The Other Swan Sister

Chapter 9

"How'd the job search go?" Emma asks as you walk back through the front door.
You find her and your father glued to the TV screen, watching another one of those true crime documentaries.
"It went well!" You cheerily reply. "Regina offered me a role as Henry's babysitter for a while." You smile as they both turn to you with weird looks on their faces. Your smile fades into a frown. "What?"
"Nothing." They both smirk as they turn back to the tv.
You roll your eyes and head over to the kitchen to make a coffee.
Halfway through you feel your phone start to buzz in your pocket.
"Hello?" You ask curiously down the line.
"Ivy. It's Regina, here."
"Oh hi, Regina." You smile.
Both David and Emma turn back to look at you on the phone with the same smirk on their faces. You roll your eyes once again and walk away into the bedroom, closing the door behind you.
"Is now a good time to discuss your position?" She asks formally.
"Yeah, sure." You shrug as you begin fidgeting with random things around the room.
"Perfect. So, what's your availability?"
"Anytime, really. I'm very flexible."
"Mhm." You hear her mutter. "Good. And do you have any dietary restrictions?"
"No. Why do you ask?"
"Well, I assume you'll be around for dinner each night?"
"Oh. Sure! But you really don't have to cook for me-"
"I insist. I wouldn't offer if I didn't want to." She urges back.
"Ok, well... then, thank you." You give in.
"So, how does Monday-Friday 3-9 sound?"
"Sounds perfect, Mayor Mills." You grin down the line, though she can't see it of course.
"Great. Do you have any questions?"
"Nope."
"You don't wish to know how much you're being paid, Miss Swan?" You can sense the teasing smirk from through the phone.
You blush a little. That would be a good question to ask.
"Oh... If you wouldn't mind?"
She chuckles lightly at you.
"You'll be payed each week, so long as that works for you. And it'll be $60 an hour."
"Regina!" You immediately protest. "That's too much! I can't accept that much from you."
"Miss Swan, once again, I wouldn't offer it if I didn't think you were worth that much. If you can keep Henry happy, that's worth much more than a mere 60 dollars an hour."
"I don't even know how to thank you." You utter, somewhat to yourself.
"Well... you could begin by starting tomorrow? That way you'll have the weekend to relax." She says kindly and you smile yet again.
"Sounds perfect. I'll pick Henry up from school at 3."
"Great. See you tomorrow, Miss Swan." Her low tone quickens your heart rate slightly.
"Pleasure doing business with you, Madame Mayor." You tease back.
Chuckling as you hang up the phone.

"Emma says you're doing some babysitting work for Regina, Ivy?" MM asks casually as she begins putting away her groceries.
You help.
"Yeah. I went to speak to her about any job opportunities and she offered me the role. I could think of nothing better." You smile at her as she takes in your answer .
"I'm sure Emma will be glad that you get to spend some time bonding with Henry."
"Yeah. He's a great kid."
"And I suppose you'll be spending more time with Regina?" MM eyes you curiously from the side.
But you know she's trying to get at something.
"I guess so. The point of a babysitter is kinda that she won't be around, though..." You shrug it off casually, turning away to end this conversation before it gets insinuating.

"Hey, Henry!" You grin at the little guy as you seem him shuffle out the school gates.
He breaks free of the crowd and beams at you, running over as fast as his little legs could carry him.
"Ivy!" He cheers as he bumps into your legs, wrapping his arms around your lower body and hugging you.
"Someone's excited!" You exclaim as you chuckle at how cute he is.
"You're my babysitter?!" He shrieks up at you.
"I sure am. That alright with you?" You smile at him as you hold your hand out for him to grab ahold of.
"Yes!"
"Okay, okay. Good." You both grin at each other as you walk back toward his home.

"Henry take your shoes off before you go upstairs, please!"
"You sound like Mom!" He quips back and you laugh to yourself.
"Good. Now, do you have homework?"
"No."
"Henry?" You raise an eyebrow.
"Only a little."
"Do you wanna do it together?" You ask gently, trying to encourage him.
"Yes!" He suddenly cheers. "It's math."
Great.

"You're not so good at math, are you?" He asks innocently as he writes up the answer to the last question.
You can't help but laugh at his bluntness.
"You're right, Henry." You admit. "And between you and me," you whisper down to him and his eyes sparkle with anticipation. "you're probably better at math than me."
"I am?" He asks excitedly.
"Mhm." You nod with a smirk.
It's not true.
I mean, you were bad a math but you could certainly beat a 10 year old if you had to.
"Can I have a snack please?" He asks as he closes up his math book.
"Sure, kid. Let's go."
He jumps up and rushes to the kitchen before you can blink.
"How about an apple?" You ask him as you see the basket of perfectly red apples in the center of the kitchen.
"Gross." He dismisses immediately.
You smirk at him, amused by his behaviour.
"You want candy, don't you?" You raise an eyebrow at him.
Kids are so predictable.
He turns to you abruptly with another childish grin. "Too bad, little man." His face drops into a pout. "Your mom would kill me."
"No she wouldn't!" He protests as he props himself on a kitchen chair. "She doesn't do that anymore!"
You frown at his comment but ignore whatever he was trying to imply. Distracting yourself, you open the fridge and scan through the items.
"Hey, I have an idea!" You turn to him with another grin and he beams back at you. "What's your Mom's favourite meal?"
"Lasagne! And it's mine too!"
"It is?!" You exaggeratedly gasp back in delight. "Well, then... I think we ought to surprise your Mom and make dinner! What do you think, Henry?"
"Yay! Can I help?" He jumps up immediately.
"Of course! I'm gonna need your help, kid."

Henry perches on the kitchen counter, watching you intently as you stir the pasta sauce in the pan.
You're both singing the tune of 'Moon River' to each other over the loud blowing of the extractor fan above the stove.
"Mom!" Henry excitedly jumps down from the counter and rushes over to hug his mother. You turn quickly to see Regina grinning at the two of you before looking down at Henry rushing over. He embraces her and she looks taken aback. She freezes for a moment before wrapping her arms around him tenderly. You smile warmly at the exchange. "Ivy said we should surprise you and cook dinner!" He beams up at his mother, clearly excited about the surprise.
"Oh, really?" She raises an eyebrow and turns to you with a smirk.
You blush, feeling a little vulnerable.
"Henry said lasagne was your favourite." You smile sharply, hoping that she welcomes the surprise meal.
"He knows me so well." She turns back down to Henry and kisses the crown of his head before turning back to you. "Thank you."
She holds your eye for a moment, expressing how grateful she really is.
You nod curtly as you smile and turn back to the pan.
You begin stirring again as you hear Regina's heels click along the floor.
"Would you like a glass of wine?" Her breath practically tickles your ear as she reaches for the cabinet above you.
Her body briefly presses up against your back and you swallow thickly, too nervous to make eye contact.
"Yes. Please." You choke out, shifting your feet.
"Coming right up." She announces in a low tone.