Nanny And The Alpha Daddy

Moana

It was a hot summer evening, and I had just spent the entire day job hunting.

Finding work as a human in a world dominated by werewolves, especially in the midst of the hustle and bustle of the city, wasn’t easy. Even though I had a degree in Early Childhood Education, no schools wanted to hire me because I was a human. Werewolf parents were outraged at the thought of a “worthless human” teaching their children, as if my skills, drive, and education meant nothing.

So, I was now limited to service jobs, which were also unfortunately hard to come by because the job market was oversaturated with other humans who were also desperate to pay their bills.

If I didn’t find a job soon, though, I would lose my apartment. My landlord had already given me a thirty-day notice. If I didn’t pay my rent -- and the three months of rent that I already owed -- by the end of the thirty days, he was going to evict me.

At least I still had my boyfriend, Sam. He wasn’t extraordinarily well-off either despite being a werewolf, but at least he had a job and could pay his rent. We had been together for three years now and had known each other for five, so maybe it was time to talk about moving in together soon.

As I was walking down the packed city street, a thin layer of sweat caked to my forehead from spending the day running from business to business as I tried to find someone who would hire me, I started to realize how hungry I was. I couldn’t afford to eat out, but the delicious smells coming from the restaurants I passed began to make my mouth water.

One particular restaurant across the street caught my eye, but not because of the smell of food.

I stopped in my tracks, my eyes widening.

Inside the restaurant, right in the window, was Sam. He wasn’t alone; he was with another woman, and they were…

Kissing.

“You’ve gotta be fucking kidding me,” I said out loud, causing a few passersby to turn their heads and give me weird looks.

Sam had told me that he was busy recently, that he had a lot of work… Was this what he was really doing? Cheating on me with some other woman?

The fury bubbled up inside of me, and without thinking, I stormed across the street and toward the restaurant window. My stomach turned as I came closer. This woman was gorgeous -- basically a supermodel -- and that didn’t make me feel any better about the situation. Not only was Sam cheating on me, but he was cheating on me with someone who looked like that.

She was thin, blonde, and tan with long legs, wearing a skimpy evening dress and high heels. I do get compliments on my face, body and long red hair, but in that moment, I felt so worthless as I stood there looking at Sam and his mistress.

How could he do this to me?

I stopped in front of the window. Neither of them even saw me standing there, they were so absorbed in their makeout session.

So, I banged on the window.

Sam and the mystery woman both jumped, their eyes widening when they saw me. I stormed over to the entrance and ran inside, ignoring the strange looks from the restaurant staff and customers, and ran up to where Sam and the woman sat.

“How fucking dare you?!” I yelled, my hands curled up into fists at my sides. “We’ve been together for three years and you’re cheating on me?”

The woman looked back and forth between Sam and I with an embarrassed expression on her face as the restaurant fell silent, but Sam’s face showed only anger and resentment. Without saying a word, Sam stood and grabbed me by the arm, dragging me out of the restaurant. He was too strong for me to resist, so I stumbled after him and back out into the busy street with tears streaming down my cheeks.

“You’re making a fool of both of us, Moana,” he growled once we were outside.

“I’m making a fool of us?” I replied, my voice still raised. “You’re making out with another woman in public!”

Sam merely rolled his eyes and pulled me further away from the door. His werewolf eyes burned a bright orange color and his face was wrought with anger.

“Control your temper,” he whispered, pushing me roughly up against the side of the building. “You’re just an ordinary human. You should feel lucky that I even entertained you for three years.”

His words stung, and my vision became clouded with tears.

“Why her?” I croaked as a sob caught in my throat.

Sam, the man who had told me he loved me for three years, merely chuckled. “You’re useless to me,” he snarled. “She’s a Beta. Her family is incredibly wealthy and powerful, and thanks to her, I’ll be starting a new job at WereCorp next week.”

WereCorp was the biggest corporation in the world. Not only did they control all of the banks, but they also developed the newest and most widely-used cryptocurrency of the 21st Century: WCoin. I never used it -- humans weren’t allowed to -- but it made a lot of werewolves extremely rich when it first came out.

He continued, “What have you done for me aside from mooching off of me because you can’t even get a job of your own? You’re nothing compared to her. How dare you even question my decision to move on.”

There was nothing else I could say; nothing else that could come to mind aside from getting the hell away from him. I shoved Sam away finally, pushing myself away from the wall. “Fuck you,” I growled, my rage taking over as I raised my hand and slapped him hard across the face. Passersby were looking at us now, but I didn’t care.

