“Shut your fucking face. You’re gorgeous.”
“Trust me, I’m not fishing for compliments!” I argue. “But I’m a nutritional overachiever, and that type isn’t typically a number-one draft pick for rich assholes like him. Do you see anything about a girlfriend online? Maybe he’s taken, which will shut my libido down real quick.”
Dakota does a quick scan. “No obvious girlfriend in any of his Instagram photos. But look at this picture.” She turns her phone to me and shows me a photo of him and Everly at some beach. He’s wearing those tiny floral men’s trunks that hug his muscular thighs.
I snatch the phone out of her hands as my eyes zero in on his abs. “What kind of dad bod bullshit is that?”
“Right? He really does look like a Ken doll. Hopefully a bit more anatomically correct but a total Zaddy body, nonetheless.”
My head snaps up to my best friend. “You just learned that word.”
She shrugs. “I’m a quick study.”
I glance back down at the photo and lick my lips. His dirty-blond hair is that effortlessly sexy cut that’s trim on the sides with natural waves on top. I didn’t realize how long it was during my interview because he had it smoothed off to the side. But blowing in the beach wind like it is in this photo, looking artfully mussed with his smiling eyes all crinkly is positively mouthwatering. My hands itch to run my fingers through it.
“Is taking this job a big mistake?” I ask, my voice feeling thick in my throat.
“Why would it be?” Dakota inquires, clearly having no idea of the dirty thoughts going through my mind.
I hand her phone back to her. “Because I’m going to work for a hot, single dad billionaire who represents corporate greed and everything I hate in life?” Not to mention I’m not sure I’ll be able to stop my vivid fantasies from living rent free in my imagination.
“He’s not a billionaire,” Dakota corrects. “He’s only a millionaire. You’re going to be fine!”
“This looks great, Bettina, thank you,” I proclaim, standing in the small kitchenette of the guest cottage located on the backside of my property.
Bettina is my house manager and tends to all things domestic for me. She picks up her cleaning supplies and makes her way out as I walk a couple of steps over to the large sliding glass doors on the backside of the house. It overlooks Boulder Creek that lines about two hundred feet of my property. There’s a small, sandy beach area that Everly used to love to play in when she was little. I haven’t been back here in years.
This cottage used to be a boat house until a few years ago when I had my brothers turn it into one of those tiny houses that were all the rage on TV. This structure is only five hundred square feet, but with vaulted ceilings, lots of windows, and shiplap on the interior walls, it’s bright and airy and feels more like a luxury cabin. I installed high-end appliances, custom cabinetry, and even a small soaker tub with a waterfall showerhead in the bathroom. It might be tiny, but it has everything you’d ever need. The sleeping area even has a king mattress. Hell, I’d live out here. Seems a lot simpler than the eight thousand square feet house I currently live in…by myself most of the time.
My brothers did that remodel for me as well. The three of them work under my father’s construction company. They specialize in house flipping and remodels all over the Boulder area.
My dad had expectations for me to take the wheel when he retired, but I never pictured myself working on job sites for the rest of my life. As soon as I started business school, I knew I wanted to carve my own path in life. Something that required a suit and tie every day in an office setting. And when my franchise consulting business took off in my twenties, that all but secured the fact that I wasn’t going to have an active role in the family business.
Unfortunately for my dad, my three younger brothers seem less than motivated to take on more responsibility. The three of them march to the beat of their own drums. A few years ago, they built these self-sustaining log cabins on a stretch of land up in the mountains outside of Boulder near Jamestown. Now they have their own little commune that they get up to God knows what up there.
Everly loves to stay over. It’s like visiting an adventure park to her. I just have to be careful in the winter when we visit because if it snows, we could be stuck up there for days.
Yeah, my brothers and I…very different.
I’ll stick to my climate-controlled office and focus on the task of integrating a hundred new employees into my workflow.
“She’s here, Dad!” Everly’s voice rips me out of my musings, and I turn on my heel to see my kid standing in the doorway next to the new nanny.
Cozy.
It was a whole ordeal deciding to hire her. We had to have a Zoom family meeting with Jessica and the nanny agency owner to make sure Cassandra was actually qualified. I had to double-check because that was one of the weirdest interviews of my life, and I’ve interviewed plenty of staff. But Rebecca assured us that Cassandra had all the proper qualifications, and her candidates were extensively vetted. Seeing as the owner of the nanny agency is her sister, I guess I took that as a small comfort.
The next ordeal we had to handle was Everly’s summer schedule. The kid broke down in tears to Jess and me on the video call, begging us to cancel all her summer activities so she could “do nothing with Cozy.” It was hell. Everly crying is like an instant surrender button for me. I will do anything to make it stop. I often use Jess as the heavy in our family, but with her being out of the country already, she couldn’t exactly find a better solution. So despite my better judgment, Cozy was hired, and Everly’s busy summer plans went out the window.
“Cassandra, welcome,” I state, striding to meet her at the doorway. I reach out my hand, and she releases her large suitcase handle to shake it. That silvery feeling is back, so I quickly pull my hand back and slide it into my suit pant pocket. “I hope you’ll be comfortable out here.”
“Please call me Cozy,” Cassandra says, offering a soft smile. Her dark hair is up in a short ponytail today, and she looks exceedingly younger than her twenty-six years.
“Your house is cozy, isn’t it?” Everly giggles and grabs Cassandra’s hand, pulling her into the small living area. There’s a long white sofa that lines the opposite side of the sliders with a great view of the creek, plus a small television mounted over the dining room table that pulls down from the wall in the event you need more floor space. “My uncles built it. It’s called a tiny house.”
“Your uncles must be very handy,” Cassandra responds, walking into the kitchen and running her hand along the white granite countertop beside the stainless-steel fridge. She points at the large wooden ladder that leads to the lofted area. “Is up there where I sleep?”
“Yes, let me show you!” Everly peals and begins her climb.
I walk over to the ladder just as Cassandra does, both of our hands reaching out to hold it steady. Cassandra’s green eyes connect with mine, and I swallow thickly before turning back up to the loft, ignoring the scent of coconut that wafts over me at her proximity. “Everly, you don’t have to show her that part. I’m sure Cassandra can manage.”