by Annie Young
So, like everyone else in her graduating class who carried a similar degree, she did what she had to do to make ends meet; she got a job that was unrelated to her education, but at least gave her a paycheck at the end of the week.
Before starting her car, Lily reached over and pulled her phone out of her purse. She'd heard it buzz a few times while at work, but didn't have a spare second to check it until now. When she opened the lock screen, she saw a text from a familiar name in her contacts; Wyatt Montgomery.
With a smile of anticipation on her face, she opened up the text.
Hey Lily. How are you? I was wondering what your schedule was like today. If you're not busy this afternoon, would you like to come by and see Maggie? I told her you might be able to and she got so excited. Let me know. Thanks, Wyatt.
“Of course I want to stop by,” Lily whispered to herself. She quickly texted back.
Definitely! I just got off of work. I'll go home and get changed out of my work clothes and then I'll head straight over.
Suddenly, the stressful shift at work became a faint memory. The excitement of getting to see Maggie and Wyatt seemed to erase all of the stressful parts of her morning. She started up her car and pointed it toward home. She needed a quick shower to get rid of the coffee smell that had permeated her skin and clothes. After that, though, she planned on heading directly over to Wyatt's. She couldn't wait to spend some time with Maggie, the cutest and sweetest girl on the entire planet.
Wyatt's mansion wasn't all that far from Lily's apartment complex. This wasn't by accident either. She had wanted to live close by so that she could visit Maggie whenever she felt like it. Even though she technically wasn't Maggie's mother by blood, she did still carry her in her womb for nine full months.
Five years prior, when she'd first been contacted by Caroline and Wyatt about becoming a surrogate mother for them, Lily had asked if she could stay in the child's life. Some of Lily's friends thought that it was strange to stay in contact with the couple in a situation like that, but she didn't feel the same way. Besides, not only were Caroline and Wyatt okay with the idea, they actually had encouraged it. They both adored Lily and thought that it was a positive thing to have Maggie in her life.
There was one stipulation, though. Maggie's parents didn't want her knowing anything about how she came into the world. Wyatt didn't want to confuse the poor girl by telling her that Caroline wasn't the one that gave birth to her. Lily didn't mind sticking to that one rule, though. In fact, she agreed with it completely. She didn't mind that she was “Aunt Lily” in Maggie's mind, as long as she got to spend time with her once in a while.
Lily pulled her old Toyota Corolla up to the guard's gate at the bottom of the winding driveway that led toward Wyatt's mansion.
“Good evening, Ms. Thompson.” The security guard stepped up to window of the guard's house and leaned against the sill.
“Hi, John,” Lily said, rolling her driver's side window down the rest of the way. “How's your day going so far?”
“So far so good,” he replied, with a wide smile. “I'm sure you're here to see Mr. Montgomery. Does he know you're coming?”
She nodded. “Yes, but I didn't tell him what time I'd be here.”
“No problem,” John said. “I'll send a message to him and let him know that you're on your way up. Have a good day.”
“Thanks, John,” she said. “You, too.”
The yellow gate in front of her lifted and she pulled her car through. Wyatt's house was at the very top of the hill and when she got there, she parked in front of the fifth bay of his massive garage.
She stepped out of her car and glanced at herself in the reflection of the driver's side window. The white summer dress that she'd decided to wear looked nice and make her fair skin seem like it actually had some color in comparison. She'd even taken the time to straighten her hair and put one some makeup, something that she never had time to do before work.
With everything in order, she approached the front door. She only had to ring the doorbell one time before she heard Maggie shouting in excitement from inside the house.
“Aunt Wiwee is here!” she called out and Lily could hear her feet as they pitter-pattered across the wood floors. “Mrs. Mildred! Aunt Wiwee is here!”
A moment later, Maggie pulled the door open. Lily smiled wide as soon as she laid eyes on her.
“Wiwee!” Maggie called out, as she jumped forward and wrapped both of her arms around Lily's legs.
