Two adults.
Two very different worlds.
United by one very similar love.
My children.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Penelope
The feel of his palm againstmine would be forever imprinted on my mind. It wasn’t a normal hand holding.
It felt… personal.
Raw.
It felt like something I never wanted to share with anyone else. Even the thought of talking about it out loud seemed to take away the specialness of it.
We hadn’t talked about it.
Bella had at one point looked over at us and smiled.
And then Eric had promptly thrown cake at Malcom’s face, shattering the moment as Trevor sighed and went. “Looks like I’m up.”
I helped him clean up Malcom and made my way back to the barbecue to grab a plate of food. Bella came with me and Eric trailed behind.
“I hope he’s paying you overtime for this,” Drew said as he handed me a plate and then took Bella out of my arms and held her.
I frowned. “Overtime? What are you talking about?”
Drew gave me an odd look. He’d been telling me funny stories about Trevor and the rest of the band on the road, stories that made me greedy for more Trevor, which was basically the worst idea on the planet at this point. I was already getting too attached, wasn’t I?
“Bella, why don’t you go sit next to Uncle Will and Aunt Angelica for a bit? You too, Malcom.” Drew said. They bothsprinted in the opposite direction. I made sure they actually listened to him and then faced Drew in curiosity.
“Look.” He licked his full lips. “It’s a good thing, what you’re doing for Trevor. I just don’t want him to take advantage of you.”
“Take advantage,” I repeated, feeling almost embarrassed. “I like the kids, love them actually. I was a teacher. I’ve always loved kids, and he needs help. That’s all this is. Plus, I don’t really think about it as a job, you know?”
His eyes widened. “You do realize they set their last nanny on fire?”
I laughed.
He joined in and shook his dark hair. “Yeah, you should get hazard pay.”
“They’re harmless.” I shrugged as Malcom tripped over his own feet and face planted in his hot dog. It fell onto the grass, Will picked it up and dusted it off then made a face at Malcom, which I’m sure prevented Malcom from crying.
“So harmless,” Drew echoed. “So, should we go out?”
My smile dropped as I turned and frowned at him. “I’m sorry, what?”
“On a date.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “Food’s usually involved, intelligent conversation on both sides, possibly more on yours, since I like to hear your voice. What do you say?”
“No,” Trevor’s voice answered for me. “She says no.”
Drew gave him a murderous look. “No offense, man, but she’s the nanny, not your girlfriend.”
I flinched.
