The Nanny Rules

by Melynda Price

  Lily’s crying demands my attention, and I quickly wipe out the drawer and return the papers. “My card is ruined.” Her tears are splattering on the yellow construction paper she’s holding in her hands.

  “It’s okay, Lily pad. Let me see it. Maybe we can dry your card.” She brings it over to me. The front is covered with her prized Frozen stickers. I wonder if Amelia will realize what a big deal that is. Lily doesn’t use her Frozen stickers on just anyone. I carefully open the card and see she’s drawn a picture on the inside. There are three stick people standing together holding hands. I can only assume the largest one is me. In the middle is Lily because she’s the smallest, and on the other end is clearly Amelia. If I had any doubt, the long, wild black hair is a dead giveaway. “It’s a beautiful card, honey. I think we can save it.”

  “Really?” Her sweet little face lights up with hope. “How are we going to dry it?”

  “Let’s see if Mia has a hair dryer in the bathroom.”

  By the time I fixed Lily’s card, dried the papers in Amelia’s nightstand, tucked Lily into bed, and read her a story, I missed Amelia’s Facetime call by well over an hour. I consider calling her back, but it’s late. She has to be at the airport early, and I have that damn meeting with Collin from PR. The ESN interview is Sunday before the game. I’ve already rescheduled my meeting with him twice, and I think he’s starting to get pissed off.

  If I’m being completely honest, I’m making excuses to avoid talking to Amelia. I lie in bed, contemplating my options as I wait for the tightness in my chest to subside. My first impulse is to withdraw and protect myself. I don’t want to hold her back from a great opportunity if this is what she really wants, and yet, I don’t want to lose her.

  Maybe the adage is true. If you let something go and it doesn’t come back to you, it was never yours to begin with.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Amelia

  “Thanks for picking me up, Julia.” I hop in the passenger seat and glance behind me. “Where’s Lily?”

  “Brad and Maddie picked her up this morning. He said they were going hiking.”

  “That’s right. I completely forgot that was today.”

  “Whew.” Julia wipes the imaginary sweat off her brow. “You scared me. For a minute there, I thought I gave my brother’s kid away.” We laugh, and I shake my head. She’s always been a smartass. It’s one of the things I love most about her. “Brad said they’d be back around four. Seemed disappointed you wouldn’t be joining them, though.” She punctuates the comment with a raised brow of suspicion.

  “Yeah,” I sigh. “I think Brad might like me.”

  “Does Brody know?”

  “Oh, I think he has some idea.” My sarcasm is lost on my friend. I’m not about to tell her how Brody kissed me in front of Brad and the entire gossip brigade.

  “Speaking of Brody, how are things going with you two?”

  Julia gives me a conspiratorial grin as we pull away from the airport. She’s never been the type to beat around the bush, but friend or not, it feels a little weird gossiping about my love life with Brody’s sister.

  “He’s a great boss,” I answer lamely. “I don’t know anyone else who would have done what he did for Mason. I’m very grateful”

  “Oh, cut the shit, Mia. You and I both know that Brody’s in love with you.”

  “Did he tell you that?” Because he certainly hasn’t told me. My heart is racing with hope and at the same time I’m frustrated, because I shouldn’t have to find out how he feels about me from his sister.

  “Well, not exactly,” she admits, and hope sinks to the bottom of my gut like a lead weight.

  “What did he say?”

  “He told me to mind my own business.”

  We laugh because that sounds exactly like him. Silence settles between us as Julia navigates the traffic, getting us through morning rush hour. The job offer with the University of Minnesota has been weighing heavily on me. I don’t want to make a mistake.

  “Stella broke him,” she quietly confides. “He never used to be like this.”

  “Like what?”

  “Guarded, defensive, untrusting—closed-off. But I knew you’d be good for him and Lily. I’m so glad you decided to take the job.”

  “But that’s just it, Julia. The job is ending soon.”

  “He hasn’t asked you to stay on?” She gives me a sharp look of surprise and mumbles something under her breath about her brother being an idiot.

