Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 87538 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 438(@200wpm)___ 350(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87538 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 438(@200wpm)___ 350(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
I’m still trying by the time it occurs to me that I should have seen Eira to the door, but by then, she’s already gone.
FIVE
Eira
I’ve only taken three steps outside little Guinevere’s building when my phone rings. I know it’s my sister before I answer it. Not because I’ve assigned a distinctive ringtone to her call, but because she’s gotten used to me not being at work for the last three months and as a result, she calls me throughout the day. I don’t mind. In fact, I quite like hearing her voice and knowing she’s safe. I just worry that she’s not enjoying where she is if she’s constantly calling me.
“Are you okay?” I ask.
“Sure,” Eddie replies. “I’m just home from lectures and about to start some work, then I realized I need to go to the library.”
Scintillating. “Okay, well I’ll let you get on with it.” I glance back at the building I’ve just exited.
Usually I have an instant connection with a family. Or not. Ordinarily, I leave an interview knowing whether or not I’m going to be offered the position. But with Guinevere, I’m not sure either way and…I don’t know if I want it. Not because Guinevere isn’t an absolute dot. She is. And not because it’s not in a great part of town—it is. But the flat’s small and Dax, the father… Well, he could be a problem for me.
The first rule they teach you at nanny school is about the line between you and the family and specifically, how not to cross it. I’ve always found it easy to stay professional—to look the other way when I see something I shouldn’t, or overhear a row that should be kept private. But there’s something about Dax that makes those boundaries seem…blurry. Maybe it’s the size of the flat. Maybe it’s because the agency told me Guinevere’s mother isn’t involved.
Maybe it’s the fact that Dax is completely and utterly, one hundred percent gorgeous.
From what the agency said, the position offers good money, which means I’m unlikely to turn it down. The economic conditions at the moment mean high-paying roles are few and far between. Nannies aren’t moving from well-paid positions, and there are fewer foreign wealthy families coming to London than ever before. For the last three months, I’ve been holding out for a plum role—something I’ve always managed to secure—but if something doesn’t come up soon, I’m going to have to compromise. My savings are dwindling and Eddie’s next three-month rent instalment is due next month.
“What about you? Are you okay?” she asks.
“Of course I’m okay,” I say. “I’m always okay.”
“How did the interview go? Do you think you got it?”
“No idea,” I say. Looking into Dax’s eyes was unsteadying. It was as if he could see me through to my bones. I felt a pull towards him as if I already know him, or somehow know I will know him. I can’t quite make sense of it.
Finding your charge’s father attractive is never going to end well, and I’ve been lucky to have dodged that dilemma for my entire career. In most of the positions I’ve held, the fathers haven’t been particularly involved with the children. They’re traveling or working and I have limited time with them. But that’s clearly not going to be the case with Guinevere’s father. Sharing a house with a man so disarming, so very attractive, might be…distracting. Probably better if I don’t get offered.
“I’ve got another one tomorrow. Something will come up.”
“Something with a Saudi prince whose wife died in a tragic accident, and he falls in love with you as he sees you care so well for his son and heir.”
I don’t even try not to roll my eyes. “Do you actually study any computer stuff, or are you curled up in bed reading romance novels?”
“There’s room for both,” she says defensively. “But seriously, I see a hot single dad in your future. A rich one.”
I glance back over my shoulder. There’s no doubt Dax is hot, even if he’s not my usual type. And anyway, if I saw him again, he’d be my boss. I’m not about to start any kind of flirtation with someone who’s responsible for my pay packet. I don’t even know if he’s single.
Not that it matters either way. He’ll be my boss and off-limits, or I’ll never see him again. It’s really that simple.
“I see you failing your exams in the future if you don’t stop thinking up plots about my love life.”
“I just want you to have a little fun. Shoot me.”
“I know. But I just want you to pass your exams. You’re going to keep me in the manner to which I want to become accustomed in my old age.” The fact is, once Eddie is out of full-time education and able to stand on her own two feet financially, I’ll be able to think about planning for my own future. Though I joke with her about funding my retirement, I don’t actually expect anything from her. Looking after me isn’t what I want for her. I just want her to be independent and happy.