Her Two Fake Husbands

Chapter 3: Dinner With Her Bosses

Nyrissa stood at the massive hardwood door surrounded by huge hedges on either side. Beyond that door were the two sexiest men she had ever known, who also just happened to be her bosses. She would have to be on her “A" game if she didn't want them to know just how attractive she found them. Sure, she was a bit lonely at night, and sure, she would love to wake up in the morning and have someone there she could talk to. Nyrissa was sure that the birds outside her windows were tired of hearing about her day.

So many of the other career women have told Nyrissa that it was better to not have a hard-nosed teenager getting in the way of her job. But she had never once seen it like that. Her family was important to Nyrissa and always had been. She had even given up her dream of being a writer when her parents passed away. Despite being sent to live with their family members, the job of taking care of her younger sibling had fallen to Nyrissa.

Nyrissa had been 17, and Natalie had been 3. They had been taken in by their closest relative, their father's older sister, and her closeted meth addict of a husband. They were always broke and fighting, making life a living hell for both Nyrissa and Natalie.

Nyrissa lived with them until it became clear to their aunt that Nyrissa wouldn't support them. Especially when their aunt refused to admit that her husband had a problem.

“He only uses drugs once in a while and just enough to have a good time. It's nothing awful!!!" Her aunt would whine whenever the subject was brought up.

Nyrissa had refused to listen to her crap any longer and had told her to her face where she could stick it. Then informed her that she and Natalie were moving out at the end of the week. Unfortunately, by the time Nyrissa had come back that week to pick up her and her sister's things, the locks had been changed, and Nyrissa was told that if she tried to take Natalie, her aunt and uncle would turn her in for kidnapping.

That spun off years of trying to see her sister whenever she could and having to abide by their rules. Otherwise, they would threaten to call the police.

But now that she had a decent job and an apartment, she was saving up to fight them for custody of her little sister. With Natalie's help, she compiled a folder of evidence that her aunt and uncle were the worst guardians in the world. They only wanted her around for the money the state paid them to take care of her.

The only thing in this whole mess that Nyrissa was thankful for was the fact that Natalie was such a wonderful, sweet, level-headed girl that she kept Nyrissa's spirits up so that she could keep fighting.

It was really hard sometimes, though, working so hard and dealing with her aunt and uncle and their constant threat of keeping her away from her little sister. Sometimes she wished that she had someone to help her... to hold her... to—

Nyrissa shook her head to remove those thoughts. It didn't matter either way. She didn't have anyone, and the most important thing right now was making it through this night and keeping her job.

For Natalie.

Nyrissa took a deep, steady breath and knocked on the door. She barely got one knockout when it was flung open, and Quentin stood there with a huge welcoming grin.

“Right on time!" Quentin greeted her warmly.

Nyrissa tried to answer back, but her voice was stolen away by the sight of him. She had thought he looked gorgeous in his dark suits and slacks, but then she was mistaken. Seeing him standing in front of her in a tight, plain muscle t-shirt stretched across his broad shoulders and chest. His strong, well-defined arms were on full display, beckoning her to stroke them. As if that wasn't enough, his lower body was encased in dark well-worn jeans with a few holes here and there that allowed the slightly tanned skin of his legs to peek through. She felt like they were tempting her to explore the rest of him just to see if the rest of his skin was the same color.

Oh, God, he was barefoot, Nyrissa realized with an inward groan. How is it a man could be so damned sexy in bare feet? Damn it, this was going to be harder than she thought.

“Cat got your tongue again?" Quentin purred seductively.

Nyrissa mentally slapped herself and forced her eyes back to his deep green ones. Damn it, there was that look. She groaned to herself. That look said he knew he was hot and, even worse, that Quentin knew she had noticed it too.

“No," she replied with a small smile. “Just didn't realize you owned anything beyond suits."

Quentin laughed and gave her a wink. “I'd be willing to give you a fashion show."

Despite her resolve to stay cold and professional, she couldn't help but laugh at the mental image of Quentin strutting like a peacock showing off his fashion.

That would be a show worth seeing.

Especially if she got to watch him cha-

No! She shouted to that little voice in her head. None of that.

Nyrissa's laughter melted away in a snap, and she cleared her throat, trying to return to neutral.

“You have a very pretty laugh," Quentin commented quietly.

Ohhhh.... that didn't help. Nyrissa thought as she felt her face grow warm, a sure sign that she was blushing.

“Oh... umm, thank you," she murmured.

“Hey, Q! Dinners ready, and Nyrissa doesn't need to eat on the porch," Ryan's voice echoed down the entryway.

Quentin chuckled and stepped aside so Nyrissa could come into the house.

As she walked through the entryway and into the house, Nyrissa felt her breath catch in her throat. The place had looked massive from the outside, and the inside matched it perfectly.

It opened up to an enormous room with a double staircase, then branched out to several different areas that made up the numerous windows that ran through the front of the house.

One room to the right looked like a study or a small library. Nyrissa couldn't go in, but she saw two desks and a few high-backed chairs sitting in front of the fireplace.

Quentin stepped in front of Nyrissa and began to lead her toward one of the two hallways that sat on either side of the grand staircase.

They passed several interesting rooms that Nyrissa would adore being able to peek into. However, she was practically having to run to keep up with Quentin's long-legged strides.

Curiosity was one of Nyrissa's more... prominent traits. Also, something of a weakness. She was going to wonder about those damn doors for DAYS.

Before she could ask him to appease her curiosity, they were in a kitchen almost the same size as her own kitchen, living room, and half her bedroom combined.

But the kitchen was nowhere near as impressive as the man standing at the stove stirring a pot. He looked just as comfortable cooking as he did in the boardroom, and Nyrissa had to admit that it was sexy as hell watching him cook.

His white button-up shirt was pulled out of his pants, and the sleeves rolled up to show off his strong forearms, with dark hair sprinkled down his slightly tanned skin. His dark hair was ruffled and softly floating about as he moved around the kitchen and stove area with ease. It was also a beautiful thing to watch.

When he caught sight of her, he stopped for a moment and let his eyes walk their way down her body. She felt a little awkward now, showing up in one of her office suits and her briefcase.

She had to quell the urge to fidget with her outfit. The simple grey skirt and blazer she had paired with a light pink shirt and sensible pumps were not the sexiest outfit she owned, but it was in no way frumpy.

Her inner monologue told her that she should have worn something a bit sexier to give his chocolate brown eyes to feast on.

Knock it off. Nyrissa scolded herself.

“Thanks for coming over," Ryan broke into her thoughts.

“You're welcome," she replied quietly.

“Would you like a drink?" He offered, heading over to a counter by the refrigerator that had an open bottle of wine that he had set out earlier to let breathe a bit.