Page 7 of Nanny for the Damaged Ex-SEAL

"Thank God you're done. Because we need to be there before the guests start to arrive. If we get there after the party has started, Amy will never let us hear the end of it."

I slip on my sunglasses as I make my way down my stairs. They’re not porch stairs, I don't have a porch; it’s two cement steps that lead directly from my front door. But I love the house, and the thought of losing it makes me sick. I gaze out the window at the house as Bria drives off.

I'd been to my parents' house earlier to help with the cooking. Dad had suggested we order catering, but Amy, being Amy, had refused. Bria couldn’t help with the cooking because she had to be at work. I’m the out-of-job sister. I have nothing else to do with my time. I sigh and stare out of the window.

"So, what’re we having? You helped with the cooking?"

I don't turn to face her. I keep staring out the window at the homes and streets and people flashing by. "Pie, macaroni and cheese, burgers, wings, more pies…all the things."

She nods excitedly. "I'm hungry. I didn't eat much. Busy day."

She notices my silence and falls silent along with me.

We arrive at my parents' a few minutes later, and only do I realize I’ve forgotten the gift I bought when Bria stretches to the backseat to grab what she got for Dad.

"Shit. I forgot my present at home."

"Sucks. What do we do? Do we go back to get it?"

I shake my head. "No, that'll be a waste of time. I'll just tell Dad I forgot it and I'll bring it next time. I just don’t want them to think I didn't buy anything because I'm out of a job."

Aria chortles. "They won't think that. But if it bothers you that much, then let’s share mine."

I object. "No, you don't have to do that."

"Yes, I do." She slides her fingers under the folds of the paper, carefully opening the giftwrap. Then she brings out what's in the box: expensive cologne, a nice silk tie in Dad's favorite color, and a designer pair of leather loafers. She pulls a smaller box from behind her seat and puts in the cologne and tie, then finds a small pack of wrapping paper and wraps it. She makes a little card by cutting a square of wrapping paper and folding it in half, then tapes it to the package and gives it to me with a pen to write my birthday wishes on. She does the same to hers. Just as she's finishing up, Amy opens the front door.

"What are you two doing in there? I heard Bria's car pull up twenty whole years ago."

"We’re coming," Bria answers.

"Come. Come. We're setting up," Amy says, and disappears back into the house.

"Thank you so much," I say to her.

She waves a hand at me. "It's nothing. I've got you."

As we walk up to the front door, I’m thankful I forgot my present at home, because what I got is nothing compared to what I have in my hands now. We go into the kitchen to see Amy and a friend of hers who helped us cook carrying trays of food out to the back. My parents have a huge backyard, and the sliding door separating it from the house is wide open, the fresh air breezing into the house.

"Please, bring the last ones," Amy says as she walks past us.

I set my gift on the table with the others and reach for a tray. I open the lid. Chicken wings. I put the lid back and pull it off the counter and make my way to the backyard.

Soon, the guests are pouring in through the front door and I'm smiling as we welcome them. The music is soft and mellow, just how I like it.

"Why's the music so slow? Amy, we need to crank the music up. We need to get the party started!" Bria says and laughs.

Amy shrugs. "That's how your dad likes it. That's how his friends like it, too."

To which Bria replies, "And that’s how you like it. What is this? A nursing home?"

Amy frowns at her and Bria laughs loudly.

Suddenly I hear my name called. I know who it is. That tiny voice is forever singed into my memory. I turn around.

"Aria! Aria!" Ethan screams as he runs toward me.

I squat down to take him into my arms. "Ethan, my boy!"

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