The Widower’s Nanny

1. Rachel

1

Rachel

I arrive at Preston Michaelson’s country estate and am amazed. His mother, Bea, who hired me, called it his “little country home.” The little home has two stories, a garage with six doors, a pool with a pool house bigger than my old apartment, and I believe I can see tennis courts beyond the pool. The guesthouse, which will be my new home, sits on the other side of the garage. It’s a beautiful cottage surrounded by flower beds and a bright green lawn.

Bea comes out the front door as I park outside the white fence surrounding the equally manicured front yard, with its own overflowing flower beds. An adorable blonde girl runs through the door after Bea, passes her by, and comes up to the fence.

She waves and gives me a smile with a missing front tooth. “Hi.”

I smile at her. “Hi. You must be Lilly.”

She nods. “Are you my new nanny?”

“Yes, I’m Rachel. It’s very nice to meet you, Lilly.”

Bea comes up behind her granddaughter and pats her head. “She’s been very anxious to meet you.” Bea opens the gate. “Come in. Let me show you around.”

Bea hired me after an interview and an extensive vetting process. I hadn’t met Mr. Michaelson yet .

She spends the next hour giving me a tour of the house and the grounds, and she tells me the property has been in the family for years. She and her late husband had only used it as a getaway spot. But three years ago, Preston had decided to move there. She’d come along to help him with Lilly.

I meet Laura, the cook, and Mrs. Cartwright, the housekeeper. Laura is friendly and welcoming, but she seems a little distracted and perhaps accident-prone, with her three bandaged fingers.

Mrs. Cartwright, on the other hand, is a bit stern, and I feel like she considers me a nuisance she’ll have to deal with. We then go out to meet Benjy, the groundskeeper, who also maintains the pool and the tennis courts. He is very nice, and he is obviously enamored with Lilly. When he asks her if she wants to help him feed the koi in the pond, she runs off with him.

Bea watches them for a moment with a touch of sadness in her eyes.

I touch her arm. “You’re going to miss her, aren’t you?”

“More than you know.” She sighs and turns toward the guesthouse. “But it can’t be helped. They say the country air is good for your health. But in my case, it hasn’t been.”

“I’m sorry. I hope it’s nothing serious.”

“Nothing time in the city can’t cure.”

I follow her to the guesthouse. As we follow the path to the front door, I can smell all the wonderful flowers. I’ve never been a live-in nanny before, so I don’t know quite what to expect. When we go inside, I am even more impressed. It is warm and inviting with cozy furniture, a kitchen in the corner, and a separate bedroom with a bath.

I smile at Bea. “This is wonderful.”

“I’m glad someone will finally get a chance to enjoy it. I had Mrs. Cartwright do a thorough cleaning, and she’ll do a weekly cleaning on whatever day you arrange with her. ”

“Thank you. I’m sure she has better things to do. I can keep it up myself.” I look around the spotless room.

“I’m afraid Mrs. Cartwright will insist. She’s quite particular about how things are done. I hope you’re okay with that. She’s a bit difficult, but she’s been with the family for years.”

Has everyone been with the family for years? I guess that is a good sign.

“Not a problem. I’ll set up a day and time that works for her.”

Lilly returns from the koi pond with Benjy. For the next few hours, Bea, Lilly, and I spend time together, and when it seems Bea feels we’d be fine left alone, she prepares to leave. I can tell it is difficult for her. And after she said goodbye to Lilly, I walk her to her car.

She dabs at her eyes with a handkerchief. “As you can see, my granddaughter is a charmer. She won’t give you too much trouble. But she’s adventurous and fearless so keep a close eye on her.”

“I will.”

Back in control of her emotions, she stashes the handkerchief in her purse. “My son will be here around six.” She is quiet for a moment. “I need to tell you that he’s not too keen on the idea of a nanny. He’s very upset that I had to pass the job onto someone else.”

“I’m sure. I hope I can win him over.”

She laughs. “That will be quite a task.” She gets into her car. “Good luck, Rachel.”

Good luck?

I watch her drive away while I consider what that might mean, then I go find Lilly. She is in the kitchen with Laura, helping her make cookies.

Lilly smiles at me while she stirs a large ceramic bowl with a big wooden spoon. She is wearing an apron with the words “Cook’s Helper” embroidered on it. “We’re making chocolate chip cookies. ”

“Yum. My favorite.” I tell her.

Laura goes to the stove to pull out a sheet of cookies and lets out a yipe. She sets the cookie sheet on the stovetop and runs her hand under some cold water.

“Are you okay?”

“Oh yes, I’m fine.” She examines her new burn, then smiles at me as she dries her hands. “I’ve got the little miss for a while if you want to go make yourself at home and get a feel for the place. There’s a lot to take in.”

“Thank you. I think I’ll do that.”

I wander around the yard, checking out the many flower beds and trying to identify the flowers. Everything on the property seems to be in pristine shape. It is lovely, and I am excited to be here. This is going to be a great change of pace for me. I loved the family I worked for in the city, but I love being in the country. It reminds me of the summers I would spend riding horses with my grandma and grandpa, although this is much bigger than their cozy farmhouse.

