IRENE'S POV (CONTD)
Before I could say a word to defend myself, I heard his voice.
"Oh! Mum, you're here? It's nothing serious," Mr. Bright said casually. "I asked her to say those words. I needed something to ginger me, a little fire to get into character. I have to kill this role, Mum."
"Oh, is that so?"
His mother's voice didn't sound quite satisfied, but she backed off.
I let out a long breath I didn't even realize I was holding. God, I couldn't afford to lose this job, not when the pay was too good to be true, and Sophia's bills kept piling up. I needed this income more than I needed to explain myself.
Looking at her properly now, it was easy to see where Mr. Bright got his features from. She was beautiful, elegant, and looked powerful. I'm not easily intimidated, but there was something about her presence that made me want to hide behind a curtain.
"Who is she, son?" she asked, still looking straight at me, scanning me from head to toe like I was some display item in a store.
"She's Lily's new nanny, Mum. Her name's Irene." He turned to the housekeeper. "Cynthia, please take her to Lily's room."
I followed Cynthia, she knocked lightly on a door, and almost immediately, I heard that same sweet little voice.
"Come in."
Lily didn't turn. She was arranging her teddy bears, completely focused. Once again, I was struck by how big everything was. This room alone looked like it was the size of two of mine back home.
But what surprised me most wasn't the size. It was the room's theme.
All white.
Not pink, not sparkly, just clean, simple white. For some reason, I expected glitter and cartoon wallpaper, but this was like walking into a tiny art gallery.
"Good morning, Ms. Irene," Lily said suddenly without looking back. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you were standing in a museum. You don't plan to just stand there all day, do you?"
Damn! Embarrassed doesn't begin to cover it.
"I…I-uh…sorry about that," I smiled awkwardly. "I was just surprised. I thought your room would be more colorful."
I walked in fully, brushing off the nerves. Time to be professional.
"So, Lily, what's the plan for today? Maybe we can take a bath, have breakfast, and then do something fun. Something you love?"
That made her pause. She turned to face me, then gave me a quick smile. Unexpected, but welcoming.
"I already had my bath and breakfast. Woke up super hungry today." She crossed her arms confidently. "See? I don't need a nanny. What could you possibly do for me?"
Oh no. Here we go again.
I barely escaped Bright's mum; I didn't want another challenge.
Before I could say anything, she added, "But I like you already. I hope we'll have the best summer ever. Come sit with me, I need to introduce you to my toys."
Relief flooded me. That switch-up was so fast it gave me whiplash.
She began naming each stuffed animal and giving them ridiculous backstories. I laughed more than I expected. Her imagination was wild and adorable.
I didn't even realize we had company until I heard his voice again.
"Someone's having a good day already."
"Daddy! Grandma! You're here!"
She ran to them and gave a quick hug.
Then he turned to me.
"Irene, follow me. I want to show you something. Let Lily bond with Grandma for a while."
He led me into another room, bigger, echoey, with tall mirrors on the walls and soft lights on the ceiling.
"This," he said, gesturing grandly, "is where the magic happens. Before the camera ever rolls."
I looked around, impressed.
Then he turned back to me with a smile.
"So… you think my performance sucks. Be honest. What do you think I should do?"
I didn't respond immediately, not because I didn't know what to say, but because I didn't want to overstep. But he must've sensed that.
"Don't be scared. Constructive criticism is part of what we do. This role is big. The female lead is Angelina Smith, and I'm the male lead."
He was watching my face again, like he was waiting for a reaction.
"You don't seem like someone who watches movies," he added.
"I don't," I admitted. "I prefer music and fashion shows."
"That explains it," he chuckled. "The last few nannies who came for interviews acted like crazed fans. The moment they saw me, they brought out their phones for selfies. It was so unprofessional. My daughter didn't like that one bit."
He walked over to a fancy little table and picked up a stack of papers.
A script.
I recognized it from those behind-the-scenes clips I used to watch with Erica.
"Let's do this," he said. "Memorize a few lines. You'll be Andrea. I'll play Marco."
I blinked. "Wait, what?"
"You don't have to be professional. I just need someone to help me get in character. This scene is intense, and I need to feel it. Please?"
He even pouted his lips.
Oh Lord.
Now I understand where Lily got that from.
"Fine," I sighed. "Just a few lines."
He handed me the script. It was short and pretty simple to memorize. I scanned it, took a deep breath, and looked at him.
"Are you ready to be Andrea?"
I nodded, pushing away my nerves.
He clapped once. "1, 2, 3… and action!"
I stepped forward until I was right in front of him, close enough to feel his breath.
With a fierce smirk, I delivered my lines like I was born for them.
"Really, Marco? You think you can outsmart me? I built this with my blood and my sweat. So many bodies have gone down for this, and now you want me to just hand it all over because of some... silly good dick? You must be out of your damn mind."
He scoffed, clicking his tongue.
"Oh, my dear Andrea," he said, full of sarcasm, "at least we agree that the dick was good. But I'm not asking. I'm telling you. I'll take 80% of the chain. You know why? Because I'm the King of Mafia, and nobody, nobody crosses me."
We locked eyes, breath to breath.
Then we heard it.
A loud clap.
"OMG! Grandma, did you see that?! She's amazing! Irene, you should quit being a nanny and become an actress! You're so good!"
My stomach flipped.
Wait. They were here? The whole time?!
And she… she heard the dick line?
Oh. My. God.
I wanted the ground to open and swallow me whole.
Bright's mum stared at me, not with pride. With something closer to disgust.
Bright tried to break the awkwardness. "Yes… She's good."
I muttered something about having something to finish with Lily and practically ran out of the room.
That was enough for today.
**********
ANITA'S POV
It was 6:30 PM.
I stood outside his door, my heart was racing very fast.
I didn't need an invitation or permission to go to his house. This is Bright, my Bright, and thankfully, most of the staff hadn't changed. The gatekeeper still recognized me. Some faces were still familiar.
Bright always kept the people he trusted close.
The bell rang once, then twice.
Then the door opened.
He was headed upstairs but stopped halfway when he saw me.
His expression shifted, from shock to confusion, joy, all at once.
"No way… Anita?"
The way he said my name...
That was it.
Right then, I knew I hadn't moved on.
Not even a little.
I'm still in love with him.