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“How hard?” Is this really happening right now? As soon as she leaves my house I’m going to call Savanna and give her a piece of my mind. There’s no way my sister actually thinks Autumn is the right person for the job, but I told her I’d interview whoever she sent and I’m not one to back out on my word. “I’m going to hurt Sav for this.”
Autumn scoffs. “Same.”
Not only is Autumn completely unqualified for the position, but she’s acting like she couldn’t care less about it. “I’ll give you a call when I have a decision for you. Let me show you out.”
Her mouth drops open and she blinks at me in surprise. “You’ll call me?” She shakes her head and frowns. “I don’t have time to wait for that.”
Has she ever gone through a proper interview in her life? I’m starting to think not because there’s no way she’d be able to talk to real employers like this and get away with it. I rub a hand over my face, the hair on my chin scratching at my palm, and groan. “Looks like you’ll have to.”
“Come on, Easton, give me a damn chance,” she snaps.
It’s hard to focus when her face is red with anger and her chest lifts rapidly with her ragged breaths. There’s nothing prettier than that red color on her, but there’s no way I’d ever admit that aloud. I shake my head at her. “I’m not sure what you thought was going to happen, but this is my daughter we are talking about, Autumn. She’s important to me.”
“What, you think I’m going to fucking neglect her or something?” When I’m silent, she flinches away from me like I’ve slapped her and lifts quickly from the couch. “I told Savanna you’d never accept me. Looks like she’s getting me that new bag after all.” She sighs and shakes her head. “Thanks for talking to me at least.”
“I need her to be safe,” I snap. “As of right now, it’s not looking like that will be with you. Tell my sister the next time she wants to send someone over here for an interview she needs to speak to me first.”
Autumn groans. “God, Easton, you need to learn to trust other people aside from yourself.”
“There are people I trust; you just aren’t one of them.”
She nods and smirks at me. “Oh, is that right? So, tell me Easton, why are you not letting Bethany go to your parents’ house?”
My eyes turn into thin slits, wishing looks could kill right about now, and I say, “They need a break.” It’s what I’ll keep telling myself over and over again until I believe it, but everyone knows that’s not why.
A couple months ago, while I was working, there was an incident in the kitchen – it caught on fire for a brief moment before my mother contained the flames – and immediately after that I was researching homes for sale. It was about time I got out from under my mother’s roof, but that’s not the main reason I got out of there. I don’t mean to be this way and I’m trying to change. Should I start now by trusting someone I normally wouldn’t?
“Easton, have I ever given you the impression that I’d do anything to harm her?” There’s hurt shining in Autumn’s eyes and it makes my chest ache.
“It’s not that simple, Autumn.”
There’s nothing simple about how hard it is to keep my gaze from looking into her bright blue eyes, or the freckles scattered along her nose. At one point years ago Autumn went from looking like my sister’s friend to this drop-dead gorgeous woman I couldn’t control myself around, which is why I bickered with her more than anything else as a way to keep my attraction under control.
It also didn’t help that I was with Elena for a while, so it didn’t feel right to be attracted to someone else even if the relationship Elena and I had wasn’t as romantic as everyone would like to believe.
It doesn’t change the hurt I feel on a daily basis when I wake up and realize she’ll never walk through the front door to greet Bethany again.
Autumn narrows her eyes at me and shakes her head. “Are you kidding me?” She pops her hip out, placing her hand over it, and I can’t stop my eyes from trailing down her long legs. The mint green dress she’s wearing stops mid-thigh, giving me the best view of her smooth skin, and I have to avert my eyes before she realizes I’m staring. “This is ridiculous. I’m done with this.”
“Wait,” I choke out.
This is either going to be the best or worst decision I’ve ever made, but the thought of not only making Savanna upset, but Autumn as well, doesn’t sit right with me.
Chapter Two
Autumn
An interview has never gone as terribly as it is right now. It’s like as soon as I’m in Easton’s vicinity I turn into this red-headed bimbo who doesn’t know how to hold herself together. There’s no reason I should be angry that he doesn’t want me watching Bethany while he’s away, considering how horrible I’ve been throughout this entire process.
“What?” I mutter.
I’m more than ready to get out of this place and never show my face again, that’s how embarrassed I am with this interview.
“You’re prepared to stay in the guest room here, right?” He asks.
I nod slowly. “That’s what Savanna told me.” There’s also the fact that my lease is about to be up soon and it would help me out if I did stay here. I’d save money on renting a new place which means I can leave town much quicker.
At first, when Savanna brought up that Easton was looking for a nanny, I immediately said no, but she managed to convince me to help him out. Apparently, he’s been trying to search for a nanny for a while now and hasn’t had any luck. Savanna thought I’d be the perfect option since I’ve been around Bethany quite a bit over the years.
