Confessions of a Teen Nanny

by Victoria Ashton

  “Can we please go?” David begged. “I’m dying!”

  Liz sighed. There was nothing.

  “Okay. I give up,” she said. “Let’s go.”

  “Wait!” Heather cried. “What about this?”

  “Never mind,” Liz said. “Let’s just…” Then she saw the dress in Heather’s little hands.

  It was perfect—a simple, little black dress in a fine wool crepe. It had a bateau neckline, and a tiny pink ribbon tied around its empire waist. It was Audrey Hepburn. It was Gwyneth Paltrow. Liz didn’t care what it cost. She had to have it.

  She turned to Heather. “Heather, you’re the best!” She gave the girl a big hug. Heather beamed. Liz took the dress from Heather’s hand. The tag had a bunch of prices and read: ORIGINALLY—$1,600; 50% OFF—$800; 50% OFF—$400; 50% OFF FINAL SALE—$200. The dress was still a little expensive, but Liz knew it would be worth it. She looked at the label. It was Oscar de la Renta. She had to try it on. She put the kids in two small chairs in the waiting room, and stood on a stool in her changing room so she could keep an eye on them, peering over the door as she dressed. This must be what yoga is like, she thought as she balanced on the teetering stool, pulled off her uniform cardigan, and stepped into the dress at the same time.

  Exiting the dressing room, she turned to Heather and David. “What do we think?” she asked.

  “You’re pretty,” David said, his mouth still covered with melted chocolate.

  “Thanks.” Liz smiled. “At least one guy today will think so.”

  On the way home, Liz called her mother. “Hi! Adrienne and I both just finished work, and we’re heading to her apartment to watch a movie together. Can I sleep over?” Liz hated lying to her mother, but she knew her mother would never easily let her go downtown with a bunch of kids she didn’t know. Ever since she was a little kid, her mom had to have a complete background check on anyone Liz wanted to hang out with. Liz didn’t want to deal with explaining everything tonight.

  “You can’t sleep over,” her mother said.

  “Why not?” Liz tried to sound calm.

  “We’re leaving early tomorrow morning to go upstate to see your grandmother. Have fun with Adrienne, but make sure you’re home by eleven. I’m going to wait up for you.”

  Liz knew there was no point arguing. Her parents were big on curfews. “All right. That’s fine. Bye, Mom.”

  Eleven. If dinner was at eight-thirty, that was plenty of time to eat, flirt with Parker, and leave with him wanting more. Cinderella timing, she thought. Arrive late, leave early. Make an impression.

  Liz finally put Heather and David to bed and hurried into the bathroom to change. Slipping on the new dress, she wished that she had a cashmere shawl or a little jacket that matched. Dr. M-C was out for the evening, and the housekeeper was in the kitchen watching TV.

  It’s just for one night, she thought, slipping into Dr. M-C’s closet. She pulled a pale pink cashmere wrap from a shelf lined with dozens of shawls in every conceivable color. There wasn’t a lot that Liz would ever want to wear in Dr. M-C’s closet. Because of her size, most of her dresses looked like they had been made by some really expensive tentmaker, but her accessories were cool. She had more beautiful scarves and wraps than anyone Liz had ever known.

  Sitting down at Dr. M-C’s vanity, Liz used the mirror to quickly put on her makeup. The restaurant they were going to was very hip, so she paid special attention to her eyes, lining them in a smoky dark powder. A little gloss to the lips and she was done. She looked at herself in the mirror. Perfect. As a last touch, a spray of Joy—the most expensive perfume in the world and Dr. Markham-Collins’s favorite. Mine too, Liz thought.

  Liz shoved her school uniform in her backpack and grabbed a cab down to the restaurant. She would have to check her things at the door.

  The bar at Khmer was packed with people and looked like a Vietnamese village. The tables were covered with grass umbrellas, and hidden lights gave an unearthly glow to the walls. The noise was overwhelming. The crowd was older. Much older.

  Pulling her shawl a little bit tighter around her shoulders, Liz forced her way through the crowd of people until she saw the others.

  “I. D.?” a bouncer asked in a gruff voice.

  Liz thought quickly. “I’m with Cameron Warner and Princess von Fallschirm,” she said.

