Mr. Masters (Mr. 1)

I walk into the bathroom. It’s all black, grey, and very modern. Once again, I notice that everything is very neat. There is a large mirror, and I can see that a slender cabinet sits behind it. I push the mirror and the door pops open. My eyes roam over the shelves. You can tell a lot about people by their bathroom cabinet.

Deodorant. Razors. Talcum powder.

Condoms.

I wonder how long ago his wife died. Does he have a new girlfriend?

It wouldn’t surprise me. He is kind of hot, in an old way. I see a bottle of aftershave and I pick it up, removing the lid before I lift it up to my nose.

Heaven in a bottle.

I inhale deeply again, and Mr. Masters’ face suddenly appears in the mirror behind me.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” he growls.

Chapter Two

I spin around, filled with horror. “I… I… I’m so sorry,” I splutter. “I was checking on Samuel, and I...” I pause as I try to think of a justified reason for me being in here, doing this.

He narrows his eyes, anger oozing from him as he waits.

“I walked past your room and I could smell something nice. I’ve been wanting to buy my father some new cologne and…” I’m talking way too fast to sound like I’m telling the truth.

He folds his arms over his chest, clearly not believing this bullshit story for a single moment.

“And I wanted to know what cologne it was so I could buy it for my father.”

He raises his eyebrow in question. “You think I smell like your father?”

I shake my head. “No. You smell way better than him.” My eyes widen. Did I

just say that out loud?

Amusement crosses his face before his eyes drop to my nightdress. "I came back home to retrieve my phone, which I accidentally left on charge." He gestures to his side table and I see his damn phone on charge. "And I find you," he holds out both his hands toward my body, "in a state of undress, standing in my bedroom, smelling my cologne."

I wrinkle my nose and scrunch up my face. “It sounds kind of weird when you say it like that.”

He looks at me, deadpan. “It is weird.”

I fake a smile and hand him the bottle of cologne. “You should maybe take it as a compliment. Not very many men smell nice enough for me to be so curious. It’s actually one of the biggest mistakes a man can make—”

“Enough!” he cuts me off. “This is an invasion of my privacy.”

I nod. “I can see why you would think that.” I swallow the lump of sand in my throat. Oh fucking hell, get me out of here. This is mortifying. I readjust my nightdress to try and cover my breasts. “It wasn’t intended to be creepy.”

He lifts his chin in defiance. “We’ll talk about this tonight when I have more time.” I collect air in my cheeks and nod.

“Now, if you don’t mind, will you please go and put some damn clothes on?” he snaps.

“Yes, sir,” I whisper. “I’m sorry.” I drop my eyes to the floor.

“I need to go to work.” He gestures toward the door with his hand. I exhale heavily and start walking.

“Miss Brielle?”

I spin back to him.

“The children go to bed at 8:30 p.m. sharp. I would like a meeting with you then.”