Behaving Badly in Vegas (Vegas Love #3)

21. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Charli

In the morning light, I was even more mortified about using Hunter’s cock as my own personal vibrator. My resolve vanished into thin air when his lips touched mine. It was even more humiliating when he denied my offer of returning the favor.

Of course, with it being Saturday, the chance of avoiding him was minimal. And then there was the dinner at his brother’s we were attending in the evening. More together time. If neither one of us made a big deal about it, then maybe it wouldn’t be as awkward as I feared.

Determined to seem as unaffected as Hunter was last night, I bustled around the apartment in my normal morning routine, thankfully without getting a glimpse of my boss. I even tiptoed down to his room and peeked inside. The bed was neatly made and the room completely silent. He wasn’t in his office either.

Although it was a relief to not have to see his stupid-hot face, it annoyed me that he was gone without even leaving me one of the notes he was so fond of. He didn’t owe me an explanation of his whereabouts, but as another person sharing the same living space, I felt I deserved one.

How would he feel if he woke up and I was gone? No note. No text. Nothing. He was going to find out, that was for sure.

I packed up Carina and headed down to the fitness center. It wasn’t ideal, but after seeing Jasmine last night, I was more determined than ever to get back in the air and that meant weight training and practice. Since Carina wasn’t crawling yet, I laid a big blanket on the mat and set her up with some toys. I put on some music and hit the weights first. They were my least favorite, but a necessary evil. Part of the magic of performing on silks was to make it look effortless to climb to the top, when in fact it was hard as fuck.

When my muscles burned, I plopped down on the floor with Carina, tickling her tummy and making silly faces. She giggled and was so cute that my chest ached. I wasn’t under any illusions that most babies were as happy as Carina, but I wanted one of my own someday. Although I took this job knowing it was temporary, I wasn’t looking forward to the day when I walked away. I would miss her so much. Maybe Hunter and I could come to an agreement where I could still visit. It was months away, but my mind was already thinking five steps ahead.

Training should have been my first priority, not the little person in front of me, so I cued up my music and started a carefully choreographed routine in front of the mirrors to stretch my muscles. Flexibility and control were as important as strength. I pressed up into a handstand and balanced my weight while lifting one hand off the mat and extending my arm out to the side, then repeated the process with my other arm. With both hands firmly back on the mat, I opened my legs into an upside-down split and moved my hands to turn my body in a circle. My arms shook with the weight and movements, proving to me that I was definitely out of practice.

For the next thirty minutes, I twisted and bent my body into the unnatural positions that were required to return to Oasis. My muscles ached, but it was worth every minute of the pain. I would not let a stupid injury derail my career. I was tougher than that. My parents always encouraged me to chase my dreams, they just never realized where it would take me, and despite their objections, they supported me. Failing now wouldn’t only be letting myself down, but them as well.

As I stood on my hands again, I bent my back and brought my legs down to touch the top of my head, then straightened them parallel to the floor.

“Who knew you were a human pretzel?”

Hunter’s gruff voice startled me, and my body wobbled. Using all my strength, I straightened my legs back to the ceiling and walked out of the handstand. “You scared me,” I said as I shook out my arms, trying to get the blood flowing again.

“Sorry. I didn’t mean to distract you.”

It wasn’t his words that distracted me though. He stood with his hands on his hips wearing only a pair of shorts and his running shoes, his shirt carelessly thrown over his shoulder and his chest dripping with sweat. Every muscle glistened and I had the urge to lick every ridge of his defined abs. He was a perfect male specimen, and I wondered how he kept his body looking like that while working behind a desk all day. “It’s fine. I was finishing up anyway.”

He tilted his head to the side and stared at me for longer than was comfortable. “Is that what you do at Oasis?”

I chuckled. Up until now, he hadn’t shown much interest in what I did. “Yes and no. Same thing but from way up there.” I pointed to the extra-tall ceiling.

“Explain,” he said as he used his shirt to wipe the sweat from his chest.

Keeping eye contact was difficult as he rubbed the shirt over his pecs. I could have easily gotten lost in the back-and-forth motion. “Usually, I perform on silks or in a hoop that hangs from the ceiling. Since I don’t have the equipment, I’m making do with practicing from the floor.”

He stared up at the ceiling. “That’s dangerous and reckless. Why would you want to do something that risks your life?”

It was a bit dramatic, but I understood his thinking. Pretty much everyone in my life asked me the same question at one time or another. “I like the challenge. There’s an adrenaline rush doing something that very few people can do. An immense feeling of satisfaction mastering a trick that seems impossible, and even more satisfaction when I do something everybody tells me I can’t do.”

Hunter rubbed at the scruff on his chin while he shook his head. “I don’t get it. You already fell once, why risk it again?”

I let out a huff of irritation at having to explain my life choices. “Did you ever fall off your bike as a kid?”

“Of course.”

“But you got back on that bike and tried again. It didn’t stop you, did it?”

“That’s totally different. If I fell, I wouldn’t crack my skull open.”

“That’s not true. Hundreds of people die in bicycle accidents every year,” I said, crossing my arms. “Why do you even care?”

He rolled his eyes. “Excuse me for not wanting to see my nanny splattered on the floor like a pile of wet dog shit.”

“Nice analogy.” I picked up Carina and grabbed her blanket. “What time do we have to leave for dinner?”