Without another word, I turned on my heel and stormed away without looking back.

As I walked numbly down the street and wiped the tears from my eyes, I thought about what Sam was like when we first met; he had been nothing more than a bullied Omega in high school with no confidence, no prospects, and no friends. I had helped him gain confidence with my love and support, and this was how he repaid me? By leaving me for some blonde, all for a job at WereCorp?

Nothing angered me more than knowing that my boyfriend of three years, and best friend for five years, had left me so easily over money and power.

I was still fuming when I stepped out into the intersection, too numb to look properly before crossing. Just then, I heard the sound of a car honking and looked up to see a luxury car driving straight for me. Cursing to myself, I stumbled backwards and fell into a puddle just before the car hit me.

The car came to a screeching halt next to me, which was surprising since I assumed that they would just drive away after nearly hitting me, but what surprised me even more was the person who sat inside the car when the window rolled down.

Edrick Morgan, CEO of WereCorp.

Edrick was known not only for being the youngest CEO in the history of the company and the heir to the largest fortune in the world, but also for his stunning appearance -- and although I was incredibly hurt and angry about everything that had happened today, I couldn’t help but notice his strong jawline, his muscular shoulders and arms, and his incredibly handsome face.

I opened my mouth to say something about how he had nearly hit me, but before I could, he looked me up and down and tossed a wad of cash out the window, driving away with a rev of his engine.

Edrick Morgan, the CEO of WereCorp, had nearly hit me with his car… and tossed me money like I was some beggar.

All werewolves really were arrogant assholes.

I threw the cash on the ground and stood, cursing under my breath as I realized how soaked and dirty my clothes were. I’d have to go home and see if I could scrounge up some change to take them to the laundromat so I could continue job hunting tomorrow, but admittedly for now I just wanted to drown my sorrows.

I walked for a few blocks, finally spotting a bar that seemed nice and quiet.Taking a deep breath and smoothing down my stained shirt, I walked through the doors and approached the bouncer.

The bouncer narrowed his eyes at me and looked me up and down, taking in my dirty appearance sniffing the air in front of me.

“No humans allowed without a member escort,” he growled, folding his arms.

I frowned. “Member?” I asked. “I’m a paying customer. Just let me buy a drink.”

The bouncer shook his head and began to usher me toward the door like I was some sort of nuisance.

“Is this even legal?” I said, raising my voice. “You can’t just discriminate against humans like this! Is my money worthless here just because of--”

“She’s with me,” a stern and clear voice suddenly said from behind.

The bouncer and I both looked up and turned to see a man in a suit standing on the stairs.

Edrick Morgan.

Moana

“She’s with me.”

The bouncer whipped around to face the man standing on the stairs. I stood there, my eyes wide, as I realized that the man who was mysteriously helping me get into the bar was the same man who had almost hit me with his car on the street and then promptly threw me a wad of cash like I was a beggar: Edrick Morgan, CEO of WereCorp. I considered just turning around and leaving, but before I could, Edrick came down the stairs and waved the bouncer away, fixing his steely gray eyes on me.

“Come on,” he said, peering around me to look out the door and onto the street. “It looks like it’s going to rain again. You don’t want to be walking around in the rain, do you?”

I felt as though there was something a bit condescending in the wealthy werewolf’s tone, but he was right: it had been raining for most of the day, and had already begun to sprinkle again. I didn’t want to walk home in the rain and get more soaked than I already was, so I silently followed Edrick up the stairs.

“You’re still wearing those dirty clothes,” Edrick said in a somewhat cold tone of voice as we reached the top of the stairs. “I gave you money to replace them. Why didn’t you use it?”

I frowned.

“I may be a human, but I won’t take money from rude and arrogant people who throw cash at me out the window of their car like I’m a beggar on the street.”

Edrick sucked his teeth and looked me up and down for a moment before curtly turning to a woman who stood nearby. She seemed a little older than me and wore a plain black staff uniform. He muttered something to her that I couldn’t quite make out and she nodded, turning to me and smiling with one arm outstretched.

“Right this way, miss,” she said as Edrick turned and disappeared into the main room of the bar. I glanced over my shoulder at him one last time as the woman guided me away, leading me upstairs to a private room. As she unlocked the door and opened it, my eyes widened. The room was full of racks of expensive clothing, shoes, and accessories.

