The Maid's Daughter - S01 E04

Story 3 years ago

The Maid's Daughter - S01 E04

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 4

Devlyn awoke abruptly, his internal alarm clock set for

6:00 a.m. For a moment, he was completely disoriented. And

then everything came flooding back. Gillian Carlyle.

Though it was an anomaly to begin the day fully dressed

in a woman’s bed, the details were clear. He’d been driven

by a combination of guilt and lust, determined to take care

of the prickly woman who was a thorn in the side of his past.

He rubbed his gritty eyes, wishing he had the option of

going back to sleep. But Wolff Enterprises expected him at

the helm this morning, and he had already made one costly

mistake because of this woman.

Gillian sighed in her sleep and nestled more closely into his

embrace. He was on top of the comforter, hard and ready to

take her. All she was wearing was a pajama top, and below the

covers a next-to-nothing pair of panties. Unable to help him-

self, he slid a hand beneath the sheet and caressed her bottom.

Gillian sighed and turned to curl an arm around his neck.

Now her breasts were pressed snugly against his arm. He slid

his fingers beneath the silk at her hip and felt her warm skin.

His body throbbed with arousal. A few more inches and he

would be touching her most intimate secrets.

Somewhere in the house he heard muffled laughter. The

sound snatched him back to sanity. God in heaven. What was

he doing? Had he learned nothing from the past?

He slid from the bed with all the care of a cat burglar hop-

ing to elude detection. It took everything he had to turn his

back on Gillian and return to his room. As he showered and

dressed, he reminded himself of all the reasons he couldn’t

start something with his overnight visitor.

First and foremost was Gillian’s clear discomfort about

the fact that her mother worked for Devlyn’s father. Devlyn

could not care less, but even so, he acknowledged the diffi-

culty of coaxing Gillian into his bed with little or no privacy

for their fledgling relationship, especially when either or both

of their parents might not approve.

Secondly, he owed Gillian more than a verbal apology for

his shameful actions in the past. Acknowledging that he had

been merely a boy when it happened was not enough. He was

determined to clean the slate, and he knew just how to do it.

He told himself that in this instance he was doing the right

thing and not merely perpetuating his tendency to play hero

to every woman who crossed his path needing help.

In college, he had supported his roommate’s pregnant girl-

friend, both emotionally and financially, when the father of

her baby dumped her. That altruistic action on Devlyn’s part

had severed his relationship with a young man he had con-

sidered his best friend.

Not only that, the girl had latched on to the idea that lov-

ers were interchangeable…and she set her sights on Devlyn.

Only by graduating and moving hundreds of miles away had

he been able to extract himself from the messy situation.

Unfortunately, it was a pattern that repeated itself in sub-

sequent years. Every time he rushed in on his white horse to

save the day, he got screwed. The secretary at work whose

brother needed a job ended up hating Devlyn when he finally

had to fire her worthless sibling.

Even worse was the fifty-something caterer who had ac-

cused Devlyn, over two decades her junior, of sexual harass-

ment. He had offered to help her load her van after a staff

Christmas party, and the woman had seen a chance to make

a quick buck.

The Wolff lawyers settled out of court, costing the fam-

ily an indecent amount of money. Now that Devlyn thought

about it, it was a miracle that his dad and uncle had trusted

him enough to make him CEO.

But despite his sometimes unfortunate judgment in dealing

with the female sex, he was a whiz kid when it came to money

matters. He’d earned his own first million, aside from the

family business, by investments he’d made in his late teens.

The intensity and daily challenge of running the far-flung

Wolff empire suited him perfectly. He was due back at his

headquarters in Atlanta soon. Barely enough time to pres-

ent his proposition to Gillian and ensure that he had finally

made amends for the past.

So why was he obsessing over the image of long, slender

legs and a sweetly curved bottom? The answer was simple.

Logical or not, he wanted her, though she certainly deserved

better than the flawed man he was.

Picking up his Smartphone from the bureau, he took a deep

breath and strode out into the hall. He had a dozen balls to

juggle today, and he was already running behind. His personal life could wait.

Gillian rolled over and glanced at the clock, her muddled

brain trying to understand why both hands pointed straight up toward the twelve. Then everything came rushing back.

Her accident, the multiple disturbing and faintly erotic en-

counters with Devlyn Wolff. Her lack of a job.

