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“Are you okay to drive home?” I knew she was more than capable of taking care of herself. I just hated when she drove in weather like this. She didn’t do well in traffic, and there had been a couple of accidents in the last couple of years. I wanted her to get her eyes tested, but she assured me they were perfectly fine.
“Such a worry wart. I am perfectly fine. I will see you in a couple of days,” she said as she pressed a kiss to my cheek.
“Text me when you get home, please?” I asked as she made her way to the door.
She playfully rolled her eyes before agreeing to shoot me a text. Once she was gone, I turned my attention to Maya. Now that I was getting a real look at her, I didn’t like how thin she was. I couldn’t remember from before, but I could have sworn she lost weight in the last month which wouldn’t be surprising with her living in her car.
“You like burgers?” I asked as I made my way towards the kitchen.
“People say no to burgers?” she countered, and I could hear her walking behind me.
“Many. I’ve dated a few girls that only ate rabbit food. Sure, cheap to take to a restaurant, but really embarrassing to take to a steakhouse.”
“I’ve never been to one.”
I turned around completely taken aback by that statement. She didn’t notice though because she was too busy looking around the kitchen. I could see her trying to take everything in, and I couldn’t help but wonder how long it had been since she had been inside of a house.
“That is truly sinful. Did you mostly cook growing up?” I asked, trying to get something more out of her.
“I burnt water once,” she commented with a warm smirk.
“How do you burn water?” I asked with a slight chuckle.
“I don’t know. I was busy helping with the other kids and next thing I knew the bottom of the pot was black as shit and there was a horrid smell from that filled the house. I pretty much burn everything except for breakfast. I’m really good with pancakes or scrambled eggs, but I think that’s because you cook them on low and they don’t take long,” she said with a small shrug as she finally sat down at the island.
“That makes sense. My grandfather taught me how to cook. He said a man should know how to cook for his woman and children. I enjoy cooking, and I don’t want Zoey growing up surrounded by helpers. I want her to be independent and grounded.”
“I would have to imagine there aren’t too many kids like that in your tax bracket.”
“There aren’t, but she will be a better person for it, and that’s what matters,” I said as I grabbed the ground beef from the fridge. “You know, you could still take me up on my offer to be my fake wife,” I tried again.
“I could have sworn we’ve already had this conversation,” she countered with a bit of an edge to her voice.
“I know, but that was before your car broke down.” I turned to face her to make sure she knew I wasn't trying some power trip on her. “Look, you can crash here tonight, take a hot shower, and sleep in a real bed. And come morning once Zoey is in school, I can help you get your car fixed, and then you can keep driving. Chances are we will never see each other again. Or you could do something a bit more complicated, and I am sure you are not one hundred percent comfortable with. You could say yes to being my fake wife and spend the year living in a house, and by the end of it, you will have the money you need to start a real life. I have to imagine you are exhausted by now with this circle you are trapped in. I am offering you a chance to break that circle and finally get on the road to a good life. How can you say no to that?”
And that is truly what it came down to. She could have a chance at something real once the year was up. She wouldn’t need to keep struggling and stressing over every little thing every single day. It was wearing on her. I could see the difference after the last month; she had to know she couldn’t do this much longer. I also hadn’t found anyone else that could make this work. With other women, there was no way they were going to leave after a year, or that I would be able to handle living with them. Maya was the best option that I had. I just needed her to say yes.
Maya
Iknewwhathewas saying was all true. That wasn’t the issue. Even the fact that we didn’t even really get along all that well. Sure, nothing terribly mean was said between us, but there were a lot of passive aggressive comments and looks, and I knew that would only increase and eventually mean would come. Anger would come, and that wasn’t fair to put a child through. Maybe if Zoey wasn’t going to be living with us, and we could scream all we wanted at each other. But she would be there, and I refused to be one of those adults that scream and make a child feel like they needed to hide. I had been that child, and I never wanted to put one through that.
At the same time, what was I going to do? Sure, I allow him to buy me a transmission hose and hopefully that is the only problem on the car. But then what? I move on to the next small town and hope my car doesn’t break down again? I keep sleeping in it, never staying in one place for too long. Only ever working for cash under the table jobs that barely pay for my gas. I wasn’t living, and I was quickly burning out. This wasn’t supposed to be something that I did long term. It was only supposed to be a year at most, but then everything went wrong, and now here I was.
“There would be ground rules,” I reluctantly said.
“Absolutely,” he all too easily agreed, and I got the feeling he was getting desperate as well. I knew where he was coming from, or I understood it at least. He didn’t want a woman to stick around after the year was up. He didn’t want the hassle of a fake divorce, and given his wealth, I could understand why he was having a hard time finding a woman that just didn't care.
“You said there would be a contract. I want it stated clear as day that it’s one year from the time of signing. That we both leave with what we came with. I don’t want your money. I want a job where I can make my own money.” I would have to find a cash only job still, but with living in one place, I should be able to save up enough for a new car and maybe some extra cash to get some legitimate fake IDs so I could get a decent job in the next city I go to.
“I have no problem agreeing to any of that. I will be mayor, so you could be my assistant if you wanted. You could still work for cash if you wanted, but at a decent salary.”
“How do you know I work for cash?” I couldn’t help but be guarded. I had to be suspicious of everyone; that’s how I stayed alive.
“You live in your car. It’s not hard to work out that you work for cash under the table. It’s fine with me. I am just offering you a chance to work a decent job with a decent pay.”
Being his assistant wasn’t going to be fun. It would put us around each other more, but the money would be good. Plus, I had to assume the new mayor’s wife would want to be involved in the new town as well.
“I will be your assistant, but I am not bringing you coffee.”
