Page 9 of Nanny for the Doctor

“Two years! That’s forever!” I let my head fall to the table.

“It’s better than never. And you wouldn’t have to wait so long if you’d asked me for help sooner. I could have paid for some of Grandma’s care.”

“I know.” My voice is muffled by the wood in my face, and I sit back up. “I know. She didn’t want me to tell you. I just wanted to help. I was the one living with her, and you know how stubborn she could be.”

“I do. And Gram was lucky to have someone like you caring for her.”

“Thanks.” I smile sarcastically at him, but then the weight of all my debt settles on my shoulders again.

“You’re going to have to start saving.” He reorganizes my bank statements and looks back up at me. “This last nannying gig is over, right?”

“Yup. Ended with the trip down the stairs. I’m starting something else on Monday.”

“I hate to ask, but since I’m doing this for you and all. How’s the pay?”

I exhale hard. I hate talking about money, especially with my brother, who seems to be so good with it.

“It’s decent. There’s a chance for an increase after the first month, but yeah. It’s probably not a long-term solution. At least,Idon’t want to be doing it for the long haul. Nannying isn’t what I want to be doing for the rest of my life. I want to teach.”

“Hey, we’ll get you there.”

Johnny claps me on the shoulder, and I flinch. He’s found one of my many bruises.

“Also—” he pulls out another stack of papers, which look more like college guides “—there’s a bunch of good information in here about respectable school and grant programs that can help cover some of the costs. You may still need to take out a loan, but these could really cut back the amount, and they’re a much better option.”

“Grants?”

“Yeah, you’ll fill out the information about your financial situation and what you’ll be going to school for. You may be eligible for several student grants and scholarships. Those you won’t have to pay back.”

“All right.”

Johnny helps me fill out some of the forms and walks me through his extremely detailed two-year plan. It goes over everything I need to do to save up, from cutting back on coffee dates with my friend, Vicky, to how much I need to save each week to hit the monthly minimums for his tuition forecast.

It’s so much information, and as Johnny tries his best to help me through it, my mind reels at all the numbers and steps and cutbacks.

I’m not terrible at math, but there’s something about seeing my days planned out via spending that makes me despise numbers altogether.

“All right, you two. Let’s take a break for some dinner.” Stevie snaps Johnny and me out of our meeting, a hand on each of our shoulders, and we follow her into the dining room.

A massive spread of food is set out, and my stomach grumbles loudly.

“Wow, Stevie. This looks great.”

I smile at the potatoes and vegetables she’s sautéed. It all smells incredible and I sit down, ready to dig in. Between the gorgeous array on the table and the well-appointed home around me, I feel like I’m about to eat at a restaurant.

“It wasn’t all me. A true team effort.”

Johnny smiles at her, that obviously in-love expression he has taking up his whole face.

Not for the first time, jealousy burns in my gut as I look at them. They’re so clearly a unit, and their lives are really going places.

Johnny’s client list is getting bigger and bigger, and I’m struggling with a way to finally get my education. It’s like I can see him on a race track, outpacing me by laps while I trudge through the mud to get to the starting line.

I want that. I want an easy relationship and live in a house we both own, where we work jobs we love and picked for ourselves, not fell into just to make ends meet.

Not for the first time, I imagine pulling dinner out of the stove while my husband feeds the baby, happily babbling in a highchair. And not for the first time, Reed is starring as my hubby.

Ugh. I feel like a teenager again, and not in a good way.

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