The Nanny

Chapter 9

The next few days pass by in a blur and mainly consist of me avoiding Declan and trying to get Lia ready for her first day of kindergarten. She was so nervous to start, but a few princess school supplies later and she couldn't wait to start school and show them off. So excited in fact that when I took her to her first day this morning she practically bolted into the school, shooting me a half wave and a "Bye!" without even looking back. It almost hurt my feelings a bit.

Now though I was free to spend my days however I wanted until I picked her up from daycare in the evenings. Lia had insisted on being able to go to daycare to see her friends and eventually Declan had relented, giving me more free time each day than I expected. I had been excited about it, but now on my first day without her, I felt a bit lonely.

Suddenly I trip, breaking my train of thought and nearly falling onto my face. Slightly embarrassed, I quickly cross the street and rush into the pub, glad to be inside and away from the brisk wind.

"Well hey you." Max says, a smile spreading across his face as I walk in. He quickly crosses the bar and wraps me in a hug. "I've been thinking about you."

I smile and flush at that, wrapping my arms around him and resting my head on his shoulder. "I've been thinking about you too." I pull away slightly so I can look up at him and he plants a light and sweet kiss on my lips. I smile even more and allow him to step away and go back behind the bar.

"So how are you, now that Lia is in school?" Max asks. I slide into one of the stools and watch with curiosity as he begins to slice some lime wedges and wonder why no matter how hard I try I can never cut mine like that.

"I'm okay." I say after a moment. "It's odd having so much free time, but I guess now I can work on my book." I try to make my voice sound cheerful to hide the fact that I was actually really missing the little squirt. She was my little shadow during the day and I felt lonely without her following me around.

Max nods in understanding, dumping the now cut limes before grabbing some lemons and beginning to slice those. "That's good at least. Any more incidents with Rachel?"

I push down the anger I feel at the reminder and shake my head. "No, Marie has only stopped by the house once since that happened so there hasn't been a chance for that to happen again." I leave out how when Marie had stopped by two days ago, I had quickly taken Lia and we left the second she was in the bathroom.

"That's good. Well hey, maybe since you have so much free time now and Lia can't be passed off to someone else if you're not around, how about we retry that date?" Max asks, looking up from the lemons with hopeful eyes.

I feel myself hesitate, my mind flashing back to Declan kissing me. Is it fair to Max if I keep trying to start something with him when I don't even know what's happening with my boss? Am I even trying to start something with him? I bite my lip for a moment before coming to a decision. "I would love to retry that date." I shoot him a smile and hope I don't look as indecisive as I still feel. It's only fair I give him a real chance.

"Great! I have Thursday off, how about we grab lunch? That way we won't have to rush for you to be able to grab Lia." He suggests, and I feel a surge of affection at his thoughtfulness, as usual.

"That works perfectly for me." I smile and feel genuine excitement bubble up inside, and for the first time in days I don't think of Declan's lips on mine.