Page 22 of At Her Service (Club Velvet #2)

CHAPTER 22

V alerie took a seat at a table at the corner of the small cocktail bar. It was late in the evening, and she had plans to meet with Simone. It had been far too long since they’d had the chance to speak one-on-one.

And after the masquerade ball, Simone would have questions for her.

As Valerie waited for her to arrive, she took out her phone and checked her messages. There were almost a dozen. And most were from Francesca.

I’m sorry about the other day. I just miss you.

Please, just talk to me, Val.

I want to go back to the way things were. I want us to be a family again.

Valerie held back a curse. She’d thought she’d gotten through to Francesca that evening outside Club Velvet. She should have known better.

As she set her phone on the table, more messages arrived, each barely a second apart.

Why can’t you see that we’re meant for each other?

I need you, Val. And you need me.

You’ll never find someone like me again. Someone who understands you like I do. The real you.

Nobody knows who you really are. Nobody but me.

Valerie re-read the last message. There it was again, the threat hidden behind innocent words.

How long until Francesca made her threats a reality?

Valerie tapped Francesca’s name on the screen and blocked her number. That would buy some temporary peace.

But soon, she’d have to deal with Francesca once and for all.

“Sorry I’m late.” Simone slid into the chair across from her. “Traffic was a nightmare.”

Valerie slipped her phone back into her purse. “Not a problem. I only arrived a few minutes ago.”

A server came by to take their orders, a Manhattan for Simone and a whiskey for Valerie. She suddenly felt the need for a stiff drink.

Simone stuck to small talk until their drinks arrived. But as soon as the server was out of earshot, she crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair.

“So,” she said. “When were you going to tell me about Abby?”

Valerie took a long swig of her drink. She knew the question had been coming, but that didn’t make it any easier to answer. Simone was her closest friend. And while she wasn’t letting it show, Valerie could tell she was hurt.

She set her glass down. “You’re right. I should have told you. But the situation between me and Abby is… sensitive.”

“Because she’s your nanny?” Simone said. “Which, by the way, I only found out because Elle let it slip. Apparently, Olivia knew too.”

“Simone, I’m truly sorry. And I didn’t tell Elle and Olivia. They figured it out for themselves. To be honest, I didn’t want to tell anyone, but especially not you. I warned you against dating your assistant. And now, I’m sleeping with my nanny? The hypocrisy is hard to ignore.”

“You know I’d never judge you for that. Besides, you came around on me and Jade eventually. What did you tell me? ‘Sometimes it’s worth the risk’?” Simone swirled her drink around in her glass. “You were talking about Abby, weren’t you?”

Valerie nodded. “Yes, and I meant it. Everything with Abby has been so, so worth it. But that doesn’t make it any less complicated, or messy, or wrong . I’m her boss. This goes against everything I stand for. I’m putting my entire career at stake.”

“You’re right. It is complicated. It is messy. But it isn’t wrong. Val, for years now, you’ve had women throwing themselves at you. At Club Velvet, at work, everywhere else. And you never gave them a second glance, not once. Then along comes this nanny of yours, and you’re suddenly risking everything? Do you know what that tells me? It tells me that what you and Abby have is real. It tells me that you feel so deeply about her that you’re willing to put everything you have, everything you are , on the line. How could that possibly be wrong?”

Valerie sipped her drink, letting the warm burn of the whiskey spread through her. Perhaps there was some truth in Simone’s words.

“Here’s what I want to know,” Simone said. “What is it about her? What is it that makes her worth it?”

“I don’t know how to put it into words. It’s… a feeling. Whenever I’m with her, everything becomes brighter, warmer. And I feel this fierce need to protect that, to protect her . In a world that can be so harsh and cold, someone like Abby is precious. She deserves to be treasured.”

An image of Saturday night flashed in her mind. Of the two of them lying together in Valerie’s bed. Of Abby pouring her heart out, and the bittersweet kiss that followed. It was only that night that Valerie understood what was behind the quiet strength she’d always sensed in Abby, the maturity beyond her years. She’d been through so much, and she’d had no choice but to weather it alone. But she still carried her pain with her. And Valerie would give anything to take that pain away.

“She’s obviously very special,” Simone said. “And what the two of you share is obviously special too.”

“It isn’t only the two of us. You should see her with Hazel. Sometimes I wonder if Abby understands her better than I do.” Valerie shook her head. “That should make me jealous. But with Abby? When I look at her and Hazel together, it feels…”

“Right?”

“Yes. It feels right.” Valerie let out a heavy sigh. “There are so many ways this could go wrong. I don’t want to hurt her.”

“Why do you think you’re going to—” Simone’s brows drew together. “It’s Francesca, isn’t it? She’s playing her games? Getting into your head?”

“She hasn’t gotten into my head, but she’s trying her best. Her calls and messages have become increasingly persistent. And she just happened to run into me near Club Velvet the other day.”

Simone’s expression darkened. “She’s stalking you? Valerie, you need to do something about this. Her behavior is escalating.”

“And I’m handling it. I’ve blocked her, and I’m going to speak to my lawyers about the situation. But I have too many things on my plate right now, and I don’t have the energy to deal with the inevitable fallout once she finds out I’ve gotten lawyers involved. I have that trip coming up. I need to focus on that.”

