Tempted Read online

  Tempted

  By

  Eve Vaughn

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons living or dead is entirely coincidental.

  All trademarks, service marks, registered service marks are the property of their respective owners and are used herein for identification purposes only.

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  Tempted

  Copyright © 2018 Eve Vaughn

  Electronic book publication October 2018

  With the exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means without permission from the author, Eve Vaughn.

  WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded or distributed via the Internet or any other means electronic or print, without the author’s permission. Criminal copyright infringement without monetary gain is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in Federal Prison and a fine of $250,000. For more information regarding the government’s stance on copyright infringement visit: http://www.fbi.gov/ipr.

  Dedication

  To my readers, thank you so much for supporting me, and keeping me going. I hope you’ll enjoy reading this book as much as I’ve enjoyed writing it. I’d also like to send a special shout out to Wanda for all she does. You’re the best!

  Chapter One

  Two and a half months into the New Year and it already sucked.

  Having gone through a full day of interviews with no promising prospects, she felt like curling up into a ball and giving up. That however, wasn’t an option. She had every reason not to. Besides, the last thing Jasmine wanted was to go home to the roach-infested hell hole she currently lived in. Digging into her pocket, she pulled out her Metro card. Her balance was getting low but a trip the National Mall in front of the Washington monument wouldn’t be too much. She didn’t know what it was about the place, but Jasmine was at peace when she was there.

  The day had been cloudy when she got up that morning, but just as she stepped out of the train station the sun was coming out. Maybe this day wouldn’t be a total wash after all. The Cherry Blossoms were just starting to bloom and it was pretty warm for a mid-march day.

  Jasmine purchased a hot dog from one of the street vendors and found a park bench. Here, she could forget about her worries, albeit temporarily. In her special place she could briefly forget about the unfortunate set of circumstances that had left her broke, unemployed and with a criminal record. This brief respite saved her from focusing on how desperate her situation had become; how if she didn’t turn things around soon, she’d never regain custody of her daughter.

  Jasmine wished Star was with her now. When Jasmine was a little girl, her mother would bring her here and they’d sit on a bench eating ice cream and people watch. There was something cathartic about the experience. A smile touched her lips as she imagined Star sitting next to her.

  If only.

  A piercing scream broke Jasmine out of her silent musings. She looked up just in time to see a little girl on a skate board barreling her way, arms flailing wildly. The child had obviously lost control and looked like she’d topple over any second.

  Setting her food aside, Jasmine rushed over to the girl and caught her, just before she met the pavement face first. “Are you okay?” she asked checking the child over.

  Large green eyes looked at her imploringly. She was a pretty child with long black hair pulled into a somewhat messy ponytail. With a tilt-tipped nose and round pinkish cheeks, she had a cherubic look. The kid couldn’t be more than seven or eight. “Tyler pushed me,” she sniffed.

  Jasmine frowned. “Tyler?”

  “My brother. He said he’d teach me how to skateboard but he was being bossy and I told him to stop. That’s when he pushed me. I think he hates me!” the little girl burst into tears.

  Jasmine would have minded her own business and walked away in normal circumstances but this child wasn’t much older than Star. On impulse she gave the child a hug. “It’s okay honey, everything will be alright now. And I’m sure Tyler doesn’t hate you. Siblings fight all the time.”

  The little girl perked up. “Really?”

  “Yes, really.” She tweaked the child’s nose

  It seemed to be the right answer because it got the kid to smile. “My name is Chelsea, what’s yours?”

  Jasmine smiled her first genuine smile of the day. “Jasmine. You’re okay now?”

  “We’re not supposed to talk to strangers, dummy.”

  Jasmine jumped away from the girl, startled by the voice of a newcomer. She turned around to see who was speaking. A young boy not much older than the girl shot Jasmine a suspicious look. He had the same dark coloring as Chelsea which told Jasmine this was the infamous Tyler.

  “Daddy said you couldn’t call me dummy anymore!” the girl shouted back.

  The boy shrugged. “Well, Dad isn’t here. He only said that in front of Nana. He doesn’t care.”

  The girl scowled. “Daddy does so care. You are a big meanie, and I hate you!”

  Tyler shrugged. “So what? You’re just a big dummy. You can’t even read good.”

  “She can’t read well,” Jasmine found herself correcting him automatically.

  Tyler looked her up and down with an arrogance of a man three times his age. “Who the hell are you, lady?”

  Jasmine’s mouth fell open. Was this kid for real? “Do your parents know you talk like this?”

  Tyler’s eyes narrowed. “What’s it to you?”

  Jasmine shrugged. “Nothing really. But you are being rather rude. Chelsea could have been seriously injured. The right thing to do would be to apologize.”

  Tyler poked out his lip mutinously. “You’re not the boss of me.”

  Jasmine raised a brow. “No, I’m not, but I would certainly like to have a talk with the person who is.”

  The boy looked unimpressed. “Miss Appleton doesn’t care. She’s sleeping on the bench over there.” He pointed to a woman lying on a bench who appeared to be half dead.

