“Regardless of what the ad says, he’s still looking for a nanny, not a hooker.”
“Fine. Pair it with this.” She holds up a pair of leggings.
Taking them from her, I throw them. “Thanks, but no thanks. I think I have this.” Dressed and ready to go, I call a cab to take me to Cole Security Forces headquarters.
As I step through the doors, maybe Hazel was right. I look down at my business suit. The black material is form-fitted enough to show off every curve. The shirt beneath the jacket is sexy but professional and a little lower cut than I would consider wearing for a job interview.
Compared to these women?
I’m completely out of my league. Depending, of course, on what he’s looking to hire. The ad says nanny but screams prostitute, yet here I am, willing to take a chance because I literally have nothing else going on in my life. I make my way through the crowd of women to the very frazzled receptionist.
“Give me one second,” she says the moment I step up to the desk. I nod, and she seems appreciative of my laid-back attitude. She ends the call just as she finishes the email she’s typing, then sighs. “This is not in my job description.”
Looking around the crowded lobby, I laugh. “You mean you don’t normally run an escort service through here.”
She leans in. “So, it’s not just me? What is wrong with these women? It’s a nanny job, for God’s sake.”
“So, it actually is a nanny job? The ad was a little hard to… decipher.”
She nods. “Very much a nanny job. Between you and me, the dad is super-hot but also super unavailable.” The receptionist eyes me. “You are the only woman here actually dressed for the job and not a date. Congrats.”
“Thanks.”
She hands me a couple forms to fill out. When I return them to her, she tells me, “I hope you get it. Amelia deserves so much better than… them.”
“Thanks,” I tell her before collecting my number and taking a seat.
CHAPTERFOURTEEN
Ryder
My jaw drops when I step through the doors of Cole Security. Standing in the lobby are dozens of women. Scantily dressed women, to be exact. As I take everything in, one notices me.
“Oh my God, it’s him,” she shouts with a high-pitched squeal.
All eyes turn to me, and the moment they take me in, they descend, each one approaching and throwing their ‘assets’ in my face.
Wanting to escape the barrage of women unscathed, I raise my arms in the air as I awkwardly maneuver through the crowd. Their hands run along my torso, some lower, as I make my way to the front desk, where Margie informs me that Mark’s in his office.
“What in the hell did you do?” Slamming the door to Mark’s office behind me, I sag against it.
He feigns an innocent look. “I put an ad out.”
I quirk an eyebrow at him. “Yeah? Where? A dating app?”
“That might not have been a bad idea, but no.” Mark peeks out the door and laughs when he sees the crowd of women. “Holy shit.” Even he didn’t anticipate a turnout like this.
“Exactly.” I pick up a piece of paper off his desk. Anger fills me as I read the verbiage on it. “Really, Mark? Hot, single dad seeks live-in nanny?”
Mark gives a nonchalant shrug. “Not that I’m checking you out or anything, but it’s true, isn’t it? And it worked.”
“Maybe a little too well.” I peek out the window again. “Not exactly the quality of candidates I was looking for.”
“Definitely the kind you want to be looking at, though.” He lets out a low whistle as he slings an arm over my shoulder. “Shall we get the interviews started?”
“These women passed the background check?”
Mark gives an affirmative nod. “Every last one of them.”