Small-Town Nanny

by Lee Tobin McClain

  “Mom...” Susan’s face twisted in a complicated expression of love and exasperation and sorrow.

  “I know our relationship hasn’t been the best, and I wanted to see you, to try to fix things. I had the means, thanks to your boss, so yesterday I just packed up my things and called the airlines, and today...here I am. You don’t mind, do you?”

  “Mom, I’m glad you’re here,” Susan said, her eyes shiny in that way Sam was learning meant she was trying not to cry. “If this is where you want to be, I’m glad you came.”

  Sam had been listening, arms crossed, and thinking at the same time. Susan’s mother’s words made him reflect about parenting: how quickly it all went by, how little time you really had with your kids. Look at Mindy, away at camp. The first of many times she’d wave and run away. She’d go farther and farther in the years to come.

  Susan and her mother had a chance to renew their relationship, right now. And suddenly it came to him, brilliant in its perfect simplicity. “Tell you what,” he said, “for once, you can have it both ways. There’s a spa and resort just an hour away. I have an ownership interest in it, and I’d like to get you two a room and some spa treatments there. You can go pamper yourselves and reconnect.”

  And the side benefit was that he could figure out what on earth he was doing, kissing Susan.

  “No way!” Susan turned away from her mother to face him, hands on hips. “You’ve already done enough for us, Sam. We couldn’t possibly accept.”

  “I want you to,” he said. Even more than with Marie, who’d grown up wealthy, he found he liked providing special things for Susan, who wasn’t so used to it. Susan didn’t expect people to do things for her; she almost had the reverse of the entitlement mentality he’d seen among so many of his younger workers. “Just take me up on the offer in the spirit it’s meant. No obligations, no strings. I just want you to enjoy some time with your mom.”

  “No!” She was shaking her head. “It’s not...we’re not...” She lifted her hands, palms up, clearly at a loss to explain.

  “Susie.” Her mother put a perfectly manicured hand on Susan’s shoulder. “It makes him feel good to do it. Men like to do nice things for women.”

  Susan’s eye-roll was monumental, and for just a minute, he could completely picture her as a teenager.

  “Let him help us,” Mrs. Hayashi urged.

  “Besides,” Susan went on, twisting away from her mother in another teenager-like motion, “what about Mindy?”

  “I just decided I’m going to take a week off to spend with her. Take her to the zoo, hang out at the pool. I miss her like crazy, having her away for the weekend, and I want to spend some extra time with her.”

  “That is so sweet,” Mrs. Hayashi said. “I think that’s wonderful.”

  Susan obviously didn’t share the belief, but the slump of her shoulders let him know she realized she was defeated.

  Good. She didn’t get enough pampering in her life, that much was obvious.

  And time off work would let him do some thinking about where his life was going and what he was doing. He might even go to that men’s prayer breakfast Dion and Troy were always bugging him about.

  Yes, a week off might give him some more perspective on his life.

  * * *

  “Daddy, I’m gonna listen to Mr. Eakin’s story, okay?” Mindy said two evenings later.

  “Sure, that’s fine.”

  It was the Senior Towers open house, and the elders had gone all out to get the community to stop in and see what went on there. There were storytelling and craft booths, a used-book sale and a table set up to match senior volunteers with community needs.

  Sam had relished spending the day with Mindy, hearing her exuberance about her camping experience, sharing simple summer pleasures like swimming and cooking out and the playground in the park.

  At the same time, he had to acknowledge that it was hard to keep a five-year-old entertained. Especially one who was getting super excited about her upcoming birthday. He had a renewed respect for teachers and day care workers and nannies.

  And for Susan.

  In fact, he’d been thinking a lot about Susan.

  Without her, the house was quiet, maybe a little lonely. There was less color and excitement.

  He realized that he missed her in a completely different way than he’d missed Marie.

  Marie had been stability and deep married love. She’d been the mother of his child. And her death had ripped a hole in his heart and in their home, one he and Mindy had been struggling to fix ever since.

  Susan was excitement and spice. Her absence didn’t hurt in the same way that the loss of Marie had, of course, partly because they knew Susan was coming back, and partly because his and Mindy’s relationship with her was just beginning. It wasn’t at all clear where it would go.

  A lot of that, he realized, depended on him. There was something between him and Susan, something electric. But could he let go of the past for long enough to experience it and see where it led? Could he let go of at least some of his plans for a life as similar as possible to what he and Marie had planned together, what they’d always wanted?

  “Sam Hinton.” A clawlike hand grasped his arm, and he turned to see Miss Minnie Falcon, his old Sunday school teacher, glaring at him.

  “Hey, Miss Minnie,” he said. “How are you doing?”

  “I’d be more at peace if I knew what was going on over in that mansion of yours.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I heard you took that nanny of yours out on a date.” She looked at him as if he’d pocketed the Sunday school funds.

  “I heard the same,” came a male voice, one he dreaded because it was always critical and negative. Gramps Camden had issues with Sam’s father, but didn’t seem to be able to make a distinction between the generations. He always took his ire out on Sam. “Hi, Mr. Camden,” Sam said, restraining his sigh.