  “Hey!” The guy gave her a big grin. “Any friend of Cam’s and Mimi’s gets right in. They’re over there.” He pointed to the bar where Adrienne, Cameron, Mimi, Graydon, Brian, and Parker sat with their drinks.

  Brian saw her first. “Hey, Liz! You look great!”

  “Thanks, Bri!” Liz gave Adrienne a hug and took in her outfit. It was very cool—a sexy, off-the-shoulder D&G top and a slim pair of Armani pants. Adrienne looked amazing, but something seemed wrong about the outfit. Then Liz realized what the problem was: Adrienne looked as if she were wearing a Cameron costume instead of her own clothes.

  Cameron and Mimi waved to her, and Liz air-kissed them and then turned her attention to Parker.

  “Hi,” she said, “I’m Liz.” She deliberately kept her voice soft so that Parker would have to lean closer to hear her and would get a little whiff of her perfume in the process. If there was anything Liz knew she did well, it was flirting without looking like she was flirting.

  “I remember you,” Parker said, smiling lazily at her. “I met you at Cam’s last week.”

  “Oh, that’s right!” Liz said, pretending she had forgotten. “How are you?”

  “Better, now that you’re here. I was asking Cam about you. I was hoping we could get together sometime soon.”

  Liz was stunned. Could it be this easy? He’s really interested! Unsure of what to say, Liz gave him what she hoped was a mysterious smile.

  “Okay, all of you, let’s go downstairs! My other friends are at the table already,” Cameron shouted above the din of the crowd. She carried her martini glass high over her head and stopped periodically so that people could take her picture.

  Descending the staircase into Khmer’s main dining room, Liz was amazed. Though the restaurant looked small from the street, there was a huge dining room belowground, complete with a soundproof lounge where people could dance. The room was full of a much older crowd, mostly in their twenties and thirties, and Liz was feeling a little out of place. Mimi and Cameron seemed to know everybody. Brian held Adrienne’s hand and seemed surprisingly at home.

  “Everyone,” Cameron said, when they reached their table, “this is Bandar, and his friend Achim. Then we have Bibi, Kylie, and Tonia. Guys, this is everyone.” She moved into the only logical place for her at the table: the head.

  Parker came up behind Liz and, lightly touching her shoulders, steered her to a seat, which he pulled out for her, and then gently sat her down. He took the seat next to her. “I’ve been looking forward to this,” he said softly. “I wanted to get to know you better.” He smiled at her.

  He is so cute, Liz thought. But he looks a little weird. It’s his eyes, Liz realized. They were red and kind of unfocused. Maybe he’s drunk, Liz thought.

  Parker looked at her again, and then reached into the basket on the table for an enormous piece of bread. “I love bread,” Parker said. “Do you love bread, Liz?”

  He’s not drunk, Liz realized. Parker is stoned.

  Liz was not into drugs, but she certainly knew enough people who got high. She hoped it wasn’t a problem for him. Well, he hadn’t seemed stoned the last time she’d seen him. I’ll just go with it and see what happens.

  “No, no, no!” Cameron said to Brian as he tried to sit next to Adrienne. “You always break up couples at a dinner party. Adrienne, you sit between Bandar and Achim, and Brian, you sit between me and Liz.”

  Bossy hostess though she was, Cameron soon had the table afire with conversation. Bandar bought horses for the Saudi royal family, and was totally fascinating, if, at thirty, too old and a bit oily. Achim was a cousin of Mimi’s who had gone to school with Bandar in Sw
itzerland. Bottle after bottle of champagne arrived at the table, and Liz was beginning to get a little nervous about splitting the bill when Bandar announced that he hated the champagne they were drinking, and that he could never drink champagne at fifty dollars a bottle if there was something better to be had.

  “So,” he said, “since I do not feel I can force you all to pay for my extravagances, this whole dinner is on me.” Everyone at the table cheered as Bandar called the waitress over and ordered different champagne. Liz caught Adrienne’s eye across the table, and both girls smiled at each other, totally relieved. Adrienne leaned over and whispered to Liz, “Did you get carded at the door?”

  “No. I said I was with Cameron and Mimi.”

  “Us, too.”

  “Money must take care of everything!” Liz grinned. She turned back to Parker. “That’s very nice of Bandar, isn’t it?” she said.

  “Actually,” Parker said, “though I’m happy to drink his champagne, I think he’s kind of an asshole.”

