9. Get packing, Sunshine
NINE
GET PACKING, SUNSHINE
Alessio
“Please let me explain,” my uncomplicated, fantastic one-night-stand woman says.
“By all means,” I tell her. “That’s exactly what I’m looking for.”
She’s beet-red in the face and just as pretty, if not prettier, than I remember her being that night in the bar. She’s wearing espresso-brown slacks and a beige blouse, paired with navy blue ballerina shoes with gold bows. Teardrop pearl earrings drape from her ears. She’s nicely put together.
This look is different from the careless surfer woman I picked up in the bar two weeks ago, but I didn’t pick her up because I thought she was pretty. I think most women are pretty, so that wasn’t the reason. Besides, I’ve been thinking about her for quite some time. That’s unusual. Seeing her here shocks me.
When she simply stares, I prompt her again. “What are you doing in my house?”
“I didn’t know it was your house.”
“My name is on the plaque above the doorbell.”
“I used the door knocker. You know, the lion one.” She turns her hand into a claw.
Not sure what to make of the claw gesture, I ignore it. “Is that all?”
“No. I mean, I saw the plaque after Val hired me. But I didn’t recognize your name because we didn’t exchange names.”
“Sunshine,” I recall calling her because of her upbeat personality. “You’re right. Fair enough. But as you moved around the house, you must’ve seen our family photos.”
She shakes her head. “I haven’t, no.”
“Val hasn’t dined with you in the formal room?”
She shakes her head.
At least there’s that. The last time a stranger walked into my house, we invited her into our life and celebrated her birthday. My best friend left me for her and her (very cute) baby, which she delivered in Nashville, Tennessee. I’m back here alone, dealing with the mess my best friend created after he got himself arrested for killing (torturing and mutilating) the man who kidnapped the woman he now wants to marry.
Granted, Troy was a nice woman, pregnant and mistreated, so I did wish her well, but not at the cost of my best friend or his safety. Miro is an indispensable asset.
Needless to say, the last stranger I let into my house cost me a fortune, if friends and family are measured in fortunes. And they are to me.
I won’t make the same mistake twice.
“You were supposed to leave for the States the next morning,” I say.
She nods. “Yes, sir, but as Val said, a woman jumped me and took all my money and papers and my passport.” She lifts her shirt and shows me a yellow bruise under her ribs. “One of them punched me in the face, but Val called Dr. Chen, who prescribed me a cream.”
“When did this happen?”
“The night I left the hotel.”
“You mean the night you snuck out of my bed?”
She nods. I like to make her squirm because I don’t think she’s affected by the night we shared, and that’s pissing me off. I’m over here getting hard just from looking at her, and she’s over there grimacing like I’m just another mean boss.
“I told you to stay the night. I meant the entire night. You didn’t have to leave. I wasn’t going to bother you by asking you to spend the day with me, I promise. Besides, you shouldn’t walk alone at night even here.”
“I know. I won’t do it again.”
“Did Val call anyone to report the mugging?”
She nods. “The police came.”
“Any leads?”
“Yes, but the police think they were tourists like me. They seem to have left the island, so case closed.”
“Of course they were tourists, Ms. Wilder. Locals don’t commit such crimes.”
She frowns. “But is that really true?”
“Yes, it really is.” They wouldn’t dare shit where I eat.
“There’re too many people here to call them all angels.”
“I’m not saying they’re angels. I’m telling you the locals wouldn’t dare because the consequences for attacking innocent people on my island are dire. We don’t have space to build jails, and I’d rather feed the seagulls than violent criminals. Do you understand?”
“Yes, sir.”
Every damn time she says yes, sir, my dick hardens. She’s a disaster I need out of my house. “How did you hear about the governess position?” We don’t advertise. This is word-of-mouth.
“Antonio told me when he escorted me home.”
Good idea for him to try to fill the position.
“Go on, tell me more.”
“He dropped me off, and that woman mugged me. After I checked out of the hotel, I was stuck on the island, so I spent a few days and nights on the beach.”
“You mean you were homeless?”