“What’s this?” I asked, turning to face the woman.

“We like to provide the best for our patrons,” the woman replied with a smile. “This room is specially designed for our female patrons to come and freshen up, touch up their makeup, or perhaps change their clothes in the event of a wardrobe malfunction. It’s not normal practice to allow a… human to use our facilities, but seeing as Mr. Morgan owns the majority share of this club, you’re welcome to wear whatever you like. Take your time.”

Before I could say anything else, the woman closed the door and left me alone.

I looked around at all of the expensive clothes and fine jewelry with a puzzled expression on my face; was Edrick Morgan not so arrogant and cruel as I thought? Did he feel badly about our encounter in the street and wanted to make it up to me, or was this all some sort of sick joke?

Either way, I was still too distraught over discovering my boyfriend with his mistress earlier, and this seemed to be my ticket to having a good night…

I eventually emerged from the room wearing a simple black dress that reached my ankles. It was made of a soft silk, with thin straps and a plunging neckline. I also picked out a pair of strappy black heels and a clutch purse.

When I came down the stairs with the woman, I felt my heart start to race as I noticed Edrick look up from his table. His eyes lingered on me for a few long moments that felt like an eternity before he looked back to continue his conversation with the other man who was sitting with him.

“To compensate for the accident earlier on the street, Mr. Morgan has agreed to cover the expenses of the evening,” the woman said. “That includes any drinks and food you order, as well as the clothes. Please feel free to take a seat at the bar.”

I looked down at my dress, feeling my face go a bit hot. Something like this was so far from what I normally wore, and now it was mine? I glanced up to ask the woman if she was sure I could keep the dress, but she was already gone.

Swallowing, I walked into the main area and slid up onto one of the barstools.

“What would you like to drink?” the bartender said.

“Um… Gin and tonic, please,” I replied, fiddling with the clasp on my purse as I glanced around at all of the other bar patrons. Most of them seemed too preoccupied with their drinks and their conversations as a woman in a red gown softly played the piano on a small stage.

The bartender returned with my drink a few moments later. I muttered some words of thanks and swirled the liquid around in my glass as I attempted to settle into my seat and try not to act too out of place.

“What’s a beautiful girl like you doing sitting all alone?” a male voice suddenly said from beside me. I jumped a bit and turned to see a middle-aged man in a suit leaning on the bar next to me with a drink in his hand. He had salt-and-pepper hair, a somewhat stocky build, and smelled strongly of whiskey.

I couldn’t come up with an answer, so I awkwardly laughed and took a sip of my drink in the hopes that the man would get the hint and leave me alone, but he persisted. Despite Edrick Morgan’s burst of kindness in letting me into this bar and paying for everything, I was still uninterested in doing much more than having a drink or two and going home for the night. After finding my boyfriend with another woman, I wasn’t interested in conversation.

“Let me buy you another drink,” the man said, leaning closer to me. “Something better than gin and tonic. I’ve got plenty of money, being a beta and all; you can have anything you want…”

“Oh, I’m fine with this,” I said with a weak smile, trying to hide my disgust overhearing the word ‘beta’. “Thanks anyway.”

“Nonsense,” the man said, either not noticing or not caring that I wasn’t interested as he sat on the stool next to me, his body uncomfortably close to mine. “I’m Mark, by the way. Mark Schaffer.” He stuck out his hand for me to shake, and when I did, his palm was a bit sweaty.

“Moana,” I muttered, pulling my hand away as soon as possible.

“Interesting name,” he said. “You know, I’m the Beta of…”

My mind went blank as Mark continued to prattle on about his money, his lineage, his multiple vacation homes, this and that… I tried my best to appear polite, but eventually, I couldn’t take it anymore.

“So that’s why I prefer the gulet yacht--”

“I’ve got to use the restroom,” I said suddenly, interrupting his spiel about which type of yacht was the best. He frowned as I abruptly stood and gathered my purse, clearly annoyed that I cut him off, but I didn’t care. Without another word, I walked to the bathroom and shut the door behind me, taking a few deep breaths as I leaned on the sink.

I stayed in there for a few minutes, splashing some cold water on my face and checking my phone, until I was certain that Mark had gotten bored of waiting for me at the bar, then headed back out. Thankfully, he was gone when I walked back to my seat. I let out a small sigh of relief as I sat back down, but that relief turned to annoyance when the bartender approached me and handed me a red drink in a cocktail glass, informing me that Mark had paid for it.