Not the best memories with which to begin a day in which

her body felt like an old woman’s. She turned her head care-

fully, hoping to stave off the jackhammers that threatened

to crush her skull. Though she was alone in the bed, the pil-

low beside her bore the unmistakable imprint of someone’s

head. When she tugged it closer for a sniff, the soft, expen-

sive fabric emanated the unmistakable scent of Devlyn Wolff.

Holy cow.

What had she done? Squeezing her eyes shut,

she reached for images that hid in random corners of her

brain. She remembered going outside. She even remembered

Devlyn bringing her in and watching her take off her pants.

At that point, things became hazy.

He had touched her hair…had lulled her to sleep. Then

what? Surely the memory of his big, warm hand on her butt

was a dream.

Stumbling into the bathroom, she splashed water on her

face and noted in surprise the neatly folded pile of clean

clothes that turned out to be a khaki skirt and a black scooped-

neck T-shirt with a matching thin cardigan.

The clothes fit perfectly, which in itself was alarming. A

man who could choose women’s apparel with such an eye

was a man with far too much experience in pleasing women.

Her boots were still muddy, perhaps beyond repair, but her

stealthy benefactor had included a pair of black canvas espa-

drilles. The shoes were a little too large, but she stuffed tis-

sues in the toes until she was certain they were snug enough

to stay on her feet.

Feeling a bit too much like Little Orphan Annie, she fi-

nally opened the envelope that lay like a coiled serpent on

the bedside table.

Please join me for lunch in the library at one. Devlyn.

The house was still and quiet, almost somnolent, as if everyone in the

Sleeping Beauty castle snoozed for a thousand

years. Thank God her mother was not scheduled to work

today. Gillian’s face would have given her away, her mother

seeing at once that her daughter had fallen under the spell

of a Wolff prince.

Gillian remembered the way to the library with ease. It

was another place where Doreen Carlyle had kept her daugh-

ter entertained while she worked. Gillian had always been a

compliant child, not one to make messes or break things. She

had been more than content to curl up on the velvet-covered

bench seat in the window alcove and read her favorite books

for hours at a time.

In many ways, the Wolff Castle library had been her magic

carpet, taking her to lands beyond the horizon, introducing

her to characters whose lives were far more exotic than her

own. The library had been her haven, her cozy nest. When

she was there, she felt safe.

But nothing about today’s visit inspired such warm, fuzzy

feelings. When she opened the door, Devlyn was already in

residence, his stance at the fireplace much like the night be-

fore in her bedroom. His lips curved in a welcoming smile,

but his eyes were watchful.

“Good afternoon, Gillian. I hope you were finally able to

get some sleep.”

He was playing with her, trying to make her nervous. She

knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he had been the one to

enter her room and drop off the clothes and the note.

“Yes,” she said stiff ly. “I did. I need to check on my car.”

He shrugged. “Already taken care of… . The garage will

drop it off at your mother’s house by the end of the week.”

She bit her bottom lip. “I’d like an estimate. So I can con-

tact my insurance.”

“Let me handle this. It’s the least I can do. You know

they’ll jack up your rates if you submit it.”

He had her there. And she couldn’t afford the current pay-

ments, much less a rate hike. “I’ll pay you back.”

His brows narrowed in displeasure. “I said to forget it.”

“You like ruling the world, don’t you? Is there anyone who

says no to you?”

Her sass seemed to amuse him. “Sit down, Gillian. Chef

has prepared an autumn vegetable chowder that I’m told is

to die for.”

She joined him at the table, wondering what his family

thought of his absence from the communal dining room. Of

course, with Jacob out of town and the others perhaps tucked

away in their own houses, maybe Victor and Vincent dined

alone.

Devlyn picked up his spoon and dug in, polishing off his

bowl of soup and three rolls before Gillian had barely started.

It was hard to swallow anything past the constriction in her

throat, even though Devlyn was correct about the delicious,

hearty broth. Finally, the silence weighed too heavily for her

to finish. She pushed back from the table and folded her

hands in her lap.

The fire was warm—warm enough for her to discard her

sweater. But she fancied she needed the extra layer of protec-

tion. “You left me a note,” she said bluntly. “Why am I here?”

“I could have guessed you were a teacher, even if you

hadn’t told me.”

The odd segue baffled her. “What does that mean?”

“You’re uptight, bossy, no-nonsense…”

“And you’ve deduced all that in a mere twenty-four hours?”

“Less than that. I expect any moment to get my knuckles

rapped with a ruler.”

His air of masculine superiority set her teeth on edge.

“That’s an archaic reference.”

“You don’t know the tutors my father and uncle hired.”

