Page 1 of The Widower's Nanny

1

Rachel

Iarrive at Preston Michaelson’s country estate and am amazed. His mother, Bea, who hired me, called it his “little country home.” The little home has two stories, a garage with six doors, a pool with a pool house bigger than my old apartment, and I believe I can see tennis courts beyond the pool. The guesthouse, which will be my new home, sits on the other side of the garage. It’s a beautiful cottage surrounded by flower beds and a bright green lawn.

Bea comes out the front door as I park outside the white fence surrounding the equally manicured front yard, with its own overflowing flower beds. An adorable blonde girl runs through the door after Bea, passes her by, and comes up to the fence.

She waves and gives me a smile with a missing front tooth. “Hi.”

I smile at her. “Hi. You must be Lilly.”

She nods. “Are you my new nanny?”

“Yes, I’m Rachel. It’s very nice to meet you, Lilly.”

Bea comes up behind her granddaughter and pats her head. “She’s been very anxious to meet you.” Bea opens the gate. “Come in. Let me show you around.”

Bea hired me after an interview and an extensive vetting process. I hadn’t met Mr. Michaelson yet.

She spends the next hour giving me a tour of the house and the grounds, and she tells me the property has been in the family for years. She and her late husband had only used it as a getaway spot. But three years ago, Preston had decided to move there. She’d come along to help him with Lilly.

I meet Laura, the cook, and Mrs. Cartwright, the housekeeper. Laura is friendly and welcoming, but she seems a little distracted and perhaps accident-prone, with her three bandaged fingers.

Mrs. Cartwright, on the other hand, is a bit stern, and I feel like she considers me a nuisance she’ll have to deal with. We then go out to meet Benjy, the groundskeeper, who also maintains the pool and the tennis courts. He is very nice, and he is obviously enamored with Lilly. When he asks her if she wants to help him feed the koi in the pond, she runs off with him.

Bea watches them for a moment with a touch of sadness in her eyes.

I touch her arm. “You’re going to miss her, aren’t you?”

“More than you know.” She sighs and turns toward the guesthouse. “But it can’t be helped. They say the country air is good for your health. But in my case, it hasn’t been.”

“I’m sorry. I hope it’s nothing serious.”

“Nothing time in the city can’t cure.”

I follow her to the guesthouse. As we follow the path to the front door, I can smell all the wonderful flowers. I’ve never been a live-in nanny before, so I don’t know quite what to expect. When we go inside, I am even more impressed. It is warm and inviting with cozy furniture, a kitchen in the corner, and a separate bedroom with a bath.

I smile at Bea. “This is wonderful.”

“I’m glad someone will finally get a chance to enjoy it. I had Mrs. Cartwright do a thorough cleaning, and she’ll do a weekly cleaning on whatever day you arrange with her.”

“Thank you. I’m sure she has better things to do. I can keep it up myself.” I look around the spotless room.

“I’m afraid Mrs. Cartwright will insist. She’s quite particular about how things are done. I hope you’re okay with that. She’s a bit difficult, but she’s been with the family for years.”

Has everyone been with the family for years?I guess that is a good sign.

“Not a problem. I’ll set up a day and time that works for her.”

Lilly returns from the koi pond with Benjy. For the next few hours, Bea, Lilly, and I spend time together, and when it seems Bea feels we’d be fine left alone, she prepares to leave. I can tell it is difficult for her. And after she said goodbye to Lilly, I walk her to her car.

She dabs at her eyes with a handkerchief. “As you can see, my granddaughter is a charmer. She won’t give you too much trouble. But she’s adventurous and fearless so keep a close eye on her.”

“I will.”

Back in control of her emotions, she stashes the handkerchief in her purse. “My son will be here around six.” She is quiet for a moment. “I need to tell you that he’s not too keen on the idea of a nanny. He’s very upset that I had to pass the job onto someone else.”

“I’m sure. I hope I can win him over.”

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