Page 24 of The Unconventional Nanny
I know I'm the favorite, and I never let him forget it.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah." He wants to wave me off, but I won't let go of his hand. Right now I'm being that pesky little sister everyone tells people about, even though I'm in my thirties.
"Aww." Yes, Annalee says the word. "I can't wait to meet the rest of your sisters. If they are anything like the two of you, I'm going to love them."
This would normally be when I hide an eye roll at the mushiness of Annalee's statement, but I know it comes from a good place. Annalee doesn't have biological siblings, and her stepbrother wanted her out of the picture to get her father'sfortune. So, sure it's a mushy sentiment. But who could blame the woman when she has no family of her own?
"You say that now," I tell her. "But you'll be singing a different tune when the six of us are in the same room together. Owen's the calm and domesticated one. The rest of us are feral cats."
Owen spits his soda across the table at me. "Hey, now!" I holler at him.
He wipes his mouth with his palm. "I'm sorry," he replies sarcastically, "but what else did you expect me to do when you call yourself a feral cat while I'm taking a sip of my drink."
"Not spit it at me," I argue back. "And you know it's true."
"Well, yeah, but I never expected you to admit it."
I shrug my shoulder at him and then look back at Annalee. "It's best to own our flaws and make them great."
The rest of dinner isn't quite as entertaining, but it's full of laughter and fun. I decline the chance to stay later, because, truthfully, I'm exhausted and my bed is calling my name.
Or maybe it's a certain someone who just so happens to own the place that bed resides in.
Chapter Eleven
ANGELO
Livy hasn’t come down to join me for a late-night snack tonight, so I'm sitting at the kitchen island—eating the snack I really want and enjoying the peace that comes with it—when a noise catches my attention. I turn just in time to see Gracie walking out of the in-law suite.
"Can't sleep either?" I ask as I dunk another Oreo into my cup of milk.
"Not exactly." She struts her cute ass across the kitchen in an oversized shirt tucked in the front of skintight booty shorts, and joins me at the island. "I had dinner at my brother's house but was so exhausted when I got back that I passed out for a bit. Now I'm wide awake because I screwed with my sleep schedule."
I wince at her explanation. I have a feeling the reason she's exhausted is because of her day with Everly.
"I'm sorry. That's probably my fault."
She brushes my apology off with a wave of her hand before grabbing an Oreo out of the package. "It's no big deal. I mean,I give stay-at-home moms credit now, but it's fine. All new jobs require an adjustment period. This is just mine."
"Would you like your own glass of milk?" I ask when she dunks her Oreo in mine.
"Nope, I'm okay with sharing."
Surprisingly, I am as well.
"So how was dinner with your brother?"
Gracie scoffs as she puts the rest of the dripping Oreo in her mouth. Around a dwindling mouthful, she says, "It started with some family drama. Apparently my sister Annie has decided she wants to start a new business venture, but in the process, she went off the grid and no one knows where to find her."
I start to choke on the Oreo I put in my mouth mid-explanation, coughing and sputtering crumbs everywhere.
Gracie pounds on my back. "Are you okay?"
Nope. I'm going to hell. But I can't say that, so I wave that I'm fine even though I have yet to catch my breath. At least if I'm going to die, it's while I'm eating my favorite snack.
Once I'm able to talk again, I explain. Well, sorta. I make up an excuse for my sudden near-death experience. "Wrong pipe." I point to my throat. "Damn midnight snack is finally going to be the death of me."
Gracie gifts me with a lighthearted chuckle that makes me feel even more like an asshole. I know where her sister is. Can ease her and her family’s minds with one or two sentences. And yet, I can't tell her unless I want to break the promise I made to Annie. So instead, I evade.