“Poor little rich boy.” She regretted the words immediately.

In many ways, the appellation was true…or at least had been

in the past. Devlyn Wolff as a child and a teen had always

seemed angry. And with good reason. He’d lost his mother

violently. Been snatched away from the only home he had ever

known and brought to this isolated mountain. Had not been

allowed to attend school where he would have made friends.

It was no wonder the six cousins were so close.

She didn’t know how to characterize him now…that would

require spending time together, a notion that alarmed and in-

trigued her at the same time. “We’re getting off topic,” she

said, her voice firm…the one she used for recalcitrant boys

on the playground. “What do you want to talk to me about?”

“I want to hire you.”

Her hackles went up. “You apologized. I accepted. I don’t

need your charity simply because I’m unemployed.”

“Before you ride that high horse off into the sunset, why

don’t you listen for a minute? I need to employ a teacher. It

might as well be you.”

Her stomach cramped. Did Devlyn have a child she hadn’t

heard about? “There are no schools anywhere near Wolff

Mountain.”

He grinned as if he had scored a hit. “My point exactly.

Evidently you haven’t heard, but the Wolffs are establishing

a school in Burton.”

“Thumbing your nose at the locals? No one around here

can afford private tuition.”

“Gillian, Gillian…” He shook his head. “I’m talking about

a public school. And that’s why I need you. It’s a sticky prop-

osition to make sure all of the accreditation requirements are

fulfilled. And we’ve had a hell of a time convincing the ad-

ministration that we’ll stay out of the day-to-day running. But

this is going to happen. The children of Burton have every

right to attend school in their own community.”

Gillian was stunned. What he said made perfect sense,

but although the Wolffs were active in a number of chari-

ties, this project took benevolence to another whole level.

“Whose idea was this?”

“It was a family decision. Too many of our staff worry that

if one of their children gets sick, or falls on the playground,

it would be a good forty-five minutes before they could get

to the school. That’s not acceptable. The economy is in the

toilet. Money for new schools is scarce. We have the means

to supply a need.”

Gillian cocked her head, studying his face. He seemed

genuinely excited and proud. “And you’re spearheading the

effort?”

“Mostly. Because I’m the one in charge. But all of us will

step in at various points. Kieran’s wife is a children’s illus-

trator. She’s planning to paint murals on all the walls. Jacob

will design and outfit a small in-school clinic and hire a nurse.

Gareth wants to build custom shelving for the library. I could

go on…”

She held up a hand, feeling ashamed of her suspicions.

On occasion, that chip on her shoulder about the rich gained

weight again. “It’s a lovely idea. I’m impressed. But I still

don’t see where I come in. It will be a long time until you’re

ready to hire teachers.”

“I need a liaison…someone who will work side by side

with me, but who knows how to communicate with state and

local officials.”

“But you work out of Atlanta.”

“I’m here at least one weekend a month, sometimes two.

Dad and Uncle Vic like to feel as if they are still part of the

Decision-making process. And I value their experience. But

in regard to this school project, you’ll be my point person.

We’ll work very closely together.”

“I don’t know what to say.”

“Say you’ll do it.”

He named a salary that was over twice what she was mak-

ing before the layoffs. Only a fool would turn down this op-

portunity, but then again, working with Devlyn Wolff would

not be easy. He was charming and outrageously handsome

and had a wicked sense of humor…all qualities that were

destined to make a woman like Gillian fall into infatuation

at the very least.

And she was pretty sure she wasn’t imagining the sexual

vibe between them. What was alarming was that if she suc-

cumbed, not only did she endanger yet another good job, but

she risked getting her heart broken. “Who would you have

hired if I hadn’t come along?” It was hard to put her suspi-

cions to rest.

“I hadn’t gotten that far yet, but I called your principal this

morning, and she speaks very highly of you…told me you

were named ‘Teacher of the Year’ in your school last year.

She’s really upset about losing you.”

“You investigated me?” The words ended on a screech

of outrage.

“Your ID badge was sticking out of the side pocket of your

purse. I’m a businessman. And despite your weird hang-ups,

I’m not offering you this job because of something that hap-

pened when we were kids.”

He could deny it all he wanted, but she was almost a hun-

dred percent sure that Devlyn was the kind of man who

needed to even the scales. This was his way of assuaging his

guilt over the past.

Still, who was she to turn down a boon because of his

screwed-up motives? She needed a job. And this would be

a good one.

“I’ll do it,” she said. “When do I start?”