Page 2 of Rejected Nanny Mate
“It's complicated,” I sighed. “And long.”
“You've got a few minutes,” Samson pointed out, Scott coming up behind them. Both men were carrying grocery bags, which their wives shooed them into the kitchen with. I followed, watching Kiera closely as she carried my daughter.
“Can I have her back?” I asked, and Kiera gave me a small smile.
“Not until you tell us how she ended up here.”
I scowled, and Nayeli put a hand on my arm. “We'll give her back. We promise. But we want to know why.”
I was silent, debating on whether or not I wanted to say the words aloud.
“Joe?” Kiera prodded.
I ran a hand through my hair, sighing. “Okay. Okay. I don't know who the mother is.”
There was a stunned silence, and then, as one, both women's jaws dropped.
“You can't—are you kidding?” Nayeli hissed, shooting a glance toward the kitchen where Samson and Scott were unloading groceries.
“You slept with her and can't even remember her name?” Kiera's voice was full of disbelief.
“I didn't say that!” I protested, though it was a lie.
“So, what happened?” Kiera asked, her eyes fixed on Rose's sleeping face.
“Exactly what I said over the phone. Someone rang the bell, and when I opened the door, there she was. There is no record of anyone on my security cams, either. It's like she wasn't there one moment, and there the next.”
“And you're positive she's your daughter?” Nayeli pressed, taking a seat on the couch.
“He's not lying,” Scott said, coming back into the main room. “I can smell that they're blood relatives. Right, Samson?”
“Right.” He leaned against the doorframe that led into the kitchen. “That's his pup.”
“And the mom is really no one you can pinpoint?” Kiera asked, gently bouncing Rose, who'd begun to stir.
“I swear,” I said, holding my hands up.
“Maybe she's his mate,” Nayeli suggested.
“Then why wouldn't she just show up here and claim him?” Kiera countered. “If she's his mate, there's no way she would have been able to stay away.” She glanced at her own mate. “I thought about Samson every single day while we were apart, and he was an asshole. Joe is nice. She has no reason to avoid him.”
“Hey,” Samson protested, but no one paid him any mind.
“How nice can he be if he slept with so many women he can't remember which one is her mother?” Nayeli scoffed, and it made something painful pull in my chest. The little Luna was my friend, and she was clearly not amused by my antics.
“It wasn't on purpose,” I explained, dragging a hand through my hair. “I just...” It wasn't something I wanted to talk about, especially around the other Alphas, but if I wanted Kiera and Nayeli's help, I needed to be at least somewhat honest. “I don't like to complicate things with my pack members by having...relationships, however brief, with them, so I tend to seek out partners outside of the pack.”
“So, you're a man whore,” Samson summarized.
“Sam!” Kiera barked, shooting him a scathing look. “Not the time.”
“Just saying,” he mumbled, but subsided.
“But you are an Alpha,” Nayeli pointed out. “You didn't feel drawn to any of them as a mate?”
“There were a few humans,” I admitted reluctantly. “And a few wolves, but none of them called to me, no.”
There was one who called to me, but I hadn't slept with her. We'd shared a single, burning, soul-consuming kiss, and that was it. The crowd in the room was the last people I'd admit her identity to, though. They were already on edge with me; the last thing I needed was outright anger.
