His Hired Girlfriend (14 page)

“
What are you doing?” his
voice vibrates from the door.

“
Finding my stuff,” she
says, trying to think what this stuff is that she’s looking for.
Then she remembers that it’s her pajamas. Yup, her brain is
completely dead tonight.

She finds what she wants
and rushes back to the bedroom. She collides against Jay’s hard
body, inconveniently at the doorway. She looks up at him, telling
him to please shift so that she can pass. He doesn’t get her drift
and just stands there, gazing down at her, his arms folded across
his chest.

“
Have to go and
shower.”

“
You do that.”

Alex squeezes herself
between him and the door and rushes to the bathroom. “What a long
day this is.”

“
Yeah, totally agree,” he
says loudly so that she can hear him.

“
Absolutely,” she shouts back. She is just about to close
the door when she pokes her head back out and says, “’Night,” with
a lovely smile.

Jay grins. He can’t wait
to see her reaction when she realizes that they are sharing a room
and a bed.

A moment later, he hears
the shower going and knows she must be having a good time. As he
goes about retrieving his pajamas, he whistles to himself. Back in
the bedroom, he pours himself a glass of red wine and proceeds to
drink slowly, enjoying the sweet, aromatic flavor.

Then he sees her coming
back out; her hair wet down her back, her face fresh and clean, and
her eyes sparkling. He knows she’s not wearing her contact lenses
because she is squinting as she goes about the room, trying to get
her vision to focus. Not to mention that the only thing she has on
to cover herself is a thin towel.

Shit!
Jay swallows
the wine in his mouth loudly.

“
Oh, you’re still here?”
she says, her face going quite red.

Jay doesn’t know how to
reply to that. This is his bedroom, after all. Is he supposed to
sleep in the kitchen when bedtime comes?

He swallows his now-empty
mouth, still staring at her.

“
I forgot my cream,” she
says and then rushes to the wardrobe.

Jay watches her little
bottom as she runs, his mind reeling with ungodly thoughts. The
next second she rushes back out, her lips clamping and her eyes
downcast as she races into the bathroom.

Jay takes another mouthful of his wine and then places the
glass down on the table. He waits. Then a full ten minutes later
she reappears, fully dressed in her decent pajamas. They are light
pink with little pictures of Tweety Bird everywhere.

“
So, um, aren’t you going to go to your own room?” she asks
stupidly. “Oh, right. You want to make sure I feel comfortable
first. Okay, I’m comfortable, and my head doesn’t ache at all
despite the fact that my eyes are really, really sore.
Happy?”

“
Yeah, I suppose. Just
make yourself at home,” he says and strolls into the
bathroom.

Alex cocks her head to one
side, wondering why he’s going into her bathroom. Maybe he’s
busting and thinks he couldn’t get to the toilet in his own room in
time. She shrugs her shoulders and jumps on the bed. She giggles
and makes herself comfortable.

Sitting cross-legged and
with the gigantic LCD TV on, she begins to stroke her long, wet
hair. When five minutes later he still hasn’t come out, she wonders
if he’s all right in there. She is about to go and knock when she
hears the shower going.

“
Huh?” She scratches her
head and begins to doubt that it’s only peeing that he needs. Why
would he want to shower in her bathroom anyway? But of course she
couldn’t very well go and knock on the door and tell him to get out
since this is his house and not hers.

She continues to stroke the strands of her hair and watch
TV when ten minutes later he comes back out, dressed in nothing but
a small white towel about his waist.

Holy Mother of God!
Alex nearly flips and her mouth nearly drops down to her
lap, if that is at all possible. God help her, why does Jay have to
present himself to her in such a way? She can’t help herself, and
she just stares at the handsome man. She loves his toned muscles
and not to mention the droplets of water on his tan, smooth skin.
He looks like some ultra-hot model in an advertising poster, maybe
for a perfume or something, half naked. She’s pretty sure all the
women would drool if they saw him right now.

Alex wants to purr like a cat and leap on him.
Holy smoke!
She wants to leap on him and kiss him silly. Well,
until she is silly. No, wait! She is silly right now for thinking
of such things. Her insides shudder with a longing
excitement.

Jay winks at her and then
strokes his fingers through his short hair.

Alex clears her throat and
says, “Why did you shower in there?”

“
Because I was stuffy and
needed a good shower. I feel better now, thank you.” He ends his
reply with a smile and then strolls into the walk-in wardrobe. At
the door, he pauses. “Forgot.” He returns to the bed, picks up his
pajamas, and then begins to pull on the T-shirt.

Alex just stares at him,
wondering if he had just gone mad. “Why are you getting dressed in
here?”

Jay pops his head out of
the shirt and says, “Because I brought my clothes here.”

“
Right.”

When he puts his hands to
his waist and is about to pull the towel, Alex screams. “Don’t!
Please don’t.”

Jay laughs. “Sorry.” After
grabbing for his trousers, he goes into the bathroom.

Alex places her palm on the left side of her chest. She can
feel her heart pumping hard and fast. “It’s okay now, Alex, calm
down. He’s going to go to his room when he’s out,” she whispers to
herself. “He’s just being a very nice host,” she murmurs. “Too nice
for my liking.”

She lies down and stares
up at the chandelier, taking in deep, slow breaths. “When he’s gone
I’ll be able to sleep until morning in this wonderful bed.” With
that thought in mind, she begins to roll about like a puppy in a
mud puddle.

“
I see you’re really
comfortable there.”

Her rolling comes to a
complete stop. She sees that he is fully dressed now—very decently,
too. She smirks at him and says, “I love the bed.”

Jay comes around and sits
on the side of the bed. “I do, too.” Then he gets in between the
sheets.

