by Mia Kayla
Brad got out his phone—about to call his secretary, Sonia, most likely—but Patty was quick to pluck the cell out of his hands.
She laughed and then lightly slapped Brad’s shoulder. “I have to get the girls ready. I’ll be back, and then we can talk about my replacement. I think I have the answer to our problem.”
Chapter 5
Charles
After dropping off the girls, I met Brad, Mason, and Patty in the boardroom at Brisken Printing Corporation. We had to be at work for a morning meeting, so I’d suggested that Patty drive to the office, so we could have our discussion and still meet at the scheduled time with our vendors.
Patty had a solution, and we were all ears. After three rounds of nanny interviews, we had nothing, and I doubted that the fourth round would be any better.
Sonia, Brad’s secretary, strolled in and placed a new pot of coffee and some cookies at the center of the table. “Here’s the creamer and sugar.”
She adjusted it on the tray and began to walk out when Brad called out to her, “Hey, where’s the hazelnut creamer I like?”
Brad didn’t take flavored creamer with his coffee. He was baiting her, which was what he did best.
Sonia turned, pushed her glasses further up her nose, stared at him, blinked a few times, unaffected, and then about-faced and walked straight out of the room, as though he hadn’t said a word.
I kept my face steady, but Mason busted out in full-blown laughter beside me. “And that’s why we hired her … because she doesn’t take your shit.”
Which was exactly so. Brad had gone through a phase of dating all his secretaries, who in turn had quit when it didn’t work out because of his playboyish ways, which disrupted our flow of business.
Now, Mason and I were in charge of hiring anyone on Brad’s team. Sonia had been the most recent hire on Brad’s team. She took care of his schedule, kept him in check, and most importantly, didn’t fall for his womanizing antics. She had a boyfriend, which was an added plus. Not like significant others had deterred the other secretaries, but this was Sonia. Sonia was different. She had self-respect and an aversion to Brad’s charms.
Brad leaned back and tipped his chin. “Sonia loves me. She just doesn’t know it yet,” he joked.
Patty sat back and sipped her coffee, eyeing him with this all-knowing look I’d seen too many times before. “Maybe she is exactly what you need to change your ways.”
Brad lifted an eyebrow, smiling, giddy even, and Mason pointed a shaky finger at him. “Don’t even try it. Don’t ruin a good thing, okay? We have this company running like a well-oiled machine since we hired her. We don’t need you trying to screw your secretary. Again. Break her heart. Again. And have her quit. Again.”
Watching Mason’s kick-ass face, I knew this could escalate quickly. I tapped my knuckles on the table. “Focus. We all have a meeting at ten.” I turned toward Patty. “So, you said you have a solution, a possible replacement?”
I quietly prayed this was a viable candidate. Though I trusted Patty with my life—because my girls were my life—I still wondered if whatever she was about to say would truly be a solution. I had become so doubtful that I even doubted Patty.
“I do.” Her confident gaze landed on each of us. “Becky is currently the caretaker of my mother. She has the gentlest soul. Very kind. Very patient. Very loving.”
I rested my elbows on the boardroom table, watching Patty light up, just talking about this woman, whom I’d heard about numerous times before.
“I’ve taken her in like my pseudo daughter. Seriously. I wish I could keep her with me, but it doesn’t make sense for me to pay her when my mother will be at the nursing home for round-the-clock care and I’ll be there with her.” Patty’s smile widened, and her eyes lit up with an inner glow. “She’s young, and she needs to be somewhere else other than in a house with old people.”
“How young are we talking about?” Brad asked, a little too interested.
Mason kicked him under the table, and Brad jumped. “What? And please. I’m not that dumb that I’d bang the nanny watching my girls. That’s where I draw the line. I’m not going to do that, no matter how hot she is.” He smirked. “Is she hot?”
Patty nodded. “Yes, she’s very attractive.”
Brad wiggled his eyebrows in an exaggerated effect.
