Chapter Eleven
Riley
"Girl, do you have any secrets to spill?" Julia asked the next morning. She was sitting at the kitchen table, looking like hell. We’d had a fun night dancing, but I ended up taking an Uber home long before they left.
"What do you mean?" I asked, though I wanted to shout, “Yes, yes, I do. Duncan kissed me, and it was damn amazing.’”
"How do you look so fresh?"
"I didn't drink at all yesterday."
She rolled her eyes. "Boo. Yeah, now I remember. You were no fun."
"It's Monday, remember? I’m working and need to drive and be alert." The whole time we were dancing at the club, all I could think about was Duncan and our kiss. And how much I missed him. This was nuts!
"I don't know why I'm even awake. I'm going back to bed."
"You wanted to have coffee," I said, pointing to the machine. It was whirring, warming up.
She waved her hand. "No, I’ll have it later. I still need, like, one more hour or ten of sleep."
I chuckled. "Fair enough."
I’d gotten up early and baked the muffins. They turned out delicious. I only ate one—a taste test of sorts. I’d packed the rest in Tupperware.
It was 8:50 a.m. My stomach somersaulted. I didn't have time for a proper breakfast, but I would grab something at the park. Duncan would arrive any second now. He liked to be punctual.
It was one of the reasons why I’d started preparing dinner fifteen minutes earlier than usual last week.
I didn't want to risk him coming home before I finished, figuring the less we were around each other, the better.
But clearly, that had backfired, because we both had a lot of sexual tension building up inside us.
Honestly, I didn’t know what to make of it. Duncan was quite a bit older than me. Not that I knew exactly how much of an age difference there was between us, but I’d bet it was close to ten years, and that was a lot.
His life was set—he was divorced with a child, and he was successful in his career. He was adulting , and I was just trying to get my life started. But I couldn’t deny how attracted I was to him.
I’d always been a bit of an old soul anyway.
Mom said it was probably because I had to look after my sister often as we grew up.
She always apologized about it, said it made me grow up too early, but I honestly hadn’t minded.
I’d loved taking care of my sister. Even now as an adult, I felt a bit older than my peers.
Boy, where did all of this come from?
I knew the answer to that—one swim in the pool, one hot kiss at the kitchen sink, one sexy look… and basically I was screwed.
As I waited for Duncan and Jeremy to arrive, I texted Mom yet another update so she wouldn’t worry about me.
At five to nine, there was a light knock at the door.
I’d texted Duncan not to ring the doorbell, since Christine was still sleeping—and Julia now too.
I tiptoed to the door, opening it as quietly as I could.
"Surprise," Jeremy exclaimed. "We brought you breakfast."
"Quiet, buddy. My roommates are still sleeping. Come on, let's go to the back of the house and into the garden." I held my finger over my lips to make it more of a game to him, so he wouldn’t think I was reprimanding him, and thankfully he got it right away.
I led them through the narrow corridor that opened up directly into the backyard.
Jeremy tiptoed like he was a predator stalking his prey—God, he was cute!
Our little patio area was small, but we had a portable cabinet we kept out here full of dishes.
I took out three and put them on the table.
It was big enough to seat four people comfortably.
"What did you buy?" I asked as they took out three glass jars.
"We didn't buy it. Dad and I made it. It's oatmeal. Dad asked me what your favorite food was, and I told him. So yesterday, after we left your place, we went by Walmart again, because that's where you said your favorite is, and we picked it up."
My insides simply melted. Duncan flashed me a gorgeous smile.
"Thank you!"
I was awfully touched, not only that he'd asked Jeremy my favorite food but that he'd gone to Walmart. He’d probably never been in one of those stores before.
"Wow, Jeremy, thanks for remembering. It looks great." I’d made it for him once last week, and it looked like he’d remembered every step. “You even remembered how to mix the fruit."
"I know. We took a picture, remember? And I showed it to Dad."
I blushed a little bit at Duncan.
"Let's eat and see if it's as good as it looks," he said, winking, and I melted yet again.
Sitting here, the three of us together, made me long for a family of my own. Growing up with my mom and sister, we were very close. I missed that kind of connection. Having roommates was just not the same by a long shot.
"I cut the bananas," Jeremy said.
I could just picture the two of them working side by side in the kitchen.
I smiled. “Good for you."
"Dad said that I might be allowed to cut more things, but it wasn’t a real knife. It was just made out of plastic even though I'm not a baby,” Jeremy countered.
“Of course not," Duncan said.
We exchanged a conspiratorial glance. It was hard not to give in to the impulse of imagining how my life would look if I were Jeremy's mom.
But you're not, Riley. You're his nanny. No matter how well the two of you get along, once you start your job at the law firm, you’ll never see him or Duncan again.
Usually, my mood completely deflated when I reminded myself of the reality. But this time it didn't, and I blamed the absolutely delicious oatmeal for it.
"Whoa, this is good," I said. It had more honey than I usually put in. Hello, new recipe. I was going to start adding more honey too.
"We didn't find any agave syrup, so I just added more honey," Duncan said.
"It’s much better." I grinned through a mouthful, then covered my mouth. "Sorry, that's so unprofessional. Thank you."
"You're welcome," he replied.
"Do you like it?" I asked both Jeremy and Duncan.
Jeremy nodded. "Yeah, it's sweet."
Duncan frowned. "It's certainly better than what I usually have, which is black coffee."
