My (Mostly) Secret Baby: A Grumpy Boss Romantic Comedy(9)

He scooped her up and blew a raspberry in her belly. Luna tried to knee him in the chin, but as was their routine, the two of them broke into a slow-motion fighting sequence, complete with Grant’s exaggerated sound effects.

I watched it all, wishing I could stay and enjoy the time. I knew Luna would make him play monster when they got inside, and it was always fun to see them goof around together. “I gotta get going. Everything is in her—”

“Bag. I know, Chels. Get out of here, and I’ll cross my fingers that your shitty car doesn’t blow up before you make it to your interview.”

“Swear jar!” Luna said, clapping excitedly. Every time Grant swore, he gave Luna a nickel. Unfortunately, he’d taken this as an excuse to swear as much as he wanted around her with the excuse that he was helping her out.

“Here.” I pulled a twenty dollar bill out of my purse and handed it to Grant.

He frowned at it. “You sure?”

“She’s got to eat. You do, too.”

He worked his mouth to the side, then nodded, taking the money. I knew it meant I was probably going to be skipping lunch today, but I also knew the state of my brother’s pantry and fridge.

I got back in my car, then took the sort of deep breath you took just before jumping into a freezing pool. I’d taken all the kinds of jobs I could imagine taking to avoid going there, but I’d reached a point of absolute desperation. I’d coached tennis lessons, waited tables, mixed drinks, and even picked up dog poop. But I was getting less hours across the board, and it was time to try to land the kind of job that wouldn’t require my closet to be packed with more uniforms than personal clothes.



I stepped inside Rose Athletic Representatives, or RAR, as I lamely enjoyed calling it. The building practically screamed you do not belong, from the smells to the way the receptionist was dressed.

I cleared my throat and straightened the skirt I’d been thrilled to find on clearance. It fell to just above my knees but was made of a comfortable stretchy material that looked good without feeling constrictive. I was sure everyone here could still tell I was poor, but I didn’t need to focus on that.

It was all completely fine. Nothing to panic about. No reason to mentally run through the procedure for walking like a normal human being again. Straight spine. Pull my head back for good posture, but not so good that I was rocking a double chin. Act like my arms aren’t glued to my sides.

When I was feeling insecure, I always thought back to the way Elsa from Frozen walked once she let her hair down. The lady walk, as I called it. And so, I imagined releasing my not-so-luxurious locks and walked toward the reception desk like I’d just magicked the shit out of the place. Damon Rose never bothered me anyway, or something like that.

No. He just defied the laws of probability and put a baby in me, broken condom and no ovulation be damned.

The woman—a twenty something like me with brown hair—gave me an expectant look. “Do you have an appointment?”

“An interview, actually.”

“With whom?” I hated how her tone said everything she was too professional to say aloud. You’re not getting a job here looking like that. Are you really dumb enough to think you would?

“Jason. From HR.”

She tapped her keyboard for a few seconds, giving me a moment to take in her perfectly manicured fingernails. Well, on the bright side, even the secretaries here were making enough money to keep up appearances. Maybe I could take this girl’s beauty budget and pay for a chunk of daycare. Probably not.

“Jason is out today. Do you want to reschedule?”

I put my hands on the desk to brace myself. Did Jason realize how much I was putting my brother out to ask him to watch Luna on short notice? “Could I possibly interview with someone else?”

I heard the doors open behind me and felt a subtle change come over the room. The receptionist slid her eyes past my face and focused on something in the distance. She went visibly straighter as she adjusted her hair and puckered her lips a little.

I followed her eyes.

I’d been prepared for this from the moment I decided to apply here, so it shouldn’t have come as a shock to see him. But my stomach still sank into a pit of fiery anger when I saw Damon Rose himself storming through the lobby. It had been almost five years now since our little encounter, and he was one of those obnoxious men that only became more distinguished with age. He’d been in his late twenties then, and now he had a hint of lines where there had been none before as well as a little more muscle on his lean frame. I still reckoned he could wipe his own ass, for the record.

Damon was on his phone, and from the sounds of his deep, gravelly voice, he was in the middle of chewing someone out.

The receptionist seemed to remember to do her job after a few seconds. She smiled slightly, then pursed her lips as she shook her head. “I’m sorry. The interview will have to wait until Jason can reschedule, but if—”

“What’s going on here?”

I nearly jumped at the sound of his voice directly beside me. Damon was towering over me, those nearly turquoise eyes of his regarding me with interest.

He was the definition of intimidating, but I refused to bend my neck to him. Not after everything that happened.

“Lucifer, hi. It’s been a while.”

The receptionist’s eyes bulged like she was expecting Damon to throttle me. All he did was look slowly down from my eyes to my chest and back up again with the faintest shadow of a smile.