The Nanny Trap

by Cat Schield

  She loved college and with each step toward graduation her future looked brighter. Between her course load and work, her time was still not her own, but now she was calling the shots and making all the decisions. It was a heady feeling. One she wasn’t ready to surrender to a boyfriend. So she didn’t date much. If something looked like it was getting serious, she broke it off. She liked her freedom and wasn’t willing to give it up.

  “He’s beautiful.” Bella summoned the energy for a weak smile. “Perfect.”

  “Blake?” Deidre looked puzzled.

  Bella shook her head. “Drew.”

  “You saw him, too?”

  “I did more than that.” Her throat seized. “I held him.”

  Deidre made a disgusted noise. “So what was Blake’s reaction when you told him no about the nanny job?”

  “What do you think?” Bella winced at Deidre’s disapproving scowl.

  “He badgered you to say yes.”

  “Badgered is a little strong. He just didn’t take no for an answer.”

  “Are you sure you really told him no?”

  “I did.”

  “No hesitations?”

  “Of course not.”

  Bella and Deidre might have started as roommates a year and a half ago, but as the months passed, they’d become good friends. Bella liked living in New York City, but once in a while the distance between her and that crowded farmhouse in Iowa felt farther than a thousand miles. She appreciated having someone to come home to. To cook for and to share the couch with. A friend she could confide in over a bottle of wine. For all her longing to be free, Bella couldn’t deny she hated being alone.

  “Not even when you picture that gorgeous mansion on the beach?” Deidre persisted.

  Bella sighed in appreciation. “You know me too well. Okay, I’ll admit the thought of a summer in the Hamptons is very tempting.”

  Deidre dug Bella’s running shoes from under the bed while she changed. “So what are you going to do?”

  “I really should turn him down.”

  “You really should. But are you sure that’s what you want to do?”

  “I promised Lisa I’d help with her events this summer.”

  “And you always keep your promises.”

  Bella thought about her bargain with Blake’s ex-wife. Accepting the job as Drew’s nanny wouldn’t technically be breaking her promise to Victoria because their divorce meant the reason Bella had agreed to stay away no longer existed. Her presence in their life couldn’t be considered a distraction to the tight family Victoria had hoped to have with Blake and Drew.

  But staying out of Victoria’s way hadn’t been the only reason she’d cut off all contact. Bella had begun feeling things that ran contrary to what she’d determined for her life, and the conflict had disturbed her.

  “I’ll call Blake as soon as we’re back from our run and tell him I can’t be Drew’s nanny.”

  “Why not now?”

  “Because I need to plan what to say or he might just talk me into it.”

  *

  As the limo eased toward the curb in front of his stepsister’s building, Blake gathered up the baby and his bright blue diaper bag. Slinging it over his shoulder, lips quirking as he contemplated how becoming a parent had domesticated him, Blake strode into Jeanne’s building, nodding at the doorman as he passed.

  “You’re late,” his stepsister announced when he stepped off the elevator. She raised her arms in welcome as she advanced to take her nephew. Murmuring in soothing tones, she plucked Drew out of Blake’s arms and cuddled him. “I’ve been worried.”

  “I had to make a slight detour.” Blake smiled when Drew latched onto Jeanne’s chunky gold necklace and blinked sleepily up at her.

  “Well, you’re here now and just in time to hear my wonderful news.” Jeanne’s gaze cut to her stepbrother. “We’re going to be neighbors this summer. Isn’t that great? Now you don’t need to worry about a nanny for Drew. I can take care of him until Talia gets back on her feet.”

  “You found a rental this close to summer?”

  “Connie and Gideon are getting divorced and they can’t agree on who gets the beach house, so they’re letting Peter and me lease it. We’ll be living two doors away. It’ll be such great fun. Of course, Peter will only come up on the weekends, but I’m planning on spending as much time as I can at the beach. Isn’t it wonderful?”

