That makes Flo smirk. “Oh, there are plenty of things.”
“Like what? What’s your worst?”
“You asked for this, remember? So you can’t fire me.”
I gesture for her to continue.
“Okay, I covered my history teacher’s desk and chair in burger cheese, whipped cream and yoghurt—he was lactose intolerant—because he said I spoke too much in class for a female, and he came into class and sat in it and had to leave early because he was worried it was going to seep through his skin and make him sick.”
My eyes bug. What the fuck?
“I think my dad actually found it funny, but had to pretend to be mad at me in front of the principal to stop me from getting expelled. I saw right through the man’s quivering chin, though. But I still got my phone taken away for a week and was given after-school detention every day for a month.”
“Worth it?” Why am I fucking smiling? If I were to hear any other nanny tell me that story, I’d blacklist them and make sure they never went anywhere near my son again, but with Flo, Iwantto hear her stories—the whackier, the better. They make me laugh. Covering her teacher’s shit with cheese when he’s allergic is just soher.
Flo smiles back. “Not a bone in my body regrets it.”
I shrug, shaking my head with a chuckle. I can’t say the man didn’t deserve it.
“What about you in school?” Flo asks. “I can imagine you as the class grump who sat in the back with his side fringe covering his face so no one talked to him. Ooh, did you have a goth phase? I bet you’ve secretly got some tattoos other than that lion that you don’t tell anyone about.”
Pursing my lips is the only way to stop me from cracking a smile. I’ve done it too much today. It feels weird and unnatural to be doing it this much. “There are no more tattoos, and I don’t plan to get any more. The lion is special. And as for me in school, maybe… I had abitof a goth phase.”
Flo breaks into laughter, her finger poking into the centre of my chest. “I knew it. God, you’ve got to get me photos.”
“Yeah, that’s not happening. They’ve all been burned.”
“Maybe I’ll give Gracie a text.”
I fix her a stern expression, which makes her cackle. “Don’t even think about it.”
“Don’t panic. I won’t send them to Starbound. They’ll be safe in my little vault of secrets I’ve vowed to take to my grave.”
I think Flo's teasing, but I can never really be too sure when it comes to this woman.
“How was working at Starbound?”
She blows a raspberry. “My clients. I hated them. They were all so entitled. Don’t get me wrong, there was one actor who was alright, but he wasn’t as famous or as rich as the others, so he was more down to earth. Alexander really knows how to pick ‘em.”
I arch an eyebrow, releasing a laugh. “Hate is a strong word, Florence.”
The name makes her eyes zap. “Yes, it is, and I very much mean it. I don’t like celebrities.” She then peeks up at me again. “No offence.”
“None taken. I’m not a celebrity.”
“I’m pretty sure women all around the country have posters of you on their walls. That makes you a celebrity, Evan West.”
The thought makes me shiver with distaste. A celebrity. Me. I’ve never thought of myself as famous. I understand people know my name and my face—a face that fills the tabloids every month for reasons beyond my control—but I don’t believe I’m better than anyone else. I don’t expect things just because of who I am.
In fact, I want the complete opposite. I crave being treated as normal, which means people leaving me alone and walking past me without so much as a second glance or a small gasp or whisper. I don’t want people using my name or face to make a quick buck, as if I don’t lose sleep over it. I’m not that bothered now, but in the beginning, I seriously debated whether football was for me because of the attention I was receiving.
“If I could play every game wearing a mask, I would.”
“But then you wouldn’t bless the world with your pretty face. How would the women of today cope?”
“Careful, if I didn’t know any better, I’d think you find me attractive, Flo.”
Her brows drop. “And what if I did find you attractive? You gonna fire me like all the others?”