  “What are your intentions toward our Susan?” the older man asked. “I hope you’re not taking advantage. She’s a real nice girl.”

  “Yes, she is,” Miss Minnie agreed. “Very active in the church. Very helpful, and has a mind of her own.”

  “Which I wouldn’t have figured you to like,” Gramps said. “Your father never did.”

  “Hey, hey,” Sam said, trying to still the gossip. “We went out for a friendly dinner. That’s all.”

  “At Chez La Ferme?” Minnie sounded scandalized. “Why, you probably spent over fifty dollars on that dinner. That’s hardly something you do with just friends. Or should I say, it’s hardly something a poor schoolteacher can afford.”

  “But a rich businessman can,” Gramps said. “Question is, why would he want to?”

  “Are you courting her?” Miss Minnie asked.

  Sam looked from one to the other and felt a confessional urge similar to one he’d felt years ago, in Sunday school. He gave up trying to say anything but the truth. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “We’re so different. I don’t know where it could go, but I do like her.”

  “How’s she feel about you?” Gramps asked. “I warned her about your family. She’s probably on her guard, as well she should be.”

  Sam thought, momentarily, of the way her eyes had softened as he’d leaned down to kiss her. “I think she’s as confused as I am.”

  Miss Minnie frowned. “We’ve all got our eyes on you, young man.”

  “And as the man,” Gramps said, “it’s your job to get yourself un-confused. Figure out what you’re doing. Don’t string her along.”

  The old man was right, Sam reflected as he collected Mindy and headed home. The whole town of Rescue River knew what was going on, and he didn’t want to cause gossip or hurt Susan’s reputation.

  He needed to make some decisions, and fast. Before the
decisions made themselves for him. He just didn’t know what to do.

  * * *

  Susan stood in the giant Rural America Outlet Store with her mother, looking through the little girls’ clothing section.

  Susan held up a colorful romper. “Mindy would look adorable in this!”

  Her mother eyed her speculatively. “You’ve gotten close to her.”

  “Even being away for these few days, I’ve really missed that child.” Susan couldn’t wait to find out how Mindy had done at camp and to hear her stories of her week with her daddy.

  “So get it,” her mother said after feeling the fabric and squinting at the price tag. “It’s a good bargain. But we should also get her something fun and glittery. Maybe a nail polish set.” She led the way out of the clothing department and toward the makeup aisles.

  “That’s too grown-up,” Susan protested, following along past counters of jewelry and watches. “She’s only five.”

  “Turning six, right?” Her mother smiled back at her. “Little girls that age love girly stuff. Even you did, back then.”

  As they reached the nail polish rack, Susan extended her freshly pedicured foot, showing off her new sparkly pink nail polish. “I did well with the girly stuff this week, didn’t I?”

  “Kicking and screaming, but yes.” Her mother handed her a set of pale colors in a cartoonish box obviously meant for little girls. “What about these?”

  Susan studied it. “Well, Sam will shoot me for buying it, but you’re right, Mindy will love some nail polish.”

  “Then let’s get it.” Her mother took the polish set from her, checked the price and dropped it into their basket with the satisfied smile of an experienced bargain hunter.

  The fun of shopping together was one of many rediscoveries Susan had made during the week. They’d gotten spa treatments and giggled through yoga classes and cried through the sappy chick flicks they both loved. In between, they’d done a little bit of real talking: about Donny, about Susan’s father and about the mistakes they’d both made during Susan’s stormy adolescence.

  One conversation in particular stood out—the one about when Susan’s father had left.

  “I held onto him long after the love had died,” her mother admitted, “with guilt about leaving me with you kids, and with pressure about how he didn’t make enough money. I wasn’t a good wife, Susie, and after he left, I tried to sway you kids against him.”

  “You tried so hard to make him happy, though,” Susan had protested. “All those Japanese dinners, all your own needs suppressed.”

  “Which was my choice,” Susan’s mother declared. “I should have gotten a job and a life, especially after Donny was in school. The truth is, I was depressed and anxious, and I took it out on all of you.”

  Susan had hugged her mother. “I took out plenty on you, too,” she said. “Some of the things I said to you as a teenager! I’m so sorry, Mom.”

  “Oh, every teenager does that, especially girls. I don’t blame you for rebelling.”

  After that, they’d kept things light, but the tension and awkwardness that had hindered their connection for years was mostly gone. Susan felt better about their relationship than she ever had before, and for that, she was grateful to Sam Hinton.

  Twenty minutes after they’d paid for their purchases, they were back at Sam’s house, sneaking their bundles past the pool where Sam, Mindy and Mindy’s grandparents were setting up for the birthday party that would occur later that day.

  “Now, take the time to wrap these nicely,” Susan’s mother urged as she poured them both sodas. “You know, you really ought to get some decent dishes. You’re an adult woman.”

  “Mindy will rip through this paper in two seconds. It doesn’t matter how it looks.”

  “A nice package, as nice as the other guests bring, will impress Sam, though,” Mom said. “You know, you just might get him to marry you. He’s got that look in his eye.”

  “Mom!”

