by Lexi Aurora
“Are you going to be home for a bit today?” I asked him.
“Yes,” he said.
“Okay. Corina’s gone, so I’m going to go to the store to do some grocery shopping. Is it okay to leave Ivy here?”
“Of course,” he said slowly. “But if you want, we can come.”
“No,” I said. “I’d rather go by myself.”
“Are you sure?” he asked, a concerned look on his face. I almost felt guilty for the way I was feeling—I hated seeing him upset. But I knew I had every right to be angry with him, to want to stay away from him. It had been a bad idea in the first place to get involved, and I cursed myself for falling for him so quickly. It was only causing me pain, and even the immense pleasure he’d given me, the joy I’d felt when we’d been together, hadn’t been worth the feeling of losing him.
I left after a quiet breakfast, glad to be in my car and away from Jack. I missed Ivy and had been tempted to take her along just for the company; there was something about her that brightened up my mood every time I was around her. But I knew that I needed some time alone to clear my thoughts.
I arrived at the grocery store and soon had a basket on my arm, looking through the aisle when I accidentally bumped into someone in the row. I started to apologize but stopped when I saw that it was Jack’s wife, Rebecca.
“Oh, it’s you,” the woman said blankly, then she seemed to have an idea and her tone changed. “You can help me.”
“What?” I said, bemused as I stood there staring at her. She really was lovely, though there was a coldness in her eyes that had the ability to transform her into a monster. I knew that from the moment she had pushed past me into the house; she had wanted to do more, but stopped herself. I was glad that she had. The last thing I wanted to do was get into a fight with Jack’s ex-wife.
“I need you to talk to Jack,” the woman said. “Please.”
“I can’t—”
“You can. He’ll listen to you. I know—I can tell that the two of you are together.”
“We’re not,” I said flatly. “I’m the nanny.”
She laughed dryly, her eyes hard as flint. Then her gaze softened, and I watched in amazement as something clicked within her and her eyes filled with tears. She took my hands and held them in both of hers.
“I just want to see my daughter,” she said. “And he won’t let me.”
“I’m sorry,” I said, not knowing what else that I could say. I did feel for her. I couldn’t even imagine what it was like to lose a child, but that didn’t mean I could help her. “There’s really nothing I can do. Jack and I aren’t—”
“You don’t have to lie,” the woman said. “I saw the two of you in the same room together. I know you’re fucking him.”
I stared at her, unwilling to say a word.
“You should know something about Jack before you fall for him,” Rebecca said. “He’s definitely fucked other nannies before. He has a thing for younger women. That’s why our marriage ended—he couldn’t stop cheating.”
“Oh,” was all I could say. I felt almost as if I had been hit in the stomach. “I didn’t know that.”
“Of course you didn’t know that. You think he would tell the women he’s sleeping with that he’s a total fucking scumbag? He just wants to get in your pants, honey. Don’t kid yourself into thinking he cares about you. He’ll dump you for the next hot young thing in a minute.”
I looked away from her. A knot was forming in my stomach, growing tighter with every word she spoke.
“I have to go,” I said, desperate to get away from her. I felt almost like I couldn’t breathe. For some reason, it hurt more than I could say to hear the truth about Jack, the fact that he was a player who was only out for sex. That meant I had chosen a third man who would inevitably leave me for another woman.
Rebecca opened her mouth to say something but I couldn’t take it or listen to her anymore. I put the basket down on the ground and hurried out of the store, not caring that I would be going home without groceries. I couldn’t stand in that building for one more minute with her, not without bursting into tears of frustration and pain.
Chapter 12: Jack
“C an you guys handle everything in here?” I asked the cooks, who nodded without speaking, working quickly to keep up with the high demand at the restaurant. I felt a sense of pride as I watched them, knowing I had hired the right guys for the job. I went out to the front to see that there was a line of people waiting to be sat. I helped the hostess, keeping busy for most of the night by running food to and from tables when the wait staff was too busy. I was on my way to one of the tables when I froze. Rebecca was standing near the front door, waiting politely to be seated. I narrowed my eyes at her, approaching her before the host could.
“What are you doing here?” I hissed at her. “I told you not to come here. I told you not to come to my house, either.”
“I need to talk to you,” she said, her nose in the air, voice haughty. “And I thought I’d come down and see your little dive here.”
As she said it, she wrinkled up her nose in distaste and looked around at the small, cozy restaurant. Rebecca had been the first one to criticize me when I’d decided that I wanted to sell my share of the business that I’d started and move to a smaller town. She was afraid that we would lose money, as if somehow the billions that I’d made would go down the drain if I stopped working. I knew that’s what Rebecca had wanted me for, anyway. My money was always the first thing on her mind.
“I can’t talk to you right now. If you call me tomorrow—”
“You won’t call me back,” she said, raising her voice. I felt eyes all around the room shift their attention to us. “You keep ignoring my calls, Jack.”
“Come to the office,” I said, and I was relieved when she followed me through the restaurant without a fuss, making our way to the office in the back of the kitchen. We sat down and I glared at her.
“What do you want?”
