Chapter Twenty-Four Mo
Chapter Twenty-Four
MO
Mo could feel the dread and anxiety vibrating from Netta next to him on the couch, turned to him but not looking at him.
By proxy, he felt nervous too. Hearing she’d also lost her mum had ignited an instant sense of kinship and connection—a rare feeling for Mo, and one that felt precious.
Like something to be handled with care. It made the air in the room feel heavier, the space between them shorter.
‘There’s no pressure, obviously. But if you want to tell me, I’d like to hear it. ’
She nodded and Mo felt a rush of relief, even gratitude maybe, that she deemed him worthy of her trust. In his line of work, he was never short of people clamouring to be near him, but was starved of people who could be real with him.
Sometimes he felt like his fame had made him seem less human. Separate, somehow.
‘When I got here,’ she said, ‘I didn’t know anyone, and I couldn’t pull a beer to save myself so I couldn’t just go and get a job in a bar like most Aussies do.
I ended up signing with a nanny agency instead and did a couple of short-term, live-in jobs.
I like kids, so it was fun for me, and it gave me a place to stay.
It was ideal. Then, after a few weeks, I was sent to an interview for a longer term job at a big house in Chelsea.
I had to sign an NDA when I got there. It was all very mysterious.
And exciting, too, I guess.’ Netta’s eyes briefly met Mo’s before dropping back to the tea cooling in her cup.
‘The house was next level—it was obvious whoever was interviewing me must be a big deal. There were a few of us there, lined up on chairs in the hallway, like we were waiting for an audition. Which I guess we were, really.’
She raised her eyes again and Mo nodded for her to continue.
‘When it was my turn,’ Netta said, ‘I was taken into a big sitting room and there on the couch was Liza Carlton.’
‘The actress? She used to be married to Mitch Carlton, didn’t she? The guy from Britain’s Brightest Star?’ Mo was unable to hide his disdain. The guy was a cockhead. Arrogant. Talentless. Famous for being rude and discouraging.
Netta flushed. ‘Yep.’
‘Go on.’ Mo could feel his hackles rising already. Any story involving Mitch Carlton was never going to be good. The guy probably couldn’t even spell the word ‘integrity’.
‘The interview went well, and a couple of days later, the agency called to tell me I had the job if I wanted it. I’d be looking after their two young children full time, I’d have a room at their house, and I’d travel with them when they went away on family holidays.
It sounded like a dream come true, Mo. It all seemed so glamourous. ’
‘So, you took the job, I’m guessing?’
‘Yeah, I did. I couldn’t sign the contract fast enough.’
‘And then?’
‘It started off small. He’d compliment me on what I was wearing, or tell me I looked pretty with my hair a certain way.
I was so na?ve. I thought he was just being kind, at first. He was so handsome, and he was older and powerful.
And he was known for being such a prick to everyone, but he was so nice to me.
I’m so ashamed now, but at the time, it was intoxicating.
I developed a full-on crush on him. I actually thought I was in love with him.
’ Her hands twisted in her lap. ‘It sounds so stupid, I know.’
‘It doesn’t sound stupid,’ he said, his heart squeezing at Netta’s obvious discomfort; her pink cheeks, the cringe clouding her face. ‘You were young, you’d just lost your mum. You were vulnerable.’
She smiled gratefully at him, her eyes shining. Mo was struck in that moment, like a lightning rod in a storm, by just how beautiful Netta was. How soft and open a face could be when someone was being real—it wasn’t something he got to see very often.
Her voice was quieter when she spoke again. ‘Liza was away quite a lot, filming on location or whatever, and Mitch started telling me things about their marriage. About how they weren’t really happy. That it was all just for show.’
Mo’s gut clenched. He knew exactly where this was going.
‘He started making little moves, here and there,’ Netta continued.
‘Innocent enough at first, I guess. He’d touch my hand or brush my hair away from my face.
Stuff like that. Then one day, he gave me a necklace, and when I asked him what it was for, he said it was so I could have something to remember him by when he was at work. ’
She paused for a sip of tea, the slight tremor in her hand as she lowered the cup a telltale sign of how difficult it was for her to tell Mo the story.
‘Liza had always been a little frosty with me so it was easy to believe the things he was telling me about their marriage,’ Netta continued.
‘He started to divulge more and more—stuff I shouldn’t have known.
Thinking back now, it was so inappropriate to be sharing such personal information with a staff member, but at the time, I thought it meant that he trusted me, and maybe that he liked me, if you know what I mean. I felt so sorry for him … ugh.’
‘Are you okay?’
‘No.’ Netta looked as though a rancid taste had leapt into her mouth. ‘I’m hearing myself say all this stuff out loud and realising how unbelievably stupid I was to fall for it all. He barely even had to try.’
‘Don’t pin this on yourself, Netta,’ Mo said. ‘From what I’ve heard so far, it’s all on him.’
Netta took a deep breath. ‘It gets worse.’
Mo tightened his grip on the handle of his mug, wishing it was Mitch Carlton’s neck. ‘You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.’
‘I’ve come this far.’ Netta shrugged. ‘So, one night he came home upset. He’d been drinking, and he was crying and carrying on in the kitchen.
I asked him what was going on, and he told me that Liza was having an affair and that they were getting a divorce.
He seemed devastated, Mo. Genuinely. And of course, bleeding heart that I am, my instinct was to comfort him.
He asked if he could have a hug and I gave him one.