Sighing, I picked up the glass and looked over my shoulder. Mark was sitting at a corner table, watching me like a hawk; not wanting to cause any sort of fuss, I raised my glass and mouthed the words “Thank you” before turning back and sipping on the drink.

As my head started to get light and the room started to swim around me a few minutes later, I realized that taking a drink offered to me by a strange man at the bar was a horrible idea… but I was too far gone already, and as I tried to get up from the bar, I felt myself stumble into a man’s body.

“Whoa there,” Mark’s voice said as his arms wrapped around me. “Looks like I need to get you home.”

I felt my heart start to race as Mark began to guide me away, too weak and disoriented to tell him no. Just then, as my vision began to fade completely, I felt another hand on my shoulder; cool, and not sweaty like Mark’s.

“Where are you taking her?” Edrick’s stern voice said, so low it was almost a growl.

“Oh, I’m just taking her home,” Mark stuttered. “S-She had too much to drink. We’re old friends.”

“Is this true?” Edrick said, leaning down and coming into view. As his gray eyes locked on mine, all I could do was shake my head.

I wasn’t sure what happened after that, but the next thing I knew, I was in Edrick Morgan’s warm embrace in the back of a car.

“Where do you live?” he asked.

I tried to answer but he stopped me after I mumbled a few unclear words. “I’m taking you to a hotel then.”

In my semi-conscious state, the feeling of Edrick’s warm arms around me made my body tingle.

“Stay…” I slurred, nuzzling into the crook of his neck. Edrick jolted away, muttering something about my state of mind, but something about the smell of his cologne made me persist…

And soon, I felt Edrick Morgan, the wealthy and handsome CEO of WereCorp, relax into my touch.

Moana

I woke up to sunlight and a fresh, warm summer breeze streaming in through a large set of open French doors. As I cracked my eyes open, the sound of the city street below filled my ears, and the feeling of my throbbing head on a plush pillow alerted me to the fact that I was not in my own bed.

Groaning, I slowly pushed myself up onto my elbows and scanned the room as flashes of what happened the night before began to flood my mind. I remembered being at the bar, in the silky black dress that I had picked out… I remembered drinking a gin and tonic, and being accosted by a middle-aged man with sinister intentions…

Other memories came flooding back, too.

I remembered being in the back of a car with a handsome man. His neck was warm and soft as I pressed my lips to it. He tried to hide his arousal at first, but he eventually gave in to his desires as he led me to the elevator that led up to the expensive hotel room he had booked. We made our way to the room, stopping periodically to press our lips together and touch each other’s bodies in the hallway. I remembered how electric his hands felt on my body as he gripped my waist through the silky black dress, and how quickly he removed that dress once we were safely inside the hotel room.

He carried me over to the bed while I kissed his neck and nibbled at his ears, his body pressing into mine as he laid me down on the soft blankets. I clung onto his chest like my life depended on it, fumbling to unbutton his shirt; he eventually became tired of waiting for my clumsy fingers to undo the buttons and did it himself, revealing thick, toned muscles as he pulled his shirt off.

We spent the night in ecstasy, moving as one in the moonlit hotel room.

As I came to the realization of what happened last night, I slowly turned my head to face the man who laid asleep next to me. Even asleep, the man was still as handsome and sexy as ever, with the sheets pulled down around his waist to reveal his chiseled torso and the top of his groin, making my face get hot and turn red.

But… He was Edrick Morgan. He was my cheating ex boyfriend’s new boss.

I bit my lip and quietly climbed out of bed, searching for my panties.

“Ahem.”

I spun around with my panties in my hand to see Edrick sitting up in bed, his cold gray eyes fixed on me. Without a word, he stood -- making me blush as he completely revealed his nude body -- and walked over to where his pants lay on the floor. I quickly pulled my panties and my bra on as he put on his boxer briefs, then watched as he picked up his pants and dug into his pocket for his wallet.

“Here,” he said darkly, digging into his wallet and pulling out a thick wad of cash. He walked over to me and thrust it toward me. “Take it, but keep in mind that this is a one-time deal.”

I took a few steps back, my sheepish expression turning to one of anger and resentment.

“You… think I’m a prostitute?” I snarled.

Edrick merely shrugged and tossed the cash at my feet. “It doesn’t matter if you are or you aren’t,” he said coldly, walking away and pulling his pants on with his back turned to me. “No one sleeps with me without the expectation of getting something extra in return. Your aloof demeanor last night faded away pretty quickly as soon as I dressed you up and paid for your drinks, so I know what you’re after. Just take the money and leave.”

