Chapter Eight
Everything goes smoothly the rest of the week.
Well, mostly.
Although Mateo has pulled me aside for a few quick interludes, we still haven’t had sex. It’s not a problem, necessarily, but I do wonder about it. He strikes me as a man who takes what he wants, when he wants it; not a man who moves slowly.
I’m finally off on Sunday, so I spend the day with Lily, and part of the day with Isabella, too. In the main house, I’m told Isabella has a large play room, and there’s a movie theater/media room where we could watch movies, but I opt for something cozier and bring both girls and a few board games to our little area.
Lily and I share a bedroom in what’s called the servants’ quarters, but I’m more comfortable here than I probably would be in the gigantic main house. Isabella beats Lily twice at the board games, and while she accepts it the first time, she starts pouting the second. The third game is a cooperative play game with no winner, so we end on a high note and everyone happy.
After that, we snuggle up on the couch with a bag of microwave popcorn and watch Sleeping Beauty. As we’re nearing the big showdown at the end, Cherie comes in.
“Hey, sorry to interrupt,” she says, looking at the girls. Lily has given up on the popcorn, but Isabella is still shoving fistfuls of popcorn into her mouth, attention rapt on the movie.
“It’s okay,” I return, quietly. “What’s up?”
Somewhat apologetic, she says, “Mateo wants you to do dinner and drinks instead of me tonight.”
I’m completely unwashed at this point, so this is somewhat alarming. “Oh. Um, okay.”
“Sorry, I know it’s supposed to be your day off,” she says.
I shrug, glancing down at the girls. “Could you get Ju? I’m gonna have to jump in the shower if I have to entertain guests with higher standards than these two.”
Smiling, she nods and heads off to find the nanny.
An hour later, showered and with a little make-up on, I don my maid’s uniform and head for Mateo’s study. It’s much more crowded tonight, with men in all four arm chairs, and Mateo perched on the edge of his desk.
“Just in time,” he says with a wink, shaking his empty glass.
I roll my eyes indulgently, but grab his decanter of choice and bring it over to refill his glass. “It was very far away. I’m glad I got here in time.”
Once his drink is filled, I make the rounds, filling glasses for the men I’m less familiar with, and Adrian, though he doesn’t always make me fill his.
I don’t expect Mateo to talk to me, since his family members are scattered about the room, but he calls me back over to his desk with a crook of his finger.
“Enjoying your day off?”
“I was, yes.”
“What do you do when you’re not taking care of me?” he asks, smiling.
Rolling my eyes at his wording, I say, “I was taking care of our daughters.”
His smile slips. “Plural?”
I shrug. “Lily and Isabella have formed a fast friendship. Lily and I were having a game day and watching a Disney movie. Isabella wanted to tag along. It doesn’t seem like Ju ever gets a break unless she’s sleeping, so I figured she could join us.” Frowning slightly at the uncertain look on his face, I add, “I guess I should’ve asked? I mean, I asked Ju…”
He doesn’t come up with a response right away, and before he manages to, a younger Morelli man I haven’t seen before asks, “New maid?”
“Meg,” I offer, unsure whether he’s summoning me or asking a question. “You need something?”
“Nope, just never seen you before. How’d you luck into this job?” he asks.
“Head hunter. Saw my resume, made me an offer I couldn’t refuse.”
“You’re pretty,” he remarks.
My eyebrows rise in surprise at the compliment. “Oh. Thank you.”
Mateo cracks a smile. “Don’t tell Mia. If she’s not allowed to talk to the baker, I don’t think you’re allowed to check out my maid.”
“I don’t disallow her to talk to the baker,” the younger guy says, rolling his eyes and taking a drink. “I just don’t like the guy.”
“You don’t like any guy.”
“Can you blame me?” he asks rhetorically.
“This is my cousin Vince, by the way,” Mateo says, gesturing to the younger guy. “He doesn’t like guys.”
Biting back a smile, I nod my head. “I heard. I’m Meg the maid; I do.”
“Is that right?” Joey asks, sounding a little too interested in that prospect.
“Nope,” Mateo replies, immediately.
Glancing over at Mateo with a little smile, I ask, “Should I go check on the ladies? See if they need help?”
“Please do.”
