CHAPTER FOUR
Does she mean that Elsa is in this house right now? It's so surprising to him that he laughs out loud.
Brittany is looking at him as if he has gone crazy or something. He looks at her and can't help but laugh again. He doesn't ask for a description because he knows that it's surely Elsa.
It has been a week since they had that meeting at his office and he has concluded that she has gone back to her new life. There is no way that she would come to stay here, but apparently he is wrong.
"Thank you, Brittany, I am going to be downstairs shortly. " He tells her. She nods and leaves.
He shuts the door and walks back to the bathroom. He buttons up his shirt and looks in the mirror. Holy shit, Brittany is really here.
He walks out of the bathroom and just as he descends the stairs, he catches the sight of three suitcases by the door. They must belong to his ex wife, where is she at any way?
She is not in the sitting room, he looks in the kitchen and find her looking in the refrigerator. She shuts the door as soon as she notices that he is looking at her. She dusts her hand and turns to look at him with a frown on her face.
The unfriendly look on her face is not one to be easily missed, but something else grab his attention in full.
She is putting on a pink dress with puffy arms and it's so short that he can see all of her legs on display. The fact that she is wearing six inches high heels makes it appear to be even now shorter.
He looks at her from her feet down to her face again. It seems that she came here with the intent to seduce him because after seeing her in this dress, he feels the urge to pull her close to himself, pull those clothes off her, and fuck the hell out her. He doesn't care that Brittany would freak the hell out if she finds them in such position.
It takes the better part of him to get control over his sinful thoughts.
"Elsa. " He smiles as he puts his hands in his pockets. " This is a surprise, I didn't know that you would come. You didn't call or anything. "
"Don't be silly. " She laughs. " Am I supposed to call before coming here? This is supposed to be my matrimonial home and you are supposed to be my husband. "
"Wow. " He raises his eyebrow. " I will take that to mean that you are going to stay here for the month. "
"Call it whatever you want. " She shrugs. " Just know that I am going to be leaving with my kids at the end of it. "
"There shouldn't be bad blood between us. " Ricardo says. " I am honestly surprise to see you pick up the challenge, but I am impressed. Let the best parent win. "
He makes an unexpected move, he offers her his hand for a friendly handshake, it takes her completely by surprise and she looks from him to his hand for sometime before she takes it.
He holds firmly to her hand and pulls her closer to him. Her eyes widens in surprise. He puts her hair behind her ear and smiles at her.
" You smell nice, Elsa. " He teases her.
She lets out an embarrassing scoff and pushes him away from her.
"Are you crazy, Ricardo? Get the hell away from me. " She snaps at him.
She smoothens her perfect dress and walks out of the kitchen, with Ricardo at her heels.
She catches the sacred nanny by the door, but she doesn't pay her anymore attention. She hurries up the stairs, her ex husband is still following her.
" This is going to be fun. " He says from behind her. " We sharing rooms again after all these years. "
" We are not sharing rooms. It's not going to be back to that extent. " She turns around and corrects him.
He obviously isn't happy about this one. His face literally falls.
The hall is large and there are over six rooms facing each other. Alex and Alison always used the same room, that means that she has four other room to chose from so that she won't be stuck with him.
She takes the one farthest from him and pushes the door open. It's clean, it has always been clean. The rooms are cleaned by the house keepers all the time and the result is that the rooms are available for use all the time.
She walks in and observe the room. It looks like any fancy hotel room, just that it isn't her room. The room where she spends hours making plans to push her company forward. This will do though.
" Do you need anything?" Ricardo interrupts her thoughts from behind her.
She turns around to see him leaning against the wall. He has been there the whole time, but she is just noticing him right now.
"No. " She coldly answers. " I know my way around. I can get whatever I need by myself. I am an independent woman."
She hears him chuckle from behind her and she rolls her eyes.
" So independent and you can't bring your luggages up yourself. " He mocks her.
"That is none of your business. " She tells him. " Don't you have a company to run?"
"I do. But I chose to watch my wife settle in, is there any harm there?"
She ignores him, she walks back to the door to leave the room, but he won't let her through. Oh, she sees exactly what he is trying to do, he is trying to get her super mad even though it has just been minutes that she has gotten here, but she won't let him.
"Fine, I am going to leave. " He rolls his own eyes when he sees that she is letting him be annoying without getting to her. " I will bring the kids back home after school hours. "
" You do that, honey. I am going to make them something nice for lunch. " She smiles.
