Chapter 26
Spencer
“ T wo bathrooms! Two whole bathrooms!” Charlie squeals. “I am a freaking princess. Look at my pool!” My bedroom door is open, so I hear Charlie first loud, then fading away like a car passing as she blazes from one end of Nathan’s luxe guesthouse to the other.
It all happened so fast. One minute, I was swearing up and down I’d never move in with my bosshole.
Four hours later, after a symphony of Charlie’s pleas and crocodile tears, we were packing up our little apartment.
I’ve never seen Nathan look more satisfied.
He shamelessly manipulated Charlie, even luring her further with the promise of piano lessons.
He has a baby grand at work, but a full grand at home.
He might as well have pulled up in a windowless van and offered her candy.
In less than twenty-four hours, the smug bastard ultimately got his way.
I took the slightly smaller bedroom, much to Charlie’s delight.
It was an easy win to give her, the bedrooms maybe have a ten-square-foot difference.
What I chose not to mention to Charlie is that my closet is double the size of hers.
It’s better this way. With more closet space, she’d want more clothes to fill it up.
Nathan’s guesthouse is much nicer than the home I was raised in.
Not to mention his freaking castle is a stone’s throw away.
I don’t want my little sister getting too used to this.
I will never be able to provide her with this life, and I’m going to have to be the bad guy and rip her away from this fantasy in a couple weeks when I find us a new place to live.
“Charlie?” I call out. “Can you come in here, please?”
I hang up my last work dress, zip up my suitcase and tuck it in the corner of the massive closet.
I made a big to-do about Nathan leaving us alone to unpack.
He offered to hire movers, which he apparently can get at the snap of his fingers, but we didn’t have any furniture or big items to bring over.
Charlie appears in my doorway, her hand on her hip. “Hey, can I borrow your lip gloss?”
“I don’t have lip gloss.”
“Then how come your lips are always so shiny?”
Aw, that was sweet.
“Is it because you’re greasy?” Charlie asks earnestly.
Mmk, less sweet.
“I use tinted lip balm, Charlie. Good grief. Now, why do you need makeup?”
“Nathan’s taking me to the grocery store to pick up some stuff we’d like to eat.”
There are so many things wrong with that statement.
First off, Nathan is not to take my sister anywhere, anytime without my permission.
Second off, how does Mr. Billionaire even know where the grocery store is?
Doesn’t he have people for that? I’d sooner believe he owns a grocery store than fathom him doing his own food shopping.
This is exactly why I need to explain things to my sister.
“Okay, Charlie, sit down.” I point to the bed.
Rolling her eyes and scoffing like she’s trying to cough up a hairball, she plops down on the king-sized mattress. “ What ?” she ask-whines.
“I will take you to the grocery store in a little bit.” I sit down next to her. “I don’t want you thinking that just because Nathan has so much that it belongs to us too. You’re not to let him buy you presents, pay for food, or take you anywhere on his dime, because that’s taking advantage.”
“You’re so grumpy,” she bellyaches.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nathan wants to share, and you’re the one who hates him for no reason. He’s really nice. And he even said we can pick up some things for Spike.”
I look at her with wide, questioning eyes as my mouth gapes. “Things like what?” A blowtorch and skewer sticks flash through my mind.
“Like an auto-feeder and a much bigger cage.”
There it is. A bigger cage that Spike can get in and stay in. I make a mental note to buy another rodent ball as soon as possible. He cracked his by the elevator bay, and I’d like to ensure Spike has extra mobility around the guesthouse. He’s my little furry boss repellant.
“All right, Charlie, listen to me—” I stop short. “Wait. Did you hear that?”
“Hear what?”
“Where’s Spike?” I try to breathe quietly because I swear I just heard something in the house.
“In his carrier, napping. He had two lunches today, so he’s sleeping it off.”
“He might be up.” And I’m probably being paranoid.
New places stress me out, no matter how nice they are.
“All right, anyway… The thing about Nathan is that while he’s nice and generous, he’s not ours to keep.
I don’t want you to get attached and then get your feelings hurt.
It was hard enough for you to let Jesse go. ”
“Nathan’s way better than Jesse. I can see that now.”
“Charlie.” I smooth her hair behind her ear. “Nathan and Jesse are apples and oranges. I loved Jesse, but Nathan is just my boss.”
“But he spent the night. I know you think I don’t know what that means when adults sleep over. He really likes you.”
I’m terrified to ask her to clarify an “adult sleepover,” so for now, I sidestep it. “Do you know what catch and release is?”