She nods, uncomfortable now. Embarrassed.
I clear my throat. “Did you use our public facilities?”
“I did.”
“Were they clean and accessible?”
She blinks. I think my question surprised her. “Yes, sir, they were.”
“What were you eating?” We have a strict garbage system where trash is never left on the island overnight. We recycle and reuse. One of my friend’s projects, in fact. He likes to think he’s saving the planet that way.
She looks down at her hands. “Not much.”
“Now I’m reassured that our garbage trucks work as they should, and our facilities are clean. Let’s move on. You didn’t seem surprised when you saw me this morning. Scared but not surprised, so it tells me you knew that you were in my house. Which makes you a liar.”
“I recognized you last night.”
I unfold my arms and grip the edge of the desk. “Why didn’t you say anything last night?”
“I… I wanted a chance to explain myself, and the timing didn’t seem right.”
“Do you think you had a chance to explain now?”
“Yes, sir.”
Jesus. I spread my legs to give my dick more room to grow. “Excellent. I presume you packed last night.”
“What?”
“Packed, Ms. Wilder. You recognized me last night, so I presume you packed and got ready to leave.”
“No, I was thinking about how when I explained myself, I would ask you to let me stay.”
She didn’t ask me that, though. “I presume you took the position of governess so that you can pay for your way back to the States. Am I right?”
“Yes, sir.”
“For fuck’s sake, please stop calling me sir.”
Wide-eyed, she nods. “Okay.”
Now I miss it. Damn me. Where was I? I scan my office. Did I lose track of my thoughts? I did. I need to get rid of this woman. Pronto.
“Ms. Wilder, I’m leaving for Rome in an hour. You think you can pack in an hour and come with me?” She doesn’t have a choice, but I’m trying not to be a complete asshole about firing her.
I feel responsible, even if I shouldn’t feel responsible for some random goon who hurt her while she was on my island. I did tell her to stay in the room. See, this is what happens when people don’t do what I say. Case in point: my best friend is in a hell of a mess now. I’m so bitter about Miro.
“I can pack in an hour, yes. Where are you taking me?”
I frown. “To the embassy to get your passport, of course.”
“Of course.”
“Then to the airport, so you can get home.”
“That’ll take time, sir. Not sir. Mr. Angelini. Alessio. Can I call you Alessio?”
Out of the question. “Yes.” What? I rear back, shocked at myself. I can’t take it back now, so I roll my shoulders, get the tension out of them because I can’t very well grip my dick and start rubbing the tension out of it and ejaculating everywhere, now can I? No.
“Alessio, you know how the embassy is always busy, and it’s almost the holiday season?—”
“The holidays are in December. We’re still in the fall.”
“We start the season early in the US.”
She’s right again. One after the other, the retail market keeps moving holidays up the calendar year. “Case in point. Christmas in July,” I say.
“Yes.” A small smile plays on her lips. It’s not enough to deter me from firing her.
I round my desk and sit down, getting ready to work on something other than finding the thug who mugged her. But then I remember I can’t do anything about the thug because I lost my hitman. And then I cycle back to the stranger who walked into my house with my hitman, which is unproductive.
Troy cost me my hitman. But this woman? This one might cost me my life.
“Why are you still here, Ms. Wilder?”
“I have no money, no job, and I’ll be on the street if you fire me.”
“You’ll get your passport in under an hour. I’ll pay you for your time with Leo, and I will fly you to the US in first class. You’ll have everything.”
“I need this job.”
With a sigh, I lean back in my chair. She’s starting to cry, which I dislike. I dislike it a lot, but she must leave. “You cannot stay here.”
“Why not?”
“Because I want to fuck you.”
Warm brown eyes widen, her jaw drops, and she makes a show of closing it by pretending as if she needs to lift it using her hand.
Smiling, she wipes her tears. “I forgot how charmingly bold you are.”
Most people think I’m an asshole. She thinks I’m charming. I bite the inside of my cheek to prevent a shit-eating grin from splitting my face. “Get packing, Sunshine.”