Chapter Six
chapter six
RYDER
“What do you mean, she’s homeless?” Ana shrieks over the phone, telling me everything I need to know—she had no idea that Kira and Violet had been living out of their SUV. Had she known, we’d have been having an entirely different conversation.
“She’s been parking at the top of the garage, and they’ve been sleeping in their vehicle.”
“Oh my God. I didn’t know,” she cries. “How did you find out?”
Even though I’m in my office, which is nowhere near where the girls are situated in their room and taking showers while Addie sleeps soundly in her own room, I speak low, not wanting to risk Kira overhearing me.
I tell Ana how I needed to run back up to my office to send a budget report over to Julian that I forgot to save, and when I came out, I saw Kira and Violet heading to the car. I go into detail about finding them camping out at the top of the garage like they were in a camper and not a fucking SUV and her freaking out because she thought I was going to turn her in and have her daughter taken away.
“What are we going to do?” Ana breathes. “We can’t let them keep sleeping in their vehicle.”
“I know. But Kira is too proud to take a handout.”
“So, what should we do?”
“I was thinking I could hire her as my live-in nanny.”
I’ve been thinking about how to fix this since I found them, and it’s the only solution that I can come up with that will give them a safe place to stay while Kira works.
“You’d do that?” Ana asks. “I thought you didn’t want to hire a nanny.”
“You said it yourself. With Kingston staying home with you, it only leaves Addie for her to care for. She might as well do it from the comfort of my home.”
If there were any other solution, I’d be all over it, but handing her money would be a slap in her face. She doesn’t want to be a charity case. If she did, she wouldn’t have been coming to work every damn day, surrounded by wealth, with a smile on her face and working her ass off, all while living out of her vehicle. She would’ve asked for help already, which she hasn’t. Hell, even after I found out, the only thing she asked was for me not to turn her in.
“Did she agree to that?” Ana asks.
“I haven’t asked. I wanted to run it by you first. It would mean removing her from Kingston’s payroll since she’d be working strictly for me.”
“As long as Kira’s okay with it, I am. If we need to hire someone else in the future, we’ll worry about it then. I can’t believe they’ve been sleeping in their freaking car and we never knew.”
We talk for a few more minutes, and when I hear someone padding down the stairs, I let her know I’ll update her with Kira’s decision tomorrow.
I step out of my office just as Kira’s rounding the corner. She doesn’t notice me at first, so when she does, she shrieks, clutching her chest.
“Sorry,” I say with a chuckle. “Didn’t mean to scare you.”
“It’s like you came out of nowhere,” she breathes, glancing around like there’s a trap door hidden somewhere.
“This is my office.”
I open the door behind me that looks like it’s part of the wall when it’s closed, and she peeks in curiously. With her body so close to mine, I catch a whiff of her scent—coconut with a hint of vanilla. Her arm brushes mine, and I stiffen in response, overwhelmed by her scent and touch hitting me all at once.
I’ve made it a point to avoid getting too close to Kira, knowing nothing good can come from my attraction toward her—and seeing the way she practically eye-fucked me by the pool when I took my shirt off, I have no doubt she’s just as attracted to me—which is why it’s even more imperative that I keep my distance from her, especially if she’s going to be living here. Boundaries are going to need to be set to ensure lines aren’t crossed.
“I was going to get a bottle of water,” she says, stepping back. “If that’s okay …”
“You don’t need permission to go anywhere in this house,” I tell her, closing my office door and walking to the kitchen with her following. “Is Violet asleep?”
“Out like a light,” she says with a soft laugh as she has a seat at the island. “With how many times she went up those stairs and down the slide, I’m surprised she stayed awake long enough for me to give her a bath. Addie asleep?”
“She did in fact fall asleep while I was bathing her,” I say, handing her a bottle of water from my fridge.
“Thank you,” she says with a watery smile. “I didn’t realize how badly we needed this.”
