Page 27 of My Orc Nanny

Every day I learned something new about one of them, or myself. As much as Ben loved nature and the outdoors, he was a budding engineer, and his designs were innovative and interesting—and sometimes downright impossible. Tova was a phenomonal story-crafter. Sure, she chattered nonstop, but her imagination was remarkable. I’d already started her and Emmy on writing “books,” and one of our favorite things to do was to read them out loud to Joshua, who chortled and clapped to everyone’s delight.

And Joshua? He was my little guy in every sense. From the moment I got him out of his crib in the morning, to slinging him under my arm while I worked—much to his delight—to walking him in our new and improved stroller to the market…he had smiles just for me. At first, I was afraid Hannah would be offended by this bond, but on the contrary; I often caught her watching the two of us with a soft sort of pleasure in her eyes.

The little boy was completely potty-trained during the day now, barring some accidents. The trick, I’d discovered, was to let him walk around in just a shirt outside and allow him to piss on the bushes. He thought this was great fun, and often bellowed, “Doshy pee-pee!” as he ran for his mother’s azaleas.

The timing of the potty-training was convenient because his birthday was this coming weekend. Hannah was planning a gathering of family and friends in the backyard, and I’d thrown myself into the choosing, purchasing, and constructing of an outdoor playset just for him.

“That’s awfully expensive,” she’d said when I’d suggested it, chewing on her bottom lip. “I don’t know if I can?—”

“It’s my gift to him.” How was I supposed to think about what I was saying when all my attention was on that plump lower lip? “Please, Hannah?”

The first time she’d learned how much money I—and the rest of my brothers—had in our investments, she’d been flabbergasted. When we’d come through the veil to her world, the scientists had spent a full year studying us before letting us loose. The government’s hush money had been wisely invested, and thanks to Abydos’s company, all of us were quite comfortable.

“I don’t understand why you’re working at all,” she’d blurted, throwing her hands up in frustration. “You could be sitting on a tropical beach somewhere.”

I’d caught her hands then, smiling softly, despite how badly myKteerurged me to claim her. “Because I need to be useful. Because you and the kitlings needed me. Because the only tropical beach I want to hang out on is right here in Eastshore, and I told Sakkara I’d meet him and Emmy with Tova, Ben, and Joshy this afternoon at beach access number fourteen.”

Her grin had been a little lopsided, a little uncertain…but finally she’d exhaled. “You have more money than I do, Aswan, and you’re my nanny. It’s intimidating.”

I shouldn’t have said anything. Instead, I squeezed her hands. “Then let me spend some of it on my favorite people.”

Somethingchanged in her eyes then, something soft and contemplative and a little hot. I thought I smelled her needagain, but she nodded and pulled her hands from mine. “Don’t think this gets you out of cooking for the party, though. We’re going shopping on Saturday and have to discuss the menu before then.”

Oh yes, because this weekend? The weekend of Joshua’s party?

The kids would be staying with her parents.

Her mother was in between rounds of chemo, and feeling strong enough to chase after Joshua, with the help of her husband and Ben and Tova, so she’d made the offer to keep them Friday and Saturday nights, before bringing them back for the party Sunday afternoon.

She’d suggested this would allow Hannah the chance to cook and clean and prep for the party, but I’ll confess I was a little fixated on theBeing alone in the house with her for forty-eight hoursthing.

“Hey, man, focus.”

Tarkhan’s exasperation jerked me from my reverie, and I saw him nodding to something behind me. I turned around, but saw nothing, and when I turned back, his expression had turned to laughter.

“The ratchet, Aswan. Pass me the ratchet, or this thing is going to fall on my foot. Thenlift your end, for fu—I mean, for goodness’s sake.”

Smirking at his attempts to curb his cursing as he struggled to hold up one end of the jungle gym, I scooped up two non-identical wrenches. “Which one of these is a ratchet?”

“The one on the left.” He shifted his stance to keep the heavy playset upright, his voice sounding strangled.

My grin grew. “My left or your left?”

“Aswan.”

With a chuckle, I dropped the crescent wrench and came to stand over his shoulder and screw in the carriage bolt to take the weight off his shoulder.

“Oh, thank the gods,” he sighed, ducking out from under it. “You know, when you said you wanted my help in putting this together, I didn’t think you meant I’d be doing it all.”

“Really?” I hummed innocently. “I can’t imagine why. You’re definitely the right male for the job. You want a beer?”

I saw him calculating as he eyed the half-constructed playset, then clearly deciding there was time, sighed again. “Absolutely.”

“You keep an eye on them,” I intstructed, nodding to where Ben and Tova were working together to screw the rock-shaped handholds to the climbing wall. “But don’t say anything unless they ask for help.”

With a tired little salute, Tarkhan settled on the porch steps while I hurried inside to listen for sounds of Joshy waking from his nap. Not hearing any, I grabbed two bottles from the garage fridge and headed back outside.

“Here.”

---