Simone gave her a disapproving glare. “Just promise me you won’t ignore this.”

“I won’t. I’ll make an appointment with my lawyers first thing when I get back.”

“All right.” Simone sat back in her seat and took a sip of her drink. “So, about this trip. Where are you off to?”

“Italy. It’s only for a few days. And it’s business, not pleasure. I’m scouting a location for that rom-com project I told you about.”

“And you’re taking Abby with you?” Simone asked.

“Of course.” Valerie hadn’t told her yet. She’d only finalized the details of the trip earlier that day. “I don’t want to be apart from Hazel for three days, and I’ll need help looking after her while I work.”

Simone raised an eyebrow. “Let me get this straight. You’re taking Abby on a trip to a romantic island resort, and it’s going to be all work and no play?”

“I wouldn’t say that. While it is a business trip, I’m going to make sure the two of us get some alone time too. Abby works so hard. She deserves an escape.”

Simone studied Valerie’s face. “She makes you happy, doesn’t she?”

“Yes. She does.”

“I’m glad.” Simone gave her a small smile. “You know, I never got to thank you for your advice with Jade.”

“No need. I’m just happy it all worked out. So everything is going well with you two?”

Simone nodded. “It’s going wonderfully. You were right. It was worth the risk. And I’m sure Abby will be too.”

* * *

When Valerie returned home that night, she was met with a calm silence. But as she headed upstairs, the faint sound of Abby’s voice reached her. It was coming from Hazel’s bedroom.

She crept down the hall to Hazel’s door. It had been left ajar. Taking care not to make a sound, she peered into the room.

Abby sat on the edge of the small bed, reading aloud from a picture book. Hazel lay tucked into the sheets, her eyelids drooping. She had a stuffed lion clutched to her chest, a green silk bonnet protecting her curls. Unlike other sitters and nannies, Abby had never forgotten it, not once.

Abby turned to the final page of the book and peered down at Hazel. The toddler had lost her battle to stay awake. Abby shut the book and set it aside, then stroked Hazel’s forehead gently before getting up from the bed and slipping silently from the room.

She shut the door behind her, giving Valerie a warm smile. “You’re home. You should have said something. You could have come in and said good night to Hazel before she fell asleep.”

“I didn’t want to interrupt. She looked so peaceful.” Valerie took Abby’s hand and drew her to the stairs. They sat down on the top step. “I don’t know how you do it. I always have my hands full getting her to sleep. You must tell me your secret.”

Abby twirled a lock of hair around a finger. “But then you’d have no reason to keep me around.”

“Oh, I can think of a few.”

Abby’s face flushed pink. Valerie felt a pang of desire. But she had an early start in the morning, and she still had a few things to do before bed. The first of which was telling Abby about the trip.

“I have some news,” she said. “I need to go to Italy for a few days. Location scouting for a film. Do you have a passport?”

Abby nodded. “I got it for a trip I went on with a family I used to nanny for. But do you mean…”

“That’s right. You’re coming with me, along with Hazel. I’ll need to work, of course, but I’ll do my best to carve out some free time for us. The resort has sitters on staff, so we can take advantage of that to get a little alone time. That is if you’re interested.”

“Are you kidding? Of course I am.”

“Good. Because this whole trip will be under the radar. We’re flying in by private jet, and we’ll be on a small, isolated Tuscan island where no one knows my face. Which means we won’t have to worry so much about keeping things under wraps. We can be a little more free with each other.”

Abby smiled. “That sounds perfect.” She leaned over and kissed Valerie’s cheek. “I can’t wait.”

Valerie stood up. “I’m going to take care of a few things before turning in for the night. I have a long day tomorrow.”

Abby nodded. “I’m going downstairs to read for a bit. I’ll see you in the morning.”

Valerie headed to her room, a warm buzz in her chest. It was moments like these that made her want something more. For Abby to be not only her lover, her submissive, but her girlfriend, her partner.

And perhaps one day, her wife?

Valerie let the thought fade. She’d had one whiskey too many.

She stepped into her bedroom and shut the door. As she began to undress, her phone buzzed in her pants pocket. She pulled it out to find several messages from an unknown number.

But it didn’t take her long to figure out who they were from.

Why did you block me? Just talk to me.

Is there someone else? Is that why you don’t want me back?

Who is she? Whoever she is, she’s all wrong for you.

You were meant to be with me.

Valerie’s blood ran cold. How did Francesca know about Abby? Was she watching her? Had she hacked Valerie’s phone?

But there was a simpler explanation. Francesca didn’t know about Abby at all. She simply couldn’t comprehend Valerie rejecting her unless there was someone else.

No, Francesca wasn’t stalking her. Valerie was being paranoid. Clearly, her ex was starting to get to her.

And she wasn’t done.

You’re making a mistake, Val.

Does she know the truth about you? Does anyone?

Only I know who you really are, Valerie. Only I know what you did to me.

What would everyone think of you if they knew?

What would they do if they found out?

Valerie blocked the number, then set her phone on her nightstand. Until she came back from her trip, she wasn’t going to give Francesca a single thought.

Valerie wasn’t going to let her ruin what she had with Abby.