by Jenna Brandt
“Is that so?” she asked, eyeing his outstretched hand skeptically. “I’ve never heard him mention you.”
“I tend to fly under the radar,” Conrad explained. “I’m not one for attention.”
“You could have fooled me,” she said, crossing her arms instead of shaking his hand. “A man that doesn’t want attention doesn’t usually strike up a conversation with a stranger at a wedding. Come to think of it, I doubt that type of man would come to a wedding at all.”
“That’s the best part about a wedding; no one is paying attention to the guests. The focus is completely on the bride and groom—at least, for most people, unless they have a keen eye, like I do. When I see something worthy of further observation, I make it a point to investigate,” he stated pointedly, as he looked into her eyes.
“I should probably go check on the bride,” she gestured over her shoulder. “Her dress isn’t the most restroom-friendly.”
“She seemed to manage just fine,” he corrected. “She already came and left while I was on a business call, which means, you don’t have an excuse to dodge me.”
“That’s not what I’m doing,” Celeste defended. “But I really do need to get back to the reception.”
She wasn’t sure why, but Conrad Gaines made her uncomfortable. Perhaps, it was his uncanny ability to see through people, or the way he bluntly told the truth, but whatever it was, she needed to get away from him.
“There you are,” Roger stated, coming down the hallway. “I was looking for you everywhere.” Then he seemed to notice the other man, and added, “Oh, and I didn’t know you were going to be here, Conrad.”
“You probably hate that, don’t you, Roger, the fact that Bryce saw fit to invite me?”
“Why would I? He invited all of his business contacts,” Roger stated coldly. “We’re needed back inside. You ready, Celeste?”
She nodded and didn’t object when he took her hand and placed it in the crook of his arm, then guided her back to the reception.
“What’s the deal between the two of you?” Celeste probed.
“We went to college together. He was there on scholarship, while I was clearly not. I hate to admit this, but my friends, along with myself, weren’t the nicest to him. After we all graduated, I thought I would never see him again, but he ended up creating a rival energy company based off solar technology he created. His headquarters is in Manhattan, and he is constantly bidding against Boswell Oil for projects. I think partly to get under my skin, though it never worked since I didn’t really take an active role in the company until recently.”
“Oh, I had no idea. Why would Bryce invite him here?”
“They’ve done business together, and we all run in the same social circle. He might be a self-made billionaire, but he is a billionaire, and there aren’t that many of us. We tend to know all the same people. What did he want, anyway?”
Celeste debated if she should tell him, but she wasn’t one to keep secrets. “I think he was interested in me.”
“Is it mutual?” Roger asked, glancing over at her with a look she could have sworn was jealousy.
“No, I’m not interested in dating anyone right now. I’ve got enough on my plate with the Boswell boys,” she said, playfully punching him in the shoulder. “So, don’t worry about him sweeping me off my feet.”
“Good to hear,” Roger said, “I would hate to have that happen.”
Celeste wondered if he felt that way because she was Marcus’ nanny, or because of the spark that was smoldering between them. She hoped it was both.
They re-entered the reception and headed to the dance floor. The rest of the night passed by with dancing, and spending time with their friends. Despite the endless distractions of the wedding, Celeste couldn’t keep her mind from racing with thoughts of Roger.
She found herself stealing glances at him when he wasn’t looking, and her heart sped up when she found him looking at her. In those moments, she wondered what he was thinking. By the end of the night, she realized she was forming feelings for Roger, and she had no idea what she was going to do about it.
7
As soon as they arrived home after the wedding, the trio returned to their normal routine. The grind of work was wearing on Roger, but he wasn’t about to admit that to anyone. He just had to continue doing what was required of him to prove he could keep managing everything without failing.
Celeste was being great about the situation, but Roger felt guilty for not looking into finding another nanny. He knew Celeste had a life to get back to, and he didn’t want to keep her from it.
The third agency Roger contacted seemed like they would be a good fit and told him they could set up interviews as early as next Monday. The problem was, Roger was dragging his feet. He told them he would get back to them, but part of him wondered if he would actually follow through.
The idea of not seeing Celeste every day didn’t set well with Roger. Not only did he enjoy her company, but he honestly didn’t know if anyone else could fill her shoes. Yes, he could hire another nanny, but it just wouldn’t be the same. A new nanny could take care of all the chores, and proficiently watch Marcus, but no one could ever be Celeste. Plus, he wondered how Marcus would feel about a new nanny. His son had already had so many upsets, he wouldn’t want to create another one by having Celeste leave. Yet, he knew it was only a matter of time before it happened.
Roger wasn’t sure how Marcus became such a priority, but he found himself constantly worrying about his son’s well-being. He often wondered if he was handling being a father correctly. Was he making the right choices? Was he being a good example? Though Roger enjoyed being a father, he worried he wasn’t good at it.
Though his personal life seemed to be coming together, his professional one was a different story. His shadowing with Daniel Maddox was anything but smooth. The man had it out for Roger, and no matter how many times he got something right, it didn’t seem to improve his opinion of Roger.