  I shake my head. “I’ve been offered an internship at the U of M starting in February.”

  “Did you take the job? Does Brody know?”

  “I haven’t taken it yet, and I didn’t tell him because I don’t want to push him into making a commitment to me that he isn’t ready for. If he asks me to stay, it needs to be for the right reasons. It needs to be because he loves me, and that’s a realization he has to come to on his own, or this relationship will never work.”

  Julia exhales a frustrated sigh. She may not like it, but she can’t argue with my reasoning. She knows I’m right. “My brother is very stubborn, Mia. Have patience with him, he’ll come around. These things take time.”

  But time is the one thing I don’t have.

  It’s almost five by the time Brad drops Lily off, and Brody should be home soon. I haven’t seen Brad since the incident at the park. When I open the door, he greets me with a smile that’s more reserved than usual. My conscience pinches because the last thing I wanted to do was lead him on. A moment of awkward tension hangs between us, but it’s broken by Lily’s cheerful greeting.

  “Mia, you’re home.” She charges forward and throws her little arms around my legs.

  I bend down and give her a big hug. “Hi, sweetheart. Did you have a fun day?”

  “We searched for agates. I found one for you. And one for daddy.”

  “That’s great. I can’t wait to see them.”

  Lily lets go of me and grabs Maddie’s hand. “Come on, I’ll show you my room.” The girls run upstairs, and the discomfort with Brad grows too heavy to ignore. “Would you like a bottle of water for the road?” I offer because I’m not sure what else to say.

  “Sure.”

  As I head to the kitchen, Brad’s voice follows me. “It’s too bad you couldn’t come with us. The kids had a great time.”

  “I’m sure they did. I had a family emergency and was out of town the last few days.”

  “That’s what Lily said. Something about your brother. I hope everything is all right.”

  “It is now.” I open the fridge door and find the drawer empty. “Is it okay if the waters aren’t cold?” I ask, heading to the pantry.

  “It’s fine.”

  I step into the closet and grab a case of water when I hear the shuffle of footsteps behind me. “So, you and Brody, huh? I didn’t believe the gossip brigade, but it turns out they were actually right about something.”

  I turn around, and Brad is in the doorway, blocking my exit from the small room, which suddenly feels a lot smaller. “I’m sorry, Brad.” And I genuinely am. “If I said or did anything to make you think—”

  “It’s not that.” He shakes his head and steps inside the pantry to take the case of water from me. “It’s just…”

  He doesn’t finish his thought. Instead, he turns and carries the pack to the counter. I’m not sure I want to hear what he has to say. Stepping over to the fridge, I open the door and begin to fill it with bottles.

  “Mia, I just don’t want to see you get hurt.”

  Surprised, I turn to face him and notch my chin to look him in the eyes. He’s tall. Not as tall as Brody, but he’s a big man. “Why would you say that?”

  “Because I care about you.” He studies me a moment, and then looks genuinely concerned. “I’ve heard things.”

  “Like?” I press. If Brad’s got something to say, then why the hell doesn’t he just say it?

  Silence stretches into awkwardness and I wonder if he’s not going
to tell me. “Brody’s using you, Amelia.”

  “That’s ridiculous,” I snap defensively. “You don’t even know him.”

  “I know he’s sworn off relationships. Said he’d never marry again. Has he told you anything different? Because you deserve a hell of a lot better than to be used as a diversion.”

  A diversion? Is that what I am? What this is? Brad’s seeds of doubt are taking root, and as much as I don’t want to hear what he has to say, I can’t help but wonder if there’s not some truth in it.

  Is it that obvious to everyone but me? Am I a fool for believing Brody can change? He’s yet to tell me he loves me. He hasn’t talked of the future or asked me to stay with him when his season is over. Brad isn’t voicing anything I haven’t thought about or agonized over hundreds of times.

  “Ask him,” Brad challenges. “Ask him what his intentions are.”

  I don’t know what to say, so I pull two bottles from the pack and hand them to him. “I appreciate your concern, but I think you should probably go.”

