by Alicia Banks
“I don't even know your name.”
“The name is Tommy.”
“And you work for Antonio?”
Tommy agreed and Josselin collected the few things she had brought with her. She didn't know what was going to come of the impromptu meeting and interview, but Josselin liked to believe that it was going to make some positive changes in her life. She certainly needed some. Josselin didn't want to get her hopes up, but it was rather impossible not to.
***
Instead of Tommy taking her directly to the meeting place, he instead took her to a hotel and she immediately was alarmed, wanting to know what it was that he was doing. When she finally got the courage up to ask, he just kind of waved her off like she was being silly to even ask such a question. Like she should already know.
“I am taking you here to get prepared for the interview. You don't have any clothing with you, and I would imagine that you would like to straighten yourself up properly before we leave.”
She agreed that she did want to get prepared. It was potentially one of the most important meetings of her life. It was hard not to fully grasp the gravity of the situation. The man in front of her couldn't possibly understand it, but Josselin knew that she would have to go along with it, at least for a little while.
There was also the embarrassing issue of her not having the money to stay in such a nice hotel. It wasn't just some cheap motel that he brought her to, but a very nice one that most likely charged more a night than she had in her pocket. It was one of those situations where she didn't want to say anything, but quite honestly had to say something. They were walking in when she stopped him.
“I don't know how to say this, but I cannot afford this type of hotel. Maybe I can just find another place myself and then I will go wherever you want me to in the morning.”
“That won't be necessary. Antonio is more than willing to pay for your night's rest.”
Josselin was confused about all of it. She was confused about a guy coming to her and wanting to meet with her in such a way. Then on top of it all, he was going so far out of his way for her. It really didn't make any sense. When she finally was able to say it out loud, he just kind of waved her off.
“This is just how he does business. He wants you well rested for your meeting and it will take some time for him to get here. Antonio’s schedule is quite tight, so because you will come at his convenience, a few accommodations can be made.”
Again, he was talking about business, and Josselin really wasn't too sure how she felt about it. It all seemed to be a little shady.
A thought occurred to her and it made her feel horrible inside. Josselin wanted to believe that she was wrong.
She had to be wrong.
“Did somebody send you here to mess with me? I mean, you definitely aren't someone that would usually hang out with my family, but they have ties that have surprised me. Are you one of them?”
Josselin waited for him to answer, her eyes a little squinted and she was unknowingly holding her breath. Why did it seem like everything rested on the answer to that question? She wanted to believe that it was all true, but maybe it wasn't.
“I don't understand what you're talking about. I would imagine that you of course think that I have somehow been sent by your family, but I assure you that I would have nothing to do with them or anything that they are capable of. My employer would never allow it, neither would my conscience. Like I said, Josselin, I know you and your predicament.”
“What can you possibly know about my family?”
“I know a lot. It has been my duty to learn everything about you, and, Josselin, I will be the first to tell you that I have learned enough. I’ve learned that you deserve good things, and this is only the start of that. My employer pays well, and his daughter will take a liking to you. You have impeccable references. Everyone you’ve worked for praises you.”
Josselin had to admit that it did feel very perfect. It all felt a little crazy and she was trying to make sense of it all. How could she believe it was all real, a perfect solution to her problem, falling in her lap in such a way?
Josselin had to consider at some point that it was real. It was probably when she was looking around the rented room that she had paid nothing for. The place was amazing, everything that she could ask for and more. All she had to do was look around a little bit to see that not only was it real, but it might even be better than she could have imagined, which was saying something considering that she had imagined great things.
The bed was soft, and Josselin had all these big plans in her head about how she was going to use her time in such a great place, but she was up approximately twenty minutes before she passed out on the bed that was far too soft for its own good. It meant that not only did she not get anything done when she first got there, but she didn't get anything done the next morning to prepare, because she was late waking up. The bed really was the devil, and she was convinced that it was going to ruin everything.
By the time she got down to meet Tommy, it was clear that there was no way that they were going to get to the meeting on time. She actually believed that he was going to yell at her or at least tell her that it wasn't appreciated, but nothing happened. When she finally apologized for being late, he just waved her off like it was no big deal.
“Why are you not upset about it?”
He looked confused. “What is there to be upset about? It's only a few minutes.”
Josselin again was stunned by how blasé he was being about it all. She couldn't believe that they're going to be so cool about everything. How was that possible?
Chapter 3
Antonio was going to meet the woman that Tommy had set up to be the new nanny. Not only had Tommy said that she had good references, but Tommy had made it like she was the only one he needed to see. It was unusual for Tommy to be so smitten by a complete stranger, so Antonio was curious.
When he asked Tommy why he was so adamant about it being her, he just got this smile on his face and said again that she was the one.
It was time for Antonio to meet this mystery woman, and he was far more nervous about it than he should have been.
