Boss On A Leash: A Single Dad Billionaire Romance, Kara Hart [free ebook reader for iphone .TXT] 📗

to stop it, but a little bit of lasagna never hurts. Maybe we’ll finally break bread.

“Stay for food,” he says.

“I don’t know, Marc,” I mutter. “I’ve got Rowdy and twenty-seven sheets of homework to grade.”

He frowns. “It’ll just be less than an hour.”

“Why do you want me to stay so bad?” I finally ask.

Glancing at the carpet, he scratches the back of his neck and sighs. “I know it’s weird, but I think it would be good for Sammy to have a role model in her life.”

It’s sweet to see he cares about his girl, but that’s a lot of responsibility to put on me. Not to mention, it’s a little out-of-the-blue. It reminds me that there’s something more to their family. “You keep saying things like that,” I say.

He blinks a few times. “Did I?”

I lower my voice, just in case Sammy can hear us. “Did something… happen to her?”

His throat tightens, and his mouth hangs open. He’s about to speak when the oven alarm cuts into the conversation. “Oh, shit,” he whispers. “I better check on that.”

I glance down, heart beating rapidly. “Right,” I say. “You go right ahead.”

I’m not here to dig into their personal life, but I also don’t think it’s fair to ask me to be anyone’s role model. At the end of the day, I’m just a normal woman who has dedicated her time to teaching children. I have a life.

He pops his head out from the kitchen. A plume of smoke follows, which he expertly ducks underneath. “You know, I could pay you,” he says.

Goodbye, life. Hello, money.

I step into the room with my listening cap on. “I might be interested,” I say.

Upon, opening the oven again, he pushes his head forward to smell the incredible carb-heaven. “It wouldn’t be a tutor job,” he says. “You could do everything you would otherwise normally do. You would just do it here instead. With Sammy.”

My house is probably trashed. “I have a dog now, remember?”

“Bring him here,” he says.

“He’ll pee on the carpet.”

He sets the glass baking dish on the island. “You’re making excuses.”

The heat immediately fogs up my glasses.

Clearing my throat, I really give it a second thought. Right now, Rowdy is slobbering all over my apartment. Coming home to that beast is going to be a nightmare and a half. Dinners are a challenge with such a big dog, and my apartment is too small to feel like he has any freedom. It’s almost cruel to keep him there.

Would this job be a good thing? It would make a massive difference.

There’s still a part of me that worries about jumping into anything fast. What does Marc really want? And is he using this job as a means to get it?

I’m a little tense. I didn’t expect to receive two job offers in one week. Judging by the size and location of his house, he can afford to be generous. I’m just not that used to winning.

“That sounds nice,” I say.

He winks, and a flash of electricity rushes through me. “It was just a thought,” he says. “We can talk about a price tomorrow or something. I’m starving.”

Am I smiling too big?

Not at all phased by any of this, he leads me to the table and gets to serving. Sammy runs over and politely sits, her feet dangling above the carpet.

Marc hands her a piece of lasagna on a spatula. “Here you are, lovely,” he says.

“Thank you, daddy,” she says.

Marc turns to me next. He looks into my eyes and grins. “And here you are, lovely.”

“Thank you,” I mutter. “M-M-Marc.”

Feeling my cheeks start to burn, I quickly make my way to the seat next to Sammy.

Marc sits down and motions to start. “Come on, guys. Eat. You don’t have to wait for me.”

Their family is open and free. It’s comforting in so many ways. Growing up, I never had that sense of freedom. Everything had a ritual attached to it, and if you didn’t follow the rules, people were bound to get angry. Sometimes those feuds lasted all night.

I cut my fork into the rich, melted cheese, so soft it melts through like butter. The pasta sheet gives way to meat sauce, bits of basil, and other fragrant spices. As soon as I take a bite, I lower in my seat because the flavor is out-of-this-world, delicious.

“You cooked this yourself?” I ask.

He chuckles, taking a sip of red wine for good measure. “I dabble in the art of cooking.”

Not going to lie, that’s pretty attractive...

Eyes wide, I lean back and look around the dining area. At the other end of the room is a grand piano. Is he going to play us some Bach for some dessert?

“What don’t you do?” I ask.

“Well, I hardly ever find the time to relax,” he says.

I laugh. “Ha-ha. Very funny.”

Sammy is looking at us like we’re crazy. “I usually help him,” she states.

I edge my voice into a whisper. “I bet you do most of the work,” I say.

“I do,” she whispers back.

Even though Marc is open, his protective side is still there. Watching me interact with his daughter, he takes another sip and quietly starts to eat.

Taking the moment to get to know her, I ignore Marc’s watchful eye. “Your dad gave me a book,” I say.

Sammy chomps. A bit of meat sauce falls down her chin. “He needs to read more than you do.”

Marc puffs out his cheeks, pretending to be outraged. Handing her a napkin, he says, “Well, maybe I’d read if you cleaned your face more often.”

When Sammy smiles, her tiny nose scrunches in the cutest way. Her dad is a jerk, but I’m really glad she’s in my class.

She twists as he cleans her face. “Daaad,” she whines.

“Oh relax. You’re fine,” he says.

They’re great together. A real team. But she’s sitting closer to me, and she keeps looking at me to guide the conversation. He might be right. She needs someone in her life who won’t tell her she’s fine. In all honesty,