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SIX
THEO
Sooner or later, Serena was bound to come up. None of the other nannies asked, probably because they didn’t care enough. But Hadley isn’t like them. For one, childcare isn’t her primary career. She was telling the truth when she told me she graduated from Emory University with both an MBA and a Juris Master’s degree, which makes me wonder why she would need such a complex degree. Sure, her family business is successful, but it’s nothing compared to the world of corporate finance. Her degree is almost useless in a business like the one her family runs, unless her brother has bigger aspirations.
She doesn’t drink the wine I poured; instead, she holds onto the glass, cradling it in the palm of her hand. Her hair is a little wild, probably from the wind, and there are freckles sprinkled along the bridge of her nose and sun-kissed cheeks. None of the previous nannies looked like her either. I certainly didn’t feel drawn to them the way Hadley pulls me to her.
“What have you and the kids done this week,” I ask, hoping to prolong the evening.
“What else do you want to know? I email you daily reports.” She finally lifts the glass and takes a sip of the wine. I’m enthralled by the way her full lips brush against the rim.
“Tell me anyway,” I insist.
The way she talks about Colton and Piper, about taking them to the beach, watching them play in the sand, it’s so natural. None of the other nannies had this kind of relationship with my children after a week.
“I’m astonished by how dirty Colton gets,” she says with a laugh. “He’s like a dirt magnet.”
“Yes, he is,” I say, though it’s a detail I’ve never paid much attention to until now. Damn, she knows my kids even better than I do, and it’s only been five or six days.
After Serena left, I was thrust into an entirely new role. I had to be both mother and father, and I wasn’t prepared. I spent most of my time in Portland, working, and on the weekends, I came home to see my family. It worked for us, and Serena didn’t seem to mind because it paid for this house, for the designer clothing, and for the Mercedes she drove. I provided her with what I thought was a perfect life.
It was more like a perfect lie.
“Good night,” Hadley says, setting her almost full glass of wine on the table next to the couch.
“You’re going to bed?” I glance at the clock and realize it’s past eleven.
“Yes. It’s been a long week.”
“But you didn’t finish your wine,” I insist.
She wrinkles her nose. “I don’t really like wine. I prefer moonshine.”
“You’re joking.”
When she smiles, it fills her entire face. “Nope. You can take the girl out of the country, but you can’t take the country out of the girl.” She leaves me with a giggle, heading up to the guest bedroom.
It’s been a week since I invited Hadley into my house and offered her a job as my children’s nanny. She started out as a stranger, but tonight, she felt familiar, like an old friend. When I hired her I trusted my gut, but all week I kept a close eye on every security camera installed in the house because my instincts have betrayed me in the past. The background check eased some of my nerves, but a paper trail doesn’t tell a person’s complete story.
I wander through the house, locking doors, checking windows, searching dark corners. After Serena left and our marriage ended, I questioned everything and everyone, including myself. I locked myself away in this house because I no longer trusted myself or the people around me. The only people truly innocent were Colton and Piper. Before I can fall asleep, I check on them, making sure they are still snuggled deep in their beds.
I should have been home for dinner, to spend time with them before leaving them for another week, but after I stumbled through my first day back in the office, it was far too easy to become the version of myself who is eager to please his clients.
Light spills out from beneath the door of the guest bedroom and after a minute of standing in the hall, watching, and waiting, it disappears.
Hadley made it too easy for me this week with her constant barrage of texts and emails. Maybe that’s why I wasn’t in a rush to get home tonight, I knew my kids were safe and happy. But there’s something else too, something that forces me to take one step closer toward the guest bedroom door. Throughout the week, I found myself searching through the pictures for the ones with all three of them. Those glimpses of Hadley reminded of the way I felt drawn to her from the first moment we met. Everything about her – her rich chestnut colored hair, her jade-green eyes, her freckles, and her delicious curves – intoxicated me instantly.
And for the next two days, we’re going to be in the same house, sharing the same space. I’ve never been so eager for Monday to come.
In the morning, I wake to the smell of something sweet. Turns out, it’s pancakes.
“Daddy!” Piper shouts as I walk into the kitchen. She launches herself at me, wrapping her little arms around my neck and peppering my cheek with kisses. Her hair is a wild mess and she’s wearing a pair of pink and white polka dotted pajamas. “Hadley’s making pancakes!”
“I see that,” I tell her before setting her back down on her feet. Hadley glances at me over her shoulder and smiles. “It’s your day off. You don’t have to cook for us.”
“It’s okay,” she says before turning her attention back to the stove.
She piles fluffy golden-brown pancakes onto a plate and sets them on the table in the eat-in kitchen. They smell amazing and Colton’s eyes grow wide when he sees them. “Daddy used to make pancakes,” he tells Hadley. “Now all he makes is oatmeal.”