I frowned, narrowing my eyes. “I never wanted your money,” I said, my voice shaking out of anger as I picked the dress up off the ground and put it on. If I still had my own clothes, I would’ve left the dress on the floor, but I had no idea what happened to my stained outfit at this point.

“By the way,” Edrick muttered, ignoring what I said and buttoning his shirt with his back still turned to me, “you should learn not to take drinks from strangers. You’re lucky I was there to save you from that guy. Learn from basic common sense next time.”

I paused, gritting my teeth, and pulled the dress on the rest of the way before answering.

“You’re just as cold and heartless as they say.”

Edrick didn’t answer, and I didn’t care to stick around to see if he would come up with one. With a hmph, I grabbed the strappy heels from the night before and stomped barefoot over to the door. My hand rested on the doorknob for a moment as I fumed, and when I swung the door open, I called over my shoulder one last time.

“You can’t just throw money at everyone when you have a guilty conscience,” I growled before walking out and slamming the door behind me.

…

As soon as I got home, I tore off the dress and the heels and threw them in the corner as the anger over both Sam and Edrick bubbled up inside of me. Frowning and muttering to myself, I stomped over to the fridge in my underwear and pulled out the milk to pour myself a bowl of cereal. Cereal was just about all I had to eat, but the thought of taking Edrick Morgan’s money after a one night stand made me feel worse than going hungry.

As I was just about to take my first bite of cereal, my phone started ringing. I rolled my eyes, anticipating for it to be Sam trying to beg for me to come back, but squinted when I noticed that it was an unknown number.

“Hello?” I said, stirring my cereal with my spoon, half expecting a spam caller to be on the other end.

“Good morning. Is this Moana Fowler?”

“Yes,” I replied.

“My name is Nancy Grace. I’m calling from the Au Pair Agency.”

My eyes widened, and I dropped my spoon, not caring as it sank down all the way into the milk. I had been trying to find a nanny job through the Au Pair Agency for months now, but they hadn’t found any suitable work for me yet. It had been so long that I had completely lost hope at this point.

“We found an assignment for you,” Nancy said in a sing-song voice. “It’s a full time, live-in position with a single Alpha father. Are you available to make a house call later today to meet the family and complete an interview?”

“Y-Yes,” I said, using all of my energy to keep my composure. “I’d be happy to.”

“Great,” Nancy replied. “You’re expected at two o’clock today. I’ll text you the address once we end the call.”

“Thank you so much,” I replied.

“You’re welcome. Oh, and Moana -- you should know that you’re not going to be the only candidate for this position. I would recommend taking extra care to make a good first impression; working for this family is a once in a lifetime opportunity, and the pay is unparalleled.”

I felt my heart sink at Nancy’s words and opened my mouth to ask who the family was, but before I could, Nancy hung up and I was met with silence on the other end.

Furrowing my brow at the abrupt end to the call, I set down my phone and stared at it as the notification with the address details popped up on my screen.

What sort of family would be paying a nanny so well like this?

Moana

I pulled up to the address of the house a couple of hours later wearing a brand new set of clothes. During the time between getting the phone call and arriving, I took out my credit card, which I only used for emergencies, and ran out to buy something new to impress the family. It was just a crisp button-down shirt, tailored pants, and loafers, but as I pulled up to the enormous mansion in the mountains and saw the line of women at the door, I was glad that I had purchased the new clothes. I made sure to double check that the tags on the clothes were hidden, which I had kept on in case I didn’t get the job and would need to return them.

As I parked and walked up the pathway to the front entrance and got in line with my resume in my hand, my heart started to pound.

My heart started to pound even more when I noticed that women were not only filing into the mansion, but were also coming out with sad and defeated expressions on their faces. One girl, who was very pretty and looked a little younger than me, even had tears streaming down her cheeks as she came out with her resume crumpled up in her hands.

Was the employer so awful that he was making these poor women cry during their interviews?

As the line got shorter and I slowly made my way inside, I felt a lump rise in my throat. The inside of the house was stunningly beautiful, with dark Tudor-style wainscoting and creaky wooden floors. There was a massive double staircase in the front foyer, which was where the women would go when their names were called -- up one side looking excited and confident, and down the other side looking defeated after their interviews.