He needed a break, and that’s why he was grateful he was able to take off early today. He planned to surprise Marcus with a special outing. He couldn’t wait to see his son’s face when they arrived at the destination.
Celeste and Marcus came out of the apartment building and climbed into the back of the Town Car. Both of them were dressed casually just as he instructed, wearing sweaters and jeans. Roger took a set of the same clothes with him to work and changed into them right before heading to pick them up.
“Where we going?” Marcus blurted out, bouncing up and down in his seat.
“I tried to tell him to be patient, but you can see how that worked out,” Celeste explained, gesturing to the boy with a laugh.
“It’s okay. It’s normal to be excited about a surprise,” Roger said, reaching out and patting his son on the back.
“You tell me?” Marcus inquired.
Roger shook his head. “Nope, that’s the best part about a surprise, the moment when you find out what it is. I don’t want to ruin that moment.”
A few minutes later, they pulled up in front of Central Park. Marcus was looking out the window and he turned to his father with a puzzled look. “We going to the park? We go here every day.”
“It’s not the park, exactly,” Roger explained, “but rather what’s inside it.”
As they arrived in front of the giant sign that read, “Central Park Zoo” with animals hanging off on both sides, Marcus asked, “What’s this?”
Celeste clapped her hands together as she squealed, “Your father brought us to the zoo! It’s my favorite place on earth. I’ve been coming here since I was a little girl.”
Roger hadn’t expected that reaction from Celeste, but he counted it as a pleasant side effect. The smile on her face made Roger giddy with pride that he put it there. He realized he liked making Celeste happy as much as he did Marcus.
They climbed out of the Town Car and were quickly greeted by a man in a zoo uniform rushing up to them with a friendly smile. “Hello, my name is Victor Johns
on. I’m your docent and will be giving you a private tour of the zoo. You can ask me anything, and I’ll either have the answer, or find out for you. You ready to get started?”
As the group made their way into the zoo, flashes of Roger’s childhood came to mind of his own nanny bringing him here. His parents never had time to take him anywhere, and he had a revolving door of nannies. One particular French nanny, however, stuck around longer than the rest. Her name was Millie, and she took a special interest in making Roger happy. She would take him to the park, to children’s museums, to story time at the bookstore, and to his favorite place, the zoo. Now that he thought about his own childhood, it was probably the reason he brought his own son here. He wanted to help Marcus make the same type of happy memories.
The zoo hadn’t changed much since Roger was a kid. Trellised, vine-clad, glass-roofed pergolas tied the three major exhibit areas together. There was the tropic, temperate, and polar zones, each housing a brick building trimmed with granite. The zoo also had a rain forest, a chilled penguin house, and a polar bear pool. There were also some endangered species including the tamarin monkeys, thick-billed parrots, and the red pandas, all of which intrigued Marcus to no end.
As they made their way through the areas, Marcus hung on every word that came from Victor’s mouth. He was enthralled and asked more questions than Roger could keep track of. True to his word, Victor had the answer for each question.
The final stop on their tour was the children’s zoo. Marcus was excited to check out the petting area which included rabbits, chickens, and ducks.
“I go pet ducks? Please, please,” Marcus begged.
“Of course, you can,” Roger relented, “do you want me to come with you?”
Marcus shook his head. “I do it myself.”
Roger wavered, wondering if he should let him. Celeste must have noticed because she said, “It’s okay, Roger. He’ll be safe. The area is enclosed and there’s several workers keeping an eye on the children.”
“All right. I guess that makes sense,” Roger said, sitting down on a bench at the edge of the zoo. “We’ll wait right here, Marcus.”
The little boy took off towards the animals and was bending down beside them within moments.
As Roger watched his son play with the animals, the boy’s joy was contagious. Roger wondered how he could have ever been so stupid in wanting Brianna to get rid of him. He was so glad she had been stubborn and hadn’t ended the pregnancy.
“I think he’s adjusting remarkably well,” Celeste observed. “He’s one amazing kid.”
“I can’t take any credit. As much as I don’t like to admit it, Brianna must have done something right over the past few years for him to turn out so great.”
“Or he was just born a good kid, and she didn’t have him long enough to ruin him yet. Maybe the best thing that ever happened was for him to come live with you where he can flourish.”
“I hope that’s the case. I want the very best for him,” Roger stated. “I’ll do whatever I can to help him and make his life happy.”
“Me too,” Celeste agreed.
“After this, I have plans to take you both somewhere else.”
“Where?” Celeste inquired, glancing over at Roger with interest.
“I’ll tell you but you have to keep it a secret so we can surprise Marcus.”
Celeste reached out her hand and offered her little finger. “I pinky-promise, as Marcus would say.”
Roger took her finger and wrapped his own around hers. Immediately, he felt a surge of electricity shoot up his arm from where their skin touched. He glanced up and their eyes locked. The connection was clear to both of them. Their fingers lingered, intertwined, though they both knew they could pull away if they wanted, yet neither made the move to end the contact.
He wasn’t sure why, but the urgency of the moment compelled him to move closer. The chill in the air beckoned Roger to gather her in his arms, and as he wrapped his arm around her, she leaned her head on his shoulder.
