I slowly inhaled, smelling a hint of his cologne. The scent memory catapulted me back to Saturday night.
“Well,” he said with a small smirk. “I should get going.”
“Yeah,” I said as I exhaled. I needed him out of my sight or I was going to go crazy with need. Would this feeling ever go away? It wasn’t completely his fault that this was awkward. I had wanted to have sex with him. And I was the one who left that night. What would have happened if I stayed? Did he think of me more than his nanny after that night? Or did he agree that this was a bad idea? It was clear we weren’t going to talk about it at that moment. But I built up a list of questions in my mind for when we did have that discussion when we had more time to hash it all out.
I waited until the front door closed and I heard the engine of his car before I headed into the kitchen to start on Gina’s breakfast.
With her dislike for most vegetables, I chopped spinach and added it to her oatmeal. It was a trick I’d learned in one of my earlier nanny jobs. Sadly, that job only worked out for about two weeks when the family moved across the country.
When I finished preparing the breakfast, I put the oatmeal in two bowls to allow it to cool before going upstairs.
Gina was still in bed when I opened the door. Her little eyes cracked open and then widened like saucers. “Jess!” She jumped out of bed and ran over to me, hugging my legs.
“Good morning, little tacker. Ready for breakfast?”
“I’m hungry!” she said in a deep voice. The reference to the dinosaur cartoon character from one of her favorite shows made me smile. She hugged her new doll against her body and took my hand, marching down to the kitchen with me.
At first, Gina glanced suspiciously at her oatmeal, but when I started eating it, she dug right in. Kids are much smarter than we give them credit for, so I held my breath as she ate, fully expecting her to know that I sneaked something healthy into her meal.
“Your dad told me your uncle got you this doll?”
“I love her!” she said then kissed the doll. I loved how affectionate she was. “Her name is Sally.”
“That’s a pretty name,” I said. “What else did you do yesterday?”
“Did Daddy tell you about his date?” Gina asked, completely ignoring my question.
“Um, not really,” I said.
“He told me that he’s not going out with your friend anymore.”
“Oh.”
“He was in a good mood yesterday.”
“He was?” I asked. Even after the awkward goodbye we shared, he had been in a good mood? After this morning and his nonchalant attitude about everything, I had no idea what to think. But hearing he had been in a good mood helped improve mine as well. I tried to hide my smile with a sip from my mug. With Gina reporting to me about Noah’s mood, I was sure she’d say something to him if I reacted too much either way.
“Yeah. He was smiling like you are.”
I wiped the smile from my face. I thought I hid it enough, but Gina was observant. Almost too much sometimes.
Gina sighed. “Do you have any other friends for Daddy?”
I almost choked on my oatmeal. “I don’t.” Like hell was I going to set him up ever again. Especially after sleeping with him.
“Oh,” she said.
“These things aren’t to be rushed,” I said, trying to cheer her up. “I’m
sure someone will come along.”
She nodded and focused on her meal again.
Later that morning, we stopped by the record shop on the way to the fabric store. Tuckering Gina out early would help get her down for a nap easier that afternoon and then I could focus on preparing the quilt for us. When we entered the store, Gina ran over to Sierra, who was behind the counter, painting her nails.
Gina almost knocked over a bowl of lollies on the counter. With my quick reflexes from working with kids, I was able to grab it before they scattered all over the counter and floor.
“Can I have one?” Gina asked me.