Levin

As scatterbrained as I am today, I manage to help Olivia with the Excel spreadsheet that’s giving her a headache.

The numbers blur, but I force myself to focus drowning out the thought of Alec strangling me to death, the same way he killed both Heidi and Eric.

After I finish, I’m relieved to take a walk and clear my head. The fresh air helps, but my mind is buried in this scenario—an image of Alec behind me, holding on to me for dear life—that I almost lose my balance, narrowly missing Villa 19’s patron.

The CEO of the solar energy company, Jake Hunter, is Villa 19.

He’s smoldering, all man—tall, muscular, a short-sleeved polo shirt hugging his biceps and dress pants slung low on his hips enveloping his slim waist.

I meet him as he’s headed out of his villa, Ray-Bans covering his eyes, brown leather briefcase in hand, Rolex on his wrist.

I stumble off the concrete walkway, the thought of being reunited with Alec a harsh reality, and almost barrel into Jake.

I’m relieved to be wearing Converse sneakers and not heels as I would’ve toppled over into the bushes. My face burns red, flustered as I bite my lip.

Such a klutz, my mother used to tell me. She was right about one thing.

Jake has a knee-jerk reaction and reaches out an arm, righting me. His strong arm is firm around my elbow. I mumble my thanks as he removes his sunglasses and sets down his briefcase. I introduce myself, feeling self-conscious in my short skirt and my graceless behavior.

He doesn’t let go, and I’m facing the man whose life I’m supposed to help manage, yet I haven’t mastered walking.

“Hi, Mr. Hunter, I’m Levin, your household helper,” I say, fingering the hem of my skirt, wishing I had tumbled into the bushes and been swallowed whole avoiding this debacle.

There’s a moment of silence as he looks at me, giving me a chance to catch my breath. There’s confusion on his face as he contemplates my title, his head tilting slightly.

He glances at me, amused. “Household helper?”

“Basically, I’m your personal assistant.” I have the urge to run but don’t want to draw more attention to myself. Something about Jake is unsettling. It’s more than his impossibly good looks.

The realization he’s still holding my elbow dawns on him, and he drops it, letting his arm fall back to his side. “A personal assistant, huh?” He whistles in appreciation, grinning at me.

“Jake.” He reaches out and shakes my hand, the silver metal of his watch glinting in the sunlight. Since he took his sunglasses off, it’s impossible not to notice the flecks of gold in them. “You can call me Jake.”

I nod. “Okay, Mr. Hunter, I mean, Jake.” I’m trying not to notice the way his six-foot-tall frame towers over me.

“Before you go, I just want to make sure…” I ramble on. “Are there any foods you don’t like? What’s your favorite drink?” The list of questions makes me dizzy, but I want to do a good job and to do that, I need to be thorough. “Do you like wine or no? Any certain types?”

“I like vodka-based drinks. Think vodka soda with a twist of lime. Usually Tito’s.” He stares at me, his liquid-gold eyes narrow. “I like white wine, but I’ll drink red depending on the mood.” With that, he gives me a flirtatious wink.

I smile. I hope he’s my most easy-going client. “What about food preferences?”

“I don’t like peas.” He’s solemn as he says this. “I also don’t like cabbage or pastrami on rye or anything that tastes like lamb.”

I make mental notes as he adds, “I’m not a vegetarian.”

“Duly noted.”

“What, exactly, does a PA do?” His eyebrows knit together in curiosity.

“Errands. Dry cleaning. Shopping. Stocking your room with food requests.” I tick them off on my fingers as I list them off. “If you call me at 5:00 a.m. and need Band-Aids and Alka-Seltzer, I’m your gal.”

“Five-star service.” He purses his lips in thought. “I might need your help with shopping.”

“That, I can do.” I rest my hand on my hip, staring at him, the idea of picking out his clothes or shopping for him a daunting task. What if he hates what I pick out? I always considered myself to have chic taste, but Alec told me I had no sense of style. Worse yet, what if it’s shopping for a wife or girlfriend?

I glance down to check if there’s a ring. Nada. Which means nothing. Maybe he’s engaged?

“I also might need your help on restaurant choices.” He motions with his hands. “I have a place here, but it’s being rented out, and my other home’s in the middle of renovations. Though I spend a decent amount of time here for work, I need some new go-to places.”

“Of course.” I tuck a loose strand of hair behind my ear. “I’ll do some checking on Yelp and OpenTable and see what I can find.”

“Are you a transplant or a native?” He’s taken a slight step forward, and I want to move back, the idea of him in my space makes me nervous. Not in a bad way, but there’s an energy I feel in his presence, and I’m trembling, my palms shaking as I try to hide them by my side.

“No, I grew up in another state.” I give him a small smile, “Most recently lived in San Diego.”

“Best weather.” He smiles at me, searching my face. I hold his stare before I glance down at the ground pretending to notice my shoelace is untied.

I lean down to re-tie my lace, take a breath, and stand back up.

This gives him the opportunity to take a glimpse at his watch. “Crap.” He looks at the time. “I gotta run, I’m gonna be late for the meeting I’m hosting.” He laughs, and the crease lines near his eyes crinkle. He’s the perfect specimen of a man.

I shake my head in understanding.

“So nice to meet you, Levin.” He touches my arm for a brief second. I might’ve imagined it lingers there longer than necessary. “I’m sure I’ll be seeing more of you than you’d like.”

I laugh as he says, “I’ll try not to be the annoying one, that ‘one guy’ who’s the topic of all your convos here.” He pushes his shades down and strolls off, briefcase in hand, exuding an aura of confidence. I sigh as I remember that’s what I thought about Alec when I met him—his brashness a turn-on unlike my father’s weak backbone in life. Though his aplomb reminds me of Alec, he has a different essence—the ability to laugh at oneself, find humor in situations.

Jake Hunter’s a head honcho, but there’s a quality about him that I’m attracted to. Magnanimous.

Alec has an underlying tone—it manifests itself in anger—controlled, but manifests in his emotions or his body language. He’s a bully. And a killer.

He can be brilliant but destructive. I fell in love with him but saw that his charm is forced. He’s selfish and egotistical to a fault. When you first fall in love, you ignore the negative, even though they flash like a neon sign in front of your face. I jumped in headfirst, seeing only the best. Now I’m prepared for the worst.