“How long have you known her?” I reached for the coffee in the center of the table and poured myself a cup.
“Well, she cared for my best friend’s son, who was disabled, until he died. That was for a few years. And then she’s cared for my mama ever since.”
“Where is she originally from? Does she have experience with kids? Does she have a family of her own? Do you have her résumé handy?” Mason spat out the questions in rapid succession, and I rubbed at my forehead.
“So …” There was a long, pregnant pause as she stared at all of us. “Regarding her background, I have to say I don’t know too much about her past.” She raised a finger, not missing a beat. “But I trust her wholeheartedly. I trust her with my mother. I would trust her with those girls too, and you know I love those girls.”
Brad slammed a palm against the table. “Sold.”
Mason’s eyebrows flew to his hairline. “Wait a second here. We haven’t run a background check yet. What’s her full name and social security?”
Patty leveled him with a stare and shook her head. “It’s not like that, Mason. You won’t be able to run a background check on her, and she only accepts cash.”
Stipulations, Patty had said. This was it.
He blinked and then double-blinked at her, as though he didn’t understand or that was the wrong answer. He tilted his head, assessing her, and then slowly said, “No. Sorry, that won’t do.” Mason did a slow shake of his head. “I mean, really? Trust a person we hardly know anything about, living in our house, watching our girls, one we can’t even do a background check on?”
Brad pointed to Patty. “Patty basically vouched for her. That’s like Mom vouching for her. How’s this any different than Mom going with Auntie Carol’s recommendation of Patty? She didn’t run a background check. Right?”
That was true.
They both looked at me.
They always looked to me for the final answer.
I had the final say for every big decision at Brisken Printing Corporation and in all things family-related. I’d planned our last takeover, our last merger. I’d planned our parents’ funeral, had the final decision on the flowers and the venue and the food at the reception. I had the final say in all things.
My gut told me to trust Patty. My mother and father had hired Patty on a recommendation, and given the way Patty talked about Becky, I knew she trusted this woman. If Patty trusted this woman with her mother and even our girls, it was worth meeting her.
But I couldn’t give in just yet. A small smile formed at my idea. “I think we should put her through the Mary test.”
Chapter 6
Becky
The Brisken men had asked me to fly up to Chicago, but I couldn’t. I couldn’t risk it. So, I had agreed to take a bus all the way from Florida to Chicago.
Patty picked me up from the bus station, and I was mute the whole ride in their car, wringing my hands in my lap.
“You’ll do fine, Becky,” Patty said soothingly. “I’ve talked you up. Plus, all you have to do is be yourself.”
“Thanks, Patty.”
Word of mouth was how I’d gotten out of my situation. It was how I’d lived the last few years of my life. I needed this job. I didn’t have a huge network of people to find me another job or a résumé that I could give out.
I blew out a breath and stared at the back-to-back traffic in front of us. Big city. Another opportunity. New life. I placed heavy palms on my knees, forcing them to stop shaking. I’d never lived in a big city. My life before had consisted of rural farms and eating at the local sub shop connected to our gas station.
I needed this.
&nbs
p; Patty had briefed me on the family. Some information I’d already known because when she came home to visit Eleanor and gushed about the girls, I would eat her stories up like it was my favorite meal. I drank up her day-to-day mishaps with Miss Mary and deep conversations with Sarah. I lived through their excursions and vacations and daily activities.
Yes, I was nervous, but a big part of me was excited to meet them because it felt as though I knew them already.
She waved to a guard, and he opened the gates to a well-manicured, elite subdivision. We drove up a winding road that led to a palatial mansion that had my jaw dropping to the ground. Lights highlighted the pillars of the mansion that framed the door, and the window-height shrubbery etched against the building was like lines against a painting.
“It’s just a house,” Patty said, noting my shocked reaction. “What makes a home is the people in the house. And I have no doubt you’ll grow to love these people.”
I bit my bottom lip. “Patty, I’m nervous.”
