RONNELL POV“What do you even mean by that? He wasn't even looking at me in an inappropriate way. We were just talking to each about—”“Trust me, Blair. I know when a man is interested, and Peter was. If you'd hired him, he would have been a huge problem.” She pulled back, huffing. “I can’t even feed my child without men falling all over themselves? Be honest with me, you don't look?” She asked but when I didn't reply, she leaned in, studying my whole expression. “Do you?” “We all know that I'm human with feelings of my own and not a robot.” Her mouth fell open, forming an O. “You've been ogling at my boobs, Ronnell?” “That isn't the right word, I have only had little glance here and there.” This was the most embarrassing moment of my life. Even more than when my mother showed up to my high school with pajamas and unkept hair, demanding I show her how to install YouTube.I should have picked up the skill of lying somewhere along the way, but I was my father's son. Dishonesty wasn
BLAIR POVThe week had flown by in a blur, Ronnell keeping me busier than usual. I suspected he was trying to distract me from missing Nathan.Or maybe he was just as paranoid as I thought, watching the cameras obsessively too. Either way, it was clear he was on edge about having a stranger in his home."Has Greg shown up again?" I asked as we headed to Cameron Building.Ronnell nodded. "A couple of times. Security always turns him away." He paused. "If he's smart, he'll retire to Greece and enjoy what's left of his money."I shook my head. "I'll never understand his obsession with more money. He's risking everything he's built. Eighty-four years. It's pure greed and selfishness."“Do you know what, Blair? It's not always greed and ambition that drives wealthy men to get richer.” “Then what?” I questioned.His jaw rippled. “Not every rich man started off that way.”Ronnell Roman was one of them. The information available to the entire public about his background was vague, but I had
BLAIR POVMy hands flew to my flaming cheeks. “You had spilled the quiet part so loudly, sir.” I looked around hoping that I was the only one who had heard what he had said. He held his hands out. “I'm Tyler, and I'm all about spilling the quiet part loudly.” I stared at his hands for a few seconds before shaking them. “Blair. And I regularly burst out into flames when I get a little embarrassed, so maybe, you could cool it with the bluntness.”“All right, Blair darling. You are too pretty to burn into ashes, so I would try to rein myself in, but I make no promises.” This man was blatantly, unmistakably flirty with me, and I barely even knew what to do with myself. It had been ages since anyone had come on to me. Massively pregnant, then lugging around a baby in a car seat could be quite the hindrance.I wasn't in the market to date, but I wasn't opposed to being flirted with, especially now when I didn't really love the way I looked.“Thank you. Also, it's just Blair, Tyler boy.”
BLAIR POVRonnell was quiet on the way back to the office. He worked on his tablet the whole entire time, poking at the screen with more force than necessary. The rest of the day, my stomach was sour with worry. I knew this wall of his so well. He could put it up and take it down at his own free will. I had been on the inside of it the past few weeks, and now, being on the outside…it was a harsh slap in the face. I had to remember this, just because we were growing comfortable with each other didn't mean he wouldn't turn back to a python when I made a mistake. And I knew I would.Because I was me, and that was what I did.Throughout the rest of the day was disastrous, and sleeping through the night was a little hard.The weekend came already, and I padded downstairs with Nathan. We had been laying in snuggling in my bed after we both woke up, he was nursing like a maniac and I kept soaking up every bit of him I had missed all week at work. Right now, I was starving and he was chil
BLAIR POV"Alright, alright. I'm not sure you should be giving me so much leeway. But luckily, I love my job and have a serious aversion to guns and explosives."His frown deepened. "You like your job? That's a new one."“It took me a while to get used to working for you, but yeah. I like it.” His jaw tended to ripple, but his brows softened as he looked me over. “I interrupted something yesterday.” I quickly waved him off. “Nah__it wasn't a big deal. I was trying to figure out a way to turn him down, so your timing was pretty perfect. But then, your delivery service had been brutal, though.” “But you seemed to have been enjoying yourself.” I wondered how much he'd seen. It made me a little uncomfortable to think that he had witnessed me flirting back. I hadn't meant it, but it didn't look good for me.“You got everything wrong. It wasn't him in particular I was enjoying.” I dug my teeth into my bottom lip, searching for a way to explain. “This is the first time after a long while
BLAIR POVHana slipped a pair of wide-leg palazzo trousers and a stylish, floral-print short sleeve on me. They fit like a glove, and Hana beamed with satisfaction, hands clasped under her chin.“This is so perfect! Mr. Roman would definitely love this,” she gushed, rushing towards the curtain.“I doubt Ronnell will have an opinion," I muttered."Of course he will. He asked for me to have you show him everything." She yanked the curtain aside, gesturing for me to follow. Reluctantly, I obeyed.Ronnell was lounging on the couch, gently rocking the stroller. His eyes lifted from Nathan to meet mine."I'm told that you need to approve my clothing," I said calmly.“I asked to see them and not approve of them,” he responded, scanning me from head to toe, but his expression was so inscrutable that I had no idea what his opinion was. “Do you like this?” “I think so.” I spun around to look at myself in the wall mirrors, trying to focus on the clothes, while not being critical of my wild hair
RONNELL POVNathan had conked out as soon as we hit the road, so we pulled over at a food truck for lunch. We ended up eating our tuna sandwiches in the car, with the window cracked open for some fresh winter air.“I bet you’ve never had tuna sandwiches in a car before,” Blair teased.“Nope, never even considered it,” I replied, taking a huge bite of my tuna, which was packed with egg, chicken, salad, and cheese. The flavors were exploding in my mouth. “I’m questioning a lot of my life choices right now.”She snorted, hiding her laughter behind a napkin. “It’s okay to be human and messy sometimes.”“Messy, I can handle it. It’s the human part that’s throwing me.”“Oh, come on. You can’t be serious.”“No, I mean, I really like order. It helps me stay sane.” I finished my sandwich, leaned back, and closed my eyes for a moment.“I don't think there's anything wrong with that, as long as it doesn't take over your life.” My need for 'order' had most definitely taken over my life by now. T
RONNELL POV“Uhmm… looking back, I think she was probably worried about me too. I might have thought that was a bad decision on her part, but I was becoming something else entirely. Turns out, kicking me out of the family was the best thing she could have done for me. I might still harbor a bit of anger, but working through manual labor and experiencing the real world outside my spoiled upbringing has given me a new perspective.” She pushed a strand of hair behind her ear.I had spent countless hours consumed by fury, but rarely had my rage been so intense towards people I didn’t even know.And Blair seemed completely unaffected by it all.“Why don’t you seem upset about all of this?”Another bitter laugh escaped her lips. “I never said I wasn’t angry; I was furious. But it’s been so many years, and while I’m still working through abandonment issues, I recognize that she ultimately did me a huge favor. If I had stayed, things could have ended much worse. I might have ended up in an ab