My hands are still shaking the whole drive back home. And the woman’s words keep pounding in my ears. What the hell was she talking about?
As soon as we get home, I want to text Lucas. My gut’s telling me there’s something important I need to know that he hasn’t told me. But I don’t want to disturb him at work. And I should probably calm down a little more before talking to him.
Besides, I want to look him in the eyes when I ask him.
Chapter Six
Lucas
“She didwhat?” I growl. “What the fuck is wrong with that woman?”
I’ve only been home for a few minutes and Sophia and I are standing in the kitchen, out of earshot of Penelope. Sophia has just told me about what happened in the grocery store, and I’m completely shocked to hear that someone would say things like that to her.
“What did she mean, she knows what I’m after, Lucas?” Sophia says.
“She’s nuts, Sophia. I’m so sorry you were subjected to that.”
“I just want to know what she was talking about.”
I press my lips together. I don’t know what to say. I don’t want to lie to Sophia. But this isn’t how I wanted to tell her the truth, either.
“What are you hiding from me?” asks Sophia.
But I can’t speak. The words just won’t come.
“Fine. Don’t tell me.”
“I’m sorry, Sophia,” I say. “But you can trust me. I promise.”
She doesn’t say anything for several seconds, then lets out a big sigh. “I don’t think I can do this.”
My chest constricts. “What are you saying?”
“After our day at the beach, I thought I was strong enough to handle whatever judgments other people were going to make about seeing us together. But then today happened. And I have a feeling it’s going to keep happening. Especially since that woman said ‘we.’” She takes a breath. “I’m really sorry, Lucas. I love looking after Penelope. And I have genuine feelings for you. But I can’t let myself stay in a situation like this. It could very easily send me into a dark place.”
And then it feels like someone’s stabbing me in the gut as she says the next words: “I can’t do this. I’m sorry. But I have to quit. And I can’t see you anymore.”
I try, desperately, to think of something I can say to her that will change her mind. But even telling her the truth about me won’t make a difference now. Because this isn’t about us. This is about other people.
“What if I talk to them? To those women?” I say.
“Please don’t,” she says. “That will only make it worse.”
She’s right. Fuck.
“I’m going to figure this out,” I say.
She gives me a sad smile. “I’ll stay until you find a replacement, okay?”
* * *
But I refuseto look for a replacement. That is, I refuse until Sophia gets confronted again when she and Penelope are out in a park one afternoon. It’s a different woman this time, but the same sort of thing of spewing nasty comments at her. And as much as I want to get the cops involved, or go yell some sense into those cruel women myself, I know that for Sophia’s safety, the best thing to do is to remove her from the situation. So I put up an ad, emphasizing that I need someone as soon as possible.
I get over a dozen replies within twenty-four hours.
After filtering out the people I can tell wouldn’t be a good fit, I email the rest to set up in-person meetings. I take the following afternoon off from work to meet with each of them. By the end of the day, I have a new nanny ready to start looking after Penelope as soon as the next day.
But telling Penelope the news when I get home is tough. She looks from me to Sophia with furrowed brows, then says, “Don’t leave, Sophia.Pleasedon’t leave.”