“Name?” a woman’s voice said from in front of me. I looked up to see an older woman with gray hair that was pulled back into a tight, slick bun. She wore a dark blue dress with a high collar that was buttoned all the way up and had a clean gray apron on top that looked like it was freshly ironed. Needless to say, as she stared at me with her thin lips pressed into a straight line, she made me nervous.

“Moana Fowler,” I said, feeling my voice crack a bit under the pressure.

The woman muttered something to herself and looked down at the clipboard in her hand, making a tick mark next to my name.

“You’re human?” she said, shooting me a somewhat disgusted look. I nodded. “Very well. Take a seat.”

I walked over to the area where other women were sitting and found a spot in a plush armchair in the corner, where I sat quietly and mulled over my potential responses to interview questions in my head.

My train of thought was broken a few minutes later as an older woman came running down the stairs in hysterics. “She’s a little monster!” she said, tears streaming down her wrinkled face. “In all my years of being a governess, I have never -- and I mean never -- met such a cruel little thing.”

The room fell silent as the woman marched out, followed by a few other women who must have decided that whatever waited for them upstairs wasn’t worth it. I, along with several others, decided to take the risk; I really needed this job, regardless of the child’s behavior. The children at the orphanage I volunteered at absolutely loved me, even the difficult ones, and I was certain that I could find the good side in this child, too.

I sat there for hours while I waited for my turn to have my interview, and eventually, as the sun went down and I sank into the plush armchair, I found myself involuntarily nodding off. My night out with Mr. Edrick Morgan left me more exhausted than I was willing to admit.

“Moana Fowler.”

I jumped, awoken abruptly as the stern woman from before called my name and looked up to see her standing over me.

“Oh! I’m sorry,” I said, sitting upright and nervously wiping a bit of drool off of the corner of my mouth with the back of my hand. “Is it my turn?” I looked around to see that the waiting room was completely empty.

“Go home,” the woman said sternly, stepping away from me and gesturing toward the door.

“But… I haven’t had my interview,” I said frantically, standing with my resume clutched in my hand. “I’m sorry I dozed off, but it’s been hours--”

“Ella doesn’t wish to see any more candidates,” she interrupted. “Especially not young, pretty girls such as yourself.”

I felt my heart drop into my stomach as I shook my head vehemently.

“No,” I pleaded, “please let me see her. I promise you won’t regret it if you just give me a chance.”

The woman stared at me for several painfully long moments before sighing. “Fine,” she said, turning and starting to ascend the stairs. “But don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

I excitedly followed the woman up the stairs, where she silently led me down a wide hallway that was lined with large, ornate wooden doors. Finally, we stopped in front of a door at the end of the hallway. She opened the door and let me in without a word.

“I told you I’m tired!” a small voice growled from behind a high-backed chair that faced the empty fireplace. “I don’t want to see anyone else!”

“Well, I’d like to see you,” I said softly, stepping toward the chair.

A small head of blonde hair poked out from behind the chair and glared at me, appraising me, for several moments as I stood in the middle of the room. Suddenly, as if my appearance didn’t meet her standards, the little girl leaped out of her seat and rushed toward me, her childish face twisted into an angry snarl and her werewolf fangs bared. Between the mop of messy blonde hair poked two pointed little ears on either side of her head, which twitched backward aggressively.

I stood my ground and stared down at the little ball of fury, which only became more furious as I continued to ignore her displays of aggression.

“Why aren’t you running like the rest?!” she shouted, her high-pitched voice turning into a squeal.

I crouched down to meet the little girl’s gaze. Her hair had fallen into her eyes. I slowly extended my hand to brush it away; she flinched, growling and baring her teeth, but let me do it when I persisted, revealing sparkling blue eyes.

“You’re very pretty,” I said softly, watching intently as the little girl’s ears pricked up and her lips slowly closed. “What’s your name?”

She paused, staring at the floor, and when she spoke her face was still pointed down at it. “Ella.”

“Nice to meet you, Ella,” I said. “My name is Moana. Can I ask why you want to scare me away?”

“My daddy is a handsome and rich man,” she said, her voice now a whisper. “All of the young and pretty girls like you just want to work for him so they can marry him and take his money. No one wants to be here for me. I told Ms. Selina that I didn’t want to see anyone else, but she brought you instead.”

I paused for a moment, feeling tears prick at the backs of my eyes at the little girl’s words.

“You know,” I said softly, holding out my hand with my palm up and feeling the dread lift out of my stomach as Ella touched my fingers, “I was an orphan when I was your age. I understand what it’s like to not feel wanted.”

