Page 42 of Bad Nanny

“Puppet videos?” His eyebrows knit together in confusion.

“Instead of people talking about a topic, it’s puppets. Mostly love and dating advice.” I bit my lip, waiting for his reaction.

“Hmm.” He leaned back in his chair, processing. “You’re an adult who can make your own choices, but I don’t think I completely understand. Why would you be nervous to tell me about something involving using your degree?”

“Most of it is on YouTube and is more for adults...but um...” I suddenly felt hot. Was I having a hot flash? “The woman puppet might read smut for money.” I said the last part under my breath.

“Smut? As in sex?” How could he sit there all nonchalant and say the wordsex?

“Yes. It’s on OnlyFans.” Might as well rip the Band-Aid right off, arm hairs and all.

“Does the puppet, like...get naked?” He genuinely sounded confused, if not a bit amused.

“No!” I covered my face. “Besides answering sex questions, I write explicit scenes, and the puppet reads them. I’m not sure why people pay for it.”

He was quiet, and I peeked through my fingers to find him laughing silently. “I paid over two hundred thousand dollars for you to do puppet porn.”

Tears sprung to my eyes, and I stood, not wanting to lose my shit in front of him. “I should go.”

“Sit down, Jojo.” Him using my childhood nicknamemade a tear spill over as I sat back down. “I’m sorry.”

I wiped the tear and didn’t let any more fall. “What I’ve enjoyed doing has never been good enough for you.”

He sat forward in his chair, resting his elbows on his thighs. “You’ve always been good enough. I’m so fucking proud of you.”

“But not as proud of me as you are of Nora.” I’d been carrying these feelings for a long time, and now felt like a good time to get them off my chest.

“It’s hard to measure pride when you have so much of it for your daughters. Don’t compare our shared interests to my level of pride. I’m sure your sister would probably say the same thing you just did. I’m doing the best I can, and I’m sorry I laughed.” He shook his head, a smile tugging at his lips. “So, it’s turned into a big thing? How big are we talking?”

“Almost five figures a month.” I blew out a long breath, relaxing now that we were in safer territory. “When I start taking product deals, it will be a lot more. I just don’t know how long this will last.”

“Why are you nannying if this is making you so much money?” Confusion pinched his brows.

I shrugged. “I didn’t want you to know.”

“Getting a job and moving is a lot to keep a secret. You didn’t even last very long.” He chuckled. “It’s hard keeping secrets.”

“No kidding. It didn’t work out so bad, though. I met Gabriel.”

He rubbed his jaw. “Has Gabriel heard about this . . . unique venture?”

The question hit a nerve, and I cringed at the thought of telling him after his reaction at dinner with his brothers. “No, I haven’t told him.”

“You should probably consider doing that.” I hated that he was right. “I’ll call my agent tomorrow and see if he has some contacts. You also need to talk to a lawyer and an accountant. Do you want me to help you find some options?”

“You’d do that?” Why had I ever thought he wouldn’t be supportive? Of course, his tune might change if he ever watched the videos. He had a good sense of humor, but I didn’t know if that extended to his own daughter being the one delivering.

“I know I haven’t always been that involved.” He looked out at the ocean. “Things will be different when I retire at the end of next season.”

“What?” This was the first time he’d ever brought up his exit from coaching. He loved it almost more than he loved us. “When did you decide?”

He shrugged, looking back at me. “I’ve kind of lost myself to the job. Things were easier that way.”

“And it has nothing to do with your boyfriend?” I teased in a singsong voice.

“Don’t tease your father.” My dad’s cheeks pinkened.

We talked a little while longer before he walked me out to my car. As he was walking back to the door, he turned. “Josie?”

---