Chapter Seven

Apartment Five

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P EERING AROUND THE place that had been home for the last six months, Amy paused. She’d been stuffing what constituted her wardrobe into two duffel bags for the last ten minutes, but standing by her bed, the enormity of everything that had happened in the last few hours washed over her.

“What am I doing? I’m leaving to go and live and work with someone I barely even know.”

She asked the question of no one, save for the peeling paintwork since there was no one else there. Kyle had dropped her around the block, promising to collect her again in one hour. He’d offered to help, of course, but she’d refused the invitation. The irony that she’d decided to walk to Worthington’s earlier in the night to avoid the exact same situation that saw him discover where she lived wasn’t lost on her. But in the myriad of tumultuous experiences she’d been through, her shame over that issue had waned.

What difference did it make if he saw her crappy apartment? He knew all about her debts now. She’d told him almost everything about her financial woes. There was nothing else to hide. In any case, it would no longer be ‘her’ apartment by tomorrow. Kyle might as well know how dire things were.

He might as well know who he’d just agreed to employ.

But what do I know about him?

She gulped, though she noticed how her pulse accelerated. She knew little about Kyle except that he was a man of immense wealth, and for some reason, he’d taken a liking to her.

Zipping up the bag, she perched on the edge of the bed.

He liked her.

“I like him, too.” Who wouldn’t want a man like him? She winced at her hormonal admission, shaking her head. “What’s wrong with me?!”

She didn’t have to look too far to answer that riddle.

Life had happened to her.

She’d once been young and inspired, but marriage, children, Seth’s incarceration, Jonah’s education, and Graham’s death had all taken their toll. The price wasn’t only financial. Amy was worn down and emotionally drained by her losses and experiences, but she might have been able to cope had she had enough savings to stay afloat.

She didn’t have the money, though.

She never had the money, and there would have been no hope of earning enough of it without Kyle’s intervention. That’s why she was packing her bags and sealing her boxes, and that was why she’d gamble on his help.

In the ever-increasing quicksand of her money problems, she’d learned one important lesson.

Those with the least have the fewest choices.

And Amy had no choice at all.

The abrupt ringing of her phone jolted her from her mournful monologue. Grabbing the device from her pocket, adrenaline flooded her system as she noticed who was calling.

“Mr. Kyle?”

It was still weird that he didn’t want her to use his first name, but the carrot he was dangling was sweet enough for her to let that go. She recalled how viscerally her body had responded to his domineering attitude. Her nipples had hardened into tight buds as he’d taken control, and despite her reservations, she hadn’t chosen to stop him.

Why?

It was the same reason she’d accepted the role. She needed the money, and she didn’t deny the attraction she felt for the man. It had been fun to feel the tug of flirtation and empowering to feel like a woman again.

But is that feeling enough to jump into the unknown?

She shivered as she awaited Kyle’s response. Was leaving everything she knew to take a job offer with a stranger the right thing to do?

“Amy.”

Just the sound of his calming voice settled her thoughts. She was doing the right thing.

“Hi.” She grabbed the handle of one of the duffel bags as she rose to her feet.

Sir.

She heard the final word in her head but couldn’t bring herself to say it. Not now her emotion had faded. Not now that the limited amount of champagne she’d drunk had been soaked up by the fabulous meal he’d bought for her. But his expectation was there, though, taunting her.

“Are you ready to leave?” He didn’t mention her omission, but she thought she sensed the imperceptible edge in his voice. Or maybe she just imagined it? It was impossible to say.

“Yes.” She glanced around the space again. “I’m ready.”

“You’re in apartment number five, right?”

“That’s right.” She’d have to return to collect the boxes, but she could manage the bags in one fell swoop.

She couldn’t say her time at the place had been happy. She’d arrived without fanfare, having downsized due to financial restrictions, but she’d never envisioned having to leave because she couldn’t afford to pay the rent. She never believed things could get that bad.

“Knock, knock.” Kyle’s words reverberated in her ear at the exact moment two strikes landed on the door.

She jumped, realizing she’d mentioned her apartment number on the way over, and he’d taken it upon himself to turn up at her door. Heart pounding, she hoped he’d still have a car outside when they returned. To say vehicles like Kyle’s, complete with their own drivers, were not commonplace in her neighborhood was an understatement.

Unlocking the door, she pulled it open to find the charismatic Kyle waiting in the hall. He lowered his phone, his gaze glinting as she did the same.

“You didn’t have to come up here.” Straining her neck to meet his eyes, she marveled at how tall the guy was. Had she noticed his immense height before? She couldn’t remember.

“I’m here to help.” He motioned to her duffel. “You must have more than one bag.”

“Thanks.” She dropped the duffel to the ground and turned. “I have a couple of boxes.”

He scanned the place that had been her home, as though he’d expected more. She wasn’t sure why. She’d been scarily honest with him.

“Is that all?”

It was strange to see him in the context of her shrinking life. Everything about him spoke of wealth and class, and he looked absurdly out of place in her crappy rental.

“That’s all,” she confirmed.

A tinge of the shame that had enveloped so much of her recent life ebbed at her insides because that was all. Two boxes and two duffel bags were all she had. There was nothing else to show for nearly fifty years on the planet.

“This shouldn’t take too long.” He smiled, a gesture she was sure was supposed to reassure her. Oddly, it seemed to work, her lingering anxiety quelling as he moved to collect the first box.

“Careful,” she warned as he crouched. “It’s full of kitchenware and could be heavy.”

“I’ll be fine, Amy.” Reaching for the box, he lifted it and spun to face her. “Let’s get this to the car.”

His cool demeanor should have been aggravating, or at least, his tone might have patronized. She’d been around too long to be mansplained by anyone, let alone by her potential new boss—but watching him carry the box past her with apparent ease, she was mesmerized.

William Kyle had crashed into her life, and in the course of only a couple of days, he’d altered things. She’d opened up to him—a complete stranger—about debts she hadn’t even conveyed to her sons. She’d allowed herself to be vulnerable, and in return, he’d reached out with more than only an olive branch. Kyle’s offer—even if she only survived the trial—had the potential to transform her entire existence. Whatever happened with the new role, her instincts were right—she had to accept and welcome the change it would bring.

She followed him down the dark stairwell to his waiting car, the rising wind almost knocking her from her feet. Handing the box and bag over to his driver, Stevens, an inoffensive little man with a graying mustache, she noticed other local residents assembling on the street corner, presumably eager to see who owned the expensive vehicle. She ignored their inquiring gazes and the one idiot who hurled abuse their way as she dashed back to the entrance, but the tension inside her ratcheted with every new step. It would be a relief to leave the place.

“We’ll be ready in a couple of minutes,” Kyle told Stevens as he cast a suspicious eye over the neighborhood. “Keep the engine running.”

“Yes, sir.”

Stevens’ reply was nearly lost to a gust of wind as Kyle’s left hand moved to Amy’s lower back and steered her back inside. They climbed the steps, heading across the hallway to take her remaining things from the apartment. Standing on the threshold, she took one final look at the glum chapter of her life.

“Ready to start working for me?” Kyle’s eyebrow cocked as he presented her with the easiest conundrum in the world.

“Yes, sir.” She feigned a salute, the gesture covering up any awkwardness she felt about using the term.

Amy was more than ready.