“No.” She falls backward on the bed. I follow suit and wrap my hand around hers. It’s not teensy anymore. Reality sets in when I realize our hands are almost the same size. She’s growing up so fast, and I’m so stressed out about giving her a good childhood, that I’m missing it.
“Catch and release is when people fish just to see what they can catch. As soon as they get what they’re after, they throw the fish back. They never mean to keep them. It’s just a game. The only thing that interests them is the chase. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
“You’re saying Nathan is playing catch and release?”
“Exactly.” Oh, thank fuck she gets it. My feelings are still raw, and I don’t want to dive into how foolish I feel, swooning over my boss, forcing some fantasy with a guy who is so far out of my reach, he might as well be living on the moon.
“That’s nice of him,” Charlie says so casually.
“What?” I pop up into a sit, and blink at her. “How is that nice?”
“Well, if we’re talking about fishing, what’s the alternative? That he catches you, kills you, and puts you in a fry pan. Releasing you is a nice thing to do, isn’t it?”
Did my little sister unintentionally impart some form of profound wisdom on me? “Fish and people are different, Charlie.”
For a moment, she’s silent. She stares at the ceiling fan as the white blades circle slowly. I lie back down, enjoying the cozy moment. It’s almost perfect, except with the size of this bed, there’s a noticeable empty space on the other side of me, like our family is almost whole, but not quite.
“I’ll talk to him for you if you want? Ask him if he likes you,” Charlie offers in a hushed tone. “I’m really good at it. Last week I asked Taylor B if he liked Madison, and he said yes. They’re dating now.”
If it were only that simple. Enjoy it while it lasts, sister. These are the last few years of your life where boys will make sense. At this age, they wear their hearts on their sleeves, and are somewhat willing to tango with something called the truth.
“I’m okay. Thank you though.”
“Because you’re scared he’ll say no?” she asks.
“It’s because I’m scared he’ll say yes.” And I know for a fact Nathan Hatcher doesn’t like me the way I like him. I’m a toy at his mercy. An easily manipulated plaything. Something to catch, then release.
She holds up her hand. “On Mom, so you can’t lie… Do you like him?”
I raise my palm, matching her gesture. It’s our most serious command whenever we say, “ On Mom. ” I’m powerless to lie. “Very much. But don’t worry about it. It’ll fade. If you want to go shopping with Nathan, that’s fine, but grab some cash out of my purse and that is your budget .”
“Knock, knock,” Nathan says as he physically knocks on the door trim. He’s wearing nice light jeans and a plain navy T-shirt, looking more casual than I’ve ever seen him before.
Frazzled, I fly up into a sitting position again, as if I’m caught. No way he heard all that, right? Shit. “When did you get here?”
“Just walked in.” He shrugs, unbothered. I’m alarmed, but he’s not. Phew. He didn’t hear a damn thing. “You settling in okay?”
“Yeah, everything’s great. Except I think there’s a pest control problem.” I smirk.
“I agree, but you call that rat a pet, so who am I to argue?”
I try so hard to hold in my laugh, but it breaks free of my lips like river rapids against a paper-thin barricade. Nathan’s smile crinkles the corners of his pretty eyes. His peculiar blue-green eyes are dressed in a naturally thick layer of lashes any woman would envy.
“I was talking about bossholes with no leash who think they can enter houses uninvited.”
Nathan fakes a gasp. “Your boss is entering a structure on his own property that he paid for? How riotous."
“Completely unacceptable,” I agree with a widening smile.
“Don’t you worry, miss. I’ll ruin his life in your honor.”
“Good.”
Scoffing again, Charlie scoots off the bed. “Yeah, you two like each other,” she mutters. Heat fills my cheeks, but cool as a cucumber, Nathan ignores her side comment.
“You ready?” he asks her.
“I just have to go get cash. Spencer said I could take sixty dollars.” She cockily pumps her brows at me, knowing she has me backed into a corner.
“Forty,” I offer, compromising.
“Fifty,” she sasses back.
“Could be zero.”
“Fine. Forty,” she grumbles, marching past Nathan like forty bucks is a disappointment. That’s two allowances for this week.
Nathan doesn’t follow Charlie out. He leans against the doorframe, one foot in two boats.
He’s half in my room, half not. I don’t know why I have such strong nervous butterflies.
I slept next to him. His underwear-sheathed dick and I are acquaintances.
But I’m still not used to it when he stares at me like this.
So intently. Like he’s trying to read my mind.
“You need something?” I ask.
“I’m sorry,” he says simply.