Antonio mostly wanted to just do away with the looking, but he knew that it was better for his daughter, if it was an all-inclusive job. He did not know much about Josselin, didn’t know if she would do. All he knew was that Tommy said she was perfect. That, of course, was high praise for Tommy, but it still made him wonder why he would give her such high regard when he obviously didn't even know her. How could he say that she was the one perfect for the job when they’d gone through so many already?
Then it was time, and he was running a little late. That was something that almost never happened, and it was something that bothered him. It was actually Tommy's fault, because he had called several times. Antonio figured it was some kind of an emergency and pulled over to answer it. It hadn’t been an emergency at all, though. He just wanted a long-winded explanation about something. Something that Antonio had already explained to him. If he didn't know any better, he would think that Tommy was stalling him to make him late. It made no sense, but the conversation was way more drug out than it needed to be.
By the time he got there, it was almost half an hour later and Tommy was nowhere in sight. He was supposed to do the introductions, but instead, there was just the woman sitting at the table in the local diner.
Tommy had insisted that they do it close to where she lived so she wouldn't have an idea of where Antonio actually lived. It was something that he wanted to keep secret, even if that was harder than one would imagine.
Antonio saw her in the wide restaurant window. She was quite petite with black hair, and her eyes looked purple from where he sat in his car. They met his for just a moment, before they flicked away and looked at something else. Antonio was immediately enamored with her. She had porcelain white skin and a fragile look. There was a darkness on one side of her face that made him upset even more. He realized that somebo
dy in her life was not the way they should be. That probably upset him more than anything else.
Antonio got out of the car and he didn’t know why, but the protective side of him started to come out. He wanted to ask her who had done such a thing to her, and he wanted to be the one to make sure that whoever it was, paid for it. Antonio came from people that did not tolerate such things. He never had liked such injustices, but never had it taken over his mind so quickly.
When he got to the table where Josselin was sitting, he asked her if he could sit down. She looked up slowly, her eyes taking in the large man in front of her, before she agreed that he could.
“I take it that you're Antonio.”
He stuck his hand out and shook her smaller one. There was a bit of electricity that flowed between them when he touched her. It had to be a fluke, of course. What other explanation was there? She was a complete stranger, after all.
He pulled his hand back and sat down across from her. She had coffee in front of her and asked if he wanted some as well.
Antonio agreed that he did, and he was about to motion to the waitress, when Josselin smiled at the one coming toward them.
“Thank you. He did want coffee, after all.”
Antonio was impressed that she had gotten it all set up without him. He had interviewed far too many people in his quest for the perfect nanny, and none of them had any forethought to see if he wanted a drink. They were the type that waited for him to offer it. They were also usually late, something that Josselin wasn't.
“I am sorry that I kept you waiting. I tried to get here as quickly as I could, but my assistant would not get off the phone.”
Josselin waved him off and said that she thought she was a couple minutes late as well.
“The traffic was crazy, and I slept in one of the most comfortable beds last night. I actually missed two alarms and I think I hit the snooze button about three times before I finally got up.”
“I must know where that bed is. If it was going to make me sleep like that, I might be willing to give it a try.”
Josselin gave him another look for a moment. “Don't you know? You are the one that paid for it, after all.”
Now he was the one that was confused, and it showed in his expression.
“I paid for it?”
Josselin pressed her lips together, and he asked her again what she was talking about.
“Well, your employee came to see me last night and told me that he wanted me to leave with him right then and there. I stayed in a hotel and you were the one that paid for it. I asked him to go somewhere else, but Tommy insisted.”
Antonio frowned and wondered what all of that meant. What did Tommy have going on? His number one seemed to be doing something on the sidelines and he had to wonder what it was. To say that he wasn’t nervous at all to find out that Tommy was playing a game would have been a lie.
He readied for his coffee and put it together before launching into the spiel that he had gone over so many times before.
She stopped his rehearsed monologue and made it a little bit different. Josselin did not let him get even a quarter of the way through it before she asked questions.
“What do you mean that I wouldn't be able to leave?”
“Let's just say that I live quite a bit out, and it would not be practical for you go home every night like most jobs. You would work a couple of weeks on and then one off. If there was a business trip and I was traveling too far, I might want to extend that two weeks, but I will let you know ahead of time and, of course, you would have the option to say yes or no.”
“Then, what do you mean I couldn't leave?”
“Like I said, we live a way out and for your own protection, you have to stay in the compound when you are there. If you do go outside of the compound, someone has to be with you. You could call me, and I would arrange one.”
“Escort me?”
Antonio told her that it would be explained later, but she had to let him get through it. Josselin didn't want to move on to the next thing, though. She wanted to pin down what was really going on with the ability for her to leave.
“This seems to be a real sticking point for you.”
