Page 3 of The Maxwell Brothers
Neither of my brothers was seeing anyone seriously, so I doubted Gran’s wish would come true anytime soon.
After she and Declan left, I headed up the spiral staircase to my daughter's room while Tyler waited for us downstairs. She was lying on the bed, reading her favorite story,Snow White.
"Paisley?" I said. "Want to go out on the boat?"
She jumped to her feet. "Yes, Daddy." Running up to me, she laced her small arms around my legs and looked up at me. "And can we also walk along the shore and collect stones, please?" Shewas batting her eyelashes, making me laugh. Paisley looked a lot like the Maxwell side of the family. We all had dark brown hair, though she didn’t inherit my blue eyes. Paisley had my mom’s green ones.
"Sure, Pea. Come on. Let's go."
When I got back, I’d have to look at a stack of applications to figure out the next steps, but it was only Saturday, and I had until Monday to tell the agency which candidates I wanted to interview. I was going to spend tomorrow looking at résumés before preparing for the week ahead. It was going to be busy. Summer was one of the peak times in the wine business, and I didn’t mind one bit putting in extra hours. Maxwell Wineries was my pride and joy. I got the wine bug from Dad. The two of us spent hours on the family vineyard when I was a kid.
As Paisley and I went down the spiral staircase, her laughter echoed throughout the house.
It was good that my family came and went whenever they pleased, and the door was always open to them. Between Gran, my parents, and my siblings, we never lacked company, but even so, it didn't entirely feel like a home.
Many years ago, I’d wanted a huge family, but I’d made my peace with the fact that it wasn’t in the cards for me. For now, I had one goal: find the best nanny for Paisley.
CHAPTER 2
LEXI
“Lexi,you don’t have to do this,” Dad said.
“Dad, we’re not having this conversation again. Besides, my interview is in half an hour. No way will I back down now. How is Mom feeling?”
“She’s taking it easy.”
“I’ll call you both after the interview. I have to get ready. I’ll talk to you later, okay?”
“Good luck, hon. And thank you.”
“Love you, Dad. Bye.”
As soon as the call disconnected, I started getting dressed. My interview was at eight o’clock sharp. I checked the weather, to make sure it wouldn’t rain. I enjoyed Chicago in the summer. Most people didn't like the hot and humid climate, but I loved it. It felt like one long vacation, which was pretty appropriate in my case. As an elementary school teacher, I had summers off, and usually I occupied that time with long, lazy days in the sun on Lake Michigan. But this summer, things were a little bit different. I decided to take a temp job.
My mom was in and out of the hospital after undergoing two heart surgeries this past year, and the medical bills were piling up. My parents were both retired, and there was no way theycould afford everything. Even though they didn’t ask, I offered to help. I put out my résumé, looking for any temporary job that would fit my qualifications.
I'd been looking for some sort of summer camp, to be honest, but the agency sent me something entirely different. I’d laughed as I went through the job description. It said “child-minder,” which was a fancy way of describing a nanny.
I looked in the mirror, nodding appreciatively at my bright yellow dress. It had a boatneck and wasn’t too short. It looked professional yet fashionable enough, and I felt totally comfortable in it. I braided my long brown hair, detangling the strands as I went. My hair was naturally wavy, especially in the summer when the air was so humid. I'd only applied a little bit of makeup around my eyes to make the blue in my irises stand out, and I was ready to go in no time.
I lived in a super-tiny apartment in a forty-story building near Edgewater. Besides the relatively low rent, what sold me on this area was that I had the beach and the lake literally in front of the building. I wasn't overlooking the lake, because those apartments were one-third more expensive than mine, but all I had to do was to take the elevator twenty floors, and I'd be outside right along it.
I loved walking, even in summer, but today I Ubered. My potential employer lived in Lincoln Park, which was about a fifteen-minute drive away. I could bike the distance, but I risked arriving a sweaty mess, and I wanted to make a good impression. Even mid-June was hot and humid in Chicago.
I left a bit early, not wanting anything unexpected to make me late for my interview. In the Uber, I drummed my fingers on my thighs while looking out the window. I was so curious to meet the little girl and her father. The job description didn't give me much to go on, except that it was a single parent household and that she was nine years old. It was a great age. I lovedbeing an elementary school teacher. At that age, an educator could have so much influence in shaping those little minds and feeding their curiosity about the world. I loved seeing everything through their eyes.
Kids had an innocence I adored. At thirty-one, I'd always hoped to have two kids by now, but things didn't work out, unfortunately. I’d had two long-term relationships that didn't end well, but it didn't matter. I had my friends and my parents, although they lived in Boston. I loved my tiny studio and my job. And I got so much love from all those kids I taught. Well, during the school year, at least. In summer, I was on my own.
Although, this summer was going to be different. I was hoping this job would pan out because it paid well—more than what I'd get at a summer camp. Besides, focusing on one child for once would be a nice change from my usual pace. But if things didn’t work out for whatever reason, I was determined to find something else.
My jaw dropped when the car stopped in front of the house—though mansion would be a more appropriate word. It was huge, with two stories, a white stone facade, a wraparound porch with columns, and a majestic staircase up to the entrance.
Wow.I rarely ventured on this side of town, though I knew they had lovely homes. But this wasn't pretty. This was like a small palace.
I wondered if it had a backyard. But even if it didn't, I was sure I wouldn't run out of options to entertain little Paisley in this huge house. I was a master at coming up with ways to keep kids busy, even when space was limited to a classroom.
"Thank you," I said to the driver before getting out of the car. I was still five minutes early, so I paced in front of the gate, glancing through the bars. A small stone patio led up to the steps of the front porch. There were gorgeous flowers and plants oneither side of the pathway going around the house. I assumed there was a backyard too.
