Page 52 of Bad Nanny

Gabriel looked like he wanted to say more—probably another list of instructions or warnings—but he didn’t.

“She’s excited. That’s a good thing.” I couldn’t help but wonder if she would have felt differently had Gabriel been right here in front of her. Even if she hadn’t noticed how tense he was through the video, I had.

“It will be fine,” he said, more for himself than me. “Thank you, Josie.”

“Just doing my job.”

But, somehow, it didn’t feel like much of a job anymore.

I was pleasantly surprised that Delaney was doing so well. When we’d arrived at the restaurant and weaved through the tables to a private room, she’d held onto my hand so tightly, I’d been concerned. But once she met the few other kids that were there with their parents, all her troubles were forgotten.

She’d started out sitting between me and Nora, and after ordering her drink and dinner, she’d ventured down to the end of the table to sit with the other children. She’d been there ever since, even eating dinner with them. I’d sent Gabriel quite a few photos of her enjoying herself.

“So, Josie. Nora never shuts up about you and your puppets,” one of the big hockey players said from across the table. There weren’t a lot of players in attendance, only a few who Nora had become friends with.

“Oh, really?” I looked at Nora, trying to get a read on how much she’d shared.

His wife smacked his arm as her face lit up. “We should hire her for Tabitha’s birthday! Is that something you do?”

“She prefers the adult side of things.” Nora wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.

I wanted to kill my sister, because now, everyone within earshot was looking over at me. “I do puppetry with children.” I gestured to the kids who were watching Delaneyplaying with Penelope. “But I’ve definitely found an audience for puppets with adults.”

“What does that mean? Like stand-up comedy?” someone asked.

“Have you seen that YouTube puppet—what’s her name?”

“Sarah Swoon! That shit is hilarious. I was a little bummed they cut it back to one video a week.”

Was I really that well-known now? This was the second time I’d been involved in a conversation about my puppet without them knowing it was me.

“You should do something like that, sis.” Nora smirked but didn’t reveal my secret.

Would it be such a bad thing if I told people? Now that my dad knew, I didn’t have to worry about him finding out. Still, there were so many things to consider, like my privacy.

My eyes caught on Delaney’s laughing face, and I had my answer.

I had a little girl under my care, and her safety was my biggest priority. Having any kind of fame was out of the question now that I had Delaney to think about.

I only half-listened as they continued to talk about my puppets and was grateful when Delaney asked to use the restroom. Hopefully, with me gone from the table, they’d change topics to something that didn’t make me feel awkward as fuck.

“Are you having fun?” I held Delaney’s hand as we walked past the bar area to the hall with the restrooms.

“The most! I made a friend. Her name is Tabitha and she’s six. Can we have a playdate? She said her mommy willlet her have one.” She was talking a mile a minute, and I loved seeing her so excited.

“We’ll have to talk to your dad, but I don’t see why not.” I briefly wondered if she’d had friends when she lived with her mom. Gabriel hardly ever brought up her life before, and as much as I wanted to ask Delaney questions, I didn’t want to overstep.

After going to the bathroom and washing our hands, we headed back toward the private room. We’d just turned the corner out of the hall when, without warning, Delaney tugged her hand out of mine. She bolted forward into the bar area with a startling cry. “Mommy!”

She was headed straight for a woman with blonde hair, who was only visible from the side. My heart pounded in my chest, and a sense of dread washed over me. The woman jumped and looked down in surprise as Delaney wrapped her arms around the woman’s waist, burying her face against her.

It took me a second to reach them, and when I did, I saw confusion etched on the stranger’s face—a clear sign that she wasn’t Delaney’s mom.

Delaney was sobbing, clinging so tightly to the woman that I was surprised she hadn’t pushed her away. The woman looked at me, slightly stunned. “Uh...is she yours?”

“Sweetheart...” I put my hand gently on Delaney’s shoulder as my heart felt like it was being ripped out of my chest for only the second time in my life. The memory of when my dad sat me down to tell me my mom was gone flashed through my mind. “This isn’t your mom.”

Delaney looked up, her face a mess of tears as she staredat the woman. “You’re not my mommy,” she whimpered, stepping back right into my arms.

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