She closes her eyes and shakes her head, and it takes everything in me not to round the island and pull her into my arms. Every day I see her at the childcare, she always looks so put together, dressed professionally with her hair and makeup done. But right now, dressed in a pair of pajamas with her wet hair up in a messy bun and no makeup on, she looks utterly defeated. Still beautiful, but defeated.
“How long have you been living in your car?” I ask, sitting next to her.
“Almost three months,” she admits, turning toward me. “But we sleep at a motel occasionally to do laundry and shower. I’ve almost saved enough to rent an apartment, and then we won’t have to sleep in the car anymore.”
“You’re not sleeping in your car again.”
“You don’t understand,” she starts but immediately closes her mouth.
I wait several seconds for her to explain, but when it’s clear she’s not going to, I set my hand on top of hers and lock eyes with her. “You’re right. I don’t understand. But what I do know is, you wouldn’t be sleeping in your vehicle unless you had no other choice. If and when you’re ready to tell me what’s going on, I’ll be here. But until then, I want you and Violet to stay here.”
“What?” she gasps, shaking her head. “No, we couldn’t?—”
“You can,” I argue. “I need to hire a nanny, and I’d like to hire you.”
“But I work for Kingston.”
“Taking care of Addie,” I point out. “Ana’s decided she’s going to work from home for a while after the baby comes, which means the only baby you’ll be caring for is my daughter. I spoke to Ana, and she’s agreed.”
“She knows?” she whispers.
“I had to tell her.” I squeeze her hand comfortingly, ignoring how soft her skin is. “But nobody is judging you or thinks any less of you. You’re a wonderful mother, and I would love it if you came to work for me. I don’t trust a lot of people with my daughter, but I trust you.”
And that’s the truth. For the past month, I’ve watched her take care of Kingston and Addie and the other kids at the childcare as if they were her own. She not only takes care of them, but she also cares about them. I see it in the way she speaks to them and interacts with them.
“I don’t know what to say,” she murmurs, removing her hand from my touch to wipe her eyes that have filled with tears.
“You and Violet would have your own rooms and bathrooms. Addie’s and my rooms are on the west wing of the second floor, so you guys can have the entire east wing to yourselves. As you saw tonight, my home is plenty big enough for all of us. Your hours would be eight to five, Monday through Friday. With Addie getting older, it’s harder to work from home with her. On the days you’re not needed, you’ll still be paid. Nights and weekends are yours, aside from the occasional evening I might need you, but I’ll give you plenty of notice.”
“Ana was paying me in cash,” Kira says. “I don’t have a bank account …”
Ana told me as much, which should’ve been a clue that there was more to her story than met the eye, but Ana just chalked it up to her being new in town and not having had time to open a bank account yet.
“I’ll pay you two thousand a week in cash.”
Kira’s eyes widen in shock. “That’s?—”
“Eight thousand a month.”
“Too much.”
“It’s what I would pay any nanny I hired. I do have one stipulation though.”
Her body stiffens as she prepares herself for the other shoe to drop because she doesn’t trust me yet. And something in me wants her to trust me. I don’t know what she’s been through, but seeing as it’s just the two of them, something tells me that there’s a reason there’s no man in the picture. And my guess is, since she doesn’t have or want a bank account, she’s hiding out from him. That’s something we’ll have to discuss eventually, so I know what we’re dealing with and how to make sure they’re safe. But for right now, I need to take it one step at a time so I don’t scare her off.
“I want you to sign a one-year contract to live here and work for me. Anywhere you rent will be a drive to where I live, and I want someone here since my hours are all over the place. The company has a lot going on during the summer, and with the holidays, I’m going to need you quite a few nights. I want Addie to have consistency in her life, and it will be easier this way.”
Most of what I just said is bullshit, but it’s the only excuse I can come up with to convince her to stay under my roof, where I know they’ll both be safe, instead of her renting an apartment on the other side of town.
“Okay,” she agrees, shocking the hell out of me. I thought for sure she’d argue about the one-year contract. “But I think we should have a probationary period, just to make sure it works. Ninety days, and if we’re both happy, then I’ll sign a nine-month contract. If we’re not, then at least I’ll have enough to get my own place, and since Violet is turning five in July, she’ll be able to start kindergarten in the fall.”