I shuddered. "Without any breakfast? Are you an alien?"
"No, I just usually don't like to eat in the morning. Wastes too much time."
"Really? The first meal of the day is so important,” I chastised him.
“True, and Jeremy certainly eats his, but I just don’t seem to find the time in the mornings.”
“Well, I love breakfast because I love coming back here and enjoying the sun and the chirping birds while I take a few spoonfuls of oatmeal and wake up. It's like a little routine that makes every day start off on the right foot."
Duncan looked at me strangely.
Damn it, we were so different. Forget the age thing—we were just at other stages in life. This could never work out.
He was a single dad and needed to focus on his son. I was a lawyer just starting my career.
And yet I couldn't help but melt. They’d made me breakfast.
I smiled at Duncan, and he winked at me, making me feel hot all of a sudden. Did he want to talk about what happened last night? I wasn't even sure what to say.
"Okay, now that we're done, can we go?" Jeremy asked abruptly after he'd finished his bowl.
"Jeremy, what did I tell you? We need to wait for the others at the table to finish eating. Then you can ask."
"I'm done," I said, quickly eating my remaining two spoonfuls.
Duncan had already finished his, too, and was putting what he’d brought back into the bag as we rose from the table.
"Want me to load the bags you prepared for today?" he asked as I rinsed off the dishes in the outdoor sink we rarely used. I’d just leave them here for now and clean up later.
“Yes, please! I put everything on the front porch. We don't even need to go back inside the house. Let's go."
The three of us walked in step, and Duncan put the two bags in the back of the car as I secured Jeremy in the booster seat. After I closed the door, Duncan looked directly at me, and I sucked in a breath. The intensity in his eyes was mesmerizing.
"Call me if you need anything, okay? Or if he asks for something and you're not sure how to respond."
I nodded. "Sure. Don't worry, Jeremy and I will have fun."
He opened his mouth, then shook his head and said, "I can’t start this now."
"What are you talking about?"
He smiled at me again. God, I loved those dimples at the corners of his mouth. They seemed even deeper than before.
"I’d planned to talk to you over breakfast but forgot Jeremy was going to be there, hanging on every word."
“You forgot?” I teased.
“Yeah. That’s the effect you have on me.”
"Oh!" My cheeks flushed.
"Yeah, oh. I'll think of something soon, though."
"Sure," I said, not really understanding what he meant. But I did several minutes later, while I was driving.
He wanted us to be alone. Heat coursed through me at the thought.
"I'm so excited," Jeremy said, snapping me out of my thoughts. "Did you know Ms. Williams doesn’t like roller coasters? She said they make her head hurt."
"Some people do have problems with that."
"Mom doesn't like them either."
A cold shudder went down my spine. I looked at him in the rearview mirror. "She takes you to theme parks a lot?"
"No. Only when she visits."
"Do you talk to her often?"
He nodded. "Almost every night."
That was good. It was important for him to have a good relationship with his mother. I supposed the phone calls happened before he went to bed.
"And before school starts, I’ll be with her in Dublin for two weeks.”
"You looking forward to it?" I asked.
"Yes. I was there last summer, and it was really nice. Mom’s boyfriend is nice too. But she says he’s not her boyfriend anymore.”
That was interesting. So, Jeremy's mom had a boyfriend. I was dying to know more, but it wasn't fair to question Jeremy about it. He was bouncing in the booster seat, smiling when he saw the first sign to the theme park. I’d never seen him so happy. I was glad that I'd offered to bring him here.
We had a blast the entire day. I loved the roller coaster just as much as Jeremy did.
I looked ridiculous in a few of them that were clearly meant for kids, but when he’d hesitated, I told him that I secretly wanted to go, too, if he wasn't too embarrassed.
He seemed relieved. Clearly, he needed to be able to feel safe with an adult in order to have fun. I was happy I'd caught on to that.
After a round on a particularly nasty roller coaster, we were both feeling a little unwell. "Want to sit down for a bit? I feel like my brain is whirling in my head," I said.
"Yeah, mine too." He was a bit green in the face. "This is why Ms. Williams didn't want to go on it last time."
I laughed. "You tried to talk her into going on that?" I couldn't imagine a sixty-year-old woman on that death trap. I had no idea how I survived it or why they even allowed kids on. But clearly it wasn't unsafe, just… unhinged.
Jeremy scooted closer to me. "Thank you so much, Riley. This was the best day ever."
I gave him a half hug.
"You're the best nanny I’ve ever had. Do you think you can visit me even when you start working your other job?"
I hesitated. "We'd have to check with your dad."
"I'm sure Dad will say yes."
"Oh, buddy, I'm not even sure how my schedule will be once I start working. I've heard that lawyers have to work until late in the evening every day."
His smile fell, and the light went out of his eyes.
Damn it, I didn't want to disappoint him. But wasn’t it better if I prepared him now? The truth was that after these three months, I probably wouldn’t see him or his dad ever again.
Now my smile fell.
"But we'll see," I added. "Maybe we can work something out." The light was back in his eyes now, at least. "Feeling better?" I was asking myself too. I wanted more.
Shit, what was I even thinking?
"Yes. Can I go on one last roller coaster before we go home?"
My brain was still spinning in my mind, and not because of the roller coaster. But I couldn't say no.
“Sure, let's go. One more round, and then we're done."
"Yes!" he cheered, then started tugging me in that direction.