Page 27 of Mr. Wolfe's Nanny

I’d deleted her voicemail. There’s really nothing left for us to say that’s not been said and I keep hoping she’ll accept it and move on. “I was in New York the past month. Things have been hectic with work.” I don’t want to be too blunt in front of Quinn.

Nadine’s eyes cut to Quinn and expectantly back towards me. “Uh, this is Quinn Batista, the children’s new nanny. Ms. Quinn, this is Mrs. Childress. Her son’s one of Ryder’s friends.”

“Oh, you’ve got a new nanny! Hope this one works out for you finally. Are you still in school, honey?” The condescension in her tone is hard to miss.

Quinn bristles. “I was a teacher for six years before coming to work for Mr. Wolfe.”

“Oh, here I was worrying Theo was on the verge of robbing the cradle just to find himself a reliable nanny. It’s nearly impossible to find a woman who suits him for long. From a teacher to a nanny, you say? That’s an interesting career move.” She smirks. What the fuck, Nadine?

“We’re due inside soon. We’ll see you around.”

Nadine grasps my hand and pulls it towards her body. “Okay but call me anytime, Theo,” she begs, batting her eyes at me.

Yikes. I pluck my hand free, feeling embarrassed on her behalf. Was she always this desperate acting?

Nadine sashays away and I turn back to Quinn except she’s not there. She’s walking briskly towards the front doors, several feet ahead of me.

I have to jog to catch her and, as I barely make it in time to open the door for her, she shoots me a look. “Thank you…Theo.” It’s been a long time since a woman has said my name with that amount of venom behind it.

“You’re welcome?” I have the distinct impression I’ve fucked up somehow.

13-Quinn

This is stupid. Theo and I aren’t anything. Okay, he’s my employer. I live in his home and take care of his kids. And yeah, we had sex once but that was before we even knew each other’s names. Who knows who he’s slept with since then? Ugh, that doesn’t make me feel any better.

So why am I jealous ofthatwoman?

If I’m going to suffer pangs of envy regarding Theo, which I shouldn’t, it’d make more sense to have them regarding his deceased wife. But one thing I’ve learned from therapy? We carry our dead with us, they’ll always be there. It doesn’t mean there’s no room for anyone new.Not that I’m looking for that with him.

However, Nadine’s not only wealthy, older, gorgeous and probably a ton more confident than me but her behavior had been so obviously proprietary, her eyes telling me in no uncertain terms that she considers Theo hers. And the condescension in her tone? My ‘interesting career move’ and she called mehoney. God help me, it rankled.

Theo, on the other hand, had looked uncomfortable with her display and followed me quickly enough into the school. There’s history there but how recent is it?

“Is something wrong?” he whispers after we’re shown into the counselor’s office and are waiting for the lady to join us.

“No, I’m fine,” I huff. I’m not fine. I’m a pathetic pit of jealousy at the moment. What is wrong with me? The man just told me this morning we’d have to keep things professional. How sad is it that I felt crushed by it?

“Is it because I came with you? Were you even planning to tell me about this visit if your car had been working? Just because I work a lot of hours doesn’t mean I’m not invested in my children’s lives, you know.”

Stunned, I turn to look him in the eye. He’s not angry exactly. He’s more wounded. My jealousy feels so petty now. Jill is his child and I made this appointment behind his back.

“I was going to tell you. I overstepped, I’m sorry. I should’ve made the suggestion to you first. In the future, I’ll always check in with you, alright?”

A slow nod. “Alright.”

“Hello, Mr. Wolfe, and you must be Ms. Batista,” the counselor says, greeting us as she walks in. She sits down heavily and pulls out a folder. “Now, after your email, Ms. Batista, I did some checking with the teachers who interact with Jill regularly and even spoke with a few students. I’ve made some… discoveries.”

‘Discoveries’ doesn’t sound very good.

It’s not.

∞∞∞

An hour later, we’re heading home, feeling gutted. Lady Ducks may have returned partly due to Theo’s accident but Jill needed her for more than that. According to the counselor, Jill’s had difficulty making friends since she started. Theo knew but not the extent of the trouble.

Some of the children have turned Jill’s wondrous imagination into a source of amusement, very unkind amusement.Silly Jilly. The name isn’t particularly harsh but its ability to wound is unquestionable.

Far worse than that though is Jill Kill.

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