“Awe, hi, Maggie,” Lily said, squatting down and pulling Maggie close. “I think that's the sweetest greeting I've ever had.”
“I missed you,” Maggie said, holding her as tightly as possible.
Lily's heart melted to the words.
“I missed you, too, sweetheart,” she said. “I'm glad I came over to surprise you. What are you up to? Coloring? Swimming?”
“No,” Maggie said. “Just building Legos. Do you want to help?”
“Of course I do,” Lily replied.
Maggie took her hand and led her into the house. Lily glanced around. She had been there a hundred times and it never ceased to amaze her just how beautiful that home was. It wasn't just because it was a giant mansion, though. It was also perfectly decorated and well-maintained. Caroline had done all of the interior decorating herself. It had been a skill of hers that Lily admired very much. Everything in the home had a place. Every color had been painstakingly picked out so that it matched exactly how Caroline had wanted it.
Caroline sure did a good job of making this house a home, she thought. In a way, I'm kind of glad Wyatt hasn't changed anything in here since she passed. It just wouldn't be the same without the woman's touch that Caroline had on it.
“My Legos are over here,” Maggie said, speaking loudly. “This one is of a princess and her castle. Daddy bought it for me because he knows that I love princesses and he said that I'm a princess, too. So I needed a castle of my own.”
“Well your Daddy is a very smart man,” Lily said, playing along. “I also think you deserve a castle of your own. Have you finished building it, or is there still work to do?”
“It's almost done,” she said. “Just a few more pieces.”
The two made their way toward the living room, where Lily's work of art was situated on the coffee table in the center.
“You did this all by yourself, Maggie?” Lily asked.
“Yep,” she replied proudly.
It was a fairly complex Lego set and Lily was impressed that Maggie had been able to put it together by herself.
“That's so good,” Lily said. “You're so smart, Maggie.”
Maggie smiled, as she grabbed the last two pieces of the set. She put one in its place and then asked Lily to do the last one. Once the castle was complete, Maggie and Lily admired it for a moment. Then Maggie's eyes got wide.
“You want to go out on the playground?” she asked.
Lily chucked softly. “If you're done playing with the Legos, then sure. Let's go on the playground. I'll push you on the swings.”
“Yay!” Maggie squealed, running toward the sliding back door.
She was gone and outside before Lily had even gotten to her feet. A moment later, Mildred came down the stairs and turned the corner toward the living room, nearly running into Lily.
“Oh, hey there,” Mildred said, opening her arms for a hug, which Lily happily accepted. “Wyatt mentioned that you might be stopping by this afternoon. I didn't hear the doorbell ring, but I'm guessing Maggie must have let you in. How are you?”
“I'm doing well,” Lily said. “How are you, Mildred? It's been a few weeks since I've seen you.”
“Things are just fine,” Mildred said. “Well, except that it seems like every day that goes by, Maggie has a little more energy and I have a little less. That girl is getting tougher to keep up with all the time, I'm telling you.”
“You don't have to tell me,” Lily said, laughing. “She runs circles around me.”
“I'
m glad you came by,” Mildred said, released Lily from the hug. “Maggie gets so happy every time she hears that 'Aunt Lily' is coming to visit her. It's really cute. She loves you so much, you know?”
“I love her, too,” Lily said. “To be honest, seeing her makes me happier than anything else does. She's most definitely the light of my life.”
“And I know for a fact that you are the light of hers,” Mildred said. “If there was an award for 'Aunt of the Year', you'd definitely get it.”
Lily smiled. “Well, thanks. That means a lot.”
Mildred had been Maggie's nanny ever since she was born. Because of that, she knew that Lily wasn't technically Maggie's Aunt. She realized that Lily had in fact given birth to Maggie, but also understood the importance of keeping that a secret.
“Is Wyatt here?” Lily asked.
Mildred shook her head. “No, not yet. He had an important meeting this morning, but I imagine that he'll be back any time now.”
