LOVING THE DEVIL [02]

Chapter 14.

CHAPTER 14: a solution

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"I hope I'm not interrupting anything." my cousin was stood there in his work clothes, hands deep in his pockets as he stood tall. Tall enough that he looked down on me and Liam with strong suspicion. Suspicion that we were doing something we weren't supposed to. Ah shit, I thought as I turned to look back at Liam whose eyes quickly flashed with fear.

"Of course, not. Come in," I told him, moving out of his way so he could enter the house. His shoulders were rigid as he casually moved past Liam and further into my hallway. His eyes weren't set on anything in particular until he heard the familiar footsteps of Elaine coming down the stairs.

She had come down the staircase with a few clothes to add to the laundry basket and at the sight of Michael, she gave him a smile and waved at him the best she could with the clothes she carried in her hands. We all watched as she quickly came down the stairs with bright enthusiasm.

"Oh Miss, I'll get some drinks for all of you—" Elaine was always one of the most hardworking employees at the estate before she moved to my house to help out. The woman was one of the very few workers who actually did her job properly and had relatives who used to work for my family.

Her grandmother was a nanny to my father and his siblings before becoming an official staff member to help with everything around the house. I've never met her, but apparently, she loved children which is partly the reason why she wanted to be a nanny. Despite everything else this life offered, she worked hard for what she was paid for, much like her granddaughter.

But unlike my mother and some of my family, I didn't see them as staff. I saw them as second family, people who respected us and who we respected back. Elaine has always been good to me, respectful, knew my boundaries and was resilient so I had no reason to doubt her work.

However, as excitable as she gets with the household chores, I disliked how hard she worked sometimes. She was around twenty to thirty years older than me and as fit as a fiddle obviously, but I didn't want her thinking I was taking her enthusiasm for granted. I wanted her to be like a roommate and friend to me. Elaine had no reason to act so formal around me and vice versa.

"No, Elaine," I interrupted, heading over to her and grabbing the clothes from her hands, "no more work for you today. I'll get some drinks, but what I want you to do is go home, take a nice relaxing bath and treat yourself to a glass of wine. Off you go now."

This woman's dealt with my family and their...issues for years now. She deserved the break whenever she could get it and I always ensured she was relaxing as much as she could after a hard day's work. I would even do the very last chores for her such as washing laundry, cleaning the front room and feeding the pets.

She gave me a pat on the cheek with a slight giggle before heading off excitedly into the kitchen to get her belongings before she would leave.

I turned to the men and asked them to head into the main room and wait whilst I got some drinks ready for them, but it was also a good chance to just calm myself down after what happened with Liam. I must've looked extremely suspicious with my hot cheeks.

When I walked into the kitchen, Elaine was already gone, probably to the laundry room quickly to hand her apron up for the day. Either that or she decided to do some extra work for me even after I insisted she didn't need to.

My cheeks were still hot as I heaved out a breath, heading over to the fridge and opening the door. A gust of cold air hit me straight in the face and a small smile made its way onto my lips. God, what have I got myself into? I was a mess, all my thoughts jumbled up like a puzzle in all it's chaos. I wasn't planning to kiss a man any time soon so the whole situation surprised me anyway.