“I didn’t know I could be this happy,” Celeste whispered. “I feel like all I’ve done since I can remember is chase after an elusive dream. I never thought anything could make me happy beyond starring on Broadway. Then I met Marcus, and everything changed.”
“Just Marcus?” Roger probed, hoping there was room for him as much as his son in Celeste’s heart.
“No, his father’s kind of become important to me as well,” she answered, tilting her head up to look at him. “More than I care to admit.”
“His father is glad to hear it; glad that it’s not just one-sided.”
The two of them sat cuddled together in an embrace for several minutes before Celeste finally pulled away. “We should probably get going if we’re going to have time for your other surprise. We don’t want to disrupt Marcus’ bedtime routine.”
“Agreed,” Roger said, standing up, then reaching out his hand to Celeste.
She placed her hand in his as he helped her from the bench. “You still owe me an answer, by the way.”
“To what?” Roger asked with confusion.
“To what the surprise is,” she said with a sly smile. “You pinky-promised, and those are unbreakable.”
“Oh, right,” Roger said, realizing he temporarily forgot about their deal. “I’m taking you both out for ice cream—and not just any ice cream—the best in all of Manhattan.”
“That’s a big claim, Mr. Boswell. You better be sure before going around making a declaration like that.”
“I’m very aware of what I’m asserting, and it’s completely factual. Once you taste the mocha fudge, you’ll know I’m right.”
“You had me at coffee-flavored,” Celeste said with a smile. “Anything with it makes me happy.”
They gathered up Marcus and made their way out of the zoo. The entire time, Marcus chattered on about his favorite parts of the day. The list continued to grow while they rode through the West Side of Manhattan and made their way north. The scenery changed from the wealthy opulence that surrounded the richest parts of Manhattan to a more middle-class landscape.
Celeste glanced over at Roger with a perplexed look. “Where exactly are you taking us?”
“You’ll see,” he said with a grin, enjoying the fact he was keeping her a bit off-balance.
As they entered the area of Inwood, Celeste asked, “What are we doing here? I can’t imagine you’ve ever had a good reason to be in this part of the city.”
Roger shrugged. “I had a Hispanic nanny for a few months when I was ten. This was where she was from, and she would bring me here to eat—well, at least until my father found out and put a stop to it by firing her. Once I was able to venture out on my own, I would come back to the area to get the best tacos in the city.”
“I had no idea you ventured much past the Upper West Side,” Celeste muttered in surprise. “Will wonders never cease.”
They arrived out front of a little ice cream shop with a sign that read “La Flor de Michoacán.”
Roger doubted Marcus knew what the sign meant, but he definitely recognized the ice cream cones painted on the side of the walls of the building.
“Ice cream!” he yelled with excitement. “My favorite.”
“Mine too,” Celeste said with a laugh. “I had no idea you had this up your sleeve, Roger. I never pegged you for the adventurous type.”
“Maybe you had me pegged all wrong,” Roger said with a wink. “Maybe I want to keep surprising you.”
The trio entered into the establishment and headed to the counter. They each ordered their favorite flavor of ice cream and sat down with their cones at one of the nearby tables. As they ate their ice cream, they talked about the zoo and what they each liked best.
By the time they finished, it was time for dinner and Roger suggested they eat out. “How do you feel about tacos? There’s supposed to be a great taco truck around the corner from here.”
“I love tacos,” Marcus declared as he jumped to his fee
t and did a little dance.
“I agree with him,” Celeste said with a laugh. “Let’s go grab a couple.”
The day had been filled with more surprises than Celeste had anticipated. She had no idea Roger was the type of guy to hang out in Inwood. Though she had grown up in the Bronx, her mother had friends that lived in Inwood, and they often spent weekends at birthday parties and weddings in the area.
The trio made the short walk over to the taco truck where they ordered a variety of tacos.
“Oh, and we have to get the taquitos de papas,” Celeste suggested.
“What’s that?” Roger asked with curiosity.
“They’re fried potatoes in tortillas, and literally my favorite thing in the whole world. My mom made the best ones, but I haven’t had them in years.”
“What happened? With your mom, I mean? I know you told me you moved to Manhattan right after high school, but you never told me what happened with your family.”
They took their food over to a couple of tables underneath a pop-up tent.
“My mom was on her own for most of my life. She had a revolving door for boyfriends, but none of them stuck around until I was seventeen. That one didn’t want to leave, but I didn’t understand why until he moved in with us.” Celeste swallowed a couple of times and braced herself to tell him the next part. She wasn’t even sure why she was doing it, but for some reason, she wanted to confide in Roger. “When I told my mom he made a pass at me, she didn’t want to believe it. She took his side and kicked me out right after I turned eighteen. She ended up marrying him, but he’s always around the neighborhood with other women. My friend told me the cops have been called out multiple times to break up fights between them. It’s a really bad situation, and one day, I’m afraid I’m going to find out that he killed her. I tried to help her in the beginning, but she refused to listen to me until I would admit to her that I lied about what he did to me. When I wouldn’t, she told me not to come around anymore.”
“I’m so sorry, Celeste, that’s awful. It sounds like we both didn’t have the best parents.”