“Okay, great,” she said. “Well I'm going to head out and push Maggie on the swing for a bit. Just tell Wyatt that I'm here if you see him.”
“Will do,” Mildred said, with a nod.
Lily turned and headed out to the back yard. To the left was a large swimming pool, complete with two different diving boards at different heights. To the right was Maggie's playground, which was bigger and nicer than any playground Lily had ever played on growing up. It looked like it belonged in a park, not in someone's back yard. It had everything. Three slides, a set of swings, monkey bars and balancing beams. It was everything that a four year old girl could ever want in a playground. Wyatt had even shipped in white sand from some beach, because he said that it was softer and safer than other sand.
“Look at me!” Maggie said, crawling to the top of the playground where a small platform was. In the center of that platform there was a flagpole with a big American flag sticking out of it. Maggie was holding onto the pole and smiling. Lily would have been worried sick to see that child playing at such at high elevation, but luckily there was a safety railing surrounding her.
“You're so high up!” Lily said, using her hand to shield her eyes from the sun. “How did you get up there?”
“I'm a good climber,” Maggie said, proudly. “Want to see me go down the slide?”
“Yes, let's see you do that,” Lily said, smiling.
Lily always felt so good being around Maggie. She suspected that it had something to do with how Maggie saw the world. Everything was still so simple in her life and she saw the beauty and fun in absolutely everything. It made Lily wish that she could still have that childlike curiosity and she often wondered at what point in life that personality trait fades away.
Maggie went down the slide and Lily caught her at the bottom. The two of them laughed and immediately after, Maggie climbed the ladder back up to the top. She went down again, and again, and again. It was as though she had completely limitless energy. She wasn't even out of breath after more than twenty minutes of playing hard like that. That's more than could be said for Lily, too. By the tenth time of catching Maggie at the bottom, Lily was panting in the summer heat.
I'm just glad I wore a summer dress, she thought. At least I'm able to get a little breeze under my clothes to help me cool off.
Lily heard the sound of a car pulling up to the house. She recognized it immediately. It was the deep roar of a Lamborghini. There was no other car that sounded anything remotely like it. She knew for sure that Wyatt had just gotten home.
“Aunt Wiwee, can you push me on the swing again?” Maggie asked, as she sat on the top of the slide.
Lily turned and smiled. “Yes, definitely. Come on.”
Maggie slid down and Lily caught her. She lifted her up in the air and carried her to the opposite side of the playground. She pushed her on the swings, listening as Maggie counted each push. She could already count all the way to fifty, which Lily thought was pretty darn good for a four-year-old. She only got to thirty-four, though, before Wyatt stepped out of the back doors of the house.
His black suit had caught Lily's eye and she glanced over toward him. He smiled at her and she waved quickly.
My God, why does he have to be so damn good looking? She thought to herself, then immediately shook the thought from her mind. I can't let myself think things like that. It's not right.
“Hey, Lily,” Wyatt said, as he approached her. “I'm so glad you were able to make it.”
She smiled and turned toward him. “Oh, it's no problem at all. You know I love coming to see Maggie whenever I have the chance. The timing worked out pretty well, too. I had just gotten off work when you sent me that text.”
“Daddy, look how high I'm swinging!” Maggie called out.
Wyatt chuckled. “You're flying, Mags! You're like a super hero with pigtails.”
Maggie laughed loudly and began kicking her feet in an attempt to gain even more height.
“Be careful, okay?” Wyatt said. “Don't go too high. I don't want you to fly away.”
“I won't, Dad,” Maggie said.
Wyatt turned back to Lily. “So I wanted to ask you something.”
Lily raised her eyebrows. “Yeah, of course. What is it?”
“I was just inside chatting with Mildred,” he said. “I'm not sure if she mentioned it to you, but she's going out of town for ten days. I guess she's going to visit her sister in Wisconsin.”
“Good for her. She deserves a little vacation,” Lily said. “She works so hard.”
