Chapter Two _Employed

Sebastian Halloway

Men either wanted to be him or see him dead. Whichever came first.

Women wanted to wife him, bed him, claim him.

Sebastian Halloway was an enigma, a riddle wrapped in temptation. A delicious mystery that everyone craved but no one could solve.

By twenty, he had amassed a fortune that rivaled the wealthiest titans of industry. And the only thing that matched his riches was his body—sculpted, revered, and splashed across magazines from New Zealand to England.

No one knew if he had a child. No one knew if he was married. No one knew if he even had parents.

And most preferred it that way.

***

Elena

"They’re disgusting, the lot of them." The woman beside me sneered, her voice dripping with contempt. She looked like she had just stepped off the set of a movie about mean girls who never grew up.

She turned to me, arching an impeccably shaped brow. "Don’t you agree?"

I glanced at the homemade cupcakes I had brought, realizing they weren’t going to win any awards. But at least no one could call me a deadbeat mom.

Around us, the other mothers fluttered about, picking at snacks that looked edible enough to sample and discreetly stashing away their own leftovers, all while wearing forced smiles.

A redhead attempted to be sneaky about it, hiding treats in a green handkerchief, but it was painfully obvious.

I found it amusing rather than annoying. I had no interest in judging them. I was content with being ignored if they felt the same.

"I don’t really care," I replied, turning to meet her gaze with a shrug. "They’re happy doing what they do. Who am I to judge?"

She made a noncommittal sound, a soft "ahh," and returned her attention to her phone, tapping away as if I no longer existed.

I couldn't help but wonder who she was. I recognized most of the other women from my previous bake sale visits. I knew their kids. Charlotte was friends with some of them.

But this woman was unfamiliar. Perhaps her child was new to the school.

The redhead noticed me staring and quickly moved to the other side of the room, as if I might expose her little secret.

"That one doesn’t even realize everyone can see her." The woman beside me remarked with another sneer.

I stifled a laugh, disguising it as a cough. It escaped before I could stop it, and I could see a flicker of amusement cross the woman’s face.

The sneer was gone, replaced by a wide smile. Even though her eyes were hidden behind dark shades, I could tell she was impressed.

But I had done nothing to impress her.

"You’re not as uptight as I thought." she observed. "One point, I guess."

I raised an eyebrow, confused. "What do you mean?"

Her smile got even wider. "Oh, don't worry about it."

Those words made me worry.

Had something happened?

Was this related to the man the babysitter had seen?

Would I have to deal with the consequences of an action I didn't know I had committed?

Afterwards, I took Charlotte to the park, getting her ice cream on the way. Watching her play with the other kids lifted my heart in a way I never expected.

But the dread of returning back home to an ever increasing pile of bills turned my stomach.

I hated being this poor.

Without thinking, I turned around and collided with something solid. A hand shot out, grabbing my wrist to keep me from falling and slamming onto the wet ground.

"I'm used to women falling for me, but not literally." A deep, amused voice remarked.

His face was covered with the face mask he wore but I could tell he was smiling.

I snatched my hand back, my cheeks burning. "Sorry, I’m not usually this clumsy. I just didn’t see you there."

He chuckled, the sound rich and warm. "I’d never think that about anyone."

I couldn’t tell if he was joking or being sarcastic, but I didn’t have time to dwell on it. My focus should have been on Charlotte, not some stranger who looked familiar.

A chill ran down my spine. Was he...?

He followed my gaze to where Charlotte played. "Your sister?"

"My daughter." I answered without thinking. I was too old to play those lying games.

He shrugged. "And here I was thinking she's too young to have a child."

His playful words coaxed a chuckle out of me, despite my best efforts.

Hadn't I heard of stranger danger?

"She’s my daughter." I said, the words spilling out before I could stop them. "I just lost my one good job because I’m an idiot, and I have no idea how we’re going to survive. Getting a good job without decent skills is hard, but I want her to be happy. So, I’ll find something, and I’ll give her everything she wants."

I wasn’t expecting a response. In fact, I half-expected him to walk away, thinking my words were some sort of plea for help or charity.

But he didn’t move.

"Where’s her father?"

"The father?" I squeaked, caught off guard. "He’s… out of the picture. In some ways. Still in it, in others. It’s complicated."

He nodded as if that was all the information he needed. We stood there for a few more minutes, just watching Charlotte.

For some reason, his presence calmed my nerves.

Then, just as quietly as he had appeared, he walked away.

*****

"Miss Blythe, we need you to come to the school immediately." Mrs. Brown’s voice was sharp and unyielding as it crackled through the phone. "Charlotte has done something terrible, and a parent needs to be present…"

She refused to tell me what Charlotte had done, which only made my anxiety worse. I could only hope the owners of the mansion I was supposed to clean would understand.

The principal’s office was on the other side of the school, far from where I was currently working today.

"Mummy." Charlotte rushed to hug me as soon as I entered the secretary’s office. She had been standing in the corner, while her teacher, Mrs. Brown, watched her like a hawk.

I ruffled Charlotte’s hair, trying to hide my growing panic.

"What happened? What did she do?" I asked, focusing on Mrs. Brown, who looked ready to attack me.

She never did like me. And the feeling was mutual.

"Charlotte slapped her classmate." She explained haugtily. "And very harshly."

My Charlotte had always been a sweetheart. She would never do something like that, not even when other kids upset her. This was something new, something alarming.

I let out a shaky breath, my eyes stinging with unshed tears. "Where’s the girl? I need to ask some questions."

Mrs. Brown’s smile tightened. "She’s in the office. Let’s go in."

I knew better than to show my anger in front of Charlotte. She was just a child. She didn’t know better. I was the one who had been absent, allowing my daughter to pick up bad habits because I was too distracted, too overwhelmed.

"You’ll be with me every minute of the day for the next month," I told Charlotte as calmly as I could, kneeling so our eyes were level. "You shouldn’t do something like that again. If you have a problem with someone, come to me and tell me, okay?"

A knock on the door interrupted the moment I wasn't expecting anyone.

The knock came again, harder, more insistent.

I told Charlotte to stay hidden, then opened the door cautiously.

"Hello."

The woman from the bake sale yesterday was the one there. But she wasn't alone. By her sides were two men with expressionless faces.

She wasn’t wearing shades today. Her amber eyes were the most beautiful of blues.

"Hello, Miss Blythe." She said, her tone smooth and authoritative. "Congratulations, you’re employed now."

Nothing like the arrogant woman yesterday.

I stared at her, completely bewildered. I had no idea if that was how people ran employment agencies nowadays, but I knew I had done nothing to make anyone employ me.