Page 29 of Beneficial Misfortune

What a day.

The silence isn’t uncomfortable. Actually, it’s quite the opposite. Despite all that’s happened, I find comfort in Nathaniel’s presence. He’s been nothing but kind to me since I met him, and when I had nobody, he didn’t hesitate to come to my rescue.

Crap.

As if I didn’t have a big enough crush on him already.

Holy shit.

When Nathaniel said he would provide me with a room, I imagined his house was big. It had to be to offer someone a whole room, right? I mean, I’d seen his suits, his limo, his driver, and, oh my god, his office.

Let's not forget the fact that he’s paying me double what I make at my dream job, where I’m making more money than I ever dreamed of, and just to take care of Addison for a few hours a night until he’s home.

It all sounded too good to be true, which is one of the reasons I was hesitant to accept. I mean, what if I ended up dead or locked in his fucking basement for the next twenty years?

Alright, maybe I’ve been watching too many unsolved mystery shows.

Still, you can never be too careful, and with my past, I don’t really trust my judgment with men. First with Carter, and then there was that one night…

Nope. Don’t go there. I didn’t know, but they did. That’s on them, not me.

In the end, it was Addison that swayed me—you know, before someone broke in.

Nathaniel said he was struggling to find a nanny who was a good fit for her. Over these last few weeks at the summer program, Addison has told me all about the nannies she's had and the ones she's seen her daddy interview.

She didn’t like any of them.

It broke my heart to hear how many nannies she’s had, how much she disliked them, and how much she just wished she had a mom like other kids her age.

I can’t give her a mother, despite what she might wish, but I could give her a nanny who cared.

Pulling up to Nathaniel’s house really let’s me know how much I underestimated his wealth. It’s not a house; it's a fucking mansion. Complete with one of those huge iron gates, they, of course, have a giant L worked into the metal, and they open automatically as the car approaches.

I’ve seen the gates a lot in the past. Carter had those around his house, and so did…

Nope stop that I need to stop going back there.

What have I gotten myself into?

Nathaniel pulls around the circle drive to the front door, and I can’t even bring myself to care what I must look like with my face damn near pressed to the glass as I try to comprehend what I’m seeing.

This house is bigger than the building I lived in; hell, it might be bigger than the school.

The driveway circles around the front, where two large French glass doors stand, as what I can only assume is the front door. Large pillars are on each side, and above it is another level that has the same set of doors, only slightly smaller. Every window is lit, and my god, there are a lot of windows. I don’t even want to think about what their electric bill might be, especially with the lights outside.

The house appears as if it’s made of bricks, but instead of the usual red color I’m used to, these are a light brown, almost sandy. The roof is dark, just like the driveway, and it makes the house almost look like it’s glowing. If I had to guess based on the windows, it has to have at least three stories, maybe even more in some areas.

What kind of house has this many stories? It’s like their own apartment complex, but way nicer.

Mansions in Maine are clearly not the same as New York mansions…

A secondary building is connected to the main one, but I can’t tell if it’s just an extension or maybe a garage. I’ve never seen a garage that looked this nice, though, so maybe not.

I haven’t even seen the inside, and already, this house is telling me I’m way out of my league.

Honestly, if it weren’t for me having nowhere else to go right now, I’d probably tell Nathaniel I’ve made a mistake…or that he has. There’s no way he wants me here.

I look over at him with wide eyes and find him smiling at me a moment before he exits the car, leaving me alone.

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