  There’s a flicker of hesitation in his eyes, and maybe even remorse. But then he nods, conceding defeat, and leaves the kitchen. A moment later, I hear him call up the stairs, “Come on, Maddie. We’ve got to go.”

  I need a moment to get my emotions under control before I head out there to say goodbye to Maddie. Brad struck a nerve, putting voice to my own concerns, and apparently everyone else is thinking the same thing, talking about what a fool I am to fall for Brody Evans. Before I can harness the tears threatening to spill down my cheeks, the front door closes with a soft click of finality. My friendship with Brad has been irreparably damaged.

  …

  I’m in the kitchen cutting up vegetables for a garden salad when Brody comes in. “Hey,” I call over my shoulder with more exuberance than I feel. My conversation with Brad has been eating at me since he left. “How was practice?”

  “Long.” His response is less than enthusiastic as he steps up behind me, slips his arm around my waist, and kisses the side of my neck.

  “You sound tired. Tough day?” I tip my head back, resting it against his shoulder, and lean into him. My backside meets a wall of tension. Something’s wrong.

  “I have an interview before the game tomorrow. It’s with ESN. I don’t want to do it, but I have to.” He sighs and steps back, bracing his hip against the island and watches me cut up a red onion. “I spent the better part of the day with the team’s publicist, prepping for the interview. It was fucking painful. He asked me a lot of questions.”

  “About us?” My gaze darts his way, and Brody nods.

  “He thinks I should go public with our relationship.” I stop chopping, set the knife down, and turn toward him, giving him my undivided attention. “He thinks it’ll take the focus off Stella if they turn the questions personal—and they always do.”

  Is that why he’s considering this? He wants to use our relationship. Brad’s remark about me being a distraction comes back to haunt me. It would be one thing if Brody came out to the press about us because he was madly in love with me and wanted to share his happiness with his fans. It’s quite another to be used as a diversion tactic. That hurts. A lot.

  It’s not like those thoughts aren’t already plaguing my mind—that he’s using me as a distraction to forget Stella. That what we have isn’t real. I’ve been patient and careful not to pressure him because I understand he has a lot to work through, but I’m concerned he’s grown comfortable with our “arrangement” and feels no need to deepen our relationship. Meanwhile, I’m so in love with the guy I can hardly see straight.

  He’s watching me, waiting for me to say something but I’m careful to mask my emotions. I don’t want him to know how much he just hurt me. I try to approach this as clinically as I can, but that’s easier said than done. “Okay. You told me what your publicist thinks. Now what do you think?”

  His gaze breaks mine and he hesitates to answer. The knot in my chest tightens until the dull ache steals my breath.

  “I’m a private person, Amelia. You know that. I’d prefer to say nothing. Our relationship is no one’s business. But I also know that things have a way of getting out, and maybe it would be best if I did it on my terms.”

  His response is thoughtful—logical. It makes sense, but it’s still not the answer I was hoping for.

  “The press would have a field day if they found out I was fucking my daughter’s nanny.”

  Is that what this still is? Because to me, it feels like a hell of a lot more than that. “Do what you think is best.” I turn back around and begin chopping the onions with a bit more vigor. I sense him standing behind me, studying me. He’s more than likely replaying our conversation, trying to figure out where he went wrong, because I’m obviously upset. Pressure builds behind my eyes. Tears blur my vision.

  “Amelia?”

  I can’t answer him. He’ll hear the pain in my voice. I start chopping faster, trying to finish before I can no longer see what I’m doing.

  “Mia, look at me.”

  Chop… Chop… Chop… The knife hits my finger, and pain erupts. I yelp and drop the knife. It clatters on the granite countertop as I grab my finger and squeeze it tight.

  Brody growls a sharp curse and reaches for me. “Are you all right?” Before I can answer, he spins me around. “You’re crying.”

  “I’m fine. It’s the onion.” I’m not fine. My feelings are hurt, and my finger is bleeding, and I’m pretty sure I’m going to pass out.

  “Let me see it.”