"Please, we all know that you suck at cooking. Have you tried learning that?"
It's supposed to be an insult and puncture her ego, but she is taking it well, if he wants to play dirty, she is ready for him even though she is not going to roll in the mud with him.
"Sure. " She answers me. " My boyfriend told me that I am the best cook in the world and it means the whole world to me that someone is actually appreciating me. "
The smile on his face slowly disappears and it's not because she has just said that he didn't appreciate her cooking, but because she has just admitted to having another man in her life.
Shw notices the change of his look and it further amuses her. She places her hands on her waist and tilts her head to the side.
"What's the matter? You thought you were the only one who would want me?" She laughs. " Sorry honey, but I literally have long queues of men begging me to take their love. "
"Stop. " Ricardo says with his eyes closed. He obviously doesn't like this game that she is playing.
"Okay. " She chuckles.
"I am leaving for work now. " He tells her as he walks towards the door.
"Bye. "
She watches him leave the room and even hear his footsteps as he walks down the stairs.
She walks to the window and pulls the blind away gently and watches him as he gets into his car and drives away. The game has only just begun, it shall be seen who would get weak first.
******
After taking out her fancy clothes, Elsa changes into some jogger pants and free shirt. She puts her feet into her comfy slippers and begin to walk downstairs.
Even though she is a very busy woman who has a very big brand, she still finds time to rest every now and then. It's safe to say that is one of the reason why her skin is so beautiful and she looks ever young - rest at every time.
She has given her assistants and generally all her workers a strict rule and that is that they shouldn't contact her in the next four days.
She knows that it's going to be very crazy when the kids gets back because they haven't seen each other for a long time and they need days to catch up. Four days might not be enough, but it's going to be worth it. She is going to be here all the whole month and when she is leaving, she is leaving with her kids.
She walks down the stairs so that she would see what is in the kitchen so that she would know what she can use to prepare a meal for her kids.
She is hoping that this is not one of those days in which some things run out of stock. She has just come and doesn't want to go through the stress of going to the supermarket to get things herself. Talk about the paparazzi and also that she is so tired.
When she opens the refrigerator and then the cupboards, she is so happy because everything she would need is in place. With gladness and joy, she takes out vegetables and begin to chop them up so as to starts preparations.
"Erm, excuse me ma'am. " A small voice says behind her and she turns immediately.
It's the lady who opened the door for her when she arrived here. She introduces herself as the nanny, but she looks like she has been working harder than a Nanny.
"Hello. " Elsa drops the knife in her hand and turns around to give the lady her undivided attention.
"Sorry, but I was just wondering. You aren't his girlfriend, are you? You must be Alex and Alison's mum. " The lady says nervously.
Elsa is smiling even though she is kind of pissed at the lady a bit. She has been all over the internet for three years and she has been on the cover of big magazines and so on. How can this lady just assume that her, in all her glory, be one of Ricardo's stupid girlfriends?
"No. " Elsa smiles through her anger. " I am not Ricardo's girlfriend, I am his ex wife and the mother to the kids. "
The lady nods as she speaks. As if she knew the whole time but just asked anyway.
"I guess that. " The lady says. " I just had to ask, making assumptions isn't the smartest thing. "
"Yeah, I guess. "
The lady draws closer. She seems nervous, but she draws herself closer to Elsa.
"Ma'am, can you please guess my age?" The lady makes a strange request.
Elsa finds it strange, but she takes a good look at the lady. She looks like she need a long rest and she looks like someone that would drop dead at any moment - from stress.
"Twenty nine. " Elsa guess and the lady bursts into laughter. A painful kind of laughter.
"I am twenty three actually. I am on Summer break in college and I decided to take this job. I have been working for your family for two months and I must tell you that it has been the worst period in my life. "
That's not what Elsa was expecting, but she is still listening.
"Your kids, especially Alex, has made it their life goal to to make my life miserable. " She continues to complain. " I have been babysitting for over a decade now and I must say your kids are the worst I have come across. "
Elsa is so shocked right now that she doesn't even know what to say.
"Ok.... ay." Elsa says.
"Don't get me wrong, the pay is good, but I think my mental health is important too. I have been begging your husband to let me go, but he has managed to get me to stay for two months. I am going to leave now since you have come back. "
" You can't do that, I wasn't the one who hired you. "
" You are their mom, technically I can. " The lady slings her back over her shoulder and begins to walk away.
"I think I should go now. I don't mean to be rude, but your kids are practically monsters. "
The door bangs shut. The nanny is GONE.