Page 146 of The Nanny and the Nerd
OMG! She needed to start speaking! This was not the time to zone out! Not with hundreds of pairs of eyes on her. She ran her hands down the page, scanning the words, her words.
“Wanted,” she began. “Video Game Narrative Writer. Had I seen that listing, I would have glossed over it. But life has a funny way of leading you down a different path. Robert Frost spoke of choosing the path less traveled and that making the difference. I never meant to become a nanny. I never dreamed of writing scenes for a video game. But writing isn’t always crafting lines in books, manufacturing captions in articles, or penning essays in prestigious journals. No, words aren’t always tucked away on cream-colored paper, bound with thread. Sometimes, writing pings and pops and booms. Sometimes, it’s accompanied by alien archers, enchanted mists, and promises made in magical lands. Sometimes, it’s the—”
She stopped speaking as the noise grew louder, and the door to the auditorium swung open. The whole place turned, craning their necks as they watched a guy run down the aisle to the judges’ table. Breathless, he handed Elle Reynolds-Bergen a folded sheet of paper. The woman read it, passed it to the other judges, then left the judges’ table and joined her on stage.
The sound intensified as the chatter in the crowd amplified.
“What’s going on?” Penny asked the judge.
“It seems we’ve had a late entry,” the woman replied.
Penny reared back. “Is that even allowed?”
The judge grinned at her. “We’re making an exception. This entry comes with a commitment to fund the contest indefinitely.”
Penny shook her head. “I don’t understand.”
“You’re Phoebe Gale’s nanny, right?” Elle Reynolds-Bergen asked.
“Yes,” she answered warily.
The woman grinned. “My cousin, Abby Bergen, is her teacher.”
Penny gasped. “Right, I remember Mrs. Bergen mentioning that you were tapped to judge the competition.”
“I’m a fan of a good twist. And it appears we’re about to get one,” the woman answered as the sound grew deafening. The trees in the courtyard swayed violently as a helicopter—a damned HELICOPTER—touched down.
The auditorium erupted into gasps and murmurs as two figures emerged from the chopper, and Penny nearly fell over—again!
“No way,” she whispered, her heart pounding as Rowen and Phoebe emerged. A man opened an emergency exit door, and the two of them ran into the auditorium. The entire room went quiet as everyone stared at the new arrivals.
Rowen scanned the crowd, then met her gaze. “Hi,” he said casually—like that was the appropriate greeting after disembarking from a helicopter to crash a literary event in the heart of the city!
“You and Phoebe got out of a helicopter that landed at the Denver library,” she said, stating the obvious—because it needed to be said!
“Yes,” he answered robotically as the crowd’s attention bounced from him to her.
“Is that even allowed?” she exclaimed.
“Probably not. It’s Phoebe’s helicopter, so she’ll take the heat,” he answered coolly.
“Hi, Penny!” Phoebe exclaimed. Wearing a hot dog headband along with a complete hot dog ensemble, including a hot dog backpack, the girl was hot-dogged to the nines!
“Hi,” she replied, then a surge of agitation coursed through her veins. “You bought a child a helicopter?” she exclaimed, pointing at him, trying to poke him, but there was like one hundred feet between them.
His muted exterior cracked. “I’m kidding. We borrowed it from Phoebe’s teacher.”
Holy Buckets of Money! Rich people didn’t mess around with their toys!
“We were in a bit of a hurry, and there wasn’t time to take a car from the airport, so Phoebe suggested it.” He patted the girl on her back. “Good thinking, kid!”
Penny held on to the lectern to ground herself. “Why aren’t you at the E3 Expo? Jerome called. He said my laptop contained the beta version files. Your problem is solved.”
Rowen nodded, taking Phoebe’s hand as the two of them walked down the aisle toward her. “That’s correct.”
She felt her cheeks heat. “You broke my heart over that game, and you’re acting pretty casually about its release. Why aren’t you showing it off at E3? What about your loss of control and need for world domination?”
“I sent Boomer and Jerome in my place,” he answered, ascending the steps to the stage.
