Page 18 of The Nanny is Off Limits

I roll my eyes and grab my jacket and my purse off the chair. “Fiiine,” I say as I walk toward the door.

I hear him behind me and before I can reach the front door, I see his hand dart out to open it for me. I wish on top of everything else this man wasn’t chivalrous. We walk down the stairs slowly in silence, only the sounds of nature surrounding us when his voice cuts through the air.

“I spoke with some of your references by the way.”

“Oh?” I say just as we hit the bottom step.

We are a few steps from my car when he speaks up again. “You got rave reviews. Everyone said that I’m lucky to have you.”

“Why are you up so early?” I hear from the entrance to the kitchen when Margot comes padding into the room. It’s early, almost seven in the morning, that Monday and I know she’s about to leave for school.

“It’s not that early,” I tell her.

I notice she’s not dressed in a uniform, but a long skirt with a t-shirt tucked into it, and it suddenly dawns on me that, unlike Isla and SJ, Margot doesn’t go to private school and I wonder why that is.

“SJ and Isla’s school doesn’t start until eight-thirty and good luck waking either of them up a second before seven-thirty.” She rubs her index finger in a jar of lip balm and glides it over her lips.

“Right, but I knew you would be leaving.”

“You’re up for…me?” She tilts her head to the side, and at this moment I wonder if she’s not used to anyone being concerned aboutjusther.

“Sure. You should eat in the morning.”

“Oh, I usually stop for a bagel on the way.” She shrugs.

I narrow my eyes at her before looking at my imaginary watch and then back at her. “Don’t you have to be in first period at seven-ten?”

She shrugs before she slides her denim jacket on and pulls her wavy hair out of the neckline. “Okay, I might leave between first and second period to get breakfast.” I blink at her a few times, wondering why she feels so comfortable revealing that information to me. “Oh, I decided we could be friends.” She smiles and I shake my head at her because I do not intend to be the kind of friend that will keepthosekinds of secrets. “Oh, come on, my second period is a joke. My teacher doesn’t care if I’m a little late.”

I narrow my eyes curiously. “What class is it?”

“AP bio?” she says with an innocent look.

“Margot! That doesn’t sound like a joke.”

“Whaaat?” she whines. “My teacher doesn’t care, as long as I bring him back something!”

“Well, I made you a breakfast sandwich.”

“What’s in it?”

“Just eggs and cheese on a whole wheat bagel. I know what you like,” I tell her, having spent the majority of my first night here studying their files.

“Fine,” she says, grabbing the sandwich I wrapped in aluminum foil. “I won’t go for breakfasttoday.”

“You shouldn’t be going at all. What if you’re missing information in that first half when you’re ditching?”

“My bio teacher is friends with Uncle River. I can assure you, I’m getting an A by default, I’ll see you later,” she says with a chuckle as she glides out of the room.

“That’s not doing you any favors for the AP test!” I call after her.

“When’s her AP test?” I hear Mr. Kincaid’s voice from around the corner and then I see him completely dressed in a charcoal gray suit, a crisp white shirt, and a powder blue and white striped tie. He moves through the kitchen and past me toward the Keurig and his scent wafts around me.God, he smellsandlooks good. Spicy and sexy as fuck.

“I’m…not sure. I’m guessing May?” I answer. I decide to keep the information about her perpetual absences from the first half of her biology class to myself for now and change the subject. “The notes you gave me didn’t give me any idea what you like in the mornings, but I made eggs and bacon. If you don’t have time to eat here, I can make you something to take,” I say holding up Tupperware.

“Oh, you don’t have to make breakfast for me.”

“I know…but I’m making it for the kids anyway.”

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