and management of the elaborate grounds of ancient estates—Maude.
Auggie was not as specialized as her friends. She was a wrangler, of sorts. An assistant of all kinds. Currently, for Matias, she was his air stewardess. But he spent all his time jet setting around the world in a private plane, and that meant she functioned as a traveling secretary too.
And whether he knew it or not, she did her best to keep his secrets.
She was—happily—coming to the end of her contract with him. Your Girl Friday wasn’t designed to ensnare them into full-time employment for one person. So when a job was all-encompassing it had a hard limit. Six months. But her contract with Matias was only for three.
Praise be.
She could tell the exact moment he perceived her. One of her greatest assets was her ability to function as wallpaper in whichever surroundings she currently occupied.
She was a chameleon.
One who had been spotted by the Pitbull.
She ignored the way that it affected her. The way that her stomach went tight when his dark eyes met hers. For heaven’s sake, he had a woman on his arm . He was her boss—even if for a set period of time. And she... Well, she knew him. She might well be the only person on the planet who did. The image that they painted of him in the media was laughable.
Matias Javier Hernandez Balcazar, beloved by all, was the son of Javier Balcazar, the most ruthless Spanish billionaire in recent times. A man wholly uninterested in ethics, in kindness, in basic human decency. A conquistador of the modern era, and on and on.
There were really only a couple of things a person needed to know about Matias to know him.
The first was that he could not be told. He did whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted, as befitted his position as a billionaire. The second was that he hated his father. And from those two pieces of information flowed the truth.
The media spun a story of his life that just didn’t make sense, not when you had met the real Matias.
Somehow, they saw his entry into his own father’s industry as him taking what he had learned and building something with it. Not what it actually was. A cold-eyed attempt at taking over his family business and crushing it. She was certain that was what he was up to.
Of course, everyone imagined that he stood to inherit his father’s wealth.
Auggie thought that the truth was perhaps slightly more complicated. Though she didn’t have all the details, she knew that the truth of the matter was, Matias was anything but what he seemed.
“Augusta,” he said, his accent rolling over the syllables of her name in a way that made her want to purr. “Could you get myself and Charmaine a drink?”
“Of course,” she said, smiling like the decorative femme bot she was supposed to be and moving to the bar, anticipating exactly what he would have, and what the lady would be having. It was easy enough. She smiled as she poured his whiskey, and then mixed up an overly sweet drink with cherries in it for Charmaine.
Then she melted away into the background again, while standing quite in plain sight.
She picked up her phone again .
If I see another headline about what a glorious himbo this man is I will punch the next starry-eyed reporter I see.
Oh, come on, don’t spoil the public’s fascination with him.
This came from Lynna.
I won’t, because I signed an NDA, as you know. But I’m just saying, I don’t think I have ever met anyone whose public persona is as big of a lie as his.
Maude chimed in.
That can’t be true. Billionaires are notorious liars. They’re also usually okay with being the glorious bastards they are in full view of the public.
Is he awful?
That was Irinka asking.
No. But he’s not what he seems.
At that point, Charmaine and Matias abandoned their drinks and disappeared into the bedroom at the back of the private plane. The really fun part was when Auggie had to accompany the women back to whatever city they had come from, if Matias had long-term work in the city they were landing in. That didn’t happen every time, often transfer would be arranged in a different way, or the woman would stay over in the city, but never long-term with Matias. It really was an amazing trip. He managed to be a shameless womanizer who was loved by all. Even the women that he had finished with.
Nobody could hate him.
It made Auggie even more suspicious of him, frankly. Because that was some black magic. Different than the black of his hair. Different than his eyes. A kind of sorcery that she couldn’t quite access.
That was the problem with him. He was interesting .
When she had taken the job with him she had been so certain that he would be dull. He was the world’s favorite boyfriend, as Irinka had pointed out. He had a reputation for being polite, a generous employer, a man who gave extravagant tips to anyone who served him. He was quick with a smile.
But that smile never reached his eyes.
She put her headphones in because she didn’t need to hear anything happening in the adjacent room. No, she did not.
She managed communications for Matias while they were in the air, and then did some finessing of his schedule. And once the time was appropriate, she put her ear to the bedroom door. And then she opened it slowly. They were both asleep, in bed. She had become very good at simply not looking at the man. Half-dressed, enjoying the aftermath of his liaison. It wasn’t her business. He was allowed to conduct himself in whatever way he chose. But she had something she needed to do.
