Chapter Ten

Uncrossing his arms, he lowered them and grasped the edge of the desk, as he continued to recline back on it. "So let's get down to it. We've established that you can't cook..."

"Well, I... Ummmm," she shrugged and gave him an apologetic smile. "I'm willing to learn."

Laughing, Roth nodded. "Fair enough. I'm willing to give you a little grace period to get up to speed. What I'm in need of is a live-in cook and housekeeper."

"Live here?" She blue eyes grew wide and her mouth dropped in disbelief. He couldn't be serious. In this house? With him?

Cocking his head to the side Roth arched a brow at her, amused. "Well, that would be what the term live-in implies. You'd be paid well. Your pay will increase when your culinary skills improve. We can heckle about the pay later. In addition, you'll receive room and board. I'm assuming when you said the extent of your cooking skills stopped at..." he chuckled and cleared his throat, "mac and cheese you weren't understating."

Embarrassed, Ruby shook her head. "Afraid not. It's really good though."

"No doubt."

Taking a deep breath in, she exhaled slowly. "With all due respect, I have a feeling you can well afford a real chef, one who knows how to cook and do what you need them to. Why me?"

"Fair question." Roth clucked his tongue off the roof of his mouth as he eyed her. "The thing is that when I say live-in, it means just that and to be honest I'm a fairly hard man to live with."

Ruby grinned, she had a hard time believing that. "But this is a rather large house," she countered.

"Okay, let me rephrase then. I want someone who I think I'll enjoy having around, even though my best friend stays here with me, I still feel like I live in this house alone" Roth's gaze caught hers and once again ruby felt a familiar pleasurable chill rush down her spine and the throbbing between her legs that that had just begun to die down resumed in full force.

Enjoy how? Oh-my-God, don't be silly. He certainly doesn't have to hire someone for sex! Maybe he just wants a cook, housekeeper and someone to shoot the shit with from time to time, nothing more and nothing less. But the heat in his gaze told her otherwise. His gaze told her, he wanted her. Ruby felt it in the coffee shop and she was feeling it now, more intensely than ever before because there was no counter to use as a buffer between them.

But what if she was mistaken? What if by taking this job, she'd be forced to endure seeing him bring home a parade of snotty model type women. She growled at herself. This was a job, nothing more or less. Who he brought home would be none of her concern.

"So what happened to your former cook-slash-housekeeper?"

"She has moved on."

"And what other duties would this include?"

Roth's eyes continued to gaze onto hers. Damn, she hated, but at the same time loved how he was making her feel. Could she work for someone who made her feel this way? Ruby didn't know.

"Well, the cooking is the primary thing. Breakfast would be required to be prepared and served at 7am sharp every morning. And you are expected to be here and have an acceptable dinner on the table when I come home during the week. On the weekend I expect three meals. In addition, laundry, shopping and cleaning throughout the day. Whatever requires doing - more or less. I do have people come in and take care of the floors, windows, pool twice a week, so virtually everything having to do with the household upkeep would be under your command. And like I say, I require you to be on call 24/7. No exceptions."

"Sounds like you're looking for a wife to me," Ruby joked.

Roth's soft smile faded and his expression went blank, making Ruby gasped her eyes wide in horror as soon at the words that came from her mouth. Why did she keep doing that? Filter. Ruby. Filter, she scolded herself. "I'm so sorry. I never meant. I was ju-"

"Now if you were to fulfill the duties of my wife, then I assure you I'd be expecting more than simple cooking and cleaning." His voice took on a deep, husky sound that made her wish she was bold enough to volunteer for the "extras."

Running a nervous hand through her hair, ruby couldn't bear to meet his heated gaze. Instead she focused on an abstract painting just over his left shoulder.

"So would you like to see the kitchen and the room that would be yours before we discuss money and you make a decision either way?"

She gulped down the lump forming in her throat and nodded. "Yes please."