He smiled. Too bad Penny wasn’t looking at him, otherwise she would have noticed how forced his smile was.
“I don’t have much time, so let’s just go downstairs, grab a quick drink, and I’ll give you their files. Their history is pretty thin. They were born in Bulgaria, in a small, poor town in the north-west. Their mother died at birth, and they ended up in an orphanage…”
Penny shot him a murderous look. “Downstairs.”
“Of course. After you.”
He seemed oblivious to why she had reacted so strongly, and that blew her away. Another thing she found suspicious was how he walked out of the room without a single good-bye to the kids. She did her best to compensate for his cold behavior, but it wasn’t easy when neither Juniper, nor Thorn seemed to understand her or want her in their personal space. She would have hugged them, but her feminine instinct kicked in, telling her they would have probably hidden behind the bed this time. It was weird… Three months in the Goldman household and they were so scared? Something wasn’t right here…
Back in the living room, Richard poured them both two fingers of whiskey, and handed her the children’s personal files. He waited for her to scan them, then glanced at his watch impatiently.
“Very little information,” she muttered.
“Yes, well… it’s all the Bulgarian government has given us. You’ll have to work with it.”
“Sure. Why Bulgaria, though?”
She had so many questions! Goldman didn’t seem very interested in having this conversation, so Penny made a note to talk to Marcia the first chance she got.
“You know what? Let’s get into that later tonight. We’re holding a cocktail party and inviting some very close friends to celebrate the adoption. You should come. Now that you’re directly responsible for their education, you should be here as much as possible.”
“Directly responsible? Here, not at the office?”
“No. I need you here more than I need you at Goldman Corp.”
Penelope couldn’t believe her ears. This was not happening. Not in a million years! She had nothing against the poor, scared children upstairs, but she had thought she had applied for a personal assistant job, not a nanny position. She was pretty sure the Goldmans could afford a real nanny who actually had the right experience and knew what she was doing.
She swallowed hard. “I’m not sure I understand…”
Richard set his empty glass on a random table, cleared his throat, and placed a warm, heavy hand on her shoulder. He smiled tensely.
“This is very important to me, Penny darling. I could never trust anyone more than I trust you, and you’re perfect for the job. Truly. You have no idea what a huge favor you’re doing me and my wife. And, don’t worry, your pay will reflect that. I need to know now: can you handle it?”
She dragged in a breath. He was staring right into her eyes, as if he wanted to get a glimpse of her very soul. She held his gaze and nodded.
“You can count on me.”
“Good. Now, go home and get ready for tonight. It’s going to be special.” He turned away, then stopped as if he’d just gotten an idea. “Oh, and please don’t take this the wrong way… I would really appreciate it if you didn’t mention any of this to Jacob and Linda. I know you’re very close to your parents, but this is very personal. Marcia and I will tell them in our own time.”
Penny felt like someone had just stabbed her in the heart. Or the stomach. She couldn’t tell which hurt most.
“So, they’re not invited tonight?”
“No, not this time.”
He never turned to look at her when he said the words. Silence fell between them, and after a minute, Penny took the hint that she was free to go. As she walked out of the house and got into the car that had been provided for her, she couldn’t quite identify why she was suddenly feeling so disappointed and humiliated.
CHAPTER TWO
Penelope hated that she had to cut the dinner with her parents short. She hated even more that she had to lie to them. Instead of telling them the truth, that she had to attend a cocktail party at the Goldman Mansion to which they hadn’t been invited, she chickened out, plastered a fake smile on her face, and told them she was going out with her new colleagues. When her mother got too excited over her daughter’s brand new social life, Penny excused herself and said she had to run to her apartment and change. There was no way she could spend another minute with them without feeling so guilty that she could throw herself out of a window.
She drove to her rented apartment in a daze. She couldn’t understand why she had lied to them to protect Richard Goldman, whom, apparently, she didn’t know at all. Now that she was really thinking about it, she was pretty sure her parents didn’t know him either. She parked her car quickly, took the stairs to the second floor, and threw her keys and bag on the couch once she saw herself in her small, two-room flat.
“Shower first.”
She turned the water on, and as she waited for it to heat up, she took off her clothes and removed her make-up. Staring into the bathroom mirror felt uncomfortable. Soon, she was looking into her own eyes as if she was waiting for the blonde woman in the mirror to speak up and try to defend herself.
“What was I supposed to do?” she sighed. “What was I supposed to say? Hey mom, dad… Rick Goldman sucks. He’s never given a shit about you. He’s throwing a party tonight, and you’re not invited. In fact, you know what? He specifically asked me not to tell you. So, there. I’m not his assistant, I’m his adopted kids’ nanny. Brilliant, right? That’s why I have a Business Management degree. To be a bloody nanny.”
