Page 9 of Billionaire Wolf Needs a Nanny

The child scrambled to her feet, dragging her stuffed animal by the arm. She crashed into my side and crooked her finger, beckoning me toward her. I leaned down to hear what she had to say.

"You have to find me first," she whispered. Then, before I could figure out what she meant, she ran to the office door and dashed out into the waiting room. Maybe I was getting old, but never in my life had I seen a child run that fast.

Blake chuckled. "Told you. She's a master at hide and seek."

I exited Blake's office and began the search for my charge. It was fifteen minutes before I found her tucked away in one of the shelves under the counter of the coffee bar. She was hiding behind stacks of paper cups, stir sticks, and bottles of syrup.

"You got off easy, little wolf children will test you to see if you are worthy of respect," Anna said, all while keeping her eyes on her computer monitor. Her fingers danced across the keyboard in a rhythmic tap tap tap as she spoke. "The last time she made me find her, she somehow pried open the metal grating and hid in the air duct. I was moments away from calling the police to report a missing child."

Ah, that explained everything. I had a sense that there was something supernatural about the Wulfthorns. They were wolf shifters. Before I came here, I was aware that their kind inhabited Huntington Harbor, but I had no idea that I would become familiar with an actual shifter family so soon, and so intimately.

Emilia giggled as she climbed out of the coffee bar. "That was fun, Lacey. Let's play again."

No, not again. Never again, if I could help it. "Can you show me your play area? Your Uncle Blake says it's pretty awesome."

"Uh huh. Uncle Blake took me to the store. We got lots of toys!"

"I can see that," I said.

Emilia led me over to what she called Bunnyville, a make-believe town inhabited completely by bunnies. It had a play kitchen that served as a diner,

a grocery store with a cash register, and even a functioning miniature pink car that served as the town's public transit system. It seemed like whatever time he couldn't give to his niece, he replaced with toys.

We spent the rest of the afternoon playing pretend mayor of Bunnyville. By the time Blake came back from his meeting, Emilia was fast asleep on the couch in the waiting area under a soft chenille throw. Anna had ended her shift over an hour ago and left us alone.

Blake rushed out of the elevator, but before he could say a word, I held my finger up to my lips and shushed him, gesturing toward his sleeping niece with my head.

"I'm sorry, the meeting went longer than I anticipated. How was she?" His expression was contrite and marred with lines of stress. He was being pulled in multiple directions. No matter how rich he was, he couldn't do it all alone.

"Like an angel."

He tutted. "You're a terrible liar. Tell the truth, what did she do?"

"I did think I lost her for a moment, but I found her hiding spot in the end."

"She's been doing that a lot lately, hiding away. It's been a recurring theme ever since her mother passed away." Blake cleared his throat. "You did well today, Lacey. I'm impressed. The paperwork still needs to be finalized, but you're hired."

"Oh, wow. Really?" I couldn't believe it. I just told him I thought I lost his niece and he was still going to give me the job.

He rolled his eyes. "I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it."

"Of course. I can start whenever you need me." My nerves made my voice shake as reality started sinking in. This job was going to set me up financially for the rest of my life.

"That's what I like to hear. From now on, my driver will pick you up at your place at 5:30 every morning."

My eyes widened. "How do you know where I live?"

"Do you think I wouldn't run my own background check on you? I know everything about you, including where you've lived your entire life, to that allergic reaction you had to corn when you were twelve, as well as your non-existent experience with childcare." His eyes pierced me. It was like he could see into the depths of my soul.

My face flushed with heat as he revealed my deepest secrets. Of course, my new boss was ruthless. He didn't become a billionaire in such a short time by overlooking any details.

"But Emilia likes you, which I can't say about many people in this world." He pinned me with hard eyes. "5:30 sharp tomorrow. Be ready."

Chapter 4

BLAKE

The next morning, I supervised as Chef Rosa, my private chef at home, made bunny pancakes. The kitchen already smelled heavenly of crispy fried bacon and scrambled eggs which sat under the warmer.

---