’ She paused to shake her head admonishingly.
‘And then before I knew it, he kissed me. And, Mo, I kissed him back. Because I wanted to, and because I thought the light was green. I thought if Liza was doing the dirty on him and they were breaking up, then I wasn’t technically doing anything wrong—if you take the whole boss–employee factor out of the equation. ’
‘And even then, it would’ve been him being inappropriate, not you,’ Mo said.
‘Yeah. Well, things quickly became even less appropriate, if you get what I mean.’
Mo pressed his lips together and nodded, doing his best not to picture her with that complete waste of oxygen.
‘It went on for a while. Liza was away, working on location, and when she came home, she worked it out pretty quickly. I am not wired for subterfuge, it seems.’ Netta smiled self-consciously.
‘She had a photographer follow me one day and he got photos of Mitch with his hand on my bum, whispering in my ear. The photo went nuts. It was everywhere. I was the “home-wrecking nanny”. My job was gone, of course, and then Mitch did a tell-all interview about it and said I’d pre-meditated the whole thing.
That I’d lied to him. That it was me who’d told him that Liza was having an affair and that he’d been so shattered that he’d let me seduce him when he was a broken man. He blamed it all on me.’
Mo shook his head, baffled by the way some men thought they could treat women. He hadn’t been an angel himself, obviously, but he’d always, always been honest.
‘I couldn’t go anywhere without a photographer trailing me,’ Netta added. ‘Or someone screaming at me that I was a slut.’
‘I hate that word,’ said Mo.
‘Me too. But it wasn’t the worst thing I got called, believe me.
You know how loved Liza is—people seemed personally offended that I’d hurt her.
And because I’d signed an NDA when I accepted the job, I couldn’t defend myself without breaking the agreement.
I could barely afford a coffee in those days, let alone legal fees. It was so awful, Mo.’
‘That greasy fuck,’ said Mo. ‘Was Liza even having an affair?’
‘No! I think that was one of the worst bits about it. He’d orchestrated the whole thing. He manipulated me and I fell for it all like an idiot. Hook, line and sinker.’
‘First of all, you weren’t an idiot. You were young and he took advantage of his “status”,’ he said, making air quotes. ‘Secondly, the weasel let you take the fall for it and then went on his merry way. Am I right?’
Netta nodded. ‘Yep. Liza actually did end up divorcing him, as you know, but it all just slid off him like water off a duck’s back.
Most people believed his stupid story, and the people who didn’t, didn’t care either way.
I was just collateral damage. The disposable nanny.
I left London straight after and went back to Melbourne. ’
‘I’ve met him, you know,’ Mo said. ‘I was a guest judge on his shitty show a few years back.’
‘What was your take on him?’
‘Pure dick. So puffed up with his own self-importance.’ Mo fought the urge to reach for Netta’s hand, settling for what he hoped was meaningful eye contact instead. ‘It wasn’t your fault, Netta. I hope you know that. None of it.’
Netta cast her gaze down to her lap, but Mo could see her face had crumpled. When she looked up again her eyes were glassy with tears, but her expression was stoic.
‘So, there it is. My big story.’
‘Thank you for trusting me with it.’
Netta sighed deeply. ‘I wouldn’t have said anything, but I’m worried if I go to the gala, someone will recognise me and they’ll dig it up again, which would honestly break me to pieces.
And you’d get swept up in it too, which seems counter-productive, given the whole point of taking me is to lessen your existing shitstorm.
So, I guess what I’m saying is, I understand if you want to retract your offer.
It’s probably not a good idea for either of us, given the circumstances.
I’m sure you’ll be able to find someone who’d make the whole thing a lot easier. ’
She had a point. It was messy, no question. But sitting there with her, in that moment, Mo knew he’d choose her messy over someone else’s easy any day. ‘You know what, Netta?’ he said. ‘Mitch Carlton, the magazines … all of them can get fucked. Let’s just go. Have a good time, hey?’
Netta looked surprised by his response. She’d clearly been expecting him to back away from her like she was a ticking bomb—like she was damaged goods, sure to cause another dent in his already pummelled reputation.
But it was the opposite. Her opening up to him had been like a blast of fresh air.
He found himself hoping for her to just say ‘yes’.
Her brow folded into an irresistible frown. ‘I don’t know, Mo,’ she said. ‘I’ve played it quiet for nineteen years. I’ve spent thousands of dollars on therapy. Even my social media accounts are under a made-up name. You can’t imagine what holding onto such a big secret does to you.’
Mo swallowed. Little did she know.
‘But I feel like I’m on the other side of it now,’ she continued. ‘I just don’t know if it’s worth the risk of opening that particular Pandora’s box all over again. But I’m torn, because I really do need the money.’ Her cheeks flushed. ‘I hope that’s not crass to say.’
‘Not at all,’ Mo said, the reminder that this was a business proposition suddenly making his growing fondness for Netta feel misplaced. ‘This is business—it’s only fair you be paid. You help me, I help you.’
Netta nodded, her face closed. ‘Right. Well, I’ll think about it.’
Mo stood to leave. He wanted to hug her goodbye. Or maybe a handshake would be more appropriate. ‘Have you got your phone on you?’ he asked instead. ‘Let me give you my number. You can call me when you’ve made your decision.’
As she entered the digits into her phone, Mo’s heart pinballed. He could count the number of people he’d entrusted his number to on one hand. He just hoped he was right about Netta.