With a little wave to the assembled men, I leave the study and head for the kitchen. It’s more crowded in there, too. Francesca is always there, but there’s another girl with her back to me and… weirdly, Elise. She’s in a black dress and heels instead of her maid uniform.
“I thought you were off today?” I ask, coming up beside her.
“I am,” she says, but from the look on her face, she looks as confused as I am. “I don’t know. This is going to be weird.”
Francesca comes over and pats Elise on the arm. “It’ll be fine.”
“I shouldn’t be out there like this. I still work here. I don’t belong at the table!”
“Oh, stop,” Francesca says. “It’s just a table.”
“I don’t know what’s going on,” I state, just so everyone knows where I stand.
“Don’t feel bad,” says the new girl, turning to face me. “No one ever does.”
I recognize her!
Smiling at me, she dries off her hands and extends one in my direction. “I’m Mia.”
“Meg,” I say, grinning with far too much enthusiasm as I shake her head. “I’ve heard of you.”
“You have? Only goods things, I hope,” she jokes.
Francesca butts in. “This is Meg, she’s the new maid. I guess she must be Elise’s replacement? I don’t know. I never know anything anymore either.”
“Cool. As long as we’re all on the same page,” I say. “Do you guys need help with anything? I’ve never done the Sunday dinner shift, so I’m not sure how this works.”
“We’ve got the cooking under control. If you want to grab some dishes and set the table, that’d be great,” Francesca tells me.
“Okay.”
As I’m setting the table, Mia brings the wine out. She flashes me a friendly smile, and since we’re alone, I take the opportunity to talk to her. “So, you’re Vince’s girlfriend?”
“Yes,” she verifies, nodding pleasantly. “How long have you been working here?”
“This is my first week. Big house, lots to clean.”
“Yeah, I’ll bet. Admittedly, I never had to clean anything when I lived here, but just seeing how big the place is—man.”
“Mateo’s really finicky about his bed, too. I’ve never known a guy to be so particular about something like that—especially one like him, you know? You wouldn’t expect him to care about decorative pillows.”
Rolling her eyes, she nods her agreement. “He’s a weird guy. I don’t know about this decorative pillow situation, but I don’t doubt you.”
“He wasn’t weird about it when you were together?”
The smile drops right off her face. “Uh, what?”
I catch her gaze, grimacing. “Sorry. Is that weird? Should I not mention that?”
“Mention…?”
“You and Mateo were together before you and Vince, right? I thought you were his ex-girlfriend?”
Nearly choking on air, she shakes her head vehemently. “No. No. God, no. No. I wasn’t his girlfriend.”
“Oh. I’m sorry. I’m making things weird. I tend to be outspoken, I apologize.”
“No, no need to apologize,” she says, but she’s frowning. “Who told you I was his girlfriend?”
I can’t exactly explain that one, and I also realize Antonio never called her his girlfriend—just said she was the last girl he fucked. Maybe he had bad information. “I’m realizing the word girlfriend may not have been used…. And also that I shouldn’t have brought this up.”
“What exactly was said?”
“Just that you had a sexual history, I guess.” I shrug, glancing back at the kitchen doors. “Sorry, I’m not… super conservative when it comes to this stuff. I shouldn’t have assumed you’d be open to talk about it. I apologize.”
“Is there a specific reason you’re interested in his sexual history?” she asks, trying not to grimace. “I’m not—I don’t know how to…”
I try again to save her. “We can forget I brought it up.”
“Are you sleeping with him?” she asks, sort of scowling at me.
“Not exactly?” I watch her face, a little uncertain. “You don’t want to be sleeping with him still, right?”
“No,” she drawls, fidgeting with a cloth napkin on the table. “No, I do not. Um… are you… good? If you needed to talk to me about it, that’s totally fine. I didn’t mean to be weird, sorry; you just caught me off guard.”
Giving up, she crosses the dining room and leans in to talk in my ear, “If you need to talk about something and you don’t want him to hear, you should do it in a bathroom.”
“Oh, I don’t care if he… I mean, I think he already knows you guys had sex, so it’s not really a secret. I was just hoping we could be friends. I mean, you already know how to handle him and I don’t, at all, so…”
“He’s a lot to handle,” she agrees, but she’s still watching me like I’ve morphed into a Rubik’s cube. “So, you are in the process of willfully sleeping with him? And you want to be my friend because I’ve…done that before?”
