Lucia
Raw heat is still streaking through my body just from the mere handshake.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more perfect man.
Eyes the shade of a crow’s wing are locked on mine, and full symmetrical lips quirk up into a mercurial smile.
His face is all angles with high exotic cheekbones and a chiseled jaw you’d find on a storybook prince. The bright morning sun shines over his skin, making it look like the sun kissed it that color bronze.
The gray streaks in his beard, hairline, and temples only serve to highlight his beauty and strength in what I can see of the rest of his body. As if to highlight that his perfection came with age and he’ll look even better and better, and sexier, the older he gets. The silver hoop in his ear tames him a fraction, adding to his style but also conjuring the image of a pirate in my mind. It gives a glimpse of the conquering cartel king he is.
Of course, I was given a picture of Alejandro Ramírez before coming to this ill-fated interview. So, I already knew he looks like a seamless blend of what Antonio Banderas and my all-time favorite Mexican actor Eduardo Verástegui. Alejandro is what they would look like if they were one person.
The lucid image makes me wonder if I really am stuck in a fucked-up rendition of a dark fairytale. One where he is the prince and I’m the villain, or maybe everyone is the antithesis to good in this story.
It’s just my bad luck that I have a thing for older men, but I don’t know who wouldn’t with this guy.
I try to steady my nerves and keep my thoughts under control as he gazes back at me. I also try not to drool and remind myself why I’m here.
Dad.
This is my chance to save him. It’s the foot in the door, the opportunity I was grateful for when I got the call days ago inviting me here. I can’t fuck this up.
It would just be easier if Alejandro Ramírez weren’t so ridiculously gorgeous.
I’m staring, but I’m aware he’s staring at me, too, but just like El Diablo, I sense Alejandro isn’t what he seems to be.
There’s a dangerous element to his beauty. It lurks in his eyes and emanates from him in his full black clothing. It warns me to be afraid. It warns me to run in the other direction, not sit here and sell the rest of my soul to doom.
Those are all warnings I have to ignore, though.
He breaks eye contact and reaches for a what I see is my resume.
“May I call you Lucia?” he asks, returning his gaze to me. His voice is only slightly accented. I expected it to sound deeper because of how he looks.
“Of course.”
“Impressive résumé.”
“Thank you.” I’m sure if Dad hadn’t worked his magic to fill in the gaps in my college and medical records, Alejandro wouldn’t think there was anything impressive about me. Even with all I’ve done.
“So, tell me about yourself and what attracted you to this role?”
Good.I can talk about myself and the role itself.
I’m not exactly sure what I’ll say about what attracted to me to the job, but I’ll think of something. Something believable outside the obvious that the job pays a fuck ton of money for a reason.
Half a million a year to be a live-in nanny and whatever he wants me to be. Half a million a year that will go into an account and be set aside toward my father’s debt. I won’t get a cent of that money, and fuck knows what this man will want me to do.
That was why El Diablo implied I’d have to use my body to get the job. But he meant getting the job, not the parts after.
I swallow hard, pushing my worries out of my head. Then I begin talking about myself and my experience with working with children right through college and after.
“I’ve always loved working with children,” I continue, seeing I have him engaged. “Particularly with languages as a specialty. I’m fine with early years education, but I have an affinity for teaching languages, especially to bilingual and multilingual children. That was the first thing that attracted me to the role.”
My heartbeat picks up when something unreadable flickers in his eyes. His gaze briefly drops to my lips before he smiles, revealing dimples as sinfully gorgeous as he is.
“You speak seven languages.”