  “Wonderful,” Blake echoed, his voice flat. He hadn’t yet shared his summer plans with Jeanne because he was certain she wouldn’t approve. “But you don’t need to watch Drew this summer. I found someone to fill in as his nanny.”

  “Oh.” Jeanne looked disappointed. Two months ago she’d found out she was having a baby and her maternal instincts had kicked into high gear. “I was hoping to spend the summer with my nephew. I hope the woman comes from a reputable agency.”

  “I didn’t use an agency.” Blake decided to deliver his news without preamble. “I asked Bella.”

  “Oh, Blake, no.”

  He ignored Jeanne’s dismay. “You knew that she’s been working at St. Vincent’s this past year, didn’t you?”

  Jeanne had been the one who’d gotten Bella a job at the prestigious school a year ago last fall. It was her husband’s alma mater and the endowment they gave to the school each year gave them a certain pull when it came to asking favors.

  “Yes,” his stepsister admitted with an exaggerated sigh.

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “Wasn’t it you who said she didn’t want to have anything to do with Drew?” Jeanne hadn’t liked Bella, but she’d never explained why. “Why would you want to bother with her?”

  Because he hadn’t been completely satisfied with Bella’s explanation for why she wanted to sever all contact. Because for reasons he couldn’t rationalize, something unfinished lay between them.

  “I need a nanny for Drew for a couple months until Talia’s broken leg heals.” This was what had prompted him to start looking for Bella. But it turned out that wasn’t his only reason for tracking her down.

  Jeanne’s brow creased. “Let me help you hire someone.”

  Why couldn’t she understand that he didn’t want just anyone? “I’m leaving for the Hamptons in two days. I don’t have time to interview a bunch of candidates. I know Bella. I trust her with Drew.”

  “Do you think that’s wise?”

  “Not only did she help raise her brothers and sisters, but she’s a kindergarten teacher. Who could be better?”

  “I don’t think this is a good plan, Blake.” Jeanne carried the sleeping Drew to the portable playpen set up in her stylish living room and settled the baby, fussing with his blanket until she was satisfied. “Bella declined contact with Drew. No pictures or updates. Why do you think she’d want to take care of him for two months?”

  Jeanne’s skepticism echoed Blake’s own concerns. “She’ll do it.” The money he intended to offer would be hard for her to refuse.

  “Pick someone else. Anyone else.”

  “Why?”

  “That girl is trouble.”

  Jeanne’s proclamation was so ridiculous, Blake laughed. “Bella? She’s the furthest thing from trouble.”

  “Are you going to tell me you never noticed the way she looked at you?”

  Blake’s amusement dried up. “What are you talking about? She and I were friends. Nothing more.”

  “Maybe nothing more from your perspective, but I think she was more than half in love with you.” Jeanne crossed her arms and frowned. “Not that I blame her. You are wealthy, handsome and charming.”

  “In that order?” Blake muttered, unsettled by the interest that had flared inside him. Was Bella attracted to him? Maybe that’s what accounted for his unexpected awareness of her—he was merely responding to her subliminal signals. Body language. The chemistry of pheromones. Building blocks of sexual desire. Easy to disregard now that he knew the root cause.

  “But the two of you together alon
e in the Hamptons will give her ample opportunity to get her hooks into you.”

  “That isn’t going to happen.”

  “No?”

  “First of all, I believe I have some say in who I get involved with.” Blake arched his eyebrows when Jeanne opened her mouth to protest. “Secondly, Bella isn’t interested in getting her hooks in me. You said it yourself. She declined any contact with Drew. She told me she doesn’t want to be a mother. She did enough parenting with her siblings. So you don’t need to worry that I’m going to do something as foolish as fall for her.”

  “That’s good to hear. But hasn’t it occurred to you that Drew needs more than a series of nannies? He needs a mother. Someone who will love him with all her heart.”

  “I’ve been thinking along those lines myself.”