  Jasmine rushed over to see if Miss Appleton was okay. She tapped the woman on the shoulder. “Are you alright?”

  The dozing lady groaned, not bothering to open her eyes. “Lemme alone you little brats,” she muttered. The strong scent of alcohol was on her breath.

  Jasmine recoiled from the pungent smell. “Is this your babysitter?” What kind of irresponsible parents would hire a drunk to watch their children?

  Chelsea gave her a forlorn look. “She’s our Nanny. I think she was drinking from her special medicine bottle again. She told us not to bother her for a couple of hours.

  Tyler crossed his arms over his chest shooting Jasmine an I-told-you-so look. “See? She doesn’t care.”

  Jasmine frowned. “Does your mom and dad know Miss Appleton takes special uh, medicine?”

  Tyler shrugged. “We don’t have a mom, and Dad wouldn’t care.”

  Jasmine seriously doubted that. She attempted to wake the dozing woman again. “Miss Appleton?”

  “Lemme ‘lone,” the nanny slurred, falling horizontally on the bench.

  That was it. The mother in Jasmine wouldn’t allow these two children to be alone with this obviously drunken woman. She toyed with the idea of offering to take them home, but that probably wouldn’t be a good idea. The children didn’t know her and the last thing she needed was to be thrown in jail for kidnapping two kids who obviously came from wealth. They’d lock her up and throw away the key this time for sure. Besides, her neighborhood wasn’t the safest area of the city.
>
  Jasmine pulled out her phone. “Do you have your Daddy’s work number?”

  Tyler looked her up and down. “What do you want that for?”

  She sighed. This little boy was really starting to test her patience. “Because he’ll need to come pick you up or send someone over to do it. Miss Appleton is in no position to supervise you.”

  Tyler looked at the now snoring nanny and then back at Jasmine. “I don’t know it.”

  Jasmine had the sneaking suspicion he did, but she couldn’t call him a liar on such short acquaintance. “Look, Tyler, I have no ulterior motive other than to make sure the two of you get home safely.”

  “I know Nana’s number,” Chelsea piped up.

  “Shut up.” Tyler punched his sister in the arm.

  “Oww!” Chelsea’s eyes filled with tears.

  Jasmine had had enough of the little boy’s nastiness. “Tyler, do not hit your sister again.”

  Tyler crossed his arms over his chest. “I don’t have to listen to you.”

  “Oh, yes you do. Because I’m bigger and meaner, and if you don’t apologize to Chelsea now, I’ll show you just how mean I can be.” She stared him down.

  To his credit Tyler held her gaze for a good while before his face turned beet red and he looked away. “Sorry,” he muttered not bothering to look at his sister.

  As apologies went, it was a pretty lousy, one but Jasmine saw no point in forcing the issue.

  Chelsea stuck out her tongue. “Haha, you got in trouble.”

  Jasmine lifted a brow. “Chelsea, no one likes to be teased.”

  “I’m sorry.” At least the girl sounded more contrite than her brother.

  Jasmine nodded her approval. “Now that we’re all sufficiently sorry, how about giving me a number of a responsible adult who can come get you?”

  Tyler remained mutinously silent, but Chelsea supplied Jasmine with her grandmother’s number.

  “What’s your Nana’s name by the way?” Jasmine asked.

  “Madeline Meade.” Once again it was Chelsea who supplied the information, much to her brother’s apparent annoyance.

  Jasmine punched the number she’d been supplied into her phone. She was getting low on her prepaid minutes but this emergency warranted using them.

  “Meade residence, how may I direct your call?” a cultured male voice greeted.

  “Is Mrs. Meade available?”

  “I’m afraid she’s indisposed at the moment. May I take a message?”

  Jasmine figured indisposed meant she wouldn’t come to the phone. “My name is Jasmine Brooks, she doesn’t know me, but I need to speak to her if she’s there. It’s about Tyler and Chelsea.”

  There was a pause on the other end of the line. “Hold on a moment, Miss. Let me see if I can find her.”

  That’s what she thought. “Thank you. I’d really appreciate it.”

  While Jasmine waited on hold she looked over her shoulder to see if the children were still there. Thankfully they were.

  “Hello? Miss Brooks?” came a panicked voice on the other end of the line. “What about my grandchildren?”

  “Is this Mrs. Meade?”

  “Yes. Please tell me what the matter is.”

  “First, let me assure you, your grandchildren are okay. I met them in the park by the monument a few minutes ago, and their nanny is…uh, incapacitated. Someone needs to escort them home.”

  “Oh, my goodness. Is that woman drunk, again?” If someone knew the nanny was a lush then why in the world did they place her in charge of the children?

  Jasmine sighed. “I’m afraid so. If you can arrange for someone to pick the children up, I’ll stay here with them.”

  “Give me your exact location and I’ll be there. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your doing this.”

  “It’s not a big deal. I’m sure anyone else would have done the same.” Jasmine gave Mrs. Meade directions and clicked off before disconnecting the call.

  “Your Nana is on the way,” she let the children know.

  Chelsea jumped up and down clapping her hands together. “Oh, goody. She’ll take us out for ice cream.”