“Sounds good,” I tell her. “I’ll have the papers drawn up. Since the phone you were using belongs to Kingston, I’ll have to get you a new one. Do you want to keep that number?”
“It doesn’t matter,” she says. “I only use it for work.”
“Okay, get some sleep.” I pat her hand and stand. “We have a busy day ahead of us at the museum tomorrow.”
She opens her mouth, having obviously forgotten about our plans, but I leave the kitchen before she can argue or try to change them. I don’t know what it is about this woman, but I’m drawn to her, and for the first time, I’m looking forward to Addie and me spending the day with someone other than Julian and Ana.
“God, that smells like heaven,” a feminine voice behind me breathes, shocking the hell out of me.
When I spin around, I find Kira standing in my kitchen, her hair messy from sleep and a small, unsure smile on her face.
“Sorry,” she says. “I didn’t mean to sneak up on you.”
“It’s all good. I’m just not used to people who can get out of bed on their own joining me this early in the morning,” I say with a laugh.
She steps farther into the kitchen and nods toward the espresso machine. “Looks like we have the same idea.”
“It’s the only way to get through the morning with a toddler,” I half joke.
“If I could, I’d have it directly injected into my veins,” Kira jokes back, having a seat at the island. “I think the smell lured me out of my sleep and down here.”
“How do you take your coffee?”
“Usually with caramel-flavored creamer, but really, it doesn’t matter as long as it has caffeine.”
I chuckle. “Give me a second.” I grab some milk and sugar and pour it into the cup then hand it to her. “I don’t have any flavors but try this.”
She brings the cup to her lips and inhales deeply. “It smells so good,” she sighs and then takes a sip. “And it tastes even better.” She sets the cup down. “Thank you. I haven’t had coffee in months.”
“I don’t think I could go days without coffee, let alone months,” I admit, then immediately mentally chastise myself when I think about why she’s gone months without it—she can’t afford it.
“Don’t do that,” she says. When I raise a questioning brow, she adds, “Don’t watch what you say. I don’t need or want your pity.”
I nod in understanding.
After making myself a cup of coffee, I sit down next to her, and for several minutes, we sit and drink in silence, both of us relishing in the quiet moment before our daughters wake up and our day officially starts. It’s weird, not sitting here alone, but it’s also kind of nice.
When Kira finishes her drink, she takes both of our cups to the sink. While she’s washing them, the baby monitor I keep on hand goes off, indicating there’s movement, followed by my daughter’s babbling, letting me know she’s awake.
A second later, tiny feet padding down the stairs hits our ears, followed by, “Mommy!”
Kira turns around and smiles. “Let the day begin.”
“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Kira asks as I transfer her daughter’s booster seat to my car. “Now that I’m working for you, we should probably keep things professional.”
“Technically, you don’t start working for me until Monday,” I tell her. “And we’re going to the children’s science museum, not to a club, so I think we’re safe from either of us behaving unprofessionally. Although”—I smirk at her—“I have been known to get down with the turtles. They might look tame, but inside, they’re partying hard.”
She rolls her eyes and groans. “You’re such a nerd. I bet you were in the math club when you were in school.”
“Damn straight,” I admit proudly. “And the chess club and science club.”
“Figures,” she mutters.
“What?” I ask, driving down the driveway.
“Nothing.” She shakes her head. “I was just thinking that maybe if I stuck with nerds, I wouldn’t be in the position I’m in.”
“Let me guess … you were a cheerleader and dated the quarterback.”
Her cheeks turn an adorable shade of pink. “Not my smartest decision,” she murmurs, glancing back at her daughter. “But I can’t find it in me to regret it.”
She doesn’t say she’s talking about Violet, but as one single parent to another, I can read between the lines.
I nod. “Same.”
She glances over at me, and for a moment, our eyes lock, a silent understanding passing between us. Our circumstances might be different, but one thing is the same—we’re both single parents who would do anything for our kids, and despite what led us here, we wouldn’t change it for anything.