“I want money,” she said in a short, crisp voice. “Fifty-million dollars.”
I snorted, bursting into laughter. “Right.”
“I’ll give up Ivy,” she said. “I won’t fight for her. You can keep the little brat.”
A rage rose up within me, sudden and almost violently overpowering.
“Fuck you, Rebecca,” I said to her. “You don’t deserve Ivy, anyway. You never did.”
“She doesn’t need me. She has her pathetic little daddy and his whore nanny to take care of her,” she said. I gritted my teeth in anger. I was having trouble keeping myself still. My body was shaking with rage at her words, helpless and unable to do anything about them.
“I know you have money. Trust me. I want my chunk of it.”
“You already get alimony,” I said. “How can you be so goddamned greedy?”
“The alimony isn’t enough,” she shrugged. “I want the money you owe me. And then I’ll leave you and the brat alone.”
“Rebecca,” I said, but cut myself off. I was about to throw her out of my office, sick at just the sight of her face, the coldness there with which she talked about our sweet, perfect daughter. But then I realized that she was never going to go away, that she would just keep coming back until I gave her what she wanted. She might even still be willing to try to take Ivy away from me, something that I couldn’t even stomach the thought of.
“Fine,” I said to her, making up my mind. It was better for everybody if I just paid her off to make her go away. She would leave Ivy and I alone, and I wouldn’t have to worry about her coming back into our lives. Maybe I could even get Lauren back, convince her that I deserved her and there would be no more drama if she agreed to be with me. I wanted to be a family with Lauren and Ivy, and if I had to pay Rebecca off in order for that to happen, I was willing to do so.
“I’ll give you the money,” I told her, grimacing a pleased smile spread over her face. “I’ll need to call Travis Winn to liquidize some of my assets. But I swear to god, Reb
ecca—if you ever get in contact with me again, whether it’s for money or anything else, I will make you fucking regret it.”
The smile dropped from her face and I was glad that I had said the words with as much ferocity as I had felt. I wanted her to know that I was serious, and would do anything to protect and keep Ivy from her if it was the last thing I did.
Rebecca stood up to go, and I felt some of the tension leaving my body. Still, I had to ask her something.
“You do realize you’ll never see your daughter again, right?” I asked her. “And you’re okay with that?”
She shrugged. “As long as you pay me,” she said, her words cruel and flippant. I watched as she left then, a sadness settling over me, replacing my anger. I felt sad for Ivy, who would grow up without a mother, someone to show her how to be powerful as a woman. I could do my best, but I knew that there would always be a hole in Ivy’s life that I would never be able to fill on my own. I thought again of Lauren and the small hope that I had for our future.
Chapter 13: Lauren
I picked up the phone , surprised to hear Jack’s voice on the other end.
“Hi, Lauren,” he said when he heard that it was me. His voice had gone soft and gentle, the same way he had been speaking to me since Rebecca had stormed into the house. I knew he was trying to soften me up but it wasn’t going to work. I had made up my mind about him already, and I wasn’t going to budge. “Can you have Corina bring the tax forms for the restaurant to me here? I kind of need them tonight.”
“Yeah,” I said. “I’ll ask her.”
“Thanks,” he said, then paused. “How are you?”
“I’m fine. I have to go put Ivy to bed,” I said, though Ivy had fallen asleep an hour ago. “I’ll send Corina. Goodnight.”
I hung up the phone before he could answer, going upstairs to fetch Corina. Her light was off in her room, but I knocked on her door. She answered, her eyes puffy with sleep.
“What’s up?” she asked.
“I’m so sorry to wake you up,” I said. “Jack needs some papers tonight. He asked you to bring them, but I’ll go ahead and do it. Can you turn on the monitor for Ivy? Just keep an ear out for her while I’m gone. I should only be about a half hour.”
“Sure,” said Corina. “Thanks for going for me. I’d go, but I already took my blood pressure meds.”
“It’s fine,” I said, though I wasn’t looking forward to seeing Jack. He had seemed like he really needed the forms though and he was expecting them, so I went downstairs to his office and grabbed the folder, sticking it in my bag before I left the house. I went to the restaurant and got out of my car, seeing through the window that it was bustling and busy. I approached the door but I froze when I saw Jack. He was standing with a woman in the corner, a flirty smile on his face. I watched as he laughed, touching her arm. She took down her hair and shook it free, and I caught a glimpse of her face as she turned her head. She was beautiful, about my age, blonde, leggy, and perfect. Everything in my body tensed as I watched them.
The blonde took off her apron then, draping it over her shoulder, and put her hand on Jack’s arm as the two of them walked through the restaurant and disappeared in the back. I stood there staring after them, unable to move. I felt sick, betrayed even though Jack and I weren’t together. It was true what Rebecca had said—Jack was a serial player, somebody who would flirt with or fuck any pretty girl with a pulse. I had seen his face when he looked at her, and he hadn’t even hesitated to go into the back where the customers couldn’t see them.
I went into the restaurant and walked up to the counter. A boy turned around and looked at me.
“Can I help you?” he asked. I pulled the folder out of my bag and slid it across the counter for him.
“This is for Jack,” I said to him.
