The nobody i fell for

Chapter 4

THE NOBODY I FELL FOR

Chapter Four — Kairo's POV

That cute guy had shown up at our front door asking about the gardening job.

I honestly couldn't tell him no.

Not because I was trying to be nice.

Okay... maybe a little.

But there had been something about the way he stood there, trying so hard to look confident while his eyes kept wandering around the enormous entrance hall. He looked nervous. Not the kind of nervous people got when they were meeting my family because they were intimidated by our money.

It was different.

Like he actually needed the job.

And I knew that feeling.

Maybe not financially, but I knew what it was like to need something and pretend you didn't.

So I hired him.

Simple.

Besides, Mom had been complaining about the garden for weeks. Apparently, the flowers were dying, the hedges weren't looking perfect, and somehow all of that was a personal tragedy.

I thought she'd be happy.

Clearly, I had been very wrong.

The front door opened sometime after Blake left, and the sound of my parents' voices immediately echoed through the enormous hallway.

I was sitting on the sofa scrolling through my phone when I heard my mother's heels clicking against the marble floor.

One glance at her face told me everything.

She was furious.

My father wasn't exactly smiling either.

I slowly lowered my phone.

"Hi, Mom."

She didn't answer.

Instead, she placed her handbag on the table with far more force than necessary.

My father walked past us without saying anything.

Yeah.

This was going to be fun.

I sat up straighter.

"What's wrong?"

Mom finally looked at me.

"Kairo."

The way she said my name made me immediately regret asking.

"What?"

"Where is the gardener?"

I blinked.

Oh.

That.

"He just left."

Her eyebrows shot upward.

"He?"

"Yes."

My father turned around.

"You hired someone?"

I shrugged.

"Yes."

Silence.

The kind of silence that made the enormous house suddenly feel ten times bigger.

Mom stared at me as if I'd just told her I'd sold the mansion.

"Kairo, for the billionth time, I told you I needed a gardener."

"I know."

"A professional gardener."

I rolled my eyes.

"Mom, you said you needed someone to take care of the garden."

"Yes."

"Which he can do."

She stared at me.

"I was going to hire someone properly qualified."

I folded my arms.

"And Blake isn't?"

She scoffed.

"He's some random boy who came asking for a job."

"He's a person."

"Kairo."

"What?"

"Do you even know anything about him?"

I paused.

"No."

My mother's expression said exactly what she thought about that answer.

"And you hired him anyway?"

"He needed a job."

"That is not our problem."

I frowned.

That sentence irritated me more than it should have.

"Maybe it isn't our problem, but what's wrong with giving someone a chance?"

Mom shook her head.

"Because this isn't some little flower garden behind a cottage. This property requires proper maintenance."

I glanced through the enormous glass doors toward the garden.

The flowers were indeed looking a little sad.

I looked back at her.

"Mom, is there even such a thing as a professional gardener?"

She gave me a look.

"Of course there is."

I laughed.

"Because all you need to do is dig up the dirt and plant flowers."

My father actually smiled for half a second before quickly hiding it.

Mom, however, looked completely unimpressed.

"You have absolutely no idea what you're talking about."

"Neither do you."

"Kairo!"

I laughed and grabbed my phone again.

She shook her head.

"You're impossible."

"Thank you."

"That wasn't a compliment."

"I'll take it anyway."

She picked up her handbag again and started walking toward the staircase.

"Tell that boy not to come back tomorrow."

My smile disappeared.

"What?"

"You heard me."

"But I already hired him."

"And I'm telling you that you didn't have the authority to make that decision."

I stared at her back as she walked away.

For some reason, I couldn't stop thinking about the nervous expression on Blake's face when he'd stood at our front door.

He had looked relieved when I'd offered him the job.

Like I'd just handed him something much bigger than a few hours of gardening.

I looked toward the windows.

Maybe Mom didn't understand.

Or maybe...

I didn't understand either.

But something told me I wasn't going to tell Blake not to come back.

Not yet.