  First Bella had turned her back on Drew. Then Vicky. He could do nothing about the latter. His ex-wife had let him believe she wanted a family when what she really wanted was for their relationship to remain unchanged, but Bella’s values were different. She’d come from a large family. And if he’d learned anything at all about her in the months before Drew was born, he’d seen that she had a nurturing nature. Even if she was determined to deny it.

  With Vicky there’d been no such mothering instinct. His ex-wife had insisted on hiring a nanny before Drew was born. She maintained she didn’t have the temperament to be a full-time mother. He should have listened to her. But he’d been too set on having his son grow up in the perfect family Blake had not had growing up.

  Jeanne lit up. “I’m so glad to hear you say that.”

  “Glad why?”

  “Victoria ended her relationship with Gregory.” His stepsister’s animated expression warned Blake she was in full interference mode.

  He’d heard something to that effect. “I suspect that had something to do with the fact that her play closed after two weeks?” Blake made no effort to hide his cynicism.

  “That’s not it at all,” Jeanne insisted. “She never stopped loving you.”

  “She loves her career more.”

  It had been a bitter blow when he’d discovered how she’d fooled him into believing having a family was her first priority when her true passion was show business.

  “That’s not true,” Jeanne insisted.

  While Blake admired Jeanne’s loyalty to her best friend, he was in no mood to forgive his ex-wife. “I know you want to defend her, but you’re wasting your breath trying to convince me to take her back. She put her career before her family.”

  “I know it’s something she’d never do again.”

  Despite her conviction, his stepsister’s argument failed to shift Blake’s opinion of Vicky’s desires. “She left me. She left Drew.” And it was the latter that prevented him from trusting her ever again.

  “She knows she made a mistake.”

  “A mistake?” Past and present betrayals tangled in Blake’s chest. “She chose her career over our family. That’s more than just a mistake.”

  “You are not an easy man to please, Blake,” Jeanne said, her tone firm. A second later, she put her hand on his arm. “She was overwhelmed at suddenly becoming a mother and retreated into something that was comfortable and familiar to her. She knows she didn’t make the best choice.”

  “But she made it.” He set aside his past disappointments and turned his gaze once more to the future. “And I made mine.” Seeing that they weren’t ever going to agree, Blake bent down and kissed his stepsister’s cheek. “Drew needs a mother.”

  “And Vicky is ready to be that.”

  Blake shook his head. “She’s not, and I need to put Drew’s needs first.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “I got married the first time because I fell in love, and it left my son without a mother. This time I’m going to do it differently.”

  Three

  When Bella finished tying her shoes, she and Deidre left the apartment. They used the three-block walk along Eighty-Ninth Street to warm up their muscles. Reaching the park, they quickly stretched before starting off on an easy jog north along the bridle path. The two-and-a-half-mile run would be relatively easy, but long enough for Bella to reach that place where her mind opened up.

  While their shoes thumped rhythmically on the pavement, Bella pulled crisp, fragrant air into her lungs and glanced around her. Late spring had always been her favorite time of year on the farm. Dreary skies, cold and snow gave way to green pastures and new life. It was time to stop planning and take action. Possibilities seemed as boundless as the fields that surrounded her family’s farm.

  It was no different in New York. As soon as the first buds formed on the trees, she’d felt a kick of excitement, as if anything she wanted could be hers. She and Deidre had begun to make plans for the summer and tossed ideas around for a winter vacation. And now that school was out, she reveled in her freedom from responsibility. Her life was turning out exactly the way she wanted.

  “Do you ever regret it?” Deidre asked as their run wound down.

  “Regret what?”

  “The whole surrogacy thing.” Obviously Bella hadn’t been the only one mulling over her situation during the twenty minutes they’d been running. “I know you say you don’t want to get married and have kids, but being pregnant and giving up the baby, that’s different.”

  “I knew what I was getting into.” She was a farm girl—when she was six she’d learned a difficult but important lesson about the difference between pets and livestock. As much time and energy that she put into raising a prizewinning calf, there was always a chance that it would be sold. “I wouldn’t have done it if I thought I would have a problem. Besides, Drew isn’t my baby. He belongs to Blake.”

