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It was too late. I’d packed a box of Monroe’s things in with a pile of my neighbor’s dog’s poo. I’d had help by my neighbor. He’d even scooped the poo for me. I hadn’t just gone crazy and found random poo to grab and throw in. I’d mailed that box to Monroe’s desk at work with the special instructions that it was only for him to open, to save his assistant from the trauma. A couple of days of that poo sitting in the Texas heat and that box was going to knock Monroe on his ass when he opened it. I had to be out of my apartment and away from any places he would know to look for me before he got that gift.
“Agatha?” Dad’s voice grew tighter, the way it did when he was preparing to be my father the way the books had taught him. “I love you, honey. You have to do whatever it is that makes you happy.”
"It's hard to remember that this is supposed to make me feel happy. I just want to do the job I'm good at and these ignorant men keep getting in my way. Dad, I just... I lost everything because I wasn't willing to quit my job and give Monroe a kid and now look at me! I'm basically what he wanted. I'm just going to be taking care of someone else's kid, instead of his. I have to get a real job out of this. I don't know what I'll do if I don't."
"Being a nanny is a real job, honey. I understand what you mean, though. Just try to remember this is a stepping stone to where you want to be." He grunted. "Or you could just come home. There's no shame in taking a break."
“I mailed a box of dog shit to Monroe, Dad. I have to get out of town. This is the best way.” I giggled after I said it, because it was insane, and because I felt close to losing my mind. I wasn’t sure what I’d been thinking, but I’d laughed and laughed with my neighbor, John. “As much as I appreciate your speeches, I made this bed for myself and now I have to get in and sleep in it. I don’t want Monroe to be able to find me until after he calms down. He’d never look at the Graves’ home. Plus, I need to do this. Once they see my work, they’ll hire me, Dad. I know it.”
“I’m sorry. Did you just say you mailed a box of dog shit to Monroe Blake?”
I arrived at the gate to the home and sighed in relief when I saw a small metal sign over the speaker box that read Graves. “I did. I did say that and I did mail it. I don’t know what I was thinking, but it felt good. I’m just so pissed off, Dad. I’ve never been so angry. For a few minutes, I felt peace knowing that Monroe is going to open that box and have shit explode at him. At least, I hope that’s what happens. I don’t pray often, but this might be a case when I do.”
“Do not pray to have shit explode at your ex, Ag. That just seems like something God wouldn’t be into.”
I pressed the speaker button after rolling my window down and smiled. “I don’t know, Dad. I think God might be into seeing Monroe Blake suffer. Since he’s the devil.”
“Graves Residence.” The voice of an older woman crackled from the intercom.
“Yes, ma’am. I’m Aggie Young, the new nanny. I believe I’m expected.”
“Oh, yes. Please, drive up to the main house.”
Dad whistled. “The main house? Wow. How loaded did you say these guys were?”
I drove through the gate and felt my eyes go wide as the property stretched out in front of me. The sun was setting in the distance and it created a magical aura over the land. “Whoa.”
“Take pictures!” Dad grunted and swore at Brenda. “Remember to run if anything seems creepy. I’ve got to go, honey. Brenda just made off with my watch.”
I didn’t even get a chance to say goodbye. I was too floored by what I was seeing. There was a large lake to my left that stretched as far as I could see towards the west. On the east side of my car, there were rolling hills and more white fencing that separated the land. I could see several horses trotting along one of the fence lines and up ahead, a huge red barn stood proudly.
Trucks, tractors, ATVs, and even a motorcycle were parked around the barn, a clear epicenter of the property. I could see men inside the barn, but I made it a point not to look too closely. I wasn’t ready to see any of the Graves brothers just yet. I continued on and after driving under a line of trees, I finally got to see the mansion that they called a ranch. The home was made to look like a log cabin, but only if that log cabin had been made for the queen. It was huge, with at least three stories. I could see several balconies from where I sat in my car. The front porch was larger than any house I’d ever lived in. It probably had more furniture, too. There were more rocking chairs than any family could ever need and beautiful planters hanging with full plants spilling out.
I parked and turned off my car, too stunned to get out just yet. Monroe lived in a penthouse that had always felt like the lap of luxury. His parents lived just outside of the city in a mansion that made me nervous to breathe. The Graves home made both of those places look like my dad’s RV. It wasn’t just huge, it was beautiful and special. It was warm. It fit the three men I’d met that day in no way at all.
I was only able to force myself out of the car when a woman appeared at the top steps of the porch and smiled at me. Her polite wave reeked of impatience and I instantly felt like a kid who was tardy. I jumped out of my car and grabbed my suitcase.
“Miss Young, leave your bags and your keys with Kevin. He’ll take care of everything while I show you around the home.” The woman gestured towards a man rushing towards me, hand outstretched. “I’m Mary Garnet. I’ve taken care of this property for the last thirty years and my mother took care of it before me. I take this job very seriously and I expect the same from you.”
I found myself racing up the stairs and struggling to catch up to the woman. She was short and petite, but her legs ate up distance like her life depended on it. It wasn’t easy to keep up. “Yes, ma’am. And please, call me Aggie.”
She cast a long look at me before pursing her lips and looking away. “Miss Young will do for now.”
6
***Zander***
Icheckedmywatchfor the fifth time. Day one on the job and Agatha Young already had me waiting around for her. I wasn’t a fan of waiting on anything, much less the likely spy turned nanny. It’d been thirty minutes since I’d arrived on her wing of the house. I’d paced, I’d checked emails, I’d done everything I could to fill my time. I had things to do and waiting on the nanny wasn’t one of them.
I gripped the door handle to her bedroom and knocked with my other hand before twisting the handle. Irritation grew when it twisted and the door swung open. She hadn’t even locked the door. She’d just gone to sleep in a house with strangers and not bothered to lock the door. What was wrong with her?
“Miss Young?” I stepped farther into her room and frowned at the lump on the far side of the bed. I could just make out a few wild strands of hair sticking out of the top of the blanket. I ground my teeth together as I walked across the room and stopped at the foot of the bed.
Aggie was burrowed in her blanket, her head and face completely covered. The only part of her sticking out of the covers, besides her hair, was one long, bare leg. From hip to toes, her leg was exposed, revealing what felt like a never-ending length of silky-smooth skin and a small tattoo over her hip bone.
Against my better judgement, I moved closer to see that her tattoo was of a magnifying glass. I smiled before backing away. I got the joke. I even liked it. Her name was Agatha, she had a tattoo of a magnifying glass, and she supposedly worked in a career that basically was just her solving puzzles all day long. I shook my head and forced my eyes away from that bare leg. It was too enticing.
Standing safely at the end of the bed, I straightened my face and crossed my arms over my chest. “Miss Young! Will you be starting the day with my niece or should I tell her that you’ve already been fired?”
