“Thank you.” She nibbled at a nut in the center of the nugget she held. “It seems I have some self-esteem issues I was never aware of. I always thought I hadn’t got into an office job because that’s what my father did and I didn’t want to lose myself in a career the way he did. That I wanted to be free to be creative, pursue my own interests, set my hours, and live according to my own terms.”

Mandy sighed, realizing something she should have a long time ago. “But I’m just a hypocrite. If I really disapproved of my parents’ lifestyle, of their focus on money, I would have cut myself off from their checkbooks. But I haven’t. I’ve been living off of them all these years while I proved that I didn’t need a high-powered job to be happy. It’s silly, really. All I’ve proved is that I do need my parents and that I was afraid to follow in Daddy’s footsteps because I was afraid to fail. I’m twenty-six years old and I’m lazy.”

A snort wasn’t exactly the response she expected to that heartfelt confession. “What a bunch of bullshit, Mandy. You aren’t lazy at all. You ran your own toy store for three years. How many hours did you put into that business? Eighty hours a week, minimum, would be my guess, when you add in ordering stock, managing payroll, and scheduling and handling the taxes.”

She chewed her lip. “Maybe, but I never turned a profit.”

“Not for lack of effort. Maybe it was just the wrong business. But that doesn’t mean that you’re a sponge.”

“But now I’m having a baby and I have to be responsible, go for security over what interests me.”

“And you are.”

That was true. She was. She’d given up the shop, and it didn’t even bother her. She’d do whatever was needed to ensure her baby was happy and healthy and well provided for.

“And you made the incredibly brilliant decision to work for me.” He winked at her.

That pulled a laugh out of her. Damien looked wicked beautiful winking. She shifted a little in the chair; her thighs started to feel warm. “You’ll never get rid of me, you know. I like this job and I’m keeping it, and you can be as insufferable and demanding and bossy as you like and I won’t quit.”

“Damn. I’ll have to cross ‘be insufferable to Mandy’ off my calendar for next week.”

“Beast.” She slapped at his arm and laughed. “Don’t be absurd.”

“That’s one adjective no one has ever applied to me.”