  Liz giggled. “Why do you say that? He seems perfectly nice, to me.”

  Parker looked her right in the eyes. “Liz, what kind of guy takes seven kids in high school out for an expensive dinner? He’s thirty.”

  Parker’s right, Liz thought. It’s totally creepy.

  Liz and Parker talked some more. The more champagne Liz drank, the better and better Parker looked and sounded. He leaned closer toward her, put his hand on her knee, and the room seemed to melt away.

  Oh. Hold on. Going too fast. Gotta talk to Adrienne, a voice inside her head said suddenly. She made eye contact with Adrienne and pointed toward the restrooms. The two girls got up and left.

  “This place is so cool,” Adrienne said, once inside. “Did you see that the table next to us has Tyra Banks and that girl who won American Idol?” Adrienne seemed a little overwhelmed. This was not Van Rensselaer.

  “I know.” Liz smiled. “And Parker is the best.” The two girls screamed and jumped up and down for a second, until an older woman walked into the women’s room. The two girls attempted to look cool.

  “I’m so happy for you!” Adrienne said, and reapplied some lip gloss. “Don’t you think that Bandar is hilarious?” She shook out her new hairstyle.

  “I’d watch out for him,” Liz said. “I mean, what kind of guy takes out high school kids for dinner?”

  “He’s a friend of Mimi’s cousin. I think he’s cool,” Adrienne said defiantly. “His best friend is a Saudi prince. I don’t think we are in a position to refuse his hospitality,” she said loftily.

  Liz smiled. Adrienne was obviously repeating something that Cameron had said. She never would have come up with that on her own. “Adrienne, you’re starting to sound a lot like Cameron.”

  “I’m learning a lot from Cam.”

  “Oh, so now suddenly she’s ‘Cam’ to you?”

  “Come on, Liz! I’m having fun, and so are you. Parker looks like he’s really into you.”

  “I think he is,” Liz confided. “Listen, we’d better go back outside.”

  The two girls made their way through the crowded room. They ate the amazing dinner that Bandar ordered, and drank bottle after bottle of the incredible champagne. Aside from Tonia calling Bandar ‘Band-Aid’ by mistake, everything went really well.

  Wow, Liz thought, I’ve had a lot more to drink than I thought. I’m pretty bombed. She looked next to her at Brian. He was staring at Cameron, who was staring back at him intently.

  “I know you must be a big music fan.”

  “I am,” he said. “I go to a lot of concerts.”

  “But have you ever been to a concert at Madison Square Garden in a corporate skybox with backstage passes?” Cameron asked huskily. She reached over deliberately and put her hand on his arm.

  “No way!” he said, laughing. “I can’t afford those!”

  “It’s the only way to see a concert. Trust me,” she said, looking into his eyes.

  “Oh, I trust you all right,” Brian said, laughing. “I’m sure it is.”

  “So,” Cameron said, leaning closer and closer. “If you trust me, how about joining me on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden for the Radiohead concert?”

  “Are you serious? You can get tickets to that?”

  “Brian doesn’t really like Radiohead,” Liz said suddenly.

  “I do, too,” Brian said, looking surprised.

  “I thought so,” Cameron said. “In fact, I have the tickets already.” She smiled the sweetest of smiles.

  Liz stared at the two of them, and then glanced at Adrienne. Did she see what just happened? No. Adrienne was listening to Bandar’s boring stories about his high school in Switzerland.

  Liz glanced at her watch. It was almost eleven. She was buzzed, and she had to go. She turned to Brian. “Hey, Brian, I have got to go. I have a curfew. Do you and Adrienne want to go with me?” She hoped he would. She didn’t want Cameron to get her claws into Brian any further than she already had.

  “Curfew?” Cameron shrieked. “Liz, that is so cute! You guys! Liz has a curfew!”

  There she is, thought Liz. That’s the Cameron Warner I know.

  “That was pretty bitchy,” Parker whispered. “I’m sorry. Can I put you in a cab?”

  “That would be really nice, Parker. Thanks.” Liz gave him a big smile. “Are you coming, guys?”

  “I’m going to stay,” Brian said. “I can take the express to Washington Heights.”

  “Well, aren’t you sweet!” Cameron said, and kissed Brian on the cheek.

