Page 117 of Nanny and the Beast

“Are you really going to be like that?” she asks.

“Last night was a mistake, Emma,” I say. “It was the result of alcohol and a possible head injury.”

She continues staring at me with a blank expression on her face.

“I’ll go wake the kids up,” she says, reaching for her discarded nightgown.

As she slips it over her body, I catch a glimpse of her back. The deep groove of her spine and her creamy skin elicit a pang ofdesire in me once again. It takes every ounce of willpower I have not to act on it.

Without another word, she slips out of the room.

She takes all of the light in the room with her. The glow of last night fades, replaced by cold, hard reality. Even the breath in my lungs feels too cold.

Everything inside me feels so heavy.

Before this emotion can swallow me whole, I call Alaric.

“Dude, it’s the middle of the night,” he groans.

“It’s eight in the morning,” I say.

“What did I say?” he replies.

“Something happened last night,” I say. “I need your help.”

“Hold on,” Alaric says. “Let me get a coffee first. Everything you’re saying sounds like white noise to me right now.”

I drum my fingers against the windowpane as I wait for my friend to properly wake up. I don’t even know how to process the events of last night.

My mind keeps taking me back to Emma’s soft body underneath mine. The way she fit so snugly around me. The way her lips felt so good against mine.

Everything about her feels soright.It’s the most horrifying thing I’ve ever experienced.

Alaric sighs loudly. I can’t see him, but I know he just had his first sip of coffee.

“Okay, I’m a little more awake now,” he says. “Tell me what happened.”

“I was attacked while driving home last night,” I say.

“You were what?”

“There was a pickup truck coming from the opposite direction. It didn’t have headlights on, so I didn’t see it until it swerved into my lane. It was aiming right for me,” I say.

The details of last night come to me in pieces like a movie.

The totaled car. The ringing in my ears. The shattered glass. The darkness of the night that threatened to swallow me whole.

I thought I was going to die in that collision. But some force made me pull myself out of the wreckage. In that moment when I could barely even breathe, I made myself think of the children. They would be defenseless against the world if I wasn’t there to protect them. They need me.

I tell Alaric the details of the attack.

“I climbed out of the car, and a man was waiting for me. For a moment, I thought he was going to help, but then he started attacking me with a knife. I fought back. He only retreated when he realized I was much stronger than him.”

“You let him get away?” Alaric asks.

“I wasn’t prepared for the attack,” I reply. “He caught me completely off guard.”

“Were you armed?”

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