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She gave Poppy a smile. “Good for you. We need more girls in STEM. High five.” She held her palm up and, to my amazement, Poppy ran over and slapped it enthusiastically.
“So you don’t have a job?” Poppy asked. “Where do you live if you don’t have a job?”
“I have an apartment for two more weeks, then I’m going to be homeless.” Dakota looked pained at having to admit that out loud. To children, to boot. I felt bad for her and wished there was something I could do to help.
“I have a great idea,” Poppy said. “You could be our nanny. We need one, really bad, obviously. And you said you really need a job. It’s perfect.”
That would be my jaw hitting the floor.
Carson coughed.
“You would get to live with us,” Willow said, sounding excited. Willow never sounded excited about anything. “We have a pretty cool apartment.”
“Really?” Dakota said, the word drawing out. She looked at me and her expression made me forget how to spell my name. “I think it’s up to your father to offer a position to me.”
Was that a sexual comment?
In the history of bad ideas, this would be the very worst. I couldn’t have Dakota in my house, living down the hall, and not want to have sex with her whenever possible.
“You don’t even know what the job entails,” I told Dakota, desperate for her to say this was stupid and she would never even consider it.
“It’s really easy,” Poppy assured her, sidling up to Dakota and slipping her hand in hers.
I gave a snort. “Not that easy,” I said. “Given that six nannies have quit in a year.” Holy crap, I was screwed. Who was I going to hire? A convicted felon?
“I’m made of tougher stuff than that,” Dakota said.
I didn’t doubt it. Was Dakota really such an insane idea in comparison? I knew she was being evicted. I had paid her back rent, but the landlord had indicated he was still going to move ahead with kicking her out, he just would drop the official eviction so as not to ruin her credit, since I had caught her rent up. I wasn’t even sure she knew the back rent had been paid. But either way, she did need a place to stay and I needed a nanny. Desperately.
Even if it was going to be hell to resist her, I trusted her with my daughters. She was a kind and generous person. A little impulsive, maybe, but that was part of her charm. She would be good to Willow and Poppy, I had no doubt.
Besides, what was riskier, having sex with her at the office or at home?
I made eye contact with Dakota. “The job is yours if you want it.”
Her eyes widened. She moistened her bottom lip with the tip of her tongue. “I want it.”
I was so dead.
Poppy jumped up and down.
Carson said, “This is fun.”
“Go downstairs now with Carson,” I told the girls. “He’ll get you some ice cream from the cafeteria. I’ll meet you down there in twenty minutes. I need to discuss this with Dakota.”
They both opened their mouths to protest.
“Privately,” I said, as sternly as possible.
Willow made a face. “Whatever.”
Poppy waggled her finger at me. “Don’t blow this, Dad.”
Dakota laughed. I rubbed my temples. I wasn’t the one who would be doing the blowing if I didn’t get a handle on this situation.
“I’ve got it, Pop.”
I didn’t have a damn thing.
