Page 15 of Tempt

“Kat.”

I ignore the man getting out of his car nearby who checks out my tits on the way past.

The woman is familiar, and so is the judgmental expression. “Do you have a kid at the dance studio?”

“Yes, I do.”

One of the moms from yesterday.

She squares her shoulder. “So are you, the new…?”

I bask in her eagerness like it’s the last summer day at the beach.

“Yeah. I’m the new.” I smile and look around her toward the crowd of kids milling about. “Andy?”

“Hi, Kat!”

He careens toward me.

Looks like he’s in one piece.

Nanny, 1. World, 0.

Wait.

Something’s missing.

“Shoes?”

He dives back into the crowd of kids and returns with a running shoe in each hand.

Nanny, 2.

I might actually be good at this.

We head out to the street, and Andy looks across the road where another little girl gets picked up by her mom.

I look between them, seeing his expression screw up. “Is she your friend?”

“She was. Not anymore.”

“What happened?”

“We planted these seeds in pots, but I knocked hers over by accident and stepped on it.”

He reaches into his backpack and pulls out a jagged piece of black plastic.

Poor kid.

“Don’t sweat it. If she’s a real friend, she’ll forgive you.”

“Really?”

“Mm-hmm.”

We get to Daniel’s and I turn the door to realize it’s locked.

Even better, I left the key he gave me at my apartment.

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