Billionaire Bad Boy, Broken Underneath

Chapter 14

Carissa's POV

Since the night I met Ezra drinking heavily in his home bar, things have been somewhat awkward between us. Neither of us has acknowledged what happened or even addressed it. Ezra seems distant. Our conversations have become much shorter with one worded replies. He still manages to eat but in smaller quantities than before. I try not to push it and let him be for now.

I walk into my father's house and slum into the nearby sofa. I don't even know why I'm so tired. It's the weekend so I'm not working at the mansion. I couldn't be happier. I just needed to get away for a few days. I think back to that night. Ezra drank so much more than I knew was possible. He was already drunk when I got to the bar so it meant he had been drinking for a while. He mentioned something about one ‘Randall’ guy and when I pressed to know, he completely shut down the conversation and headed upstairs. There definitely is something up about the whole situation. The man in question has to be some significant person in Ezra's life.

I shake my head at the thought. I shouldn't be thinking about Ezra right now. I was happy to come home so I can rest from the week's work. It's not even been a minute since I got in and my mind is already drifting towards Ezra. I really should stop thinking about my boss this much. I should take his advice and focus solely on my job but it's hard to do that. As much as I hate it, I'm very attracted to my boss and I can't stop caring about him. Asides the fact that he’s the hottest man on the planet obviously, there's just something about him that draws me in. I can't deny it anymore. His eyes are mostly guarded but if you look closer, you'll see there's something deeper.

Ezra is the kind of man girls like me stay away from but I don't know why I gravitate towards him. I mean, he's a womanizer in every sense of the word and that alone should scare me. Honestly, it does. I just don't know how to get rid of these feelings. I want to see him better. I want his eyes to exude warmth. Right now, it's so cold that it just confirms the fact that something really serious happened to him.

Olivia walks into the sitting room as I let out a breath. She plops next to me on the sofa. She brings her knees to her chest and faces me.

“How are you doing, Rissa?” she asks.

“I'm alright. I'm guessing mum and dad are not home?” I say

“No, they aren't. Have you had anything to eat? You look really exhausted” she looks at me intensely.

“I'll be fine. I just need to rest that's all” I grab my shoulder sling bag from off the table.

“Alright” Olivia says as she switches on the T.V.

“I need to speak to you about something before I forget” I say to Olivia, suddenly recalling that I haven't told her about the mortgage settlement.

“Okay… What is it?” she gives me a skeptical look.

“I got my first pay this week and I used it to pay off the mortgage” I say to her.

“You what?!” she looks dumbfounded.

“Actually, that's the main reason I took the job at the mansion. You know about the bill and how pressing it has been. Dad and mum don't talk about it but I know they’ve been really worried. I couldn't bear the thought of us losing this house”

“As much as this is a good deed, dad would not take this lightly. How are you going to tell them about this and explain how you got such amount of money on short notice. I mean, you only started working there last month” Olivia says

“I know. I could tell them I've been saving towards it for a while now. Here's the receipt” I pull the receipt from my bag and hand it over to Olivia and she stares at it for a long time without saying anything.

“Carissa, this is a lot. You mean to tell me your boss pays you this much for cooking for him? I'm not trying to downplay your work but let's be reasonable here. Who pays their domestic staff this much?” Olivia holds out the receipt.

“I really don't know. Maybe he's just generous. And it's not just cooking. I plan the kind of meals he eats. It’s kinda complicated but it takes a lot of work. Anyways, that was the amount his P.A told me I would be receiving every month at the interview. I hadn't even met Ezra at that time so you can't say he's biased” I reply.

“You're on first name basis with your boss?” she gives me a suspicious look.

“He insists I call him that. He corrected me anytime I added Mr. to his name until I got the memo. Says he hates the way it sounds” I explain

“I'm pretty sure your boss likes you” Olivia states.

“Olivia! I've told you it's nothing like that. He hasn't given me that impression. He has never made a move on me so it's really not like that. Get your mind out of the gutter” I give her an annoyed look.

“Yet. He hasn't made a move on you yet. It'll come. Sooner than you expect and do not say I didn't warn you” she tells me and I subtly roll my eyes.

“I just want to save up enough for the culinary upgrade I intend to take. I'm not there for anything else” I try to convince her.

“I did my research and it's safe or rather unsafe to say your boss is freaking hot. Pray you don't fall for all that. I heard he has a way with women. Lots of them. You don't want to be added to that list, Carissa, so you better be careful around him” she says in a serious tone.

“I've told you it's nothing like that” I look away from her. She gives me a single nod. “How's the doctorate going? You equally look pretty stressed” I say, changing the topic.

“Thanks for just noticing” she dramatically states

“Olivia” I plead

“Honestly Rissa, It's taking a toll on me. I'm thinking of putting it on hold for a while and working full time to save up for the fees. It's difficult to juggle both, you know”

“I understand. I could help out when I get my next pay if you don't mind” I try, knowing how she might react.

“No. I'll figure it out. Just focus on saving up for your culinary upgrade” she says in a final tone and I don't press further.

“Alright. I'll be in my room if you need me” I grab my things and head to my room. Olivia is like my dad in a lot of ways. They don't ask for help when they really need it. They hate feeling inadequate and having someone step in to help them out. I don't know how it makes them feel but they don't like it at all. I file the discussion in my head knowing my kind of person. I know it would be difficult not to think about Olivia's issue moving forward. Not that I plan on doing anything about it though. It would definitely drive her crazy.