Page 69 of Stolen Fate

Jerry lips tilted upward a little, and I supposed that was the most I would be getting out of him.

Jerry didn’t show his emotions often—if at all. He was the perfect representation of stoicism, but I did sometimes catch an odd look on his face that said he was amused about something, only he never allowed himself to fully express it, and all that was left was a ghostly smile we could only imagine.

I patted his chest on my way to the car door he had opened for me. “It’s good to see you again.”

“You as well, Evelyn,” he said smoothly, just as I climbed into the back, pulling the flap of my red jacket tighter against me to ward off the cold. I was pretty thankful for the heater in the car. One of the perks of having a driver: The car was always heated when I got in.

Jerry closed the door behind me and moved to the driver’s seat.

We didn’t talk on the ride over, which made me kind of miss Simon. I wasn’t usually very talkative, but New York could be very lonely when you didn’t know anyone. Though I enjoyed my time with Elliot, I also needed to converse with other adults, too.

That was why Elliot’s playdate with Charlie would be as much for him as it would be for me, considering how I had enjoyed my time with Lisa in the few weeks I had been here.

We pulled up to Elliot’s school and I got out, rushing my way inside and waiting with the other nannies for our charges to be released.

And in a weakened, thoughtless moment, I allowed myself to think about him.

The pain that was always constant in my heart grew the longer I thought about him, to the point where I almost couldn’t breathe.

He had to be with a rich family, because surely only a wealthy family could drop 150 thousand dollars in my lap and not break a sweat.

Would he be in school, counting down the minutes until he could get out and greet his own nanny?

I assumed he had a nanny to care for him. I doubted his “parents” could put in the effort, especially not if they were running a big corporation like Jace.

But Jace always made time for Elliot, no matter how busy he was, and I didn’t know if my boy could be as lucky as Elliot.

If he had parents who loved him and a nanny who had fallen in love with him at first sight.

The worst part about the whole thing was not knowing where he had ended up. Whether he was happy and safe in the world.

My only consolation was that his parents had gone through a lot of trouble to get him, so I couldn’t imagine they would neglect him in any way.

Or at least, that was what I tried to tell myself.

The bell rang and the door opened, bringing with it the excited chatter of children. I could hear Elliot’s voice among them, his laughter so contagious I couldn’t help but smile and the pain in my chest lessening the longer I paid attention to him.

“Evelyn!” Elliot yelled, when he noticed me by the door. He ran to me as fast as his little legs could carry him, his big backpack making that same thump, thump, thump it always did with each step he took.

He wrapped his arms around me and buried his face in my stomach, his forehead pressing in on the scar on my abdomen.

It didn’t hurt anymore.

Not after all these years, but it still felt strange whenever I touched it, and it was no different when Elliot pressed in on it.

I placed my hand on his head, ruffling the mass of unruly dark hair. “Hey, baby. How was your day at school?”

The other nannies shot me a look. I knew what that look meant. They could all see the way I adored Elliot and vice versa, and they all thought I was stupid for getting too close. I knew why they thought that, and I knew most of them tried to keep a respectable distance between themselves and the kids they were caring for, but that wasn’t a way to care for a kid.

They needed to know they were loved, and kids were much more perceptive than most adults gave them credit for.

I ignored their stares and turned back to Elliot, who was looking at me with those big blue eyes of his.

“I think we need to get you a haircut tomorrow,” I said. “How does that sound?”

“Can we make it look like Daddy’s?” he asked.

I smiled. I didn’t think the world was ready to handle a second, albeit miniature, Jace. It was cute the way he hero-worshiped his dad, and I knew even though Jace didn’t want to make a big deal out of it, he loved that Elliot looked up to him.

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