Page 49 of The Billionaire Bodyguard Next Door
Luna hummed. “I'm sure she'd love that. We just have to check with Faith first.”
Alice put her hands in prayer. “Daddy, can we get a dog? Please. Pretty please.”
“My bad,” Luna said again, this time a little louder.
I knew this was coming. Hell, it was one of the reasons for the new house. Maybe this weekend could be a trial. “Let's take good care of Willow this weekend and then we’ll see about getting a dog.”
Luna tapped her painted nail on her plump lips. “You know, Sebastian does help out at the local animal shelter. Maybe you could check it out…”
My eyes collided with Luna’s.
“Riiiiight.” She made a zipping motion with her hand before throwing me a wink.
The damn minx knew exactly what she was doing.
“I'm going to take very good care of Willow, Daddy,” Alice said firmly.
My face softened. “I know you will, sweetheart.”
CHAPTER18
Luna
“Thank God for lady time.I swear, that man drives me nutty.”
I enveloped Faith in a hug the second she opened the door to the sprawling country manor house owned by Sebastian Steele. I could practically feel Beck rolling his eyes behind me.
And while I usually said that statement with venom dripping from my red-stained lips, this time it felt a little less weighty. Like it wasn't quite true anymore and even my body could detect the lie for what it was.
But I seriously needed girl time. I loved the badass ladies who worked for me, but they workedforme, which meant that inherently we had a wonky power dynamic that I didn't want to fuck with.
Faith however didn't work for me and even though I'd only known her a few short months, it felt like we’d known each other all our lives. With her wealth, she could have been stuck up and conceited and a real asshole and nobody would blink. But she was the opposite of that. And she'd managed to break down those brick walls around my friend Sebastian's heart, which meant she was a keeper.
The second the hug was over, I beelined for the guest room I’d stayed in before, hopping immediately into the shower.
I tried to forget that Beck had once again seen me at my worst, and probably smelling my worse if I was being completely honest.
I scrubbed away the grime and felt like a new woman. Then I took my time lining my eyes and my lips, carefully painting them both until I felt more like myself.
Fortunately for me, I’d left a few pieces of clothing in the closet the last time I crashed here. I selected a black bodysuit and chic red leather skirt with a peekaboo slit that skimmed the top of my thigh.
Eat your heart out, Beck Bennet.
With that complete, I padded down the hallway to my favorite room in the house. I found most of the crew: Alice and Faith were there.
Beck wasn’t.
Curious.
And a smart move. The man should keep a wide berth after the shit he’d pulled this morning.
Willow was in the kitchen too. The sweet dog peppered me with kisses, and although I usually identified as a cat person, you couldn’t help but fall in love with Willow.
After giving her a final pat on the head, I sank into a chair in the cozy kitchen with its wooden cross beams and European chic vibes as Faith set out plates of veggie and tofu stir-fry. It was a little early for lunch, but my stomach grumbled all the same.
“Where's your dad?” I asked Alice as she picked up a fork and poked at a mushroom.
Faith rolled her eyes, chiming in for Alice. “He's doing a perimeter check.”
