Chapter 1
Rae
I pulled my coat tighter around the precious cargo strapped to my chest as an icy wind blew through the playground. The air was frigid and sent a hard shiver down my spine.
Not much longer and winter would be right on top of us. Our afternoons in the park would be a distant memory until spring came back around.
That wasn’t something I was looking forward to.
“Watch me, Rae!” I glanced over my shoulder at Sammy, one of the children I nannied for, and smiled.
He was becoming braver with each passing day, which he was proving by dangling upside down from the monkey bars. When I was first hired, he was shy, but with lots of praise and encouragement he’d really come out of his shell.
“Your boss is giving you a dirty look,” Maria, another nanny who frequented the park, whispered from beside me.
I peeked over my shoulder at Mrs. Bradshaw, and sure enough she had a sour look plastered on her face.
“Yeah, I’m not sure what that’s about,” I admitted, turning back to Sammy as baby Aurora snuggled deeper into the crook of my neck.
Becoming a nanny wasn’t something I’d ever pictured myself doing. I’d come to the city at the peak of spring with dreams of making it big. I’d been convinced I would waltz right in, belt out the lyrics of Wicked’s “For Good” and they’d hire me on the spot. I’d been so very, very wrong.
The city was hard, and its people were worse. New York was nothing like the home I’d left in the hills of Tennessee.
In the end, though, it had all worked out. I’d met Cassie and she’d offered me the spare room at her place and hooked me up with a job.
Plus, I adored the kids I worked with.
Their parents, however, were a different story. Take Mrs. B. for instance, she was a raging bitch the majority of the time and her husband was barely toeing the sexual harassment line. Just thinking about the creepy bastard made me cringe.
“Oh, I know exactly what her problem is.” I looked over at Maria for her to continue.
“Rae, you’re gorgeous, her kids like you more than her, and her husband can’t keep his eyes off your ass,” she said with an air of warning in her tone.
My nose scrunched. “What! That’s not it. Look at me.”
Maria didn’t have a clue what she was talking about. I wasn’t anything to write home about. My hair was a wild mess of blonde curls, I was too tall, and my boobs were nonexistent.
Maria’s eyes flashed with shock, like I’d said something absurd. “Girl, do you ever look in a mirror?”
I rolled my eyes. Of course I did.
“Rae-Rae, did you see me?” Sammy shouted. I could kiss the little guy for saving me from Maria’s inquisitive stare.
“I did! That’s awesome, Sammy! You’re getting so strong.” Just as his little face lit up at the praise, his mother’s voice lashed out from the other side of the playground.
“His name is Samuel!” she snapped, the viciousness in her tone causing Sammy’s face to fall.
I gritted my teeth to stop myself from growling. Would it kill her to give her son an ounce of encouragement? The woman was such a bitch.
It took everything I had to push down the urge to yell out that I was surprised she even remembered he existed. Mrs. B. only acknowledged him when she was around her bougie friends. She treated him like a trophy she could pull off the shelf and parade around, only to put him away when it suited her. It was disgusting.
I’d come close to letting her mean ass have it a few times, but by the grace of the heavens I’d managed to keep my mouth shut. I couldn’t risk losing my job. I had a mound of bills piling up and a roommate that was undependable on the best of days. So, as much as it pained me, I just had to suck it up.
“Yes, Mrs. Bradshaw.” The apology tasted like ash, but I choked it out anyway.
You need the money, Norma Rae. Don’t screw this up.
There was no way I was going back to Tennessee with my tail between my legs. My daddy would love that, but I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction.
”Rae.” My eyes squeezed shut.
Seriously? Could I not catch one break?
”Mr. Bradshaw.” I schooled my features as I placed his sleeping daughter into her pram.
Rich people and their fancy strollers.
“We need to discuss your schedule.” His eyes darted over to the bench where his wife was holding court with the other moms, then quickly came back to me.
“My schedule?” I asked.
If he fired me, I was screwed. Cassie had already been dropping hints that she was going to be short with her half of the rent. That was her usual not-so-subtle way of letting me know it was going to fall on me to come up with the scratch we needed to keep the lights on.
“Your schedule,” he repeated, closing the distance between us.
I took a step back, immediately realizing my mistake. I’d positioned us behind the rock wall and out of view of everyone in the park.
Shit.
“Please, Mr. Bradshaw...” I started, but the plea died on my lips when his hand landed heavily on my backside and squeezed.
“I’ve been watching you, Rae. A pretty girl like you in a big city like this.” He smirked. “I could make things easier for you, you know? For a price of course.” The words slithered out of his mouth, showing exactly the kind of snake he really was.
My eyes narrowed. I wasn’t a whore.
“Get. Your. Hands. Off. Me,” I growled through clenched teeth.
“Or what?” he sneered.
“Or this!” I seethed, hearing my daddy’s instructions clear as a bell.
Hit first, hit hard.
Muscle memory took over; my daddy’s training flipped on like a switch.
Mr. Bradshaw’s eyes widened when I pivoted on my left foot, putting space between us. With fury raging in my veins, I swung my fist as hard as I could. It connected with his jaw with a loud thud. I didn’t stop there. I couldn’t.
Before he could fully recover, I hit him again with a right cross and sent him staggering back on his feet.