She snagged the woman’s phone off of the nightstand and turned it so that it was held up to her face. Then she flinched, swiping up the screen on the unlocked phone, and going to the photos. There were none taken. Thank God. She had deleted pictures of Matias sleeping from multiple women’s phones.
There were no photos, but she could see an email banner pop up with some text.
Once you finish with him, I need you to...
And then it cut off.
She sat there and looked at it. And she felt a vague sense of disquiet. Granted, Charmaine could be getting that email about anyone. In any context.
She might not have told anyone she was having a dirty weekend with a hot billionaire.
Auggie hovered her thumb over the email app. She had lines, and boundaries. She didn’t invade people’s privacy. She didn’t go through texts, she didn’t surf through all the photos, the only thing she tried to do—historically—was keep Matias’s penis off the internet.
This went outside the boundaries of that.
Whatever it is, it isn’t your business.
She let out a breath, and placed the phone back, gingerly. There were no pictures. That was all that mattered. The rest wasn’t her problem and couldn’t be.
She snuck back out of the room, and not for the first time, gave thanks that she was nearly at the end of all this.
Matias was so much more work than any man she’d ever contracted for. Usually she found her job a delightful challenge. She liked the freshness of having a new client every few months. Typically, what she was doing was giving extra and specialized help while someone increased workload for a new project, or needed help with some image maintenance during a challenging time.
She wasn’t PR. But she often worked alongside a PR person to help with the flow of work, so that the subject of her help would look good, efficient, less stressed, etc.
Working with Matias just made her stressed half the time. And strung out on his beauty, which was a complication she’d never experienced before.
When the plane landed in Barcelona, both Matias and Charmaine tumbled out of the bedroom. Looking disheveled, but lovely, both of them.
She wondered if Matias would ever settle down, or if he was destined to remain unattached. He seemed to exist in the eternal now, but she knew that wasn’t true. Because a man didn’t accidentally become as successful as he was. Not even if he came from a rich family. Because he had not used his father’s money to get where he was.
There was just more to him. It constantly surprised her how the world was willing to take his enigmatic smile as the truth. To assume that he was simplistic, because he was happy to let them believe so. To trip through life as a man winning at the lowest difficulty setting. Which more than one person had said about him, and he seemed completely happy to take that on the chin. He was... Pleased to let people think he was a fool.
And that, to her, was the most suspicious thing of all.
“Charmaine will be staying in Barcelona for a couple of days, she wishes to see the offices.”
“Oh,” Auggie said. “So I won’t be making a return trip, then.”
That hit her strangely, and she knew it was because of the email.
When you’re finished with him...
What had the email said? She was so mad she hadn’t read it.
“Are you sure she wants to see your offices?” Auggie asked.
“Yes,” he said, looking at her like she was a fool.
Charmaine’s eyes clashed with Auggie’s, and Auggie knew a moment of deep disquiet. She didn’t like the look in the other woman’s eyes.
Auggie was a girl’s girl. Auggie was all about the freedom and power women had to shag Matias to their heart’s content without judgment.
Being a girl’s girl, though, meant when she didn’t trust a woman, there was a reason.
This was nothing more than a gut feeling, but it was a strong one.
“Matias, can I speak to you for a moment?” she asked.
“No,” he said smoothly. “Enjoy the city. I shouldn’t need you for a couple of days.”
She lifted her brows. “Really.”
She didn’t like this at all.
“Yes. You only worked for me for three months. I find that I can function just as well without you.”
“Indeed.” She hesitated. “Matias, I wonder if I should just go to the offices with you?”
“No, that won’t be necessary.”
Maybe he was a dumb, gorgeous idiot.
She swore Charmaine gave her a small smile before they turned away and began to get off the plane and Auggie was stewing.
She didn’t know what Charmaine could do being at Matias’s offices, but she just felt...she felt something about it.
And it had nothing to do with the fact that every day, every week, Matias got more and more attractive to her.
He was like a beautiful object in an art gallery.
Nice for some, but Auggie couldn’t afford him. So she would look, but she would never touch.
She packed up her things and watched as Matias got into a waiting limousine with Charmaine. Auggie was ushered into a town car. She was totally happy with that. Happy with the quiet, and the luxury that surrounded her. She was not happy to be told that she wasn’t needed, mostly because she didn’t believe it.
The Pitbull is disconcerting.
