Page 10 of Nanny for the Doctor

“How’s the staging life, Stevie?” I ask, trying to distract myself from the envy.

“Oh, it’s great. I’ve got some terrific Realtors I’m working with who are so detailed and open about how best to sell the house. It’s awesome. And you? You’re starting a new job?”

Finishing my bite of food, I nod. “Yup. Here’s hoping it lands me the money I need to go back to school. The family must be pretty well-off because they’re on the agency’s high-end list. I guess it’s sort of last minute, and the details are very hush-hush.”

Johnny pipes up as he takes a gulp of his beer. “Why would that be the case?”

“Um, lots of reasons, actually. They could be famous or just really private. Or they could be on the fence about the service, so the agency wanted to find the perfect person for the job. I’d just finished my previous job, and I guess they’re looking for someone who can be there basically any time, and not all nannies keep those hours.”

Stevie wipes her mouth with a napkin. “Oh, wow. So you’ll be there whenever they need you?”

“Pretty much.”

“That’s a demanding work schedule. I really hope they do pay you well for that.” She tips her head at me.

“Me too.”

Dinner falls into a back-and-forth of Stevie and Johnny discussing their day and me explaining what happened with the twins in full excruciating detail. We all laugh about it, but the embarrassment of allowing two kids strong-arm me is still fairly fresh.

“Did Reed say if you’ll have a scar?” Johnny is a little buzzed at this point, chuckling to himself about my split lip, and I’m about ready to throw a potato in his face.

“No. I didn’t think to ask. Besides, he was only in the room for, like, five seconds.”

“And I bet you were so bummed. You had such a crush on him when you were a teenager.” Johnny smirks to himself and then bursts out laughing.

My stomach drops through the floor. “I did not! You’re both way older than me. Gross.”

I know I’m blushing fiercely, but I’m also ready to keep defending myself. Thankfully, Johnny has already forgotten it.

As dinner wraps up, I say goodbye and thank my brother for all the help. It was nice, even if he did constantly pick on me about the fall.

But what else is new, right?

I’m surrounded by Stevie and Johnny’s arms as they hug me, and then I’m out the front door and very ready to crawl into my bed.

My apartment is pretty far from Johnny’s, though, so I have about thirty minutes to go before I can lie down and bury my face in my pillow.

Flicking on the radio, I start mumbling to myself.

“I can’t believe he brought up the crush. Ugh.”

My mind whirls as I remember how close we got that one night and Reed’s very disappointing exit. I’d wanted him to kiss me so badly when we were sitting on the porch, but we’d only stared at each other. Then Johnny came out like a walking cockblocker.

I fantasized about him all that night, and it wasn’t the last time, either. Every time Reed came over to visit over the years, I’d dream about him at night.

But then Reed met his wife, and Johnny met Stevie, and I was left on my own, caring for Grandma Linda. It’s no wonder I’m still so terrible around guys.

I’ve been dreaming about something that will never happen for so long, I forgot how to find happiness in the real world.

“But maybe this is your chance, Mae.” I meet my eyes in the rearview mirror as the light turns red. “Monday is going to be great. Just you wait. You’ll be off to college in no time. No more evil twins, no more debt, and no more sexy doctors taking up your brain waves.”

The light turns green, and I pull forward. “New house. New kid. New me.”

Chapter4

Reed

Henry sits on the couch eating cereal as I gather my stuff before going in to the hospital. We haven’t talked much since I got back from that double shift.

---