I shook out my hand as pain radiated from my knuckles. It hurt, but there was no way I’d let him see.
Give him nothing, Rae.
“You bitch!” he shouted, spitting blood.
“Consider that your notice, asshole. I quit.” It felt good to finally stand up for myself.
“Quit?” he sputtered, wiping at the mark I left on his face.
Good luck explaining that away, buddy. I might be a girl, but I sure as shit didn’t hit like one.
“You think you”re walking away from this? Wrong, babe.” He scoffed. “You”re fired, Rae! Don”t show your face around here again or I”ll make sure you never work in this town again, you fucking cunt.”
Shit.
Cassie was going to flip her damn lid when she found out I was fired from another job. She had warned me time and again, that one day my temper was going to get me into more trouble than I could handle.
A heavy weight settled in my chest as I left the park and headed toward the subway.
As I jogged down the steps into the tunnels, I made a mental list of the things I had at the apartment that I could sell for quick cash.
I had my guitar and my momma’s pearls.
Between the cash I had stuffed in my sock drawer and what I could get for the Gibson and pearls, it would hopefully be enough to tide me over until I could find another job.
Stepping off the train in slightly better spirits, I raced up the steps and across the road to the rundown building Cassie and I called home.
“Hey, Bob,” I said to the man who’d been a permanent fixture on the steps of our building since the day I’d moved in.
“Hey, girl. You’re home early.”
“Uh, yeah.” I forced a smile, not wanting to get into it.
“Where’d your friend go to?” I tipped my head, not sure what he meant.
“I’m not sure. I better get up there and see if she left me a note.” Blowing him off was a shit thing to do, but I was on a mission and trying to figure out what he was talking about would only hold me up.
Evading his question, I quickly pushed through the doors and jogged up the steps. As soon as I rounded the corner Bob’s comment about where Cassie went made more sense.
Taped right in the center of the door was a blaring red eviction notice.
“What the hell?” My heart sank as I scanned over all the legal jargon. “You’ve gotta be shitting me,” I whispered.
They wanted us out immediately.
Do not pass go, do not collect $200, just get the hell out.
As I slipped my key in the lock, I tried to stay calm myself.
It’s fine, Rae. You and Cassie will figure this out.
Only when I stepped inside our apartment, I realized everything was not going to be fine.
In fact, everything was worse than I could have ever imagined.
“No, no, no,” I cried out, rushing through the empty apartment.
“NO!” I screamed when I got to my bedroom door and found it just as bare as the rest of the place. My hands shook as I yanked out my phone, and pressed call on Cassie’s number.
“We’re sorry. You have reached a number that has been disconnected or is no longer in service.”
My arm dropped as the reality of my situation smacked me in the face.
I was out of a job and my roommate had taken off with everything I owned.
I couldn’t remember a time when things had been as bad. I needed to reach out to the agency and beg for another job. With any luck Mr. Bradshaw hadn’t contacted them and tattled.
Scrolling down to the number, I hit call, praying for a lifeline.
“Elite Angels nanny service. How may I help you?”
“Amelda.” Oh, thank God. She was exactly who I needed to convince.
“Rae?”
“Yes, it’s me. I need your help. I know I messed up royally, but everything is falling apart.”
“Rae,” she sighed. “Maybe you should have thought of that before you assaulted Mr. Bradshaw.” My back went up. I should have done more than that. If anyone had been assaulted, it was me.
The pervert.
Telling her that wasn’t going to earn me any favors, so I opted for remorse.
“Please, Amelda. I just need one more chance. I promise I won’t mess up again. I need this,” I begged.
“Rae, you know our policy.”
“Listen, I?—”
“I don’t want to hear it. Your behavior reflects poorly on us. We’ve overlooked two incidents already and look at where we are.”
“It was self-defense!” I nearly shouted into the receiver. She had to understand. “He touched me, and I?—”
“Look, Rae. I get it. I really do, but you broke the rules. You should have reported it. If you had, things would be different now.”
“Rules?” I choked out a bitter laugh. “Rules don”t protect women from hands that think they can take what they want.” The line went deathly quiet. I pulled the phone away from my face to see if she’d hung up, but thankfully she was still there.
“Please, Amelda,” I pleaded once more.
“Fine, Rae, but this is your last shot. Understand?”
“I hear you and I promise I won’t let you down this time, but there’s another little problem I need your help with.”
“Rae…” she groaned.
“I know, I know. I’m sorry, but I need a live-in position. Cassie cleaned this place out and took off with everything.” I looked around at the empty space. When I caught up with her, I was going to kick her ass.
“You owe me one, Rae. Write this address down, it’s the only live-in position I’ve got.”
Grabbing a pen and a receipt from my bag, I scribbled down the address. “Your appointment is tomorrow at eight AM. Don’t be late.”
“Thank you,” I said, choking back a sob. “I won”t let you down.”
“Make sure you don’t,” she replied, not hiding the lack of faith she had in me before the line went dead.
I leaned back against the wall and slid down onto my bottom. Burying my face in my hands, I tried my damndest to keep the tears at bay, but it was no use. The tears streamed down my cheek and a sob ripped from my chest. I let it all out, and once I was done, I reminded myself that this too would pass.