Page 32 of Nanny for the Mercenaries

But underneath the embarrassment was another emotion that I was fighting. Desire. The feel of Jordy’s body was permanently imprinted on my brain. When I closed my eyes, I saw him sprawled out underneath me, bronze skin bulging with powerful muscle.

“Do you play any other games besides Minecraft?” I asked Kaylee to distract myself.

That proved to be an hour-long discussion of all the other games she played on her computer. She was passionate about all of them, and launched into long lectures about the best and worst strategies to use in each game. For a while, it did the trick of distracting me from everything going on with her dad.

I really enjoyed nannying for a girl her age. The last gig I’d had, the kids were three and five years old. Compared to them, Kaylee practically took care of herself. And as silly as it was, I enjoyed playing Minecraft with her. My laptop could barely run the game, but I was able to join her in her world and help her build things. It was fascinating seeing her creativity flourish as she built a little castle on a mountain made out of pixelated stone blocks.

The guys didn’t get home at their usual time, so I put one of the pre-made meals in the oven. They also weren’t home by the time dinner was ready an hour later. I told Kaylee they were probably just busy at work, and that there was no reason to worry, but I felt myself growing anxious about the whole thing. Especially paired with the way Jordy had abruptly stopped texting me earlier.

I read Kaylee a bedtime story about dinosaurs and kissed her goodnight. Then I went downstairs and poured myself a glass of wine. It did little to calm my nerves. Neither did a second glass.

When I heard the garage door open, I practically jumped out of my seat with relief. I forced myself to sit back down and appear relaxed as they walked into the condo.

“Sorry we’re late,” Archer said. “It was a very eventful day.”

“Eventful? That doesn’t sound good,” I said.

“Only good things,” Archer replied. “Lots of paperwork and debriefings.”

“Jordy caught a terrorist,” Harrison said bluntly.

“What!”

Jordy walked inside with a huge grin on his face. “He’s exaggerating.”

“That is, quite literally, what happened,” Archer said. “We’ll let him explain it to you. For now, I need some food, a shower, and my bed, in no particular order.”

“I put the leftovers in the oven to stay warm. Kaylee went down about an hour ago, so she’s probably asleep.”

Jordy went upstairs to take a shower while the other two had some food. Harrison ate like a dog who didn’t know when he would be fed again. I was antsy and wanted to interrogate them about what happened today, but I could tell that both of them were too exhausted to talk. And when I did a quick internet search of the peace conference, there wasn’t any information about a terrorist.

They went to bed just as Jordy was coming downstairs. He had changed into gray Vuori sweatpants and a navy V-neck shirt. His hair was still damp and his cheeks were red from the shower.

“Okay, I’ve been a good sport for the past thirty minutes,” I said while handing him a plate of food. “But I’m going to explode if someone doesn’t tell me what happened today!”

He looked at the plate. “You’re Kaylee’s nanny, not our servant. You don’t need to feed me.”

“Stop arguing and tell me what happened! You caught a terrorist?”

His stomach rumbled, and he sat down without any more protests. “I was in the bathroom of a hotel when I heard a guy loading a gun. I waited until he left and apprehended him. Turns out he was some Russian terrorist who has very strong opinions about Transnistria.”

“Where is Transnistria?”

“Fuck if I know,” he said around a mouthful of food. “Somewhere near Moldova I think. Archer would know.” He pointed at me with his fork. “I was texting you when it all happened. That’s why I suddenly stopped responding. You were probably worried.”

“No, I didn’t think anything of it,” I replied. “Sorry for being a distraction today.”

He swallowed his food and gave me a rakish grin. “Are you kidding? I only went in the bathroom because I was texting you. You’re the whole reason I caught the guy!”

I felt my cheeks grow hot. “I wouldn’t go that far. You’re the one who texted me first. Just a lucky coincidence.”

Jordy shrugged and continued eating. I sipped more of my wine. A silence stretched, and the longer it went on, the more tense the air grew.

Finally, he finished his food and put down his fork. He leaned back in the chair and said, “I owe you an apology.”

“What? Why?”

“I crawled into bed late last night while you were asleep. And you were deeply asleep because I gave you a sleep aid. You probably think I’m some predator.”

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