“She does,” Wyatt admitted. “Sometimes too hard.”
“When is she leaving?” she asked.
“The day after tomorrow, which is Friday,” Wyatt said. “I wanted to see if you'd have any interest in subbing in for her while she's gone.”
Lily cocked her head to the side. “For Mildred? What do you mean?”
“Basically I'd want you to live here while she's gone and take on all of her roles. You can stay in the guest bedroom. I'll make sure it's all ready to go for you. I just really need someone to take care of Maggie while Mildred is out of town. I looked around for other babysitters, but most of them only wanted part-time work. In addition to that, though, I don't have the time to interview every potential candidate. I need someone I can trust and who's good with Maggie. You fit both of those things perfectly.”
Lily stood silently for a moment, soaking it in. Wyatt was basically asking if she could play Mom for a week or two. This would mean she'd get to take Maggie to her half-day preschool and swim lessons and play dates. She'd get to spend tons of time with her and just the idea of that alone made her happy.
“You don't have to if you don't feel up to it,” Wyatt said. “I wouldn't have asked, but I feel like I'm up against the wall. Plus, I know how happy Maggie is when you're around. I can't think of a better person to do this.”
“It actually sounds really nice,” Lily said. “I really want to do it. There's one issue that's coming to mind, though.”
“What's that?” Wyatt's eyes widened a bit and his green irises seemed to ignite in the late afternoon sun. Lily gazed at him for a moment, almost forgetting what she was trying to say. He was so handsome that it made it hard to think.
“I'm scheduled to work all weekend and nearly every day next week,” she said, with a sigh. “I can try to get the shifts covered, but it might be tough because it's so short notice.”
“Tell you what,” Wyatt said. “I'll pay you three times what you'd make at your job. In addition to that, tell all of your friends at work that I'll give them an extra hundred dollars per shift of yours that they cover. Who's going to turn that down?”
“Wow, Wyatt, that's a really generous offer,” Lily said. “I don't know if I can even accept that.”
“Sure you can,” he said. “You should, too. You'll make more money in a week than you would at the coffee shop in an entire month. Not to mention I'm paying you to hang out with Maggie. It'll be like a paid vacation. Think about it. No angry customers to deal wi
th, no accidentally getting people's orders wrong, no boss yelling at you. The only boss you'll have is Maggie.”
He flashed a wink, causing Lily to smile coyly.
“This sounds like a pretty fun opportunity,” she said. “So I'd start on Friday then?”
Wyatt nodded. “Yes, Friday morning. So you know, if you do decide to do this, I'll also ask you to do the cooking and cleaning around the house. Like I said, you'll be taking on all of the roles that Mildred does. It shouldn't be too tough for you, though. Just a little bit of laundry and making meals. It might be kind of fun.”
“Yeah, definitely,” she said. “I actually don't mind cleaning. I'll do my best with cooking, but I'll warn you, I might not be the greatest. I'm used to eating quick, microwave meals.”
Wyatt laughed. “If it makes you feel any better, I'm not a great cook either. You should have seen the mess I made out of French toast this morning. It was just sad. I'm sure you'll do better than I do.”
Lily shrugged. “I'll definitely try. I'll look up some recipes when I get home. Also, maybe I can talk to Mildred at some point and have her show me the ropes, as far as cleaning and whatever other roles she takes on around the house.”
“Great idea,” he replied. “In fact, she'd mentioned that same thing. Why don't you plan on checking in with her before you leave today? She can show you everything. The biggest and most important part of the job, though, will be taking care of Maggie and I know you've got that handled quite well.”
He glanced toward his daughter, who was still smiling and giggling as she swung back and forth on the swing.
“It's nice to see her so happy,” he said, thoughtfully. Then he leaned in and spoke a little more quietly. “She's been different ever since Caroline passed. I can't put my finger on it, but it's like she's more introverted and shy. When you're around, though, she acts normal. She's the little girl I know and love when you're here. It's odd, because she's not like this around Mildred.”