Seducing Megan: Prossers Bay Series Novella (2 page)

Her laugh was genuine, sarcasm her trademark. She was witty and kind, and totally devoted to her two girls. Everyone made favorable comments about how she’d worked hard to raise them by herself and what a valuable member of the community she was.

He’d tamped down his attraction, or so he’d thought, and last year had sought her out and offered her a job cleaning for the resort. She’d flatly refused and he’d been impressed by her loyalty, even though he could tell she was struggling financially.

Her car had seen better days, and her house was in desperate need of a makeover, and now that he’d been inside it he knew how right he’d been. He hoped like hell that the offer he’d just presented her with would be enough to change her mind.

Not that he was doing this totally for Megan. He truly needed someone to handle the housekeeping side of the resort and free him up to get back to the marketing and general running of his business again. He hadn’t lied; things were getting progressively worse, and he couldn’t manage things any longer without someone like her.

As he drove through the gates of the resort he couldn’t help thinking of other ways they could help each other out. Other ways that might not always involve work.

Hopefully he’d not only be able to make it sound like an offer too good to refuse but wouldn’t sound like a bully with stalkerish tendencies, trying to get his own way. Megan made him feel things he hadn’t felt for some time, which made him a little nervous, and also very puzzled.

A single mom with twins just didn’t fit into his single, and happy to be so, bachelor life.

Chapter Two

The girls were finally in bed, so Megan was able to take time to put her feet up. Homework was a tiring part of the day, with one girl flying through it, and the other treating it like a trip to the dentist. Mia and Cody would stick up for each other like terriers, but when they were trying to get her attention, it was every twin for herself. Mia’s ease when studying made it even harder for Cody, who often got frustrated, then annoyed, and would then do something destructive, like scribble on her work or worse, on Mia’s.

The reverse happened in sport. Cody would egg Mia on to try something and, like the time Mia got stuck in a tree she hadn’t really wanted to climb, it always ended in tears.

Megan had thought that once they started school her life would get a lot easier. Yeah, right. The bills hadn’t gotten any smaller. In fact, with school trips and uniforms, things had been tight for a while. As frugal as she’d been and working as many hours as she could, over the last five years her significant savings, intended for a trip of a lifetime, had been sucked into the never-ending void of bills.

Megan sighed. She wouldn’t trade her gorgeous girls for anything, least of all a trip, but she would like to struggle less. To have a bit more fun that wasn’t centered on the girls. To think these things was bad enough, but to voice them occasionally to her friends made her feel like a terrible mother, no matter that they told her it was normal and that even couples had to endure the financial difficulty of the early years. The difference was that couples had each other.

Annoyed at herself for being so negative, she flicked through the TV channels instead of dealing with those damn bills, and saw an advertisement for the resort. It looked amazing. Although she’d seen the brochures, and quite a few locals now worked there, she’d never bothered to see it for herself. It wasn’t as if she would fit into a place like that.

Abby Forth, her boss and good friend, had become a friend of Jordan’s since he’d helped out at last year’s Christmas lunch. He’d supplied all the tables and chairs at no cost and had won the hearts of a lot of town folk, not to mention several of the women, single and married. Luckily she was not a contender for his affections. Hell, she didn’t even like him.

Thinking of him made her glance at the envelope on the table. Sticky fingerprints inevitably found their way onto every surface in the house, especially things that had been left to sit for a bit, and the envelope was no exception. She could see from here that one of her darlings had been tempted to open it, because the flap was bent and discolored with splashes of red, probably from the strawberries they’d had after dinner.

Jordan would probably call her to talk about its contents, so she’d better at least take a quick look. At least then she could answer his questions when she told him ‘no’ yet again, and hopefully he’d leave her alone.

She got up to make herself a cup of tea, then took her cup, collected the envelope and sat down to open it. Luckily, she was sitting. She flicked through the pages several times and then went back to the first one. To the offer of employment. To the salary package. It couldn’t possibly be true. Jordan had to be joking. Nobody got this sort of money to manage a resort. Did they? If by some crazy about turn she signed the contract, she would finally be okay financially. More than okay.

Grabbing her mobile phone from where she’d left it on the arm of the chair, she called Stephanie, who was the one person she knew who didn’t have kids to put to bed and who would give her straight-up advice. Stephanie was clever and worldly; she’d know what to do.

***

Being the good friend that she was, and perhaps because she’d heard the panic in Megan’s voice, Stephanie was on Megan’s doorstep within fifteen minutes. Even in her baggy sweats she looked like a model. Her blonde hair tied up in that messy ponytail she favored, and wearing little make-up, the woman was a knock-out, and was lusted after by the few single men in town.

“What’s up, girlfriend? I couldn’t really get what you were mumbling on the phone. Are those gorgeous terrors of yours causing you grief again?”

“No more than usual, but it’s not them that’s the problem.”

“Sounds serious.”

“It is. Do you remember me telling you that Jordan Lambert offered me a job last year?”

“Do I? Man, you were incensed, and you certainly told him where to go.”

“Ahem. Yes, it was sort of like that.”

“You still don’t like him?”

“Why do you ask?”

“I just remembered how sharp you were with him last year when he came to help with tables and chairs for the Christmas lunch.”

“Don’t exaggerate.” Megan blushed a little as she remembered the cold shoulder routine that she practiced on most of the rich men she came into contact with when she was cleaning Prossers Bay’s elite homes. Jordan had been no exception, and to be fair, had probably deserved it the least.

Stephanie made a noise of disbelief. “So, what’s he done now?”

“He’s offered me a job.”