“We have something in common already,” I point out cheerfully. “Also, I don’t know what I’m doing wrong, and a friend with experience here would be great.”
“I am positive I’m the wrong person for that,” she tells me, shaking her head.
“No pointers?”
“Don’t do it?” she offers.
“Super helpful. Thanks, friend.”
Mia continues puttering around the table for a minute, but she doesn’t seem to be doing anything. After a moment, seeming almost confused, she says, “So, you want to be sleeping with him?”
“I think I could do worse,” I say lightly.
“You could probably also do better,” she states. “I don’t think his lovers have a very long shelf-life.”
“Yeah, Beth. Anyone know what happened with her, or is that another thing no one talks about?”
“Most things are things they don’t talk about. Nobody gave you a crash course on this family, did they?”
“Nope.”
“Okay,” Mia says, frowning. “Don’t bring up Beth to or in front of Mateo. I don’t know what happened there, but it is not a subject people talk about. If you can possibly avoid doing so, I would advise not getting tangled up with Mateo. He doesn’t trust people and he plays games with your head, and I think he has abandonment issues… just, not a great idea.”
“Really? I kinda like him.”
Nodding as if in understanding, she says, “He has an appeal, but once you get sucked in, man, he’s a black hole. There’s no coming out.”
“You seem to have made it out.”
Meeting my gaze, she states, “I was with Vince. I was always with Vince.”
“Oh.”
She nods, glancing toward the hallway. “I don’t mind discussing this with you, but please don’t bring it up in front of Vince, because he will lose his shit.”
“This sounds like a good story. I hope I’m not making you uncomfortable.”
“No, it’s just… foreign to me. I can’t imagine trying to befriend my lover’s ex—even though I’m not, you thought I was.”
“Well, you’re his ex-something, I guess,” I offer.
“Pawn,” she says dryly. “The word you’re looking for is pawn.”
Before anymore can be said, the man himself comes into the dining room, the rest of the men trailing behind him. Mia gives Mateo a scathing look he totally doesn’t understand and goes back to the kitchen before Vince can come in.
Mateo frowns at her back as she walks away, then glances at me. I shrug apologetically.
Vince is in the room now, but Mateo’s still looking after Mia, and before I can head that way myself, Mateo barges into the kitchen.
I look to the men, all of them confused by Mateo’s departure, then I make a beeline for the kitchen.
Mia is currently flinging Mateo’s hand off her arm when I walk in, but he grabs her and yanks her out the back exit and into the hall.
Francesca stares, eyes wide, and I feel like sinking through the floor.
“Shit,” I mutter.
Finally, Francesca sighs and looks at me. “If Vince comes in here looking for her… escort him back out.”
“Are they still having a thing?” I ask, confused.
Elise shakes her head, looking a little more annoyed than I’ve seen Elise look. “I wouldn’t call it a thing. Someone should go make sure she’s okay.”
“Why wouldn’t she be okay?” I ask.
Francesca tosses down her hand towel. “I’ll go. Jesus Christ, I hate these dinners.”
My head is spinning by the time all three of them come back. Mia looks agitated, Francesca looks exhausted, and Mateo looks… angry.
At me? Yep, at me.
Mine is the next arm he grabs, hauling me back the same way he hauled Mia a moment ago.
“What the hell are you doing?” he asks.
“I thought she was—I didn’t—”
“Who told you Mia was my ex?” he demands.
“Why won’t you have sex with me?” I blurt.
His mouth is open, ready to argue, but it snaps shut when I ask that.
“I don’t know what I’m doing wrong,” I state, since he didn’t shut me down. “I shouldn’t have said anything, I guess, but… I just wanted to know how to please you, because nothing I’m doing seems to be working.”
Mateo watches me for a minute, his brown eyes probing. “Why are you trying so hard?”
I shrug. “I’m gonna be stuck here, we might as well enjoy it.”
“Just to pass the time?” he asks skeptically.
Looking down at the floor, then back at him, I say, “Well, and I like you. And it seemed like you liked me. But now I’m not so sure.”
“I like you,” he states, as if his word alone should settle the matter.
“Then why aren’t we having sex?”
Instead of answering, he stares at me for another minute and then leaves me there alone, heading back through the kitchen.