“There are worse things than being forced to live in a palace.” I roll my wrist and gesture to my temporary room.
“Oh, not about moving you in. I feel pretty good about that.” His weak chuckle is unenthusiastic.
“I meant I’m sorry I didn’t ask you first to take Charlie shopping.
It’s been a while since I’ve been around kids her age, and I should’ve respected you as her parent before offering. But her hopes are up now, so…”
“She can go. I trust you.”
His brows lift in surprise. “You do?”
“To protect my sister?” I nod. “Yeah, I do.”
“And what about you? Do you trust me to take care of you?”
I tuck my legs in, folding one ankle over the other. “Am I giving off the impression that I need protecting?”
He runs his finger over his bottom lip, a pensive look on his face. “One of my many character flaws is that I like to be needed.”
“I do need you,” I snap back. “I need you to not use this opportunity to spoil the shit out of my sister.”
“Why not?” he challenges. “I’m not sure if you’re aware, but I’m not exactly hurting for cash.
You guys have been through too much for too long.
You deserve to feel safe and spoiled every now and then instead of always looking up, wondering when the sky is going to fall.
So, with your okay, I’m going to go buy Charlie some really expensive, unnecessary shit today. ”
Stupid prince. I wish he’d go back to being a toad. He’s so much easier to resist when he’s a toad. “How unnecessary are we talking?”
“Unfathomably ridiculous. Like I know a dude who custom builds six-foot bubblegum machines.”
“Hm, if they have one in pink, that would be the perfect finishing touch for your office.”
He shifts his gaze up with a heavy sigh. “I actually forgot about that for a moment.”
I release a rich belly laugh, feeling genuinely happy. Maybe this can work for now. Nathan and I can find a way to be friends. Maybe this crush will become a silly thing of the past. “All right. Offer accepted. Spoil my baby sister. Thank you…for everything.”
He ducks his head in a humble nod. “One more thing,” he says, pulling a flat, square box from his back pocket.
He takes three steps forward into the room and balances the box on my knee.
“I said you both deserve to be spoiled.” He leans over and gently flicks my earlobe.
“You never wear earrings, yet your ears are pierced. I just figured…” He shrugs.
I gape, trying to find words. The box on my knee might as well be a thousand pounds, pinning me in place. I can’t speak, I can’t move…I can’t think. What is this?
“Nathan, I?—”
“Let’s not do the awkward dance of you refusing them, me insisting, you refusing again, me threatening your job. We’ll still get to the same end result.”
His domineering assholery sobers the moment. “Being?” I ask.
He grins. “My way.”
I roll my eyes. “You’re like a defective Sour Patch Kid. Sour on the outside, and then just more sour on the inside.”
“Maybe so. Just wait until I leave before you open those.”
“Why?”
“So I don’t have to see the disappointment on your face if you don’t like them.” He turns to leave.
“Nate, wait.” I scoop up the flat box, cradling it to my chest. “No one has ever bought me jewelry before.”
“But you said you were engaged.”
I shake my head. “No ring. Just promises. Broken promises.”
“You’re kidding me,” he almost whispers. Returning to my side, he kneels down in front of me. He gathers the box from me and opens the lid, revealing a pair of beautiful pink diamond studs. “I’m glad you left him. Don’t settle for a guy who tells you he loves you. Choose one who shows you.”
He leaves me speechless. Not just because of these precious earrings, probably worth more than I’ll ever care to know. But it’s the thought behind it. Is this Nathan showing me…more? Does he think about me as much as I think about him?
“Thank you.” I can barely manage the words. I think I said them. If nothing else, I screamed it from my mind.
“I could’ve gone bigger, but I thought these would fit you better. I know you’re not into ostentatious things. Sometimes the rarest beauty shines brightest in subtlety.”
“You should go. It looks borderline gory when I ugly-cry. I don’t want you to see me like that.” I sniffle hard to convey my point.
Nathan laughs lightly. He slowly rises, as if reluctant to leave my side. But when Charlie shouts, “Ready!” at the top of her lungs from the living room, the moment’s over. All the unspoken words fall between us as the spell breaks and the haze is lifted.
He pauses one more time near the door, looking over his shoulder. “And just to clear the air—when it comes to fishing, I’m a catch-and-keep kind of guy.”
Disappearing from the doorway, Nathan leaves me confused for the briefest moment. Then, it dawns on me. It wasn’t a restless Spike I heard earlier. It was Nathan entering the house. He must’ve heard every word, including when I told Charlie, on Mom , how much I really do like him.