CHAPTER SEVEN
1209 Words
CROSSED LINES
LEXI’S POV
The weeks that followed settled in an uneasy rhythm.
Victoria started coming around more often. At first, it was once a week, then it graduated to twice a week. Then suddenly, it felt like she was always there, coming into the house unannounced, with her perfume announcing her first, then her attitude second.
Sophia noticed it too.
She grew quieter on those days, she was more watchful and she stayed close to me like she was afraid I might disappear if she let go. Sometimes Victoria stayed for dinner, sometimes she stayed late with the excuse that she was trying to bond with her daughter, and then one night, she didn’t leave at all. She slept in Jake’s room that day.
Jessica whispered to me that Victoria would be sleeping over. Her mouth had pressed into a thin line when she said it. No one liked it.
That night, Sophia had trouble falling asleep. She clung to my arm, her fingers tight around my sleeve. “Will you still be here in the morning?” she whispered.
“Yes,” I promised without hesitation. “I’ll be right here.”
She nodded, but it took a long time before her breathing evened out.
That night I didn’t sleep much myself. I went downstairs to get a glass of warm milk and water, hoping it would help with my insomnia.
It was close to midnight and I could hear the argument happening. The lights were off, but voices drifted down the hall. It was sharp, low, and unmistakably angry.
I recognized the voices. It was Jake and Victoria. I stopped on my tracks and stayed silent behind the door while I eavesdropped on their conversation.
“I don’t like it,” Victoria snapped. “She’s too close to her, Jake.”
There was a pause. Then his voice came through, cold and dismissive. “She’s her nanny, what were you expecting?”
“No, she’s replacing me,” Victoria shot back. “Don’t pretend like you don’t see it.”
“That’s not true and yes, I don't see it.”
“She clings to her at every given interval and you are letting it happen.” Her shoes echoed as she paced in the kitchen. “My daughter barely looks at me anymore.”
“That’s not Lexi’s fault.”
My chest tightened at my name.
“You don’t know that,” Victoria said coldly. “I want her gone.”
There was a silence that was long enough that my stomach dropped. Then Jake spoke. “No.” The word was firm, but he did not sound angry.
Victoria laughed, sharp and humorless. “You’re choosing her over me now?”
“I’m choosing what’s best for Sophia, my daughter.”
“And that’s letting a stranger in our house take my place?” Her voice lowered. “Or is it something else?”
I held my breath, hoping that it was going to be the end.
“This conversation is over,” Jake said.
“It’s not,” Victoria snapped. “I still have influence here. Don’t forget that.”
There was another pause, but he didn’t deny it and that was all I needed to hear. I backed away quietly and returned to my room, my hands shaking. My chest felt too tight, like something was sitting on it.
Victoria wanted me gone and Jake… hadn’t shut her down the way I had hoped.
The next day, nothing changed on the surface. Victoria acted fake and authoritative, Jake was distant and Sophia stayed glued to me. I could see the look Victoria gave me every time Sophia called my name for an assistant. But something had shifted inside me. I was suddenly aware of how temporary I really was.
Victoria left the following evening. The whole house exhaled with her departure, even the walls seemed to be grateful she left. But still that night, I couldn’t sleep. I found myself in the kitchen again, sitting at the counter with a glass of water I wasn’t drinking.
Jake walked in a few minutes later and we startled each other.
He looked tired. His sleeves were rolled up, his hair slightly undone, like he hadn’t bothered fixing it after a long day.
“Good evening sir…” I greeted.
He glanced at me before he walked towards the fridge. I thought he was going to ignore me as usual but then, I heard him say “Couldn’t sleep?” he asked.
I stood there for a while stunned, before I shook my head. “No.” giving a quick answer.
He nodded and poured himself a drink, then leaned against the counter across from me as silence stretched between us.
I hadn’t planned to say anything but the words slipped out anyway. “Sorry sir, if I may sound out of place, but last night I overheard you and Victoria talking.”
His eyes flicked up sharply. “You were eavesdropping?”
“No,” I said quickly. “I was getting water. I didn’t mean to hear anything.”
He studied me for a moment, then looked away. “What did you hear?”
I hesitated. Then decided there was no point pretending. “She wants me gone.”
He exhaled slowly.
“And you didn’t say no,” I added quietly.
His jaw tightened. “I did say no.”
“But you didn’t shut it down.”
He straightened. “Lexi……...”
He called my name and I met his gaze, without fear the words came out of my mouth “She still has influence over you, doesn't she?”
The words hung between us and I could see the coldness in his eyes. I had succeeded in pissing him off. His voice came out as an ice block. “This is my house.”
I flinched.
“You are my employee,” he continued. “Victoria doesn’t make decisions here, and neither do you.”
The line was clear but it had hurt more than I expected. “I understand,” I said softly.
“Good.” There was another silence. Then he added, quieter, “Sophia is happy. That’s what matters to me.”
I nodded. “She is.”
He pushed himself off the counter. “Get some rest, Lexi, and don't ever eavesdrop on my conversations again, or else I wouldn't care who you make happy in this house.”
As he walked away, something twisted painfully in my chest. I stayed there long after he left.
That night, lying in bed, I admitted something I had been avoiding for weeks.
I liked him.
Not just as Sophia’s father or my employer. I liked Jake for being Jake.
I liked the way he listened when he thought no one noticed. The way his eyes softened when Sophia laughed. The way he carried so much and let none of it show. And that was the problem.
Because liking Jake Noah meant stepping into dangerous territory. Victoria already saw me as a threat and Jake had just reminded me of my place in his house.
So I had to find a way to bury the silly crush…..for Sophia’s sake.
- Writer
