AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Hey, you,” Nana’s housekeeper, Nora, says giving me a hug. “You look good.”
“Thanks.” I smile, feeling surprised. I’m usually told I look too tired, and she usually asks if I’m eating enough.
“Nana is in the living room having tea. She’s going to be so happy to see you,” she says.
“Thanks, Nora,” I reply and head deeper into Nana’s penthouse.
“Should I ask Anna to whip you guys up some lunch?” she asks.
“That would be amazing.” I nod. In the past when I would come here it would sometimes be my only good meal for a while. I suspect both Nora and Anna knew that and so they would make an abundance of my favorite dishes.
“Coming right up.” She smiles and gives me a head tilt. She stalks off and I head to the living room.
“Hi, Nana,” I greet before she can see me.
“I thought I heard your voice,” she replies. I reach down and give her a kiss. Her hair is professionally done, as usual, and she’s wearing a white cashmere sweater with gray slacks and fancy shoes. Even if she isn’t feeling well, Nana likes to take care of herself.
“I got a new job. I have the afternoon off so I thought we could spend time together,” I say, taking a seat in the wing chair across from her.
“I’m always happy to see my favorite granddaughter,” she says.
“I’m your only granddaughter,” I remind, not that she needs reminding. Even at eighty-five, her mind is strong and clear.
Nana smiles. “You look good, well rested,” she notes. Leave it up to Nana to check every inch of me. There were times I showed up here tired and hungry and she didn’t like it, but she didn’t push me to go back home either. She gave me a good meal and a listening ear.
“Funny, Nora said the same thing when I walked in.”
“Nora is perceptive,” Nana notes. “Now tell me about this new job.”
“I’m working with a lovely little girl. Her name is Syd and she’s super sweet, but she doesn’t speak. Well, at least she doesn’t speak to adults,” I begin.
“And what do you do for this little girl? Are you her art teacher?” Nana asks.
“Not exactly.” I twist my lips.
Nana’s brows pull tight. “I’m actually scared to hear what kind of job you have now. I always try to be understanding of your independence because I see so much of myself in you, but I should be drawing a line somewhere. I have this beautiful empty home with so much space. You could be living here with me.”
This isn’t the first time Nana has given me this speech. “It’s important I find my own way.”
“You know, when you were about ten you stopped talking too,” Nana shares. “Your mom couldn’t figure it out. Your dad was too busy to care.” She rolls her eyes. My dad is her son. Nana and Nonno came to America with little in their pockets and worked hard. Nana says it was a mix of blood, sweat, and luck that lead their empire to grow, but along the way they didn’t have time to raise Daddy properly, and so he’s a spoiled rich kid who grew up going to boarding schools. He was groomed to take over the family business, so when he married Mom and they had my brothers and me, they had no intention of raising us either. Nana always feels like that’s been her biggest regret in life, and I think it’s because I just don’t fit with my family.
“Why didn’t I speak?” I ask her.
She watches me carefully. “I don’t know. You were lonely and sad. Your dog, Bentley, had just passed. Your brothers were freaking out about you not talking and so I came over,” she says.
“I remember,” I say, looking away. Nana and I always had special talks. She would always ask me about my life and my feelings. It was something my parents didn’t care to do.
“I took you to buy Bentley the Second,” Nana says.
I laugh. Bentley the First was a little Bichon Frise. My parents hated having a dog in the house, but he was my best friend and he was a tiny little guy with white fur. Bentley the Second was a sixty-five-pound Bernese mountain dog. When my parents saw him they flipped, but Nana said I was keeping him and it was final. I started to talk to the puppy and that’s when I started speaking again.
I sigh.
“What is the new job, Ellie?” Her voice is stern but still filled with love and affection.
I lick my lips. “I’m a nanny.”
“A nanny, huh?” she says, and it surprises me. I seriously thought she was going to spaz. “And you like the job?”
