She loved the early mornings.
There were difficult children who hated her, but by the time she finished they adored her.
All Temperance wanted to do was be the adult. The voice of reason.
Pulling up in the parking lot of the apartment building she lived in, she grabbed her suitcase and headed upstairs.
Her roommate Lilah was an up-and-coming actress. They’d met in a bar and become friends years ago. By day Lilah worked hard as a waitress, going to auditions, screwing directors in an attempt to get parts, and partying at night, at least sometimes.
So when Temperance walked into their shared apartment and saw two men fucking her friend, she immediately closed the door.
Lilah had seen her and waved at her before she had, though. Sitting at the top of the stairs, Temperance pulled out her cell phone and began to scroll through the job sections. The agency she worked for would get in touch with a list of potential work, but she didn’t know if she wanted to do that anymore.
An hour passed, and finally the door to their apartment opened up. Two large guys left, and as she entered she saw Lilah, now wrapped in a robe, waiting for her.
“I had no idea you were coming today.”
“Clearly.” She hugged her friend and they headed toward the kitchen. “Were they friends?”
“Yep. They’re friends, coworkers if you’d like.”
“Did you land an acting job?” Temperance asked.
“Kind of. Let’s not talk about me. How about you? Why aren’t you babysitting some snots?”
“First, I’m a nanny, and second, I got fired. The angry new wife wanted to be a mommy.”
“Oh, no,” Lilah said. “What are you going to do?”
Temperance waved her phone in the air. “Look for new work. My room is still my own, right?”
“Yeah, of course. You’ve been paying rent since we got this place. I didn’t change anything. I went in there to clean it from time to time. I didn’t want cobwebs to grow.”
“Thanks, sweetie.” Temperance took the coffee that her friend slid across the counter. She took a sip and sighed. Lilah always did know how to make a good coffee. “So, two men? Why do I feel I’m not going to like this new job?”
She wasn’t a fool. A “kind of” acting job, the way Lilah bit her lip, and something in her gut told her she wasn’t going to like it.
“I was strapped for cash. I wouldn’t fuck the owner of the restaurant I was working at. I needed to make money quick, and a guy flashed me his card. I’m an adult star right now.”
Temperance stared at her friend. “Porn?”
“It pays the bills, and I’m loving it. Don’t judge, okay? It has been a rough couple of months.”
“Why didn’t you call me? You know I’d have helped you out.” The couples she’d worked for had always paid her well, and she had a small fortune tucked away in the bank.
“You were already paying for half of this place, and you weren’t here, Tempe. I don’t … I didn’t want any charity. I got into this mess on my own, and I’ll get myself out of it. In the meantime, I’m having some fun and earning some money.”
“That career is dangerous.”
“I get tested regularly. Please don’t judge.”
Temperance held her hands up. “I’m not judging. I’m just … worried.”
“Don’t be. Welcome home, and try to relax before you head off again, and you know, start working again. I feel at times that’s all you do.”
It was all she did do.
Chapter Two
Five days later
Wayne still had responsibility for a child, and that was why he was walking into a restaurant that had a child area rather than the upscale place where he usually met a few of his acquaintances. This was a monthly lunch that often resulted in several contracts, or at least a few ideas.
He’d employed two nannies in five days, and the third had walked out this morning after Timothy had wet the bed. Wayne may not want the kid that he was currently walking with, but he also didn’t want to employ women who scared the shit out of Timothy either. Wayne knew he was a bastard, but he wasn’t a fucking monster.
Timothy would be well taken care of.
“What would you like to eat, little guy?” Wayne knelt in front of him.
“I want my mommy,” he said.
Yeah, he wanted Timothy’s mommy as well. “I’ll get you a cheeseburger. How about that?”
Timothy shrugged, and seeing that he wasn’t going to get much more out of the youngster, Wayne put him in the children’s play area. One of the women took Timothy’s hand.
Whenever he watched the young boy leave, shoulders sagging and looking so damn lost, Wayne always felt like an utter failure.
Shaking his head, he turned and saw James, along with Robert and a few other men.
“I never thought I’d see the day the great Wayne Myers changed to a more child-friendly place,” James said, clapping his hands. “Or holding a young boy’s hand.”