Page 50 of Bully Wolf's Nanny
And she could…
She wasn’t actually sure what she would do. Perhaps she could request a new family and carry on as a nanny. She enjoyed it much more than she had previously thought she would. Sure, she might not get a great reference from Nicolas, but…
Well. She would see.
Her phone buzzed just as Francesca floated into the room wrapped in some tiny silk robe, her hair artfully thrown into a perfect messy bun.
“Did you drop a glass, Daisy?” Francesca tutted, mincing over the area of the floor with slightly more drama than Daisy thought was strictly necessary. “How clumsy of you. I do hope you’ll let Nicolas know, he’ll want to replace the glass. Actually, never mind, I’ll text him now.”
Daisy’s lips pressed together, but she didn’t say anything. If she was lucky, today would be one of the days Francesca would simply ignore her presence altogether.
Her phone buzzed again, and Francesca raised an immaculate brow. “Can you get that? It’s annoying. I get headaches in the morning.”
She reached for her phone, frowning as she saw Felix’s name. Nicolas had insisted she have his number in case of any emergencies, but he had never messaged her before.
“Hey Daisy, it’s Felix here. I just wanted to let you know that we’re having a little get together down the Pine Shadow Club tonight. You should bring Thea and Gracie along. It starts at seven. Look forward to seeing you!”
Francesca must have seen the shock on her face because she leaned over Daisy’s arm to look at her screen. “What, what is it?”
Daisy didn’t try to hide the message from her, instead turning the phone so the other woman could read it. Surely Felix had meant to invite Francesca too? Perhaps he just forgot.
“Oh, how proper of Felix to message the staff,” Francesca cooed after a beat. “I never took him as one to follow etiquette like that.”
“Have you even met Felix?” Daisy asked before she could think better of it.
Francesca’s eyes narrowed into slits. “Yes, of course I’ve met him. Nicolas introduced us.”
“Right, of course, my mistake,” Daisy muttered, shoving her phone in her pocket.
Francesa folded her arms, her nose wrinkling as if she smelled something bad as she looked Daisy up and down several times. “You know, Daisy, I really don’t appreciate these little comments of yours. It’s hardly professional, and it doesn’t set avery good example for the girls. I’ll expect you to be on your best behavior at the Club later.”
“Wait, you want to go to that?”
“Well, of course I do.” She tossed her blonde hair over one shoulder. “Make sure Gracie’s packed up and ready to go by half past six. Oh, and I suppose Thea can come too, if she has to.”
***
That evening, Daisy stood outside the imposing building of the Pine Shadow Club, gnawing her lip. Francesca had stopped them to check her makeup in a little compact, and when she was satisfied with the perfect line of her red lipstick, she shut it with an audible snap and waved her arm at Daisy.
“Give Gracie to me.” She didn’t wait for Daisy to hand her over before practically snatching the baby out of her arms. Gracie fussed, but mercifully didn’t start crying, and Daisy fought against the maternal instincts that rose in her chest at Francesca’s mishandling of the little girl.
Gracie wasn’t her daughter. It wasn’t her place. But still, her protective drive was hard to ignore.
Francesca shook out her hair and pasted a glamorous smile on her face before waltzing into the Pine Shadow Club, Gracie bouncing on her hip.
“Come on then,” Daisy said to Thea, who was eager to run off and find her friends, “let’s get this over with.”
The Pine Shadow Club was much busier than normal, with pack members and their families mingling in the intimate space, holding elegant glasses of champagne and nibbling on hors d'oeuvres. Thea immediately disappeared into the crowd,and Daisy watched her go with an amused smile. She had long since stopped being nervous about her daughter running wild with the other kids in the pack, so long as they stayed in the Club. Nothing would happen to any of the children with so many alphas standing guard.
Francesca wavered slightly, pausing in front of her, her eyes jumping from one family to the next. She was out of her element, and clearly feeling it.
Daisy couldn’t help but take pity on her. “The bar is over there, they do a good selection of cocktails. Usually, the mothers sit over there by the fireplace, they’re a lovely group. Human and shifter.”
Francesca nodded imperiously, as if she knew all that information already, and cleared her throat. “Where’s Felix? I’m sure he’ll want to say hello.”
“Oh,” Daisy scanned the crowd, looking for a head of dirty-blond curls. “If he’s not here, he might be upstairs in his office with some of the higher-ranking pack members. Although usually he sits over by the…ah! Yes, he’s over there.”
“Excellent,” Francesca said before pushing her way through the crowd.
