Page 21 of The Unconventional Nanny
The puzzle is an array of colors. Livy had me order it because she knew it would make her grandmother smile. The picture is four cats sitting in a kitchen with donuts in front of them. Seeing the donuts suddenly reminds me of Gracie and the shirt she's wearing.
"Now what could possibly have brought that smile to your face? I haven't seen you smile like that since Nina was alive."
My smile slips some. No one ever mentions my late wife's name except my mother. Most know it's too hard for me to talk about, but Mom insists that the only way to heal is to say her name as often as possible.
"I was just thinking how happy Livy will be to see you like the puzzle so much."
"Uh, no, son. Don't bullshit your mother. That look had nothing to do with me or Livy. That was a look of a man thinking about a woman."
I sigh. There's no point in lying. Mom has a bullshit radar better than any CIA agent. "The donuts on the puzzle reminded me of the shirt the nanny is wearing today." I keep things as vague as possible.
"Nanny, huh? Someone new?"
I might as well settle in for what is bound to be a lengthy conversation. I take a seat in the chair opposite her at the table.
"Yes, she's new. Her name is Gracie and she started out as my tenant in the in-law suite, but when the babysitter canceled two days in a row, we came to a tentative agreement. She’ll nanny for me until I find something more permanent."
My mother’s gaze is intense, and I do everything I can not to squirm while I wait her out.
"What does she look like? And tell me more about this shirt you speak of."
I chuckle. "It's definitely not appropriate. None of the shirts she's worn since I met her are. They're full of sexual innuendo."
"Sounds like my kind of girl. But don't think I didn't notice you didn't describe her for me."
I sigh again. "She's got jet-black hair that falls past her shoulders and blue eyes that remind me of the ocean."
I can practically see the wheels turning in my mother's head, and I can't forget the swooning she's likely doing. "She sounds perfect for you."
"How can you say that?" I scoff. "She's the complete opposite of Nina."
"Exactly. Nina was your young love. But could this Gracie be in your life as your forever love?"
I push up from the chair and begin to pace the room. This isn't how I expected this visit to go.
"I never once mentioned love. Gracie's my tenant and now my nanny. Nothing about that screams love."
Except there's something there, even if I refuse to admit it to myself.
"Your words say one thing, Ang, but your eyes scream another. I know you think if you find someone new, it means you're betraying Nina's memory, but I assure you she would want you to find happiness."
I know Nina would. She was that kind of woman. Quiet and reserved, but selfless to a fault. Nothing at all like my youngest daughter or Gracie.
"I'm not sure I'm ready," I admit after several moments of quiet contemplation.
"And that's okay. You don't need to be ready right now, but keep your mind open to it. You don't want to wake up one day and regret letting love pass you by."
Mom sounds like she knows from experience, and maybe she does. My father died when I was a child and she never dated again. Our family is full of stories much the same. Significant others dying young on their partners and the other person never finding love again. If I were to fall in love with Gracie, I would be the first person in my family to change that curse.
Just another thing for me to think about.
Chapter Ten
GRACIE
Well, I think it's safe to say my first day as a nanny is an epic failure. The kind that goes down in history. And in flames.
Everly didnotsleep as long as I hoped. If this is how the little terror treats everyone, I fully understand why Ang can't keep a babysitter. Every time I attempted to put her in her bed, she threw a fit.
