She would be picking Bobby up from school and then bringing him home, helping him with any little school assignments he had (homework in preschool? What the hell…?) and then fixing him dinner. I would try to be home before bed time so I could read him a story and tuck him in, but that was always debatable. Sometimes I hated that I worked so much.
But I also loved it and it kept me going strong.
I said goodbye to Teri and I watched her walk towards her car. I closed the door so it wouldn’t look like I was standing there ogling her. But wow… she was so damn beautiful. I couldn’t get her out of my mind after she was gone. I went back inside and sat down on the couch after grabbing a beer from the fridge.
This could be trouble. I didn’t want to be this attracted to the new nanny. I’d had friends who ended up getting in trouble with their nannies, but
of course they were married and did stupid things. If my wife was still here I never would have given Teri a thought. I’ve never been that type of guy. But my wife was gone. I was alone. And I had been alone for a long time. I knew that she would want me to move on and be happy. So far I’d been unable to do that. I just didn’t feel like I truly deserved it or that it was the right thing for Bobby.
Yet, maybe this was the time. And if it was the time was this woman the one I was supposed to pursue? Had this happened for a reason?
I’ve never been the type of guy to believe in any sort of destiny or anything, but there has to be times when the cards swing your way and you get dealt a lucky hand. It is silly to not take advantage of opportunities that fall your way. That was how I’d always operated in business. You had to be hypervigilant to these opportunities that came your way.
And was that what this was? Was Teri an opportunity to get back into the swing of real life that I had tucked myself away from for so long? I wasn’t sure. I couldn’t be sure, yet. But something about it felt like it should have been the wrong thing. I didn’t want to mess up something that could be great for Bobby. And there was something kind of unethical about getting involved with my employee.
But then again, that was part of what made it so exciting. It was a fantasy, to fall in love with the nanny. It would have been fun, and a bit adventurous.
I took a sip of the beer and turned on the television. I needed a distraction right now. There was too much in my brain going on. I quickly found a basketball game and settled in to watch it. I could still hear Bobby playing with his toys in the other room. He was really having a go of it.
I wished I could relax and have as much fun as he was having. Life just kept pulling in me in so many different directions though.
Teri… I wondered what she was thinking about me.
Chapter 2
Teri
I drove home in a bit of a daze.
Darren was so handsome, suave, charismatic, and sexy that I could hardly remember what had just happened. I’d gotten the job. I’d met Bobby. He was a sweetheart. And I was going to start tomorrow. But as far as what we talked about otherwise, my mind was really drawing a blank. Why did Darren have to be so handsome?
The moment I saw him my heart just began to melt and I felt like I was getting totally weak in the knees. I did my best to hold my composure, but every time we looked at each other, it felt like there were sparks happening, or it was just my overactive imagination. I had a tough time separating that sometimes and a time or two it had put my foot in my mouth.
I didn’t want that to happen this time, though. I needed the job desperately and I had it in the bag. I was hired. I was excited to start tomorrow. But I was nervous now since meeting Darren. I doubted he would be around much. I’d mostly just see him when he came home and I got ready to leave, but it was enough to create something that could become uncomfortable, or it could become too comfortable. That was the thing.
I’d never been involved with anyone I was employed by, but the attraction had never even been there, and the previous people I’d worked with were married. Darren was widowed. I knew that had to put some painful baggage in his life and that was something he might not even be ready to deal with yet, even though it had been over a year and a half since his wife passed away. Those wounds could often remain for several years, and sometimes they never went away.
I could see the sadness in his eyes, along with his other qualities. Was it the sadness that drew me to him? Was that it? I had a tendency to fall for guys who were wounded in some way. There was something in them that made me want to take care of them. It’s always been in my nature, I guess. And it has usually worked out badly.
I’d been single for about six months and it had been fairly easy and a happy time for me. I was enjoying not having someone in my life and not having any of the drama that went with that. It was a nice respite from that crap.
But now I felt something for someone again. I had just met Darren but there was something between us that pulled me in like some tractor beam. It was strong and intense. I wanted to hold him. I wanted to reach out to him. I really wanted him to take those strong arms and hold me closely before taking me and making hot, passionate love to me.
Darren was beautiful looking. That was the best way to describe it. He was tall, probably six feet two, with broad shoulders, great hair, a winning smile, and toned, tight body. There was also a darkness to him. There was something in the tone of voice that sounded like he was so close to barking at someone, but I couldn’t tell if that was just the way I heard him. I knew he was rich and powerful. The money meant nothing to me. I’ve never been very materialistic, but the strength he had, the raw power that just emanated from him was very attractive. It had sucked me into his world.
And now I was deeply worried that I might accidentally do or say the wrong thing without being able to help myself. I might let it slip how attracted to him I really was. And that could lead to me being fired if he thought it was a conflict of interest or inappropriate.
But did he feel the same way? Was he attracted to me? I thought he was looking at me that way, but I might have been mistaken. We always assume that the person we are interested in would be interested in us, especially if they are being friendly or it feels like we are connecting through some good conversation or friendliness. But sometimes it turns out not to be true.
I pulled into the driveway of the house I shared with my best friend and roommate Ida Stone. We’d been best friends and roommates for the past three years. Both of us had grown tired of dorm life quickly and just moved in together. She was a bit of a wild child, but she was a good friend and was highly entertaining.
When I walked into the house, she was playing video games. Ida was a video game junkie. I wasn’t sure how she got any studying done when it was all she really did. And she was actually quite good. She’d started to stream her games on Twitch and was now making some cash with a decent following. She’d even been able to quit her part time job as a telemarketer, which she despised doing.
It was a new world.
“Hey,” Ida said as I entered. I heard her blow up something on the screen and then she pressed pause on her game.
“Are you streaming?” I asked.