Page 2 of The Manny

“Oh. You’re with the nanny agency?” I frowned. “Is there a problem?”

“Well...” She gave a nervous laugh. “I’m afraid there’s been a hiccup, Mr. Wayan.”

My stomach dropped and I growled, “What kind of hiccup?”

Brody widened his eyes and slowly backed out of the office, quietly closing the door behind him.

“We had Charity all ready to send over tomorrow, but apparently she’s had an emergency appendectomy. Poor dear. She’s going to be laid up for at least three weeks.”

Gripping my cell, I tried not to panic. “What does that mean for me, exactly?”

“It means we need to send you a replacement. We won’t leave you hanging, so don’t worry about that.”

I wrinkled my brow. “Who is this person you’re sending? I haven’t had a chance to vet them.”

“All of our employees are vetted, Mr. Wayan. We do background checks on everyone. We’re very careful about who we hire.”

“Okay, but, who are you sending instead of Charity?”

“One of our very best. Thomas usually wouldn’t be available because he’s always booked solid, but his last assignment… er… was terminated rather abruptly.”

“Why? Did he do something that upset the client?”

She laughed. “Oh, heavens, no. I mean, not really.”

Uneasiness shifted through me. “Not really?”

“I suppose under the circumstances I could divulge some more details. You didn’t hear this from me, but the client was a little too hands-on for Thomas’ liking, if you get my meaning. I wouldn’t usually share that with you, but this is an unusual situation. It’s important that you understand we’re not just shoving someone off on you. You’re getting one of our finest mannies.”

I exhaled roughly. “Look, I didn’t want a male. I specifically requested a female caregiver.”

“I know. But Thomas truly is one of our top people. If you insist on having a female, I’ll have to give you one of our newer girls. I’m sorry.” She sighed. “It’s a miracle that Thomas is even being offered to you. If you don’t want him, he’ll be snapped up immediately. I wanted to give you first dibs.”

Of course she’d say that. She was doing her best to push this Thomas guy onto me, so she could wash her hands of the situation. “I’ll need to see his references.”

“Naturally.” She sounded agreeable. “I’ll email those over to you immediately. I know that time is of the essence.”

“Shouldn’t I meet him or something? I have to live with this person.” I’d met with Charity and that had helped me make my decision. She’d been a cheerful, easygoing girl and I’d figured having her around would be tolerable. Picking a nanny or manny sight unseen didn’t sit well with me.

“I can see if Thomas has time this evening to meet with you. Would that make you happy?”

Happy? That might be pushing it.

“I would feel better if I could at least meet the guy.”

“I understand.” The sound of pages being shifted came across the line. “What’s a good time for you this evening? I’ll see if that works for Thomas.”

I glanced at my watch. “I’m leaving work soon and will be home all evening. He can come anytime.”

“I’ll ask Thomas when he’s free and then I’ll text you the time. How’s that?”

“Fine, I guess.” I still felt uncomfortable about the situation, but at least the agency was trying to fix the problem. I’d have been screwed if I’d had to start all over again with a new agency this late in the game.

“Thank you so much for your patience, Mr. Wayan.”

“It’s okay,” I said stiffly. “An emergency appendectomy is no little thing.”

“No. We were very worried about Charity for a while there.” She sighed. “Anyway, I’ll text you later. Have a good evening,” she said brightly as she hung up.

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