She placed the car in park and put a tender hand on top of mine. “You’ll do fine. Promise.”
I wished I were as sure as she was in me.
“Can you tell me what to expect? I don’t remember the last time I’ve been on an interview. I think it was at my last paycheck job at the Piggly Wiggly.”
Patty laughed. “So, yes, you will have an interview with all of them because Mason—he’s the youngest of the Brisken men—is the most meticulous with things like this. He’ll want a formal interview. But I imagine it’ll be normal questions and be a little laid-back. I’ve told them not to pry into things that they shouldn’t.”
“Okay.” My shoulders relaxed just a tad.
I pushed up the sleeves of my light-pink V-neck ribbed sweater. I pressed a sweaty palm down my dark-washed jeans and pulled my long blonde ponytail over my shoulder. I had worn my best attire today. I would have worn black dress pants if I had any. I knew that first impressions mattered, and I wanted to make a good first impression.
“The hardest test you’ll have today is the kid test.” There was a funny look on Patty’s face.
My brows flew to my hairline. “Kid test?”
“Yes. Sarah will go along with what her uncles and dad tell her. She’s sensible, and she listens to authority and will trust that the people who love her will make the right decisions.” She breathed out one long sigh. “Mary … sweet Mary, is a whole other story. She’s making this particularly hard—their search for my replacement. I think, in her mind, if they don’t find another nanny, I won’t leave, but we all know that’s not the case.”
“Gotcha.” I gave a shaky nod. “Impress sweet Mary who isn’t so sweet.” I bit at my pinkie nail and forced a breath out.
I can do this. I can do this. Maybe if I believed the mantra in my head, I could do this.
Patty shook her head. “She’s sweet when she likes you, and there is no doubt she’ll love you. Mary has this innate gift on how to read people, their intentions and their heart.” She tipped my chin with the lightness of her fingertips. “And you, Becky, have the kindest of hearts.”
The mansion door opened and shut and then opened again. For a brief second, a mini human peered out, and I saw a flash of blonde hair and electric-blue eyes. My eyes blinked wide. She was stunning.
The door shut again, and Patty stepped out of the car. “And that will be my Mary. We’d better go. She’s expecting us.”
With one big breath, I straightened and pushed back my shoulders, exuding confidence I didn’t really have.
Patty’s voice resounded in my head, and I made it my mantra. Be yourself. Be yourself. Be yourself.
I swallowed hard.
What if it wasn’t good enough?
When I entered the house, the three Brisken men—who were all tall and alarmingly good looking with dark brown hair and chocolate-brown eyes—stood in the foyer to meet me. I had to pause and blink, almost pinching myself as I took the three brothers in.
I swore I’d stepped into a magazine featuring the rich and famous.
“Hi. I’m Mason.” He offered his hand and I shook it firmly.
“I’m Becky,” I said.
“Let me take your bags.” He lifted my bags out of my hands like they were air.
Mason had a runner’s build. He wore a pressed polo shirt, meant for work, and slacks that were creased as though they were newly ironed.
He was assessing me already with his eyes, trying to get a good read on me. I teetered in my gym shoes and tried to rein in my nerves. Patty had briefed me on each of their personalities. Before he even introduced himself, I would have guessed he was Mason.
Another Brisken brother stepped forward, this one with a mischievous, boyish grin, as though he had a secret, and he had buckets of charm oozing out of him, simply standing there. “And I’m—”
“Brad,” I said, smiling, finishing his sentence.
He laughed, taking my hand. “How did you know? Patty has been talking about me,” he guessed. “Is it my stunning good looks? My award-winning smile?” He rubbed at his jaw in an overly exaggerated way, and I laughed.
“She talks about you guys all the time when she comes home.” I motioned to everyone.
He nodded and then leaned in, getting eye-level with me. “Just know, I’m not into dating nannies, so don’t get any ideas.” Despite his words, he gave me a flirtatious once-over. “Though I do think you’re quite a looker.” He nudged Patty’s shoulder. “You were right, Pats.”