  Liz moved over to Adrienne and pulled her away from Bandar. “Adrienne, I have to go. It’s getting late.”

  “I’m so glad you came!” Adrienne said, obviously having had too much of Bandar’s champagne.

  “No, Adrienne, seriously. I’d watch Cameron. She’s had too much to drink, and she’s all over Brian.”

  “She’s so nice!” Adrienne said, pushing Liz away.

  “Adrienne!” Liz whispered. “I think you should take Brian home—now!”

  Adrienne looked at her friend and focused. “Okay,” she said, “I get the message. Thanks. You okay by yourself?”

  “I’m okay,” Liz said, nodding toward Parker. “Talk to you tomorrow.”

  Parker walked Liz upstairs, out of the busy restaurant and onto the quiet, darkened streets of Greenwich Village.

  “I love it downtown,” Liz said, as they passed the Magnolia Bakery and the Mark Jacobs store.

  “Me, too. It’s so quiet and charming here. Hey, you want to split a cupcake?”

  Liz looked at her watch. Eleven. Pumpkin time. “I wish I could. I have to get home, though.”

  “No problem. Rain check.” He raised his arm, and hailed a cab heading up Hudson Street. Liz was about to slide in when Parker took her by the waist and gave her a kiss.

  Parker’s warm hands moved up and down her back. His tongue gently explored her mouth, and he breathed softly, pulling her closer to him. He ran his fingers up and down her bare arms, and her whole body burst into goose bumps.

  Now that was a really good kiss, she thought.

  “I think I wanted that a lot more than a cupcake,” he said. “See you.”

  “Bye,” Liz said, for the lack of anything better.

  The cab sped up the West Side Highway, and Liz looked out over the glittering Hudson River and the breathtakingly tall new apartment buildings. The city was beautiful. She thought of gorgeous Parker and the kiss. Tonight, everything was beautiful.

  CHAPTER TEN

  dazzled

  Wednesday afternoon at school, Adrienne texted Brian for the third time.

  Where is he? she wondered. It never takes this long to hear from him. She stared at her phone, silently willing him to text her back. Maybe his cell was out of juice or something.

  “Hey!” Tamara said, coming up behind her. “Girl, you look terrible! Are you sick or something?”

  “Not exactly,” Adrienne said. “A little stressed. I have a world histo
ry test next period. And Brian is not texting me back.”

  “Where is he?” Tamara asked. “Why wasn’t he in class today?”

  “He wasn’t in class today?” Adrienne said. Brian had never missed a day of school before—he was obsessed with being there every day. His older brother, Jimmy, had had a perfect attendance record in high school, and Brian was trying for one, too. It had never even occurred to her that he might not even be in the building.

  “No. He didn’t show, and he missed the serious study session for Monday’s physics test,” Tamara said. “He would be toast, if only…”

  “If only what?” Adrienne asked.

  “If only I hadn’t made a copy of my perfectly taken physics notes for him.” Tamara smiled and handed over the pages to Adrienne. “You tell Brian he owes me one. And, the two of you can pay me back by making sure you come to my birthday on Saturday. No excuses, okay? We are going to get down at this little joint in Williamsburg. It is a Brooklyn party, Adrienne—leave the Prada at home!” She laughed and gave Adrienne a quick hug. “I’m serious. You’ve been hanging with those Fifth Avenue bitches too long.” Tamara stopped. “Sorry. I care about you. Anyway, give those notes to Brian when you see him and, remember, I’ll see you on Saturday—or else!” Tamara took off down the hall as the next bell rang.

  Adrienne pressed her head against her locker. She took a deep breath. Something was wrong. She didn’t know how she knew—she just felt it. She had to talk to Liz.

  Adrienne pulled out her phone and texted her friend.

  BRI MIA ????

  Within seconds, the phone rang. It was Liz.

  “Hey!” she said. “What’s up? Where’s Brian?”

  “I don’t know. He’s not in school. I’m starting to freak a little.”

  “Are you sure nothing happened Friday night after I left?” Liz asked.

  “Nothing. I told you—we hung out for a while, and then Brian and I went home.”

  “I still think something was going on between Brian and Cam,” Liz said.

  “Liz, nothing was going on. Brian and I are fine. You may not trust Cameron, but I do trust Brian. Anything happening with Parker?”