“I need to know. I’ve got bills to pay.”
He shot her a look as they turned up a rougher road leading to the cabin. “Don’t worry about your bills.”
“How can I not worry about my bills? I don’t know how long I’ll be away from work. I’ve got a damaged house. I mean, I have insurance but who knows how long that money will take to come through. And now you’re not getting paid, either. So I have to work to pay you.”
The flames started to flicker and he pulled in a deep breath. Somehow, she was finding this part hard to understand. He pulled off the road onto the grass. Then he undid his belt and turned to her.
“I’m just going to tell you this straight, David said he was going to fire you.”
“Of course he did. He’s such an asshole. Sure, it sucks having to find another job. But maybe I can finally get a job where I don’t have to work for a jerk.”
Matthieu wanted to tell her that she’d never have to work again. But he squelched that urge. That wouldn’t go over well right now. He knew she was primarily worried about her babies and not herself.
Maya needed someone to worry about her.
Matthieu watched with no small amount of worry as a shield seemed to slip over Maya’s face.
He’d seen it happen yesterday too. But he’d figured that was to be expected. She’d been exhausted and traumatized. And last night the shield had dropped, and she’d been Maya again.
So he was alarmed to see it happening again today.
Was she overloaded?
Of course she was. Anyone would be.
And he felt this pressing urge to ease her burden. To take everything on so she didn’t have to shut down in order to survive.
“Listen to me, I don’t want you to stress.”
She raised one eyebrow and he knew he was about to get sassy Maya. “Because telling someone not to stress always works.”
It would if she let him take full control. But he refrained from saying that to her as well.
“Well, you weren’t going back there to work, anyway.” He nearly winced after saying that. That wasn’t quite what he’d meant to say.
“Oh, I wasn’t? Then where was I going to work?”
“You wouldn’t be happy working for someone who exploited animals.”
“No, I wouldn’t. But a regular paycheck is kind of a necessity.”
“You’re amazing at what you do. You could get a job anywhere.”
“There aren’t a lot of yoga studios in Billings where I can work.”
“Is that what you want to keep doing? Teaching yoga? Before that you worked as a personal assistant. Was that what you wanted to do? Or is there something else you’d rather do?”
“Rather do? I do things that feed my babies and keep a roof over our heads.”
Yeah, that’s what he’d been wondering. While she’d seemed to enjoy teaching yoga, it didn’t seem to be her passion.
Which was animals.
“Why did you really take that job?”
She sighed, that cool, unemotional mask still on her face. “You know, being so nosy isn’t attractive.”
Hmm. Time to knock that shield a bit.
