In any case, I’d been thinking of Jaz in a whole new way over the past couple days, and that really wasn’t a good thing while I was a professor and she was a student. Especially when I was supervising her thesis. And the whole free babysitting thing didn’t exactly make things any less complicated.
Which was why on Monday morning, when she arrived at my office to pick Gretchen up, I folded my hands on my desk and said, “We need to talk.”
“What is it?”
I took a moment to respond, in which time she squirmed adorably in her seat. Her blue eyes looked bigger than usual. More innocent. And as I stared into them, I wondered why they kept drifting down to my lips.
“I can’t be your thesis supervisor anymore.”
Jaz’s face fell. I mean, it literally looked like she was about to start blubbering. “Have I not been working hard enough? I know I didn’t get a lot done before our last meeting, but—” was that a sniff? “—I did prepare some stuff for today.” She patted her backpack.
Way to sound like the world’s biggest jerk, Faye. “That’s not it. And I wouldn’t blame you if you hadn’t gotten anything done this week. You’ve been busy.”
“I have, but I still want to work on my thesis.” She cleared her throat. “With you.”
I pulled Gretchen’s knit hat a little farther over her ears. “All things considered, I think it would be a better idea for you to work with someone else. I’ve already spoken to Dr. O’Neill. He already has a few masters’ students this year, but he likes the sound of your research, and of course he knows you from your TA duties. He’s willing to take you on.”
“I…” Jaz bit a pink lip. “I guess I can work with him instead.”
“Great. I’ve already set up a meeting for you two. Visit his office today at three.” I pushed a slip of paper with his office number across the table.
Although Jaz blinked a few times, she took it. “All right. I guess I—I’ll take Gretchen now.”
Instead of handing her over, I hugged her to me. “That’s another thing. The babysitting…”
“Am I not doing well enough?” Jaz asked anxiously. “I’ve never had a complaint before. Of course newborns take a lot of specialized care, and if you’d rather go to a professional, I understand completely. I—”
I cut her off. “You’re doing great. I’m just not comfortable with the situation.”
“So you found somebody else?”
“No, Jaz, you’re not listening to me.”
My harshness made her recoil, and even Gretchen gave a little groan as if she’d caught the sudden shift in the room’s mood. My heart immediately went out to Jaz. She was too sweet for me to snap at her like that.
“Sorry,” I murmured. “What I’m trying to say is, I’d like to pay you.”
“To pay me!” She threw her head back and laughed. “I guess I can live with that. As much as I adore Gretchen, I can only do so much as a favor.”
“I’m glad we’re on the same page.” Gretchen’s squinty eyes opened and closed, and I tapped her nose absent-mindedly as I spoke. “How does twenty an hour sound?”
Jaz’s jaw dropped open. “That’s way too much, unless you’re talking about twenty cents! You know I’m happy to hang out with her for free. I was thinking about getting a pet anyway.”
I gave her an odd look. “Twenty an hour is too much for you?”
“I couldn’t take it,” she said. “Twenty a day would be more likely.”
“Twenty a day? Not a chance. I’ve got you looking after her for hours on end. Favors are one thing, but I won’t have you working at slave-labor prices.” I bounced Gretchen on my knee. “Eighteen an hour, and that’s my final offer.”
“She’s not even your kid,” Jaz said. “You don’t actually want her. You can’t afford that.”
“Don’t tell me what I can afford.”
She snorted. “I’ve seen your car. And your place. There’s no way you can spare…” She counted on her fingers. “Three hundred-something bucks a week. Nope. Twenty-five a day, and that’s my final offer.”
I glared at her. “Fifty an hour.”
“Sold!”