Why is that? Lynna asked.
Because he has brought a woman to the offices, and he said he doesn’t need me.
Well, maybe he is a himbo. Only thinking with the Pitbull downstairs. Perhaps he wants to have her on his desk, Irinka said.
He is most assuredly only thinking with his downstairs brain, but he isn’t stupid.
She got to the hotel room that had been reserved for her and set up her computer, and all her peripherals. She opened up Matias’s schedule, and her calendar. Then she initiated a video call with the work wives.
“I’m in Barcelona.”
“You look fantastic,” said Irinka, who was always gorgeous in the most immaculate way.
“Glowing,” Maude said. Maude, for her part, had mud on her cheek. She was wearing dungarees, and was standing out in a field.
“Irritated,” said Lynna, who was standing in a large, commercial looking kitchen.
“I am irritated. Because he has deviated from the script, and I don’t like it. I’m only glad that this is my last outing with him.”
“Your next contract is at least for a shorter amount of time,” Lynna said. “And with a slightly less infamous man.”
“We need more female clients,” Auggie said, feeling full of woe.
“I would be happy to have more female clients,” Irinka said, “it’s only that men see our pictures and want to hire us. Also, women are happy to break up with their partners on their own. Men are the ones who typically need my services.”
Irinka was a dark horse. She always had been. She acted publicly as His Girl Friday’s secretary, and their avenue for connection to the rich and elite. But in reality she was a breakup artist for hire, and master of disguise. Her services required discretion, and backdoor connections, and she was an expert at both.
Auggie herself wasn’t built for subterfuge. She was too honest. Keeping her opinions to herself when her clients were being ridiculous was hard enough—and also why she spent so much time in their group text.
Lynna was the best chef in the world, in Auggie’s opinion. To taste her food was to taste magic. Some women could make a man long for them forever after a night. Lynna did it after a meal.
Maude was a fae thing, more at home in nature than in the city. She had once rescued a mouse from the science lab when they were at uni and had brought it to live in their dorms. Even now, her affinity for nature was her specialty.
Auggie, Lynna and Maude had all been friends since university, even though they were all from very different backgrounds.
Irinka was the illegitimate daughter of a duke, and a rumored Russian spy, and Irinka had inherited wealth, connections and a penchant for mystery. Maude had been an odd girl out, by virtue of her otherworldliness, and Auggie had related to her, because even though it was in a different fashion, Auggie felt like she was from a different world.
The American in the group.
Lynna was from Wales, but raised in Greece, with a wealthy family, who had lost everything while poor Lynna was at university. Her father had died during the horrific aftermath, and all the friends had rallied around Lynna to make sure she could still complete her studies. To make sure she could still have her life.
They’d stayed together after university too—starting His Girl Friday. With their powers combined, like they were Voltron, from the old cartoon. Individually, they were great. Together they were a powerful force. They’d overcome their past adversity and they’d turned it into something successful. Amazing.
Though she wasn’t feeling all-powerful at the moment.
Worry nagged at the back of her brain.
“What?” Maude asked.
“I’m just... I don’t trust this situation. And I am not his PR person, so this isn’t my problem.” She thought back to the number of times she had deleted pictures of his body off of women’s phones. She had always squinted when she hadn’t looked at those photos. Careful not to see more than she should. Also careful to make sure that he didn’t end up plastered all over newspapers as naked as the day he was born.
So no, she wasn’t his PR person, and he wasn’t an idiot , but he did make questionable decisions where women were concerned.
“You don’t have to take care of him,” Lynna said. “It isn’t your job. You’re supposed to assist him. This isn’t... Caregiving.”
She said it kindly, but it lodged itself firmly in Auggie’s chest all the same.
“I know that.”
“You have that look about you. That paranoid look, that says you’re attaching life or death stakes to this situation, and he is not...”
“I know he isn’t my mother,” she said. “Also, he isn’t my problem after this. But you know, if he gets into a serious situation while I’m working for him, it is not going to help our business.”
“What do you think is going to happen?” Maude asked.
“I don’t know. I have a bad feeling about that woman. I have a bad feeling about this situation.” She just did. Even if she couldn’t say why. And Augusta Fremont had learned years ago to trust her intuition.
She was in Barcelona. And he wasn’t her responsibility, her friends were right. She wasn’t his babysitter. So she was going to go out, and she was going to have paella. She was going to let Matias sort out his own issues.