“Do you want me to go get him?” the boy asked. For a moment, I was tempted to have him do it, if only to interrupt whatever was going on between Jack and the blonde in the back of the restaurant. But I thought better of it—whatever he was doing was none of my business, and I had no reason to stop him from doing what he wanted.
“No,” I said to the boy, then turned around and left the restaurant, a knot forming in my chest. I got in my car and took a deep breath, trying not to cry as I drove off toward home. I kept picturing Jack’s face as he talked to the girl, the way he’d looked at her. It hadn’t just been my imagination. He had looked at me the same way, like I was the prettiest girl in the world. I felt stupid for falling for it; Jack was probably like that with every woman he met. I had felt special for a moment, but all of that had shattered when I’d seen him disappear with the waitress into the back of the restaurant. I knew what that meant—Jack didn’t care about me. I had been mistaken to ever think that he did.
I arrived home and went to my room, beginning to pack my things up. There was no way I could keep working for Jack. I needed desperately to get away from him if I was going to move on; I wasn’t going to be able to do that living in his house.
I stared at all of my stuff when it was packed up, sitting on the edge of the bed. I was tempted to leave right then but I knew that I had nowhere to go other than back to my parents’ house, and I couldn’t bear to face them now that I’d failed so miserably at getting out on my own yet again. I sighed and laid down in bed, trying to get some sleep so that I could get up early in the morning. I knew even as I tossed and turned that it was no use. I couldn’t stop crying, though I felt weak and stupid for doing it. Even as my body shook with sobs, I thought of Jack, and felt my heart break inside of my chest all over again.
Chapter 14: Jack
I got home late, long after the restaurant had closed. My staff were all new and mostly young—I had wanted to give some young people a chance to start their first job. I had hired the smartest kids I could find, yet it seemed like they often had problems with the money, and I was starting to think I had made the wrong decision in deciding to hire young.
I thought about that as I drove home, not expecting anyone to be up by the time I arrived. When I pulled up to the house, I saw that Lauren’s bedroom light was on. I was surprised, and when I got inside I went to her door and knocked on it softly, hoping that she would open it for me. I just wanted to see her face after a long day; I wanted to tell her about Rebecca, too, and let her know that my ex-wife was out of our lives for good.
Lauren opened the door and I immediately knew something was wrong. Her eyes were puffy and red-rimmed, and she looked as though she had been crying. She stared at me with a blank expression, a frown on her lips.
“What’s wrong?” I asked her. She went inside the room and I followed her, closing the door behind us.
“I don’t think this job is working out,” she said in a flat voice, sitting on the edge of the bed and staring up at me. “I think I want to quit.”
I stared at her in shock, completely caught off-guard.
“Why?” I asked, stepping toward her. She put her hands out to stop me from getting any closer and I froze, trying to meet her eye.
“I just don’t want to be here anymore,” she said. “It’s not working out, Jack.”
I knelt down in front of her, careful not to get too close.
“Tell me what’s wrong, Lauren,” I said to her. “Please.”
She stared at me for a moment before taking a deep breath.
“I brought the papers to the restaurant. I saw you with that girl. The waitress.”
I looked at her, confused.
“I thought Corina brought the papers to the restaurant,” I said. “Why did you bring them?”
“She was asleep. I thought you needed them right away—but apparently, you were busy anyway. I saw you—I saw you go into the back with her. She was pretty. I get it.”
“No,” I said to her, reaching out and taking her hands in mine. “No, baby. I was only bringing her back there to fill out her tax forms. I needed the papers to finalize them because I have to get them turned in in the morning. The o
nly reason I was happy was because of what happened with Rebecca. She came to say that she would stop trying to fight for custody of Ivy. We’ll never have to see her again.”
She gave a dry, sarcastic laugh. “I’m supposed to believe you disappeared into a back room with a pretty girl and didn’t fuck her? You? Jack Stephens? You couldn’t keep your cock in your pants for five fucking minutes?”
“Stop,” I said to her. “Stop, Lauren. I didn’t touch her. I would never touch one of my employees. You know that.”
“I don’t know that,” she snapped. “I don’t know anything about you. All you’ve done is try to charm me and get me into bed. You haven’t been real with me for one minute.”
“Yes, I have,” I insisted. “Lauren, I—I think I’m falling for you.”
“That’s what all of them said,” she said softly. “Josh and Connor. And they left me for other women, too.”
“I would never do that. I’m serious about how I feel about you. I had my doubts at first—”
“Yeah?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest. I knew then that it had been the wrong thing to say. “You had your doubts? That’s funny, because I seem to remember you flirting with me right off the bat. Seems to me that you were pretty sure about what you wanted from me the moment I was hired. That’s probably why you hired me, isn’t it? You get off on fucking all of your nannies?”
I started to grow angry then, all of her accusations rubbing me in the wrong way. I hadn’t done anything wrong with Samantha back at the restaurant and had no desire or intention of doing so.
“You are being completely ridiculous, Lauren,” I said to her in a sharp voice. “I didn’t do anything, I—”
She stood up, cutting me off, and started toward the door.