“Really?” Ella said, looking up at me with wonder on her face. “You’re not here to steal my daddy away?”

I shook my head, holding back laughter as I thought about how silly it would be for a wealthy Alpha werewolf to be interested in me, a human.

“No,” I said gently. “I’m here for you.”

Ella and I both looked up as we heard the door creak open. I looked over my shoulder, still crouching, to see the woman from before standing in the doorway. “It’s past your bedtime, Ella,” she said, clasping her hands in front of her.

“I want this one,” Ella said, walking cheerfully past me and skipping out the door as if she hadn’t just been threatening to bite my face off.

The old woman -- Selina, as I had discovered her name was -- cast me a disbelieving look, her eyes narrowing as she sized me up.

“Hmph,” she said under her breath once Ella was out of earshot. “What did you do to make her choose you?”

I shrugged. “Finding a common ground is a powerful thing,” I said, following Selina from the room.

When we got downstairs, Selina opened the front door to let me out. “We have your address on file, and a car will be waiting for you first thing in the morning to take you to sign your contract and begin your first day. Be ready at six o’clock sharp, and not a moment later.”

Smiling, I nodded and walked past Selina with a light feeling in my body despite her curt attitude, then paused and turned around to face her. “What was the father’s name, by the way?” I asked.

Selina pursed her lips and looked at me coldly. “You’ll receive the details once you sign your contract,” she said, promptly closing the door in my face and leaving me alone on the doorstep.

Moana

I woke up at 4:30 the next morning -- a bit earlier than I needed to, probably, but I wasn’t taking any chances with this job. I spent the next hour practically scrubbing myself raw in the shower, fixing my hair, ironing my clothes, and taking extra care to make sure that there wasn’t a single stray hair or speck of dust on me, because today was the first day of the job that would change my life, and I had to be perfect.

I then spent the final half hour of my preparations pacing and staring out the window, willing myself with all of the strength I had to not bite my nails, as I waited for the car that Selina had mentioned. Lo and behold, as soon as the clock struck 5:59, I saw a black car slowly pulling up out front, and I practically flew out of my apartment and down the stairs so that I was opening the car door by 6:00 sharp.

“Hmph,” Selina said, looking at her watch as I clambered into the back. “Six o’clock on the dot. A little out of breath, but at least you’re here.”

“Sorry,” I said, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear and buckling my seatbelt. “It’s a bad neighborhood, so I didn’t want to wait outside.”

Selina didn’t answer. The driver pulled the car away from the curb and started heading down the street.

“We’ll be stopping to sign your contract with the lawyer first,” Selina said, her voice flat as she looked out the window with a modicum of disgust on her wrinkled face. “Then, you’ll get a tour of the penthouse apartment where you’ll be spending most of your time. I suspect you won’t be needing to return to your old home to collect your things?”

I thought back to my apartment and its contents.

“Well, I have some clothes and things there--”

“Your employer will supply you with anything you need: clothes, toiletries, books, and anything else you might need or want. Unless you have sentimental belongings you need to go back for, I wouldn’t recommend wasting your time and energy on such a move.”

I nodded, clutching the tiny silver locket around my neck. That locket was the only sentimental thing I owned, and it was always around my neck. Everything else in that apartment could burn, for all I cared.

“Very well,” Selina said.

We spent the next several minutes of the car trip in complete silence. Although Selina was seated directly across from me in the back of the expensive town car, she didn’t turn away from the window to look at me even once. I didn’t let it get to me, though; growing up human in a world dominated by werewolves prepared me for this sort of treatment. There were many werewolves who saw humans as equals, but there were even more who saw us as an inferior race. Selina was likely one of them.

The driver eventually pulled the car over in front of a brownstone with large bay windows with a sign over the door that read “William Brown, Esq.” Selina got out of the car without a word and started for the door -- I did the same, standing behind her as she rapped on the door with the brass knocker.

The door swung open a few moments later, and a young woman led us in. The office smelled like a sickly combination of mahogany and burnt coffee, and it was eerily quiet. Neither Selina nor the woman said a word; the woman only shut the door behind us and gestured toward a half-open door at the end of a short hallway, and when we entered, there was an old man sitting behind an enormous wooden desk.

He was asleep.

Selina cleared her throat loudly and sat down in the chair across from him, and when he still didn’t wake, she swiftly kicked him under the desk.

“Wake up, William!”