  Tyler rolled his eyes. “Well, now that Nana is coming you can go away.” The boy could have been a king the way he dismissed her in that haughty tone.

  Jasmine crossed her arms over her chest. “Excuse me? I must have misheard you, because you weren’t talking to me like that.”

  Tyler mutinously poked his bottom lip out and glared at her. “You’re a nobody. I don’t have to listen to you.”

  Jasmine stared Tyler down until he turned a bright shade of red and looked away. Exactly what she thought; the kid was all talk. With a sigh, she touched his shoulder. “I’m not your enemy. I’m just concerned that you and your sister are virtually alone. I have a daughter of my own, and if she were in this position, I’d want someone to look out for her. For my peace of mine, would you put up with my company long enough for your grandmother to come get you and your sister?”

  Tyler looked uncertain, torn between giving in and remaining stubborn.

  “Please, Tyler. You’d be doing me a huge favor by helping me keep your sister safe like a good big brother is supposed to do. I wish I had a cool big brother like you when I was growing up.”

  He seemed to go into deep thought before answering. “Well, I…I guess you can stick around.”

  Jasmine nodded solemnly, biting back the giggle. It would be an interesting afternoon.

  * * *

  Later when the kids were waiting in their grandmother’s Mercedes, Jasmine and Madeline Meade had a long talk which took a surprise direction.

  “Jasmine, I appreciate your honesty about your past. While I can’t pretend to understand everything about your circumstances, we all make mistakes, and you’ve paid far more dearly than I think you should have. You’re in need of a job, and the kids need a nanny. Won’t you reconsider taking the position?”

  Jasmine was tempted to give in, but the past few months, had taught her to be more cautious about things sounding too good to be true. The offer of a job had taken her by surprise. Not only would she be the children’s full time Nanny, the job included room and board, a great opportunity to move out of the hell hole she currently resided in and a chance to save more money. This would mean her being able to get custody of Star sooner.

  Mrs. Meade placed her hand on top of Jasmine’s. “Jasmine, I see the hesitancy on your face, but I think this is a wonderful opportunity for you. I had a chance to observe you with the children when you weren’t looking and you handle them well. Chelsea hasn’t stopped talking about you since I’ve arrived.”

  “But you don’t know anything about me, Mrs. Meade. Why are you risking your grandchildren’s well-being? I’m a stranger to you, and for all you know, I might be lying about my history.”

  “Please call me Maddie, dear. I know I may seem like a silly old woman to you, but I think I’m a pretty good judge of character, and I knew I liked you the moment I laid eyes on you. Your aura is a bright orange. That’s a good thing. That means you’re full of positive energy, although that tinge of blue tells me there’s a deep sadness in your life.”

  Jasmine lifted a brow. “You’re into astrology.”

  “I never leave the house without reading my horoscope. My son thinks I’m a little out of touch, but the stars haven’t let me down yet. Besides, you know what my horoscope said this morning?”

  This woman was absolutely nuts, but who was Jasmine to judge. She smiled politely. “What did it say?”

  “It said that I would meet someone special today, and I believe I have. I hope you don’t mind my being frank, but can you really afford to turn down this opportunity?”

  Jasmine couldn’t say no to that. “What about your son? Ultimately, wouldn’t he have the final say on who he puts in charge of his children? I really can’t blame him for being cautious.”

  “You leave that to me.”

  “The minute he finds out I have a
record, there’s no way he’ll hire me.”

  Mrs. Meade, gave her a smile. “Trust me, dear. I’ll set everything up for you. There’s no need to worry. Besides, what harm would it be to come in for an interview?”

  What harm would there be indeed. Jasmine didn’t want to get her hopes up, because as she’d learned already, there were no guarantees in life.

  Chapter Two

  “I’ll have to decline your invitation for a late lunch. I’m interviewing a new nanny. I’m not sure what my mother was thinking by recommending her because, judging from this woman’s resume, she lacks the necessary qualifications, but Chelsea sings her praises. Even Tyler doesn’t have anything negative to say about her.” Victor looked at Jasmine Brook’s resume and wondered about the gap of eighteen months as he spoke on the phone with his friend.

  “I think you should humor your mother. Smile politely, pretend to be interested and then find a suitable candidate from the agency,” Madison Stansfield suggested. “I’d be happy to email you the name of an agency a good friend of mine uses. She swears by it.”

  When his wife Carolyn died, Victor had come to rely on Madison as a valued friend. She offered her support to him and a shoulder to lean on. She was his go to person whenever he needed a date to an important event. They weren’t officially dating and if he was being honest, Madison had become a comfortable habit. But lately he was wondering if he should pull back from their arrangement.

  She had many qualities most men admired. The classic blue-eyed blonde with a trim figure, she possessed beauty, brains and could hold herself well in any social setting. She would have made any man proud to have her on his arm. Maybe he was beginning to have these doubts because Madison had started to make hints about taking their relationship to the next level.

  Victor wasn’t sure if he wanted to re-marry. It was hard enough raising three children, without throwing a new wife in the mix. Besides, his law firm kept him too busy for much else.