AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Aggie!” Gracie called to me with an excited smile stretching her face. “Miss Olivia sings! She’s going to teach me some of her favorite songs! Isn’t that so neat?”
“Do you sing, Aggie?” Olivia looked up at me from where she sat next to Kyrin onthecouches.
I lowered the tray to the coffee table, my face burning red at being so close to the scene of the crime, so to speak. I half expected Zander to reach forward and stroke the back of my thigh, the way he normally did when Gracie was around, when he couldn’t touch me the way he wanted. When he didn’t touch me, I straightened and backed away. “Not even a little bit.”
“Olivia’s previous job wrapped up a few days early, Aggie. She’s able to start two days from now.” Zander nodded at Olivia and barely glanced my way. “We’ll keep you on for the entire month we’d arranged, however. You can help Olivia adjust to Gracie’s specific needs.”
I swallowed another devil lump in my throat and rested my hands on my hips. I dug my fingers into my skin, hoping the focused sting would save me from any unwanted display of emotion. “Of course. I’m sure Olivia doesn’t need much help, though. She’s a professional.”
Olivia granted me a megawatt smile. “I would never turn down help. You could show me around. Help a single gal get adjusted to a place like this. I’ll need to know all the secrets.”
I laughed along with her joking, but it sounded robotic. Her mentioning she was single made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end and I felt sick with jealousy. She was letting the guys know she was available. I backed up another step and clasped my hands in front of me. “I’ll let y’all get back to it.”
Before I could get out, I saw Olivia rest her hand on Kyrin’s arm as she smiled up at him. “She seems nice. I’m glad you’re hiring a professional, though. I’ve worked with kids who came from similar situations. It truly is necessary to have someone trained or kids fall behind so quickly. Do you know if she’s done any reading work with Gracie since coming here?”
Knight laughed, dismissing the idea completely. “That’s not Aggie’s area of focus.”
I closed the door and leaned against it, feeling the weight of the world on my shoulders. I’d gotten to the end of my time with the Graveses and I had nothing to show for it. I had no job, no offers, no Gracie, and I knew the moment I walked out of their front door, I’d have no men. I’d even lost my burning anger to exact revenge on Monroe. I just felt numb as I walked to the back yard.
Desperately ignoring the end being near had felt great while spending every night wrapped around all three of the brothers, but we still hadn’t discussed our feelings. Hearing them talk about me leaving so nonchalantly gave the impression that they were fine with it. They were just going to let me leave and I had nowhere to go.
I’d gotten so caught up in their lives that I’d forgotten about my own. I hadn’t insisted on more tests, hadn’t worried about sending out applications for other jobs, and I hadn’t bothered to protect myself from getting attached to the idea that I belonged to the Graves family as much as I felt like they belonged to me.
Rubbing my temples, I stared out at the vast property and sighed. I hadn’t even thought about reading with Gracie. Olivia was going to make me look so painfully bad at childcare. With her mention of her being single and the way she’d touched Kyrin, I wondered how long it would take before I was forgotten in every way.
37
***Zander***
“I’msorry,sir.I didn’t mean to interrupt.” Olivia walked into the library and looked around the couches at where I’d just sat down with my brothers and Aggie. “I was hoping that we could discuss Gracie.”
I placed my whiskey on the coffee table and held in a sigh. Olivia had been in the house for two days and there’d been zero privacy since she’d strolled in. “Is everything okay?”
She nodded and cast a glance at Aggie. It was fast and barely noticeable, but it’d been there. Judging by the slight furrowing of her brows, she wasn’t going anywhere until she got out her thoughts. “I was hoping we could talk in private.”
The tension in the room simmered higher. I knew that something was going through Aggie’s head, but there’d been no time to force it out of her. She’d hadn’t been in my bed since Olivia arrived and her excuses were wearing thin. My patience was wearing thin.
“Here.” Aggie stood up and motioned for Olivia to take her spot. “I was just going to slip upstairs to tell Gracie goodnight anyway.”
Olivia hesitated and winced. “I’m sorry, Aggie. She’s already asleep and it’s so important for her to get uninterrupted sleep.”
Kyrin shifted forward in his seat, frowning. “Aggie’s been taking care of Gracie just fine. If she wants to pop in on Gracie, she can pop in.”
“Oh, of course! I’m sorry.” Olivia moved past Aggie and patted Kyrin’s knee. “I didn’t mean to imply anything by what I said. I think I just have something else on my mind and it’s making me sound like a brat. I promise that this will only take a few minutes.”
I studied Aggie, frustrated that I couldn’t just pick her brain. “You can stay, Aggie.”
Aggie caught the way Olivia sighed and pressed her fingers to her mouth. Patting the back of my couch, but nowhere near touching me, Aggie didn’t even bother faking a smile. “This seems like a private conversation. I’ll see everyone in the morning.”
Knight stood up. “I was heading up to bed. I’ll walk with you.”
“Actually, I was hoping to speak to all three of you.” Olivia turned to face Aggie and clasped her hands in her lap. “Sorry, Aggie.”
Aggie laughed, the sound flat. “Don’t worry about it, Olivia. You’re the nanny. I’m not exactly a part of this after tomorrow. What’s that they say about need to know and all that?”
“Oh, Aggie, you’re the nicest. When I’m done here, I’ll join you in your room. I want to finish picking your brain before you leave.” Olivia turned back to me, dismissing Aggie. “It’s about Gracie’s reading level. I really worry that she’s fallen behind.”
I looked between Aggie and Olivia, but Aggie didn’t hesitate in leaving and shutting the door behind her. Sighing, I turned my focus on our new nanny and drummed my fingers on my leg while I listened to her. Time felt like it stopped as she went on, but I was responsible for Gracie’s education. I didn’t feel like I could leave in good conscience.