  “And Victoria,” Deidre prompted.

  Bella shook her head. “She left him. Left them.”

  “What?”

  “That’s why he needs a nanny this summer. Victoria decided she didn’t want to be a mother.” Of course, she wasn’t Drew’s biological mother, but only Victoria and Bella knew the truth about that.

  “So what are you going to do?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “A little sea air might be exactly what you need.”

  “Maybe.” She wasn’t thinking about sea air; she was mulling over the weeks of sleepless nights when she’d be battered by temptation, knowing Blake would be dreaming peacefully in the master bedroom down the hall. Keeping her attraction hidden had been easy when he was married to Victoria. That was a line she’d never cross. But now that he was single, would she send out vibes without even knowing it? How humiliating to be fired from a nanny job because she had the hots for her employer.

  Uncomfortable with the direction her thoughts had taken her, Bella made sure to shift the conversation away from Blake and Drew during the walk back to the apartment. Deidre had called dibs on the first shower, so Bella headed to her bedroom to pack away the supplies she’d brought home from her classroom. By the time she finished, she was ready to call Blake and turn down his offer. Picking up the phone, she noticed she’d missed a call during her run. The message was a giddy explosion of good news from her sister Kate: she’d been accepted into a global health program in Kenya.

  It was impossible for Bella not to smile at her sister’s enthusiasm. Kate had set her sights on this program since she’d started college three years ago and had worked diligently toward the goal. She would graduate next year with a major in social work and intended to get her master’s in public health. Bella couldn’t be more proud.

  Kate was well on her way to making a life for herself beyond the fetters of the farm and her siblings’ constant drain on her energy and resources. It was the dream Bella had for all her siblings, but thus far only Kate and Jess were poised to achieve it.

  The phone rang before Bella had a chance to dial Kate’s number to congratulate her.

  “Hiya, Bella.” It was Jess. At eighteen, she was the most practical of Bella’s three sisters.

&
nbsp; “What’s up?”

  “I heard Kate leaving you a message and just thought you should know that she’s probably not going to be able to afford the semester abroad.”

  Bella’s good mood crashed and burned. “Why not? Last I heard she’d gotten the scholarship and had enough saved.” Kate had been working so hard for the past three years to make this trip happen.

  “There were some extra costs she hadn’t accounted for and Mom and Dad weren’t able to give her the money she was counting on.”

  “How did that happen?” The long pause that followed Bella’s question told her everything she needed to know. “What broke down?”

  “The tractor. It was in the middle of planting. Mom and Dad didn’t have a choice.”

  “Of course not,” Bella mumbled bitterly and felt a stab of guilt over her tone.

  It didn’t do any good to complain that the money to fix the tractor was supposed to be given to Kate to make her dream come true. Their parents sacrificed so much to keep the farm running and raise a family. Clothes wore out before they were replaced. Food was home cooked and simple. Entertainment consisted of the games they played in their living room or around the dining table.

  “I know she’d never ask,” Jess continued. “But is there any way you can help her out? I’m giving her five hundred.” Money earmarked for her college tuition next year. “Mom’s going to give Kate the six hundred in egg money she’d put aside for Sean’s truck.”

  Jess’s voice trailed off. Guilt wrenched at Bella. What a horrible sister she was to selfishly cling to her nest egg when Kate needed help. This particular program was only offered once a year. She had to go now, because next year she would begin her graduate studies and the window would be closed.

  But Bella had already sent money home to help with Paul’s community-college expenses and Jess’s activities. She’d helped with the medical bills when Scott broke his leg last fall and contributed to Laney’s orthodontic treatments. As hard as her parents worked, sometimes they were caught short financially and Bella’s sense of responsibility kicked into overdrive. How could she not help out her family when she had the resources to do so? But every once in a while, she wished there wasn’t always someone needing something.