“Well, is it for you? I don’t know how well it’ll be stuck in a house with kids. It seems a bit daunting, if I am completely honest.”
“Would you like one week on, one off then?”
Josselin told him that it didn’t matter. She was just finding some of the rules strange. Not being able to go outside was weird. How far off did he live?
“I hate to be a stickler about it Josselin, but this is not something that I can give in on. I need my daughter to be safe, as well as you. I do a lot of business; I've made a lot of enemies, and the last thing I want is for something to happen to either one of you.”
She wanted to ask more questions, but instead she nodded her head in agreement. It didn't seem that far out. A little different, but something that she could deal with. Her past experiences made it seem like a breeze.
“What else? Are there more rules?”
“A few, but I don’t think that they are too bad. The leaving part is the worst of it. Others just include certain parts of the house will be off limits and you are to stay away no matter what.”
Josselin nodded, ready to listen to more, but she was also trying to figure out what sort of situation she was getting herself into. She knew that it would be better than her family, or at least she liked to think that it would be. There really was no telling, though, and Josselin was forced to contemplate what would happen if she got stuck in a new situation that was just as bad.
She looked at the tall man, gorgeous really, and she knew that it wasn’t to be that way. He had kind eyes and even though he was intimidating, she felt safe in his presence and that was all the answer she needed. Josselin was more interested in her gut feeling than anything else. It had never steered her wrong.
“Anything else?”
“No, I think that about does it for rules.”
“You seem to really like rules.”
“I do. Do you have any of your own?”
Josselin pressed her lips together and then shook her head that she didn’t. She just wanted to get out of the situation that she currently found herself in. That was all she was thinking about. Antonio was gorgeous, but a bit haughty and she didn’t think she was going to get the job. He had just read her the riot act practically and there was a lot that she had to say, but no way to get it out.
“So, what makes you want to be a nanny?”
Josselin didn’t have a good answer for that, but she gave it her best.
“I want to get away from the current place I reside and not many jobs could help with that. It isn’t a problem to not go home every night, for some, that could actually be considered a blessing. I’ve always liked kids; I have a couple of nieces and nephews. It just seemed like a good fit.”
“Why do you want to leave your home so badly?”
Josselin figured that he knew what Tommy knew, and she said that it was just for the best. Josselin mentioned something about seeing and doing new things. It was all crap, of course. It had nothing to do with that. It had to do with her getting away from evil. Josselin had already said too much and no good was going to come from her mentioning such a thing. She knew better.
“It’s just for the best and I don’t have a lot saved up. Working with room and board felt like the best option and like I said, I like kids. It seemed the natural choice. What age are your children?”
The price that he had been willing to pay was astronomical and Josselin was bracing herself. She had a feeling that there was going to be a lot of kids to take care of, especially for the price that was quoted on the ad.
“My daughter is about to be three.”
“Three? And you have only one?”
“Yeah, is that a problem?”
Josselin said that it wasn’t. “No, three year olds are at a good age. They are demanding, but they are negoti
ating by then and have a clear grasp on cause and effect.”
“Well, she is definitely into negotiations and though she talks quite well, she doesn’t talk much around strangers. It might take her some time to get used to you.”
She smiled and agreed that it was usually how kids were. She had been around quite a few, babysitting since she was a young teen. It felt like the same thing, just glorified in a way.
“I don’t think we would have a problem. I could always meet with her and see if it will work.”
He smiled and stood up, offering his hand to her. “I think it will. Tommy will give you the details. Can you start tomorrow?”
Josselin agreed that she could. She would love to start as soon as possible. There was actual glee inside of her. Josselin was finally going to get away and be free. It was one of the best days in her short life.
Once he left, she smiled to herself and knew that everything was going to be okay. Josselin wasn’t worried about the logistics just yet. It wasn’t going to be easy leaving, but she almost didn’t even want to go back. Was there really anything in her life that she couldn’t lose?
Chapter 4
Antonio was perturbed by the woman. She was not at all what he had expected. She was a lot younger than he would have imagined. She was only about twenty-one or so, maybe twenty-two. He wanted to talk to Tommy because something was off. There was a reason that Tommy had pushed for her so hard, but Antonio couldn’t immediately see what it was.
He was attracted to her, that was obvious the first moment that he saw her through the window, but that wasn’t what he was looking for. He was looking for a nanny and it seemed like the girl wasn’t old enough.
When he had left and was back in the car, he called Tommy and asked him to come by and see him after he had taken Josselin home. Tommy sounded weird, but he ignored it. He didn’t want to get into it over the phone. His senses wouldn’t help him if he was on the phone. He needed Tommy to be in front of him, looking him in the eyes. Then, he would believe what came out of his mouth. The older man had been with him for several years and he trusted him, but there was something amiss about the whole thing with Josselin. Before he made a decision, Antonio figured that he was going to need all the facts.
