Total pages in book: 82
Estimated words: 78894 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 394(@200wpm)___ 316(@250wpm)___ 263(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78894 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 394(@200wpm)___ 316(@250wpm)___ 263(@300wpm)
Something in her eyes made me feel a bit wary. I wasn’t fond of the way she’d used the word home. The last thing I wanted to do was give her the impression that I was interested in anything more than having her help out with Charlie.
“Well, I never really dreamed it would be this hard to find a nanny.”
She winked. “You’ll find someone. I was going to ask, did you need help moving into the new house?”
I shook my head. “I hired movers and it should be easy. We’ve hardly unpacked since our move here.”
“Yeah, a lot of my toys are still packed up,” Charlie said. “I can’t wait to see ’em again!”
Kelsey and I both chuckled.
The doorbell rang, and I paused, my fork in midair. “I wonder who that could be?” I asked as I stood up. “Excuse me a moment.”
Kelsey grinned. “Of course.”
I made my way to the front door of the rental I was living in. The last person I expected to see standing there was Palmer.
“Palmer?”
She pushed me aside and hastily shut the door behind her. “I don’t think anyone saw me. I parked a few blocks down.”
I looked out the large bay window to see that it was snowing. “It’s snowing outside. Why would you walk?”
Pulling her hood down, she momentarily robbed me of breath at the sight of her. She was so beautiful with those big blue eyes of hers staring up at me. One could say they were sky blue, but there were times when they were so deep you couldn’t help but get lost in them. I gave my head a shake and refocused while she spoke.
“I didn’t want anyone to see me coming here.”
I frowned. “Why not?”
She stared at me for a moment before she said, “You haven’t seen the article yet, have you?”
I smirked. “The one about Dr. Zaddy?”
Palmer rolled her eyes. “Okay, you’ve seen it then. Mason, people think there’s something going on between us.”
“Palmer, I’m not worried about a little town gossip. By next week, Ms. Seaside will have moved on to someone else.”
She let out a bark of laughter. “You haven’t been here long enough to know the woman has it in for my family. She’s been talking about my sisters and my brother for months! She’s mentioned me a time or two as well, but nothing terribly bad. I don’t even know how she knows you asked me to be Charlie’s nanny, and that I said no. For all I know, she knows about—”
“Mason?”
I glanced over my shoulder to see Kelsey standing there with what looked like a forced smile on her face. When I turned back to Palmer, I was taken aback by the look on her face. I couldn’t tell if she was surprised, angry, or upset. The change in her eyes made me instantly want to explain Kelsey’s presence.
She pulled her eyes off of Kelsey and looked up at me. “I’m…um…I’m sorry. I wouldn’t have come if I’d known you had a guest.”
“It’s fine. Kelsey made us dinner and stayed to join us. She’s been watching Charlie for me since Lori Anne—” I looked back at Kelsey. “Well, that’s a long story.”
Palmer frowned. “I thought Lori Anne was babysitting him until after Christmas.”
Before I had a chance to respond, Kelsey did. “She needed to focus on graduating and wanted to attend some functions with her friends. I told her I’d take over for her.”
I stared at Kelsey with what I knew had to be a stunned look. Why in the hell would she interject herself into this conversation about my son? She was clearly getting too comfortable here—and that needed to change.
Turning back to Palmer, I said, “I’ve asked my mother to come and stay for a bit while I get moved and settled in. She’ll be able to watch Charlie for me until winter break, and hopefully by the time he heads back to school, I’ll have found a permanent nanny.”
I made a mental note to call my mother the moment everyone left. It wouldn’t be hard to talk her into coming and helping. She and Charlie adored one another, and I knew my parents would love to stay in the new house with us over the holidays.
Palmer nodded, her eyes bouncing from me to Kelsey. “Well, I…I guess if you’re not worried about the article, then I won’t be either.”
“It’s purely town gossip,” Kelsey said as she walked up and stood next to me. She put her hand on my arm. “I wouldn’t be surprised if Ms. Seaside tries to link us together romantically too.”
I looked at Kelsey’s hand and then up at her. Before I could say anything, Charlie came running into the room.
“Ms. Palmer!” he cried as he raced by and threw his arms around Palmer’s legs. I took that opportunity to step away from Kelsey and break her hold on me.