Page 17 of Bad Nanny

There was an empty coffee cup on the counter, so I put it on the drip tray and pressed the button. I was trying not to focus on the tension in the room or the fact that he’d put out a pod and mug for me.

I just needed to get through the next few minutes before he left for work. I could totally handle being around him after he rocked my world this morning without even knowing it.

Gabriel cleared his throat, breaking the silence as he walked to the island. “I apologize for stepping over the line last night. It was unprofessional and out of character.”

“It’s no big deal, things happen.”

He ran a hand through his hair, giving it a slightly disheveled look. “Still, it shouldn’t have happened, and it won’t happen again.”

Ouch. That hurt more than expected. I nodded, knowing we needed boundaries, even as a part of me rebelled against them. “Understood.”

I feigned nonchalance and busied myself by going to the refrigerator to look for some creamer or milk. He’d asked me before I moved in what I liked in my coffee, so I assumed he’d bought it. Sure enough, it was on the top shelf, front and center.

Attached on the front was a sticky note that said, “Have a good first day,” with a smiley face.

Whyon earth would he do that? There were supposed to be boundaries, and he was not helping me keep them in place. He took the time to go find a sticky note and a pen, write a note, and put it on my favorite creamer he bought for me.

For fuck’s sake, my brain needed to shut up already.

Grabbing the bottle, I finally turned to look at him. “What’s this?”

“What’s...oh.” He left his exile on the other side of the island and snatched it off the bottle before I could. “It’s nothing. Laney wanted to do it.”

“Sure, she did.” I tried to grab the sticky note, but he didn’t let go. “Are we really going to fight over a damn sticky note?”

His grip on the note loosened, his eyes drifting down to my lips. A flush crept up my neck as he let go of the note, leaving it in my hand.

“I need to wake Laney.” His voice sounded choked as he backed up, his eyes still on me.

“Right. Work.” I quickly looked down at the note in my hand to break the spell his smoldering blue eyes had on me.

He finally turned and walked toward the stairs, his fists clenched at his sides. Was it going to be like this between us from now on? Would he start a new nanny search today and fire me as soon as he found a replacement?

The coffee maker beeped, and I jumped, reality crashing back into me.

I was fucked, and not in the way I wanted to be.

“Jo, what time is it?” Delaney’s anxious voice tore my attention away from the makeshift puppet theater I’d set up in the corner of the living room. She’d asked the same question every half hour since she woke up from her nap.

I touched my phone screen. “It’s a little after four. Your dad will be home soon.”

The day had whizzed by in a blur of scheduled activities, but as the afternoon stretched on, Delaney’s mood had deteriorated. The closer we got to Gabriel’s return, the tighter she wound herself.

“Can we do puppets again?” She fidgeted with Penelope’s floppy felt ears, her crayons and coloring book no longer of interest.

“We sure can.” I smiled, hiding my own flicker of nerves. Mine were different from hers, though; while she was nervous that her dad wouldn’t come home, I was nervous about his arrival.

I took Penelope from Delaney and sat crisscross to the side of the stage we’d crafted together. It would provide us with several days of decorating activities. I wanted to talk to Gabriel about building one out of wood, but for now, the flimsy cardboard we’d dug out of the recycling bin would work.

Delaney lay down on the carpet, her chin resting on her hands. She watched with rapt attention as I brought her new friend to life.

“Good afternoon, Laney,” Penelope chirped in her squeaky puppet voice. “You know what I love about afternoons?”

Delaney shook her head, her lips curving into a tentative smile.

“They’re like little pockets of magic before the evening comes. It’s when everything glowsjustright and it’s time to sparkle.”

“I can’t sparkle.” Delaney giggled.