Table Of Contents
Acknowledgements
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Epilogue
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Acknowledgements
First of all, thank you to Astrid and the Ylva team for giving me a chance and making this possible. I appreciate it more than I can possibly say.
Thanks to my editors, Michelle and Julie, for teaching me so much and for whipping this manuscript into shape.
Amanda: this book literally wouldn’t exist if not for you. Thanks for being my sounding board and giving me the encouragement I needed to write it.
Finally, to Laura, my love. Thank you for putting up with me, and for your endless support and patience. I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you.
El mayarah
Chapter 1
Camila Evans pressed her forehead to the cool glass of her town car’s window while the skyscrapers of New York rolled by unseen, her mind occupied with pilot pitches.
She had spent another late night at her television studio. The clock struck nine as she finally stepped out of the car into the warm summer air and entered the lobby of her apartment building. Her heels clicked on the marble floor as she made her way over to the elevators and pressed the button for the penthouse.
As always, she was impatient to be home, to get back to the son she knew would already be tucked in bed, fast asleep.
She hated missing Jaime’s bedtime and tried to limit her late nights at work—which wasn’t always easy to do, being at the helm of a television network.
She had been told more times than she could count that it wasn’t possible to be a good mother while having a successful career.
Jaime hadn’t been planned, but he was a beautiful, perfect being in a world filled with bitterness and hate, and Camila loved him with all her heart and soul. Every time she looked at him, every time she heard him laugh, she just became more determined that she could have it all, would have it all, and not a damn thing was going to stand in her way.
She couldn’t do it alone, though, and Camila was glad she had a nanny who kept an eye on Jaime for her so he wasn’t forced to spend long days in her office.
Camila tried not to worry, but it was difficult. Amelia was no Eleanor, though she was the best so far of the nannies Camila had hired and fired since Eleanor had left to care for her sick mother. Still, Amelia was a pretty recent hire, and Camila was eager to get home and see how well she had had gotten on.
Inside her apartment, the lights were dim and the television echoed from the living room. Camila kicked off her heels in the foyer, but her greeting to Amelia quickly morphed into a squeal when a glance over the back of the couch revealed a bare ass bobbing up and down in the air.
“What the hell are you doing?!” Camila’s voice cracked with anger. It was loud enough to startle the pair on the couch into action. The owner of the ass scrambled off the woman that Camila had entrusted to look after her son.
“You didn’t put the chain on the door?” Amelia’s boyfriend asked, ignoring Camila entirely as he yanked up his jeans.
“I didn’t think I needed to!” Amelia’s voice was high, her cheeks pink as she pulled her dress down into place. “And anyway, you could have done it when you—”
Camila’s mouth dropped open at what she was hearing. She saw red, snapping her fingers to draw their attention. “Are you two quite finished?”
“I…I’m sorry, Ms. Evans.” Amelia at least had the grace to look apologetic, but it did nothing to ease the fury pulsing through Camila’s veins. “I didn’t think you’d be back yet.”
“Clearly.” Camila injected her voice with as much disgust as she could manage. “Get out of my sight, both of you.”
The boyfriend, only too happy to obey, scurried for the front door.
“Ms. Evans—” Amelia started, but Camila held up a hand.
“Oh, save it,” Camila snapped, and Amelia quailed under her glare. “Is this the first time you’ve invited him over here? Actually,”—Camila decided she didn’t want to know—“don’t answer that.”
“I waited until Jaime was in bed—”
“Because that makes it better?” Camila asked, exasperated. “For God’s sake, what if he woke up and wandered out here?” She’d never been more relieved that her son was a heavy sleeper. “Just get the hell out of my apartment, Amelia. And needless to say, you’re fired.”
Amelia dropped her head as she skirted around Camila and headed for the front door.
“And I’ll be docking the cost of the dry cleaning bill from your pay!” Camila called after her, eyeing the white leather with distaste—she certainly wasn’t planning to sit on it for a long time, that was for sure.
She wished that had been the first time she’d walked in to find someone with their pants down in her apartment.
She made her way down the hall with a sigh and cracked open the door of Jaime’s bedroom. He was sleeping peacefully, blond curls spread out across his pillow, completely oblivious to the drama that had just taken place.
She tiptoed over to the side of his bed and leaned down to kiss his forehead, inhaling the scent of his shampoo. He never failed to calm her down even after the most trying of days. She watched him sleep awhile before she continued down the hall to her study because, even now, her work for the day was no longer complete.
She needed to hire a new nanny.
* * *
Emily’s phone rang just as she was about to shove the last bite of her breakfast croissant into her mouth.
She scrambled for the buzzing device, cursing when she got pastry crumbs all over the screen.