“Wow! He must want you. He’s certainly persistent.”

Megan ignored the suggestive wink Stephanie gave her.

“It’s a better job than the one he already offered. He wants me to take on the whole housekeeping job. With a bundle of money to boot.”

“What?”

Megan thrust the paperwork into her friend’s hand. “Here, read this.”

Stephanie took her time at first, then she was flicking backwards and forwards like she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Much like Megan had done earlier.

“Hell’s teeth, Megan. You can’t turn this down.”

“Actually, I can. The question is, should I?”

“Are you kidding me? The medical plan alone has to be worth it. But, man, that salary would make your life a breeze compared to how it is right now.”

“I know it would. But what about the fact that I don’t want to work for him? And what about Abby? She gave me that job when I was desperate. She lets me work hours around the girls. She’s my friend.”

“Our friend. And you must know that Abby wouldn’t stand in your way. When I told her about his first offer, she thought you should take it.”

Megan was astonished. “You told her?”

Stephanie looked guilty for a split second. “Sorry, yes I did, but it was after you told me you weren’t interested. It was when Abby was still depressed, before Liam’s surprising arrival. I wanted to make her feel better, and to know how we felt about her. That her life was good without children. That she had friends who were there for her.”

Megan’s eyes filled at the memory of Abby’s years of suffering. “I understand why you did it, but that makes it even harder. She deserves my loyalty. I couldn’t let her down.”

“You’re crazy. She’d be happy for you. Abby’s been all about family since she and Max decided to adopt Liam. She loves you, and she appreciates how hard it is for you financially to manage on your own. We all do.”

“I’m sure that’s true, but it wouldn’t feel right.”

“Do you want this job? Yes or no?”

Megan had never been able to lie to Stephanie, not even when they were kids at school and she’d wanted to pretend that her parents, who left her with her grandmother for months at a time while they pursued their philanthropic lives, cared about her.

“The more I think about it, the more I think I do. Managing a team is definitely a step up, and it’s more like what I had planned for myself before I got pregnant. Then there’s the money.”

“There you go. Talk to Abby and stop beating yourself up about it. Then when you do take the job we can all celebrate with a glass of wine. Goodness knows we haven’t done that in a while.”

Megan smiled for the first time. If she took this job, her financial worries would be gone. She looked around at the shabby two-bedroom house that had been her grandmother’s until she passed away and was now Megan’s. It had been rented out for years prior to her return to Prossers Bay and was in desperate need of a makeover. She could start with a can of paint and do what she had been wanting to do ever since she’d moved in, and that was paint the girls’ room. Something cheerful and cute – just like them.

“I’ll talk to her at lunch tomorrow,” she said, suddenly decisive, and scaring herself in the process.

“Atta girl. I’ll make myself scarce if you want to do it alone.”

“Would you think I was a coward if I asked you to stay while I tell her?”

Stephanie laughed. “No, but don’t stress about it all night. Abby will be fine. She knows that we’ll all move on from cleaning one day. Having a child is all she’s ever wanted, and it wouldn’t surprise me if she eventually sold the business to spend more time with Liam.”

“This is so weird. A couple of hours ago I knew what my life was. Now I have no idea. And there’s so many things to think about.”

“What now?”

“Working full time for a start. Who’s going to look after the girls?”

“Have that conversation when you need to. One step at a time, my friend. Now I’d better get going or we’ll both be shattered tomorrow.”

As usual, Stephanie was the voice of reason. She had a calming influence that was only surpassed by their friend Jeanne.

They hugged and Megan was left to try to shut her mind off about all the reasons for taking the job and the very few, but strong, reasons against it. Not an easy thing to do; no matter what Stephanie had said, she would feel guilty for deserting Abby.

Also, the thought of working with Jordan made her shiver, and the worst part was, she wasn’t scared of him. Sure, he made her nervous, and that made her angry, something she could hardly justify when her hormones were doing a tap dance every time she was near him.

Hopefully she’d be able to shut off her thoughts long enough to get to sleep.

Chapter Three

The three women had finished for the day and were cleaning out the van. It had been a tense day for Megan as she waited for the right time to tell Abby about the job offer. Stephanie had given her lots of leads but Megan couldn’t bring herself to say anything.

“What on earth has gotten into you?”

Megan’s head shot up and she looked at Abby in surprise. “Pardon?”

“I’ve asked you a question three times and you keep staring into space.”

“Sorry. I’m not really with it today.”

“Are you feeling okay?”

The concern on Abby’s face made her feel worse. “I’m not sick.” She twisted a rag and took a deep breath. “I need to talk to you. Maybe we could have a chat over a drink or something.”

Her awkwardness immediately put Abby, sensitive to any of their moods, on high alert.

“That doesn’t sound good. You’re not leaving me, are you?”

The basket she’d just picked up fell from Megan’s hands. The basket Abby had recently filled. Abby’s garage floor was concrete so what didn’t smash ended up lying in a pool of cleaners, cloths and gloves.

“Shit! I’m so sorry, Abby. I’ll clean it up right away.”

Stephanie, who’d been keeping out of their way at the washing machine, rushed to help her, but Abby stood by the van door.

“That’s it. You’re quitting, aren’t you?” she demanded.

Megan felt terrible. “I had an offer I couldn’t refuse.”

Abby surprised her by laughing. “It’s an old line but I’m sure it’s appropriate. That bloody Jordan’s been sniffing around you again, hasn’t he?”

“I don’t know what you mean.” Megan felt herself blush.

“The job. What else would I mean? Oh my goodness. Stephanie said I couldn’t see the obvious, but you like the man, don’t you?”