“What? Oh!” the old man exclaimed with a start as he was unceremoniously awoken. I stifled a laugh as I stood in the doorway, but my smile quickly faded when Selina abruptly turned around and gestured with her head for me to sit.

“Right,” William said, putting on his glasses with shaking old hands as he opened a drawer and pulled out a stack of documents. “Now, let’s see…”

The cuckoo clock on the wall behind him ticked in time with my racing heartbeat and filled my ears, driving me practically insane, as the elderly lawyer licked his fingers and flipped through the documents. Finally, after a painstakingly long time and a curt “ahem” from Selina, he produced the packet of paperwork for me and set it down in front of me with a pen.

“You’ll just have to sign this basic contract and an NDA,” he said.

I leaned forward and picked up the pen, scanning over the contract. My eyebrows raised as I noticed a couple of interesting clauses thrown in: one mentioned that I was not allowed to become romantically involved with my employer at any point, and another stated that I was prohibited from becoming pregnant with my employer's child without permission.

“Um… What are these clauses for?” I asked, pointing to them. William leaned over and glanced at them, then waved his hand dismissively.

“All very standard.”

“But I--”

“Just sign the agreement,” Selina growled under her breath. “Unless you think you will break the clauses…”

“No, no,” I said, quickly scrawling my signature down on the dotted line and sliding the contract back to William. “I would never. I was just curious.”

Selina let out another “Hmph,” and stood, smoothing down her skirt.

“Well, that’s finished,” she said, nodding politely to William, who seemed already exhausted from our brief interaction. “Let’s go, Moana.”

…

We arrived at the location where I would be working and living a few minutes later. It was vastly different from the Tudor-style mountain mansion I had visited the day before, but equally as massive and beautiful. Selina and I walked through the marble lobby and took the elevator up a few dozen storeys before coming out into a gorgeous entryway with cherry wood parquet floors and large, arched windows that were reminiscent of an expensive Parisian apartment.

Ella was waiting for us when we arrived. She looked much more put-together and far less feral than the night before, wearing a prim baby blue dress with ruffles and a bow in her hair.

Much to mine and Selina’s surprise, Ella threw her arms around me in a tight hug and then took my hand, leading me away from Selina and around the massive apartment on a tour -- which took over an hour since the place was so large, and I was thoroughly exhausted by the time it was over. Ella’s bedroom alone was bigger than my old apartment.

Finally, after she introduced me to the twin maids, Lily and Amy, Ella led me to what would be my room.

“This is your room!” she said, pushing open a large set of double doors with her tiny hands. I stifled a gasp as I saw how spacious and beautiful it was, with even a small balcony that overlooked the city below.

“This is… mine?” I asked, unable to contain my disbelief.

“Mm-hmm,” Ella said, climbing up on the bed and bouncing a bit. “Come feel the bed!”

Smiling, I walked over to the bed and sat down next to Ella.

“Wow, it is bouncy,” I said, to which Ella giggled and flopped onto her back, arms outstretched. I took the silence and the fact that we were alone as an opportunity to get to know Ella a bit better -- as well as to pry a bit for information on this mystery father to make sure that he wasn’t a complete weirdo.

“So, can you tell me anything about your parents?” I asked. “Do you have a mom?”

Ella shook her head, still laying back and staring up at the ceiling. “Nope. I never met my mom. She died when I was born.”

“Oh,” I replied, my voice faltering. “I’m sorry.”

Ella merely sat up and shrugged, hopping off of the bed to walk over to the dresser and play with the ornate drawer knobs. “It’s okay. I’m happy with just my daddy. He’s always nice to me… I just wish he could spend more time with me.”

I stood and walked over to Ella. She turned and looked up at me, her eyes just as blue as they had been the night before. “I’m sure he wishes he could spend more time with you, too,” I said.

…

That evening, after spending the entire day together playing games, Ella and I were sitting on the living room floor while Amy and Lily prepared dinner. I was watching as Ella drew a picture with crayons, helping her to draw things that she couldn’t quite figure out yet for herself, when I heard the front door click open.

Ella jerked her head up and suddenly dropped her crayons, jumping up and running out into the foyer.

“Daddy!” she yelled. I took a deep breath and stood, smoothing down my shirt and quickly fixing my hair as I prepared to meet my employer for the first time.

“Hey, princess. Did you have a good day?”

My eyes widened as I heard his voice.

It seemed I already knew this wealthy, handsome father I had heard so much about.