her soft blue eyes still had bits of sleep in them behind her tortoiseshell glasses. A pair of fuzzy slippers completed her ensemble and I felt terrible that she’d gotten out of bed for me.
“Clara, this is Marcie; Marcie, Clara,” Bryce introduced us before dismissing himself.
Without his reassuring presence at my side, I felt exposed and vulnerable. Both of the older people greeted me with warm smiles and Clara even looked like she wanted to hug me. I didn’t know what Bryce had told them about our ordeal.
“Come with me, sweetie, I’ll show you to your room,” Clara ushered with a yawn.
My eyes roved back to the direction Bryce had disappeared until Clara tugged on my arm.
“Are you hungry? Frankie, be a dear and make Marcie a snack, won’t you?” She tossed a flirty grin over her shoulder to the butler who tried his damnedest to suppress the little upturn of his lips. He nodded without a word and then he disappeared, too.
Clara held my hand in her own and patted it gently.
“It’s all right, love. We’ll take good care of you here,” she said as she led me up the stairs.
“I’m sorry you had to wake up for me. It really wasn’t necessary.”
“Nonsense! We never have guests and Mr. Dorian is never home. It will be a nice change to have something to do.” She stopped in front of one of the doors and her plump hand reached out to turn the knob.
She led me into the room and flipped the light switch. I heard myself gasp and was suddenly overwhelmed.
A crackling fire warmed the room, a plush rug anchored the luxurious canopy bed and glass french doors led to a balcony at the far side of the room. In all of my wildest dreams I couldn’t have imagined something so opulent.
“This is too much,” I muttered, tears springing to my eyes for what felt like the dozenth time that day.
Clara busied herself turning down my bed and I stood in the doorway still in shock.
“What was that?” She asked, fluffing the pillows.
“This is too much,” I repeated more forcefully.
“I don’t even know Bryce… Mr. Dorian,” I amended, “this is too generous.”
The housekeeper frowned at me with her hands on her hips.
“You may not know Mr. Dorian, but I do. If he is doing all of this for you, there’s a reason. He obviously thinks that you’re special, so you should just settle in.”
My lip quivered and a lonely tear trickled down my face.
“Oh, sweetie,” Clara said with a maternal tone. Her arms wrapped around me in the fiercest hug I’d ever had.
“Why don’t you come over here and tell Clara all about it?”
A soft rap on the door announced Francis’ presence with a sandwich. My stomach rumbled loudly, reminding me just how empty it was.
The next thing I knew, I was telling the pair everything between bites of my peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
Chapter 10
I paced around my bedroom like a lion in a cage. It was a mistake to bring her here. She’d taken one look at my house and my staff and jumped to a million conclusions about me. I could see her judgments all over her face.
That’s why I didn’t even want to tell her about my money. There were plenty of times that being a billionaire came in handy; finding a decent woman wasn’t one of them. The women that cared about my money weren’t women that I was interested in, and the women that didn’t care about my money couldn’t ever seem to see past it.
“Stupid. Stupid. Stupid,” I raged as I hurled the closest thing to me — a vase — across the room. It made impact with the wall and shattered into a thousand pieces.
I kept seeing her bewildered look. That look that said a million things that Marcie would never say aloud. It replayed in my head stuck on a loop, eating at me each time. There had to be a way to show her that I wasn’t that guy. I wasn’t some stuck up rich fucker that couldn’t tell the difference between the smell of a daffodil and his own farts. I was in no position to judge anyone
“Clara, this is Marcie; Marcie, Clara,” Bryce introduced us before dismissing himself.
Without his reassuring presence at my side, I felt exposed and vulnerable. Both of the older people greeted me with warm smiles and Clara even looked like she wanted to hug me. I didn’t know what Bryce had told them about our ordeal.
“Come with me, sweetie, I’ll show you to your room,” Clara ushered with a yawn.
My eyes roved back to the direction Bryce had disappeared until Clara tugged on my arm.
“Are you hungry? Frankie, be a dear and make Marcie a snack, won’t you?” She tossed a flirty grin over her shoulder to the butler who tried his damnedest to suppress the little upturn of his lips. He nodded without a word and then he disappeared, too.
Clara held my hand in her own and patted it gently.
“It’s all right, love. We’ll take good care of you here,” she said as she led me up the stairs.
“I’m sorry you had to wake up for me. It really wasn’t necessary.”
“Nonsense! We never have guests and Mr. Dorian is never home. It will be a nice change to have something to do.” She stopped in front of one of the doors and her plump hand reached out to turn the knob.
She led me into the room and flipped the light switch. I heard myself gasp and was suddenly overwhelmed.
A crackling fire warmed the room, a plush rug anchored the luxurious canopy bed and glass french doors led to a balcony at the far side of the room. In all of my wildest dreams I couldn’t have imagined something so opulent.
“This is too much,” I muttered, tears springing to my eyes for what felt like the dozenth time that day.
Clara busied herself turning down my bed and I stood in the doorway still in shock.
“What was that?” She asked, fluffing the pillows.
“This is too much,” I repeated more forcefully.
“I don’t even know Bryce… Mr. Dorian,” I amended, “this is too generous.”
The housekeeper frowned at me with her hands on her hips.
“You may not know Mr. Dorian, but I do. If he is doing all of this for you, there’s a reason. He obviously thinks that you’re special, so you should just settle in.”
My lip quivered and a lonely tear trickled down my face.
“Oh, sweetie,” Clara said with a maternal tone. Her arms wrapped around me in the fiercest hug I’d ever had.
“Why don’t you come over here and tell Clara all about it?”
A soft rap on the door announced Francis’ presence with a sandwich. My stomach rumbled loudly, reminding me just how empty it was.
The next thing I knew, I was telling the pair everything between bites of my peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
Chapter 10
I paced around my bedroom like a lion in a cage. It was a mistake to bring her here. She’d taken one look at my house and my staff and jumped to a million conclusions about me. I could see her judgments all over her face.
That’s why I didn’t even want to tell her about my money. There were plenty of times that being a billionaire came in handy; finding a decent woman wasn’t one of them. The women that cared about my money weren’t women that I was interested in, and the women that didn’t care about my money couldn’t ever seem to see past it.
“Stupid. Stupid. Stupid,” I raged as I hurled the closest thing to me — a vase — across the room. It made impact with the wall and shattered into a thousand pieces.
I kept seeing her bewildered look. That look that said a million things that Marcie would never say aloud. It replayed in my head stuck on a loop, eating at me each time. There had to be a way to show her that I wasn’t that guy. I wasn’t some stuck up rich fucker that couldn’t tell the difference between the smell of a daffodil and his own farts. I was in no position to judge anyone
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