  I squeeze my eyes shut and shake my head. I need a minute—a minute to gather my thoughts and just breathe. But Brody gives me no quarter. He picks me up and plops me on the counter and the déjà vu hits me. A few months ago, we were in almost this same exact position.

  He grabs a clean dish towel from the drawer as I fight back a wave of dizziness. “Don’t look at it,” he tells me, remembering that I don’t handle the sight of my blood well.

  I keep my eyes closed as he pulls my hand away. “Is it bad?” I wince when the sting intensifies as the air hits my wound.

  Brody covers it with the towel and squeezes my finger. “It’ll need a couple of stitches, but you’ll be fine. Lily!”

  The patter of footsteps echoes above us then comes charging down the stairs. “What, Daddy?”

  “Go put your shoes on, honey. I need to take Amelia to the hospital. She cut her finger.”

  “Oh no. Mia, are you okay?” Lily ignores her father’s directive and runs over to me. Putting her little hand on my knee, she pats it comfortingly.

  “Amelia’s fine. She just needs to go to the doctor. Now, go put on some shoes, sweetheart, and get in the car.”

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Amelia

  “I’m sorry I upset you. I shouldn’t have brought up the interview.”

  I’m sitting in the emergency department waiting room, holding pressure over the bandage the triage nurse gave me. Brody is beside me and Lily’s in the corner playing with a sand maze that looks like a large etch-a-sketch. I watch her tracing a path through the obstacles, focusing my attention on her rather than the man next to me who’s bruised my feelings, all while trying to ignore the throbbing in my finger.

  “That’s not why I’m upset, Brody.” I don’t look at him when I answer. If I do, I’m afraid I’ll start crying again. I’ll be damned if I sacrifice my career for a man who’s just “fucking his nanny.”

  “Then why are you upset?”

  I turn my head and level him with a stare, frustrated he still doesn’t get it. “I want to be more than a diversion for you.”

  “Is that what you think this is?” The look he gives me is both shocked and insulted, but I stand my ground.

  “I think that’s what you think it is.”

  “What the hell would give you that idea?”

  “You did. Brody, we’ve been together for months, and you’re not opening up to me. My contract is ending soon. You never speak of the fut
ure, and I get no sense of commitment from you.”

  “I just told you that I want to tell fifteen million people on national TV that you and I are together. I think that’s a pretty impressive gesture of commitment.”

  Oh my God. He still doesn’t get it. “It would be if you were doing it for the right reasons.”

  “And what exactly is the wrong reason, Amelia?”

  “I told you. A diversion.”

  “Jesus, would you stop saying that?” he snaps. “You’re not a goddamn diversion.”

  “Brody, your decision to tell people about us is not because you’re in love with me. You’re doing it so it’ll draw attention away from Stella.” He gives me a frustrated look but doesn’t deny it.

  Now would be the time for him to say, “Baby, you got it all wrong. I’m madly in love with you.” But I get nothing but radio silence.

  Sighing, I pinch the bridge of my nose and close my eyes to stem the impending tears. “What are we doing, Brody?”

  “We’re having fun. We’re taking it slow. We’re seeing where this goes.”

  I need more than that from him. I can’t put my life on hold and possibly give up my dream job so I can “have fun.”

  “And where do you see it going, Brody?”

  “Why are you putting me on the spot? I don’t think the waiting room of an emergency department is the best place to be having this conversation.”

  I have everything on the line for this man—my heart, and now the career opportunity of a lifetime. I don’t think I’m being unreasonable, but he has a point. The ER lobby isn’t where we should be having this conversation. “You’re right. I’m sorry.” We need to stop talking about this and I need some space from him.

  “Christ, don’t apologize. You’re making me feel like an asshole.”

  “Amelia,” the nurse in the doorway calls. I stand, and Brody starts to rise.

  “You don’t have to come with me. You can wait out here with Lily.”

  “Fuck that,” he growls. “Come on, Lily.” Brody holds out his hand, waiting for Lily to join him, and they follow me back to the room.