I tipped my chin, my eyes light. “But if you aren’t into nannies, is all the talk about what’s happening between you and Patty just gossip, then?”
He smirked. “I already got down on one knee. Ask her.”
Patty simply shook her head, as though she was used to Brad’s jokes.
My eyes took in the only man left that I hadn’t been introduced to—the father of the girls, the one who most likely had the final say. He was built like a football player, broad shoulders, arms as big as boulders. His face was ruggedly handsome, and his profile was sharp and confident and spoke of power.
My nerves spiked again, and I took a calming breath before stepping toward him. “And you must be Charles.”
When I placed my hand in his, I had a strong awareness of my heart beating too loudly in my ears. I blamed it on the fact that he was the girls’ father, so I had to impress him the most.
His eyes were a stunning brown, reminding me of molten chocolate. The other brothers had dark chocolate eyes, too, but something in Charles’s irises stilled me.
Where Brad oozed charm, Charles exuded strength. It wasn’t in the broadness of his shoulders or his over-six-foot height. It was the depth behind his eyes, a strength that I was familiar with—living through a life that hadn’t been so kind.
“I am. Becky, it’s nice to finally meet you.”
My heart stutter-stopped in my chest, and when he spoke, it felt as though I’d been pumped with a hundred shots of adrenaline.
I didn’t know if it was anxiety for the interview that had my palms sweating or because Charles was insanely attractive.
Charles
When she placed her hand in mine, I noticed how soft her fingers were, how fragile, how gentle her hand was, but that was nothing compared to her stunning green eyes, the color of emeralds. Her delicate outward appearance was contradictory to what I read behind her eyes—a strength and power behind her stare.
I cleared my throat, noting we were standing there a few seconds too long, our hands locked, and I hadn’t said more than two words.
“It’s nice to meet you,” I said, dropping my hand from hers. “Patty has told us a lot about you.”
One thing Patty had said spot-on was that Becky was attractive, not in an over-the-top way, but in the lightness in her features—her dirty-blonde hair, the shape of her face and her button nose.
She had this shiny, shimmery stuff on her lips, almost the color of a warm peach.
I swallowed.
Hard.
I tore my gaze back up to meet her eyes and blew out a steady breath. Something about her beauty struck me stupid and speechless. I was shocked at my instant attraction to her. It wasn’t that I didn’t appreciate the beauty of the women around me, in the office or walking downtown for lunch, but I was never one to take a second glance.
Her face was delicately carved, her mouth small, her lips full. It was in the simplicity of her beauty that I couldn’t take my eyes off of her.
Mason placed her bags by the stairs. “Patty can show you to your room, but do you want to get started with the interview first?”
Brad groaned and rolled his eyes. “Can you let the girl sit or relax or even take a piss after her long bus ride?”
“The girls are waiting,” Mason snapped at our brother, and then he averted his stare because I shot him a look of warning. “Unless you want to rest for a bit, and I understand that too. I’ll leave it up to you.”
“No, it’s fine.” Her voice shook with a nervousness that I could easily pick up on. “We can get the tough part out of the way.”
She wiped her hands on the front of her jeans, and my immediate reaction was to lean into her and tell her not to be nervous.
When she smiled, it lit up her whole face, and it lightened my insides.
I scratched at my day-old stubble, wishing I had shaved today. And suddenly, I felt underdressed as I glanced down at my jeans and fitted shirt. I should have worn something more professional even though we were having the interview at home.
Becky followed Mason and Brad to our dining room, where Mary had set up a station of stuffed animals on the long glass table and where Sarah sat right beside her with her journal.
“Girls,” Patty began, motioning to Becky beside her, “this is Becky, my friend.”
Patty beckoned the girls over, and after they approached, they each shook Becky’s hand.
The way Becky’s face lit up had me inching forward. Her smile was infectious, and I found the corner of my mouth tugging upward.