Alex shoves herself back,
shock
. “What are you
still doing here?” She can’t help herself. She knows it’s rude to
ask him.

Jay raises his brows. Then
he laughs, loud and clear.

“
Hey, what’s so
funny?”

Once he has managed to
stop his laughter, he says, “This is my bedroom. Where do you
suppose I go to sleep? The dining room? The long dining table as my
bed? It’s a bit hard, but I suppose—”

Alex gasps. “Your
bedroom?”

He nods.

“
But I
thought—”

“
You thought
what?”

“
That it’s my
bedroom.”

“
Actually, this is your
bedroom, too.”

“
No, what I mean
is—”

“
What do you mean?” He
looks at her curiously, folding his arms across his
chest.

“
I thought we’d have separate rooms.”

Jay shakes his head in the negative. He reaches out his
hand for her. “Come here, missy.”

“
Why?”

“
Come here,” he says, signaling with his hand.

Alex reluctantly comes to
sit beside him on the bed. Jay wraps his arm around her shoulders.
“We are supposed to be a couple. We are in a serious relationship.
A relationship so serious that we are, in fact, telling everyone
here that we are going to get engaged and then married and then
have children together soon.”

“
Yeah?”

“
Since our relationship is
so serious, what do you think people would say if we slept in
separate rooms?”

Alex understands then.
“Oh, you’re right.”

“
Are we cool?”

“
Yeah.”

Jay smiles and then lies
back. Alex watches as he makes himself comfortable.

“
Well, aren’t you getting
in?”

“
Yeah, sure,” she
responds, her heart beating outrageously fast in her
chest.

“
Come on, let me help
you.” He pulls the duvet back for her and pats the spot beside him.
When she still hesitantly and uncomfortably looks at him as though
he is an ogre ready to devour her, he shakes his head and grabs her
by the arm.

His action is so fast that Alex has no time to respond.
She’s in his arms and her face merely inches from his. She can feel
his warm breath against her skin. She gazes into his blue eyes,
lost in their glorious depths.

He smirks at her and then
tucks her in beside him. He even has one arm under her head.
“Comfortable?” he whispers into her ear.

Alex manages to
nod.

“
Good.” Then he proceeds
to make himself comfortable again and snuggles even closer to her.
“Good night, Alex.”

She nods, wondering how in
the world she came to be here, sleeping in Jay’s arms. Only he’s
gay, so lying there beside him doesn’t mean anything to him at all.
That’s the reason why he’s so comfortable with her. But God damn
it! She’s not comfortable with him. Honest to God, she does try to
make her heart slow its furious beating, but it won’t listen to
her. Why does he have to be so warm and cozy and manly?

“
Jay?” she
squeaks.

“
Hum?”

“
I don’t feel
comfortable.”

Jayden opens his eyes.
“Why not? Am I squishing you?”

“
Well, kind of,” she
lies.

“
Oh, sorry.” He moves away
from her, just a bit. “Better now?”

“
Well, no.”

“
A bit more?”

“
Yes, please.”

Jay moves a bit more to
the left.

“
Maybe a little bit more?”
she suggests, indicating with her hand as though she’s shooing him
away.

Jay does her bidding. Then
finally he asks her, “Is this good?”

Alex turns her head to one
side and then smiles. “Yes, that’s good.”

Jay nods, a half smile on his face. He turns slightly and
glances behind him. He sees that the floor is not far off. His back
is half in the air and half on the bed. He wonders how he will be
able to sleep like that all night.

Alex sees his dilemma and
sighs. “Sorry, Jay. I’m not used to sharing a bed with a stranger,
you know.”

Jay sits up and puts his
feet on the floor. “So I’m a stranger to you, eh?” Then he grabs
his pillow.

“
Oh, no. Now you’re upset with me. Jay, I’m
sorry.”

“
Don’t be, Alex. I
understand.”

“
No, you don’t. What I
mean is I’ve never shared a bed with anyone before. I’ve always
slept alone.”

“
I know, Alex. I
understand,” he says, walking away from the bed.

“
What are you
doing?”

He goes over to the sofa near the window and lies on it,
resting his head on the pillow. “Making myself
comfortable.”

“
Jay, please don’t do
that. This is your room, after all. You sleep on the bed, and I’ll
sleep on the sofa.”

“
Don’t be silly. Now, go
to sleep.”

“
But, Jay.”

“
Hush, missy. I’m a man. I sleep on the sofa. Do you want to
damage my manhood?”

Alex couldn’t help but laugh at his comment. She wants to
say to him
—“your manhood has
already been damaged, Mr. McCartney; in my eyes anyway.”

Jay raises one brow. “What
is so funny?” He is, in fact, smiling himself.

“
Nothing. Are you sure you
are comfortable on that lovely bed of yours?”

“
Very sure, m
ademoiselle,” he says and then closes his eyes. “Good
night.”

“
All right then. Good night, Jay,” she replies. She turns
over and makes herself comfortable. She peeks at him and sees that
he looks as though he is asleep. She should do the same, she tells
herself. She closes her eyes and then drifts off to a sound
sleep.

* * *

E
leven

Jayden listens to
Alex’s rhythmic breathing as she sleeps. Oddly enough, he finds it
comforting, and soon he, too, falls asleep. When he wakes up the
next morning, it’s to the smell of strong, black coffee and freshly
baked bread. Chef Leon must have just finished baking that
wonderful French bread he so enjoys. He breathes in deeply as
though he is inhaling fresh air into his lungs, enjoying the
delightful aroma. He can’t wait to go down for breakfast. Then he
can’t believe this will be the first time he’d be sharing breakfast
with Alex. Suddenly, he feels his chest puff up with—what?
Happiness?
He isn’t sure what, but he’s looking forward to
it.