Diamond
Whoever came up with the “kill them with kindness” approach is a genius.
Granted, being nice didn’t work for shit on my kindergarten bullies, but it works on narcissistic, sinfully hot rich kids, and that’s good enough for me.
Three whole days have gone by since I switched up the narrative on Finn and became Little Mary Sunshine. As much as I loved watching the boys sweat their asses off, I couldn’t take another second of this heat and eventually removed the code.
The result?
No more pranks.
Not even one snarky comment.
Well, Finn did brand everything in the house with his name on masking tape—because everybody knows Finn Richards is the picture of sanity—and the nasty looks are still an everyday thing, but I can handle a few looks if it means he’s going to let me do my job in peace.
I’m surprisingly grateful for Theo living with us. I can’t imagine being alone with Finn full-time, and Theo says actual words to me, rather than rolling his eyes and leaving every time I walk into the room.
I’m aware there’s a good chance Theo’s only nice to me because I feed him, but I have to admit our little routine is growing on me.
It’s a rinse-and-repeat process: I cook for myself while making sure to have tons of leftovers, throw them in the fridge, and when I come back, the food is gone.
Theo is decent enough to thank me every once in a while, but Finn? I’ll be on my death bed before he manages to say the words thank you.
It’s past 9:00 a.m. when Lexie and I stride down the stairs together. It was pretty hard to ignore her crying at my door every night, so I caved and let her in. She sleeps in my bed now, only leaving my side when I open the door in the morning.
I hear what sounds like shuffling in the fridge as soon as my feet connect with the main floor. Must be Theo eating last night’s leftovers.
“Damn it, Richards. You ate the last slice of pizza.” I recognize Theo’s voice and stop to think.
I didn’t feel like cooking yesterday, and Mr. Richards finally wired me the money for food, so I ordered a large pizza for dinner with extra olives to piss off Finn.
He told me he hated olives as I was ordering because he knew he and Theo would end up finishing it. He even went as far as to say if there was even one olive on the pizza, he wouldn’t touch that shit with a stick, but apparently, he ate it?
In what world does that make sense?
Pushing the thought to the back corner of my mind, I make my way to the kitchen with an excited Lexie on my tail. The first thing I see when I walk in is Theo digging through the fridge, then Finn in a black tee and jeans, leaning against the kitchen counter with his arms crossed.
He looks ridiculously hot, when does he not, but I don’t spare him another glance, focusing on the only guy in this room who treats me like an actual person.
“Morning,” I tell Theo and watch Lexie charge toward Finn, seeking a good petting, which Finn gives her without a second thought.
She might like me now because I take her on multiple walks a day, but I know for a fact that I could never top Finn in her eyes. She only came crying at my door a few nights ago because Finn didn’t let her into his own room.
It’s the way his face lights up when he sees her, how hyperfocused he is on her needs.
There’s no denying that he loves her.
Theo greets me with a flick of his chin, and Lexie parts from Finn to find her food bowl by the entryway. I trail to the espresso machine. Problem is, Finn slid back into his previous position—arms crossed, leaning against the counter—and is blocking access like a fucking brick wall.
“Move,” I say bluntly but feel my confidence shrink when his cold eyes snap to mine.
“Oh, am I in your way?” he taunts with a small, devious smirk I want to punch off his face.
“Yes.” I swallow my nerves and expect him to step aside.
Instead, he stares down my face, positions his lips next to my ear, and rasps a satisfied “Good.”
I should be annoyed, mad even, but all I can think about is how close he is to me right now. His breath crashing against my earlobe and the shivers crawling up my spine. I wonder what his mouth would feel like sucking on my neck, marking me all ove—