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I swallowed hard. “I suppose, especially if it’s relevant to a position.”
Leaning back, she lifted a brow. “You stated your ex-husband insisted you be at home. Do you have kids?”
I got the same feeling that I’d had with the lady on the plane. Like we had some shared experience, and this woman could look into my soul and see all of my secrets. I cleared my throat, knowing I was probably going to regret being so blunt, but the part of my life that had me being the dutiful and obedient woman was over.
“Mrs. Piper, forgive me, but I need to be frank with you. I left Dallas—and a life I would rather forget—behind me. If you need to ask questions that have to do with a job, then by all means, I’m an open book. If you are asking me about my personal life, I’m afraid you’ll be wasting your time.”
A smile grew on her flawless face. She was truly beautiful. “I already have a position in mind for you, and itwouldbe better if you were single with no kids. Not that it would take you out of the running, but it certainly makes things easier for both of us.”
With a nod, I replied, “Then we’re both in luck. No husband. No kids.”
She smiled. “How about a nanny position?”
I tilted my head and let that idea settle for a bit. “For how many kids? What age?”
“One child, age five, single parent. It would be a live-in position. He has a carriage house that’s been converted to a garage with a darling one-bedroom, one-bath apartment upstairs. It connects to the house by a connecting balcony. It’s outside of Estes Park, off of MacGregor Avenue, and is tucked in the valley with a three-sixty view of the mountains.”
My heart started to beat a bit faster at what she was saying. That would take care of a jobanda place to stay all in one. The owner of the cabin where I was staying was charging me by the week and it wasn’t cheap.
“That sounds like something I’dvery muchbe interested in.”
“I suggested it to you because Aiden—I mean, Mr. Bishop—was also looking for someone who might be qualified at schooling his daughter.”
“Is she not going to school?” I asked.
“Yes, she just started kindergarten, but he’d still like for her to be challenged at home as well.”
I wrung my hands in my lap. Thelastthing I wanted was to be thrown into a family where the father had no time for his child and wanted to leave it up to a stranger to raise his kid.
“Mrs. Piper, do you mind if I ask more about Mr. Bishop? Why is he in need of a full-time, live-in nanny?”
Her eyes softened as she cleared her throat. “The information I’m about to share you with stays in this office.”
“Of course,” I replied.
“Mr. Bishop’s wife died of cancer.”
My heart sank.
“He’s done his best to be there for his daughter, Hadley, but with her starting school and him working full time, he’s struggling to do it all on his own. He’s very much a hands-on parent, but he’s slowly realizing his daughter needs a woman figure in her life as well. Someone to teach her things that Aiden—I mean,Mr. Bishop—cannot. He’s in desperate need of someone to help him.”
I nodded. “I see. I’m sorry to hear about his wife. What do you mean when you say he’s in desperate need of help?”
She folded her hands and leaned over her desk. “Emma—may I call you Emma?”
“Yes, of course.”
“I know Mr. Bishop personally. He’s my cousin, and he’s been through one heck of a year. He’s a man of faith, but those who are closest to him have seen that faith shaken. He took a few months off of work to be with Hadley after his wife passed away, but the park really needed him back. By park I mean the Rocky Mountain National Park. Mr. Bishop is a law enforcement ranger. He’s been back to work full time for a while now, with his parents taking care of Hadley, but it’s been hard on all of them. Mr. and Mrs. Bishop love their granddaughter, but they own their own business in town and really need to get back to focusing on it. Hadley’s other grandparents…well, they’re not in the picture. So really, Mr. Bishop only has his family to help.
“As you can imagine, he’s dealing with his own grief and trying to adapt to being a single parent raising a daughter. I was the one who suggested a nanny. When I saw how you were withmydaughter in just the brief moments I watched, I had a feeling about you.”
A strange warmth ran through my body as I looked at Mrs. Piper. There was something about the woman that made me feel at ease. I felt a connection with her, and I had the feeling she felt the same, especially given her comment.
“Where are you staying?” she asked me.
“At a cabin on the river. It was where I stayed a few times as a child, when I came to Estes Park with my parents.”
“Well, let me tell you more about the job. Your monthly salary would be three-thousand dollars flat. You’ll be responsible for the electricity and water in your apartment. Do you have a car?”
