I picked up the bill from the table next to the front door, and it made my stomach turn. That monthly amount was almost ungodly, and I wanted to tear it to shreds. It made me so angry that education in this country cost so damn much and that a degree still didn’t get me anywhere.
“Nothing but a money pit, if you ask me,” I murmured.
I stopped on my way to work and picked up a large iced coffee with two shots of espresso and sweet cream galore. I sucked it down to the halfway point before I even walked through the back entrance. By the time I got to my office, I had tossed the empty plastic container into the trash can.
I wasn’t alone for long, though. Because the second my ass hit my office chair, I heard Ginger’s voice pipe up behind me.
“Please tell me you heard about the weekend getaway Yuslan took Guadalupe on this past weekend.”
I sighed. “No, Ginger. I didn’t hear.”
She stepped into my office and closed the door. “Well, I heard that he whisked her away to this cute little indoor water world hotel thing. Did you know Guadalupe loves to swim? Yeah, I heard that he took her to one of those places and bought them weekend passes so they could go do whatever they wanted on the resort grounds.”
I nodded mindlessly. “Sounds nice.”
“Oh! Get this. I also saw Margo with her handsome boo-thang at Renoir’s, of all places. You know, that French bistro across town? I think something big’s going down with them. You don’t ever go to a place like Renoir’s without something big going down.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Ginger, I just need some time t—”
“Oh, oh, oh! I’m not even done just yet. I’m saving the best for last. My friend Gavin? You know, Gavin Lincoln? The handsome A-list Hollywood actor? Yeah, he was in the hospital with his daughter last night because she’s got asthma. And I heard from Jorge that he couldn’t make it to his commercial shoot this morning.”
I slowly spun around. “TheGavin Lincoln?”
She nodded slowly. “Uh, huh! The one and only.”
“Is his daughter all right?”
“I mean, I think so? I wish there were a way I could help, though. Poor guy needs some serious help, and he’s got a selfish, lazy-ass ex-wife who doesn’t give a shit about anyone other than herself. I swear, he and that cute little girl of his deserve better. You know Jorge told me she didn’t even show up to the hospital last night?”
I blinked. “Wait. Did you say he needed help?”
She shrugged. “I mean, yeah. All Hollywood actors nowadays have nannies and such.”
I crossed my leg over my knee. “How bad is his daughter’s asthma? You think that’s why they can’t find good help or something?”
She blinked. “It’s bad, and that’s not even gossip. Everyone who’s anyone who’s a fan of that man knows that his daughter’s asthma is damn-near debilitating,” she said as she lowered her voice to a whisper. “And Jorge tells me it’s only getting worse.”
“Poor guy.”
“Right? Poor guy, indeed.”
Ginger stood in my office, obviously waiting for me to respond. But, I was too deep in thought. I mean,theGavin Lincoln? Needing a nanny? Was I crazy to even consider it? The man was drop-dead gorgeous. The epitome of strong and sexy. And dammit, the dad thing looked absolutely incredible on him. Not that I was some super-fan. But, he had been taking over Hollywood recently, and I’d seen nothing short of four separate movies in the past year where he took the leading role and completely ran away with it.
But, the idea of nannying for someone like him intimidated me beyond words.
Ginger’s voice hit my ears again. “You know, I should give Gavin a call. I know he hasn’t been out and about lately. Maybe he needs to get out and socialize for a little bit.”
I blinked. “You know him well enough that you can just call him?”
She shrugged. “I mean, Jorge does. They’re best friends. Didn’t you know that?”
I shook my head as Guadalupe peeked around the corner. “We talking about heralto, oscuro, y guapoman?”
Ginger wiggled her eyebrows. “We’re talking about analto, oscuro, y guapo. But, according to what I last heard, the man hasn’t even dated since he and his ex-wife split, the bitch. You know she hired a nanny that had absolutely no idea how to deal with her daughter’s asthma, and the woman quit by dumping the poor kid on Gavin’s porch while he was at work. At work!”
My eyes widened. “Wait, are you serious? How long did she have to wait there for someone to come get her?”
Ginger shrugged. “How should I know? I’m just the messenger.”