  “He’s a great catch,” her mother said, coming over to kneel beside the box of wrapping paper Susan was rummaging through. “Look how wealthy and how generous with his money. A good father. You should consider it, sweetie.”

  Susan felt as if she was choking. “I don’t want to do what you did! Look how that turned out!”

  Susan’s mother’s face went sad. “Oh, Susie, it was so complicated between your father and me. You’re not going to have the same situation—”

  “I don’t want to have a marriage that explodes and causes all that pain. I made a decision to stay single, and I’m sticking to it.” She was, too. No doubt about it. What had happened between her and Sam, that night of their date, had been temporary insanity.

  “Don’t be stubborn. You’re just like your father in that regard. Just...” Her mother looked off out the window and sighed. “Just choose the right man, the man who truly loves you, who looks at you like you’re made of precious gems.” She stroked Susan’s hair. “And then communicate with him. Don’t lose yourself like I did.”

  “So can I wrap the gift the way I want to?” Susan asked in exasperation.

  “It doesn’t hurt to show your softer side. You do have one.”

  So they wrapped the gifts in pink paper, elegantly, to rival Rescue River’s finest. And then her mother brushed Susan’s hair for her and put a little braid in it.

  “You were always the best with my hair, Mom,” Susan said, leaning back against her mother’s stomach. “I’m so glad you came.”

  “I’m glad, too.” Her mother placed a kiss on top of her head. “And now I’m going to the airport. My van is coming...” She consulted her phone. “Oh my, they’re out front now.”

  “You’re leaving already? So soon?”

  Her mother clasped her by her shoulders. “You’re on your own, you’re on your way. You don’t need me.”

  “But I don’t want you to go,” Susan said, feeling unexpectedly teary.

  Sun slanted through the windows. Outside, car doors slammed and excited kids’ voices rang out. It sounded as if a lot of people were coming to Mindy’s party, and Susan wondered when Sam had planned it. And how he’d managed without her.

  Her mother pulled her to her feet. “You have a party to get ready for. Go do that. And come for a visit soon, okay?”

  “I will,” Susan said. “Let me help carry your bags.”

  Her mother waved the offer aside. “I only have one bag, and I left it downstairs. Go get ready for your party.”

  Susan opened her arms, and her mother came to her in a fierce hug that made them both cry a little. And then her mother gave a jaunty wave and hurried down the stairs.

  Party noise drifted through the screen door, and all of a sudden, Susan didn’t want to be out of the action anymore. She needed to be a part of this important day in Sam and Mindy’s life.

  She changed into shorts and a sleeveless blouse, and hurried down the stairs, and immediately understood how Sam had gotten the party planned so fast.

  Helen was greeting the well-dressed parents and children, and Ralph was directing a truck containing two ponies to an appropriate unloading spot—the pad behind the garage, where Susan kept her car.

  Susan walked slowly toward the gathering, holding her nicely wrapped gift, which suddenly seemed cheap. Uncertainty clawed at her, and then she saw Mindy.

  Mindy spotted her at the same time and started running. What could Susan do but kneel down and open her arms?

  “There you are! I knew you’d come back in time!” she crowed, loud enough for everyone to hear. “Grandma and Daddy said you might not, but I knew you would!”

  “I wouldn’t miss it, sweetheart,” Susan said, burying her nose in the sweaty, baby-shampoo scent of Mindy’s hair.

  “Guess what! I got my new little dog! Only,” Mindy said fro
wning, “Uncle Troy said we had to shut her upstairs in her crate cuz the party’s too much excitement for her. But that’s only while she’s a new dog.”

  So he’d gotten her a dog. Good job, Sam. “I can’t wait to see her! Maybe after the party.”

  “You know what?” Mindy said in a serious voice, as if she was figuring something out. “You know what I really want for my birthday?”

  The intensity of Mindy’s voice had most of the others quieting down to hear.

  “What, honey?” Susan asked.

  Mindy put a hand on her hip and touched Susan’s face with her half arm. “I want you to be my new mommy!”

  Chapter Eleven

  Sam heard his daughter’s words ring out, clear as a bell. I want you to be my new mommy. So, apparently, did everyone else at the party, because a hush fell over the yard.

  He knew who his daughter was talking to without even looking. Susan.

  The silence was replaced by the buzz of adult conversation that seemed to include a fair share of gossip and curious glances.

  He looked toward where he’d heard Mindy’s voice and saw that Susan had squatted down in front of her, talking quickly, smiling and laughing, redirecting Mindy’s attention to the modest gift in her hand, to the clown who was setting up shop in the driveway.

  We have a clown? Sam thought blankly.

  Mindy was smiling and laughing as Susan talked to her, so that was all right. Mindy’s words had to have been embarrassing to Susan, since everyone had heard, but as usual, her focus had gone immediately to Mindy and making sure she was okay and handling it.

  In the direction of the pool area, he heard the sound of sniffling and turned to see his mother-in-law fumbling for a napkin and wiping her eyes. She wasn’t one to break down, especially when she had a party to run, but Mindy’s words had obviously struck a nerve.

  They’d struck a nerve in him, too. Trust a little kid to lay out everything so baldly and clearly. She wanted a new mommy. And she’d decided she wanted Susan.