Page 71 of Nanny for the SEAL

Xaden

“Baby, you don’t eat all of it. You just eat the cheese and cookies. I’m not getting a Lunchable for you to not eat half of it.”

Daisy puts on her best puppy dog face, and I’m left standing there in front of the cooler of premade lunches, unable to do anything more than sigh.

“Fine, fine. But please try to eat the meat and the crackers. Okay?”

Immediately perking up, Daisy nods. “I will!”

I pull a blue-labeled Lunchable from the cooler and hand it to her. She’ll eat it right here in the store, and if anything, it’ll make the rest of my shopping easier because she’ll actually go sit in the cart.

Compromises.

Picking her up, I make sure to lay out her coat beneath her so that she has something soft to sit on—carts hurt her butt—and she hunkers down, opening her food and going straight for a cookie.

“Remember,” I eye her, “you need to eat the meat and cheese, too.”

She just nods. “My tablet?”

“Yeah, just a second.” I hand her the Kids' Fire tablet I got for her, and she munches away as I try to knock off the rest of the items on my list in less time than it took to get this far into the store with her.

As we’re wheeling along, I make sure to check on how she’s eating, and I’m happily surprised to see she’s gotten two slices of meat down.

“Hey, there, Xaden.”

Pulling to a stop, I look back over my shoulder to see Amy. She’s carrying a shopping basket, and I don’t see John anywhere.

“Oh, hey, Amy. How’s it going?”

She saunters over, and I maneuver the cart out of the way so that people can pass us.

“It’s good. And how’s this little one? I’m still available for babysitting if you need it.”

I chuckle a little, trying to keep the mood light, but I’ve been dreading this conversation. “I don’t need a babysitter right now, Amy, but I’ll let you know the moment I do. It’s been going really well with Ivy. We’ve gotten…very close.”

Tension hammers down on my muscles, and I hope Amy catches my meaning. That, of course, is proven when her eyebrows soar up to her hairline, her mouth dropping open.

“You…”

But she doesn’t finish.Dammit. I knew this was going to be a thing. God, I should have said something sooner.

“Umm, yeah. We are. It’s been great, actually. I’m really happy.”

That’s all that should matter to her, but I know Amy is opinionated at the best of times. Moreover, that awkwardness between us is at an all-time high, and I start to really believe I had it right in the first place.

Amywasflirting.

Shaking herself, she takes a step closer, lowering her voice. “You should know that she was quite rude to me at the park the other day. I just know she’s trying to put one over on you like the last nanny.”

There’s no proof of that, and what’s more, I’ve been sleeping with Ivy for a while now. I’d like to think I know her pretty damn well at this point.

“Amy, I think you’re reading into the situation. I know that you want to help protect Daisy, but really, there’s no trouble here. Ivy is great. Please, just let it go. For the first time in two years, I’m actually happy. Don’t you want that for me?”

She scoffs, pulling her head back like I’ve offended her somehow.

“Of course, I want you happy.”

Her tone is sharp and the volume is loud enough now to get Daisy looking up from her tablet.

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