Page 6 of Wishing for Love

His mother suggested a nanny and he wasn’t sure how he was going to be able to afford it.

But when he ran the numbers it wasn’t that horrible. He was getting survivor benefits for Elsie that would cover a lot of it. But when he’d finally gone through all of Maryn’s paperwork over the weekend, he’d found the life insurance policy and just about shit himself.

Yep, he should have figured his best friend would have set her child up for life. Maryn trusted him to do the right thing. He’d seen the million-dollar policy taken out the same year he started his business. Once he sold Maryn’s house andtransferred all the other investments into Elsie’s name, things would be good for the little girl to let it all ride.

For now, he just needed to get her care so that he could get back to his business and where he knew it could be. Then he’d support the little girl on his own.

He refused to fail for not just himself but his best friend.

“I can’t have you starving,” his mother said.

“That’s the least of my worries, but I should be providing a healthy diet for Elsie. I’m used to being the fun uncle that took her out to eat.”

“And she wants that,” his mother said. “But you can’t give in all the time.”

“This is going to be so hard. I’m not sure how to know the right person for Elsie.”

“You just have to go with your gut,” his mother said. “You’ve always made everything work in life.”

Because he busted his ass to get there just like his siblings had done. His parents were supportive and wanted everyone to succeed at what they enjoyed.

He wasn’t so sure he enjoyed a whole hell of a lot right now.

And for a man that dealt in hard data and facts, going with his gut didn’t sound like the thing to do.

“I hope it happens this time too. I wish we were interviewing more than two people, but I can’t wait for more applicants.”

He’d posted the position at the end of last week. Of the ten resumes he’d gotten, five weren’t willing to live at his house. For now, he’d rather have that and give up his privacy. If he had to compromise on it, he would, but was sticking to his guns now.

Of the remaining five, when he called, three backed out and said they wanted set hours Monday through Friday.

Shit, if he was going to give set day hours during the week, he wouldn’t be offering them the guest suite above his garage thathe never used and spent the past week getting it set up as best he could.

So that brought him down to two. One appeared to be much older based on her experience.

“Let’s just see how it works out,” his mother said. “You need to be honest about Maryn so that the person understands the challenges they may face in Elsie’s life.”

“I planned on it,” he said.

When his doorbell rang, he got up to answer it, and the first applicant was standing there. “Jessica Brown?” he asked.

“That’s me,” Jessica said. “But I go by Jessie.”

He put his hand out and shook the middle-aged woman’s hand. No wedding rings, which he’d expected if the person was going to live here. He’d have to figure out rules on visitors too at some point.

“Nice to meet you,” he said. “Come in. I’m Phoenix Westerly. This is my mother, Carolina. She’s helping me conduct the interviews.”

“You’ve got a beautiful home,” Jessie said.

“Thanks,” he said. “Why don’t you come into my office.”

He led her to the right and had her sit on the couch. His mother and he took seats so they were all facing each other.

“Oh, this is going to be so formal,” Jessie said, grinning. “I thought it was more like a babysitting interview.”

He held his frown back. He didn’t need someone who thought along those lines. “Much more than that. My best friend recently passed away and I was left custody of her daughter, Elsie. A nanny seems to be the best option to help me care for her. I’m looking for someone to bring her to school and back, and be available if the school calls and I’m not around. Cook her dinner and get her in bed if I’m working late. I don’t often work on the weekends, but it could happen.”

“So this wouldn’t be set hours or days off?” Jessie asked.

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