Page 32 of The Last Thing
She bites her lip, andfuck me.
Don’t growl. Don’t move. Don’t think of her naked.
“I don’t think curmudgeons make people come on Ferris wheels.”
I groan before I can stop myself, then shake my head. “The guy you saw that night is a guy I haven’t been for a long time.”
“Because you have to focus on being a dad. And a grump.”
I stare at her for a beat. “You really think I’m grumpy?”
She shrugs. “You have a gruff side. Like you’re closing a part of yourself off. It might be subconsciously, but I think it comes off slightly grumpy.”
Running my hand through my hair, I lean back against her couch. “I keep things locked down tight so I don’t have to worry about major things being out of my control.”
Her features cloud for a moment. “That’s not how life works.”
“You’re right. It’s not.” I wave my hand and move on because I don’t want to get into my baggage right now. “Anyway, I want to make sure you’re comfortable with all this.”
“Absolutely, Mr. Decker.”
“Hallie…”
Her grin returns. “Sorry. It’s fun. If you want me to stop and never mention it again, then that’s fine. But don’t worry. I wouldn’t do it in front of Sophia, and you don’t need to worry about my professionalism. I have one hard and fast rule. Never sleep with someone I work for. Never get involved with them. It only ends up destroying things.”
Why do those words destroymea little? They’re exactly what I should want to hear. She’ll keep this professional, and she can be the nanny—and woman—my daughter needs.
What about what I need?
Ha. My needs. I gave those up when I had a kid.
“Well, we should talk about compensation, then. Not a sex joke, I promise.”
She laughs a little. “Let’s crunch some numbers.”
It’s almostten by the time we’re finished talking through things and drawing up an online contract. I was ready to say screw it, but Hallie reminded me that contracts protect both parties and they’re essential.
We came up with a pretty good system overall. I can’t afford to pay her a ton, but since Frannie isn’t charging her rent, she says she doesn’t need a lot.
Hallie sets her mostly full cup of tea on the table and fidgets in her spot like she’s done several times over the last twenty minutes.
She just signed the contract. Now I’m reading through it all on her tablet so I can sign it too.
“Are you okay?” I ask.
I finished my tea a half hour ago. Maybe she’s just tired or nervous—though that doesn’t seem like her. Either way, something’s wrong.
“Just been a long day. Still getting used to a new apartment.” She gestures to the tablet. “Finish reading.”
I finish up and sign. It’s more thorough than I ever would’ve thought of, but she’s right. It protects us both.
I lean forward to hand her the tablet, but she pushes to her feet. “Fuck.”
Then she’s bolting toward the hallway. I jump to my feet and follow her.
She runs into the bathroom and drops to her knees in front of the toilet. She barely gets it open before she throws up.
I drop to my knees beside her and grab her hair, holding it back.