“We’ll leave by five thirty.” I gave him a thumbs-up and headed toward the door when he called my name, “Charli!” I stopped and glanced at him over my shoulder. “You should have told me no last night.”

For a moment I wondered if he regretted what happened between us, but his wolfish smile told me otherwise. “Maybe I will next time.”

But I knew damn well I wouldn’t.

Hunter and I successfully avoided each other for the rest of the day. I never wanted to kiss and simultaneously punch someone in the face before. It seemed an impossible juxtaposition, but somehow Hunter managed to achieve it with his beautiful, smug face, godlike body, and smart-ass mouth. It was infuriating, only made worse by my lack of self-control last night.

I acted like a porn slut and that definitely wasn’t me .

And now I was getting ready to officially meet Hunter’s family. Since my brother knew the Dorseys, I asked him for advice.

Listen attentively.

Don’t offer your opinion unless asked.

Keep your sass in check.

Basically, don’t be me.

“Remember, these people are our livelihood,” he said as if I wasn’t nervous enough. Needless to say, my talk with Tom wasn’t helpful at all. If anything, it made my stomach churn.

I dressed Carina in the cute pink dress with matching bloomers that Rose brought over. I figured she’d be tickled to see Carina wearing it. With a pink bow in her wispy hair and sandals on her feet, she was damn adorable.

Dressing her was way easier than dressing myself. Hunter said it was casual, but casual for rich people was different than for us ordinary folk. I was fairly certain a T-shirt and leggings would be frowned upon. Searching through my closet, I pulled out two sundresses and held each one in front of me while I looked in the mirror. “What do you think, baby girl? Yellow or blue?”

“Buh, buh, buh,” Carina babbled.

“Blue it is.” I slipped the dress off the hanger and shimmied into it. Turning in front of the mirror, I admired the way it enhanced my barely there curves. Paired with my black wedges with ribbons that wrapped around my calves, it was perfect. Casual with a hint of elegance and sexy with a side of innocence. Ideal for a nanny trying to impress her boss’s family.

Not even sure why I was trying to impress the Dorseys, except that I wanted them to feel confident that I was taking good care of the newest member of the family. And yes, I was very aware that my behavior was also a reflection on my brother. When I returned to Oasis, Tom would still be working at Mystique. For how much longer, I wasn’t sure, but he had a good thing going there and I didn’t want to mess it up.

I brushed out my long, dark waves and secured them back from my face with a black headband, pushed small silver hoops through my ears, and fastened a simple chain with a heart pendant around my neck. Slicking my lips with a coat of red, I carried Carina to the kitchen, where Hunter was already waiting. He tapped the face of his watch.

“I’m not late,” I insisted. “It’s only a quarter after five.”

“You’re almost late,” he said with a scowl.

“Almost late is not late. All I need to do is pack her diaper bag.” I handed Carina to her father, noticing his freshly pressed dress shirt and tie. “Wait! I thought you said tonight was casual. You’re dressed like you’re going to work.”

“I’m not wearing the jacket. This is casual.” He lifted Carina high in the air and made funny faces at her while she giggled.

I looked down at my dress, second-guessing my wardrobe choice. “Should I change into something nicer?” I wasn’t even sure if I owned anything nicer.

Barely giving me a glance, he said, “What you’re wearing is fine.”

I cringed. Fine? It was such a blasé word. No woman wanted to be told she looked fine unless it was in the context of fine-ass bitch . “Are you sure?”

Hunter finally quit playing with Carina and held her to his chest, trying to keep her from stuffing his tie in her mouth. His eyes swept up and down my body with a gaze that felt like I didn’t have any clothes on at all. “You look good, Charli. Actually, you look beautiful.”

“Thank you. I don’t want to embarrass you.”

“You couldn’t embarrass me if you tried. My own actions are more questionable than yours.”

I teasingly waggled a finger at him. “Don’t be so sure about that, mister. I’ve been known to do a few questionable things myself.”

“Like last night?” He raised a brow at me.

“Exactly like last night.” I hurried to the cupboard and began gathering food for Carina to hide my embarrassment.

“You’re doing it again.”

I turned and faced him with my hands on my hips. “Doing what?”

“Blushing. I fucking love that,” he said smugly.

“Shut up. I’m not blushing. ”

“You are.” He chuckled.

I rolled my eyes. “Whatever. Can you check to see if there are enough diapers in the diaper bag?” Deflect and avoid, that was my strategy.

He rooted around in the bag and pulled out a handful of diapers. “You think five is enough?”

“God, I hope so. Unless she has a blowout, I think we’re good.” I handed him the containers of baby food.

He held them up, reading the labels. “No squash, right?”

I let out a huff of exasperation. “You told me not to buy squash. I’m a good listener and can follow directions. Chicken and carrots should be safe.”

He tapped on the container of carrots. “They’re orange. I don’t trust them.”

I swiped the containers from his hand and stuffed them into the bag. “So are sweet potatoes, but she hasn’t had an issue. You can’t cross off everything that’s orange.”

“Fine, but if she shits all over, you’re cleaning her up,” he grumped like a petulant child.

“You’re ridiculous.” I zipped up the bag and threw it over my shoulder. “Are you ready to go?”

“Me? I’ve been waiting on you.”

I tapped on my bare wrist. “You’re the one grumping and making us late.”

Hunter shook his head and laughed. “You’re something else, Charlotte Bently.”