Nanny

12

Kate

What did I say? I wondered.

I felt like an idiot as I sat there in the library. Adam had acted strangely when I asked him about it earlier, which should have warned me it was a touchy subject. So what did I do? I bluntly asked Braxton the same thing.

"Nice job, Kate," I muttered. "You've been here one day and you've already pissed off the boss. Who, by the way, is a powerful billionaire."

I tried to do more language research, but curiosity got the better of me. What had happened with the previous nanny? Did she do something bad to the children? Was she feeding rumors and information to the tabloids, hence all the NDAs I had to sign today?

Did Braxton do something inappropriate to her?

I shook my head. Braxton didn't seem like that type of asshole. Even though I had only just met him, I felt certain of that.

I turned to Google for answers:

Braxton Nash nanny.

Braxton Nash lawsuit.

Braxton Nash inappropriate.

There weren't any relevant hits. Whatever had happened with the previous nanny, it wasn't public knowledge.

I didn't know whether to be relieved, or more alarmed.

My laptop battery was running low, so I turned it off and decided to call it a night. I went to my bedroom suite and gazed out the window, but the mystifying view of Manhattan did little to brighten my mood. I was on top of the world physically, but mentally I was down in the dumps.

I brushed my teeth, changed into pajamas, and then crawled into bed.

After staring at the ceiling for twenty minutes, I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep unless I got past this.

I tip-toed down the hall toward Braxton's bedroom. The tall door at the end of the hall loomed in an intimidating way. These were all normal rooms, but that was his bedroom. Sure, I had been inside it this morning while chatting with him, but now the door was closed.

I stopped in front of the heavy wood, and paused. What if he was asleep? Disturbing him would only upset him more. I began to think this was a bad idea.

I was about to give up when the door opened inward. Braxton Nash stood there, shirtless, wearing only his grey sweatpants. He was gazing down at his phone as he stepped through the door.

And ran right into me.

I fell backwards onto the marble floor. Somehow I avoided hitting my head on the ground, but Braxton fell on top of me. His phone flew from his hand, and he threw out his arms to cushion his fall rather than crushing me.

Our faces were just inches apart, and both of us were stunned for a long moment. The only sound was of his cell phone sliding across the floor and then coming to a stop.

"Hi," I said.

He gave me a confused look. "Uh, hi?"

His torso, tan and muscular, was pressed against my chest. I could feel the warmth of his body through my thin shirt, smelling like peppermint toothpaste and aftershave. This close to his face I could see the subtle lines on his cheeks, the crease of skin above the bridge of his nose, between his eyes. Every individual eyebrow strand. The way his jaw tightened when he smiled.

Something came over me as I stared into his eyes. It was like a fight-or-flight response, but for a different part of my body.

I kissed him.