Lilly seems like an angel. Everyone is friendly, except for Mrs. Cartwright. But apparently, her grumpy nature isn’t just for me. The last hurdle will be Mr. Michaelson. Bea had wished me good luck. I guess I’ll see soon enough what she meant by that.

When I hear a noise coming from behind the house, I peek around the corner. There is a man there with his back to me. He is holding a big box, and he isn’t anyone I’ve been introduced to. He doesn’t look like a delivery man; even if he was, he wouldn’t be delivering to the back porch. I look at the pile of firewood next to me and pick up a piece, then approach him from behind. Just in case .

“Excuse me?”

He turns around and nearly drops the box. “Who are you?”

I am briefly taken aback by the tall man with dark hair and gray eyes. He can’t possibly be there to cause trouble. “I’d like to ask you the same question. What are you doing on the Michaelson’s back porch?”

He sets the box down and studies me for a moment. “You mean my back porch?”

Oh no . “Your back porch?”

“Why don’t you put the weapon down, Miss…?”

I look at the piece of firewood in my hands, then set it down. “Sorry.”

He folds his arms across his chest. “Who are you?”

“I’m Rachel Flynn. If this is your porch, then you’re Mr. Michaelson, and I’m your new nanny. I’m also really sorry about the firewood and I hope you don’t fire me. This is my first day…and we’re in the country…and, well, I thought maybe you were an intruder.”

He scowls at me. “I look like an intruder to you?”

I shrug. “Well, not now.”

“And just what were you planning on doing with the firewood? If I were an intruder, I highly doubt that would stop me. More than likely, it’d just annoy me.”

“I was just…” I take a breath. “Can we start over?”

The box he set down moves, and we both look at it. He opens the top and pulls out a fluffy, white puppy.

“I’m Preston Michaelson.” He holds up the dog. “And this is for my daughter, Lilly. I thought it might help make the transition easier.”

The puppy is so adorable! And the man holding the puppy isn’t so bad himself. I notice my gaze is lingering a little too long. Get it together, Rachel . “Transition?”

“My mother has been taking care of Lilly since she was two.”

“Oh. Of course. Well, if it’s any consolation, Lilly seems to like me well enough. Even though it’s only been a couple of hours.” The puppy wiggles in his hands and tries to lick him. “The puppy is very cute though, and I’m sure she’ll love it.”

He runs a hand down the puppy’s back. “I’m glad you approve.” His tone is laced with sarcasm.

“I didn’t mean it like that.”

He takes a moment, in which he relaxes his posture. “Where is Lilly?”

“She’s with Laura in the kitchen. Do you want me to go get her?”

“If you don’t mind.”

I nod and go up the stairs onto the porch, then pass him, resisting the urge to pet the puppy. I glance at him. “I’ll be right back.”

I find Lilly in the kitchen eating a fresh-baked cookie. I smile at her. “Can I show you something on the porch?”

“Do you want a cookie?”

“Maybe later. Come on. I promise it’s worth leaving the cookies for.”

Lilly pops the last bite of cookie into her mouth, then jumps down from the stool she is perched on. I take her hand and walk out the door leading to the back porch.

When she spots her father, Lilly squeals and runs to him. He picks her up and hugs her.

She leans back and puts her hands on either side of his face. “You’re here in the middle of the day.”

“Yes, I am.” He kisses her, then sets her down. “And I brought you something.”

“In this box?”

He nods. “Open it up.”

Lilly slowly opens the flap to the box, then gasps and instantly starts crying. She looks up at Preston and whispers, “It’s a puppy.”

He smiles, which completely changes my first impression of him. “Yes, it is.”

She wipes at her tears. “Can I hold it?”

Preston lifts the dog from the box and hands it to her. Lilly buries her face in the puppy’s neck, then kisses it repeatedly on the nose. Tears well up in my eyes as I watch her face light up with excitement and her smile widen so that her cheeks almost can’t contain it. Then, I feel the weight of Preston’s eyes on me.

I nod at him and give him a thumbs up.

He raises an eyebrow, then returns his attention to Lilly. “So, I take it you like her?”

She looks up at him. “I love her. What’s her name?”

“That’s up to you. Whatever you want.”

Lilly turns toward me. “Look what my daddy brought me.”

“She’s so cute, Lilly.”

She kisses the puppy again. “I don’t know what to call her.”

Preston pats her head. “It’s okay. Take your time. You’ll come up with something perfect.”

Lilly nods. “I love her. Thank you, Daddy.”

“You’re very welcome.”

Lilly carries the puppy over to me. “Do you want to hold her?”

“Maybe for a minute, if you don’t mind.”

She holds the puppy up and I take it from her. The puppy looks at me, and I smile. “You are one cute puppy. And I think you’re going to be loved a lot.”

I snuggle the puppy for a moment, then give her back to Lilly. She looks at Preston.

“Can I go show her to everyone?”

“Of course. Then bring her back outside to go potty.”

Lilly nods and heads into the house. I look at Preston. “Seems like the puppy’s a hit.”

“She’s been wanting one for a while. Unfortunately, some of her care will fall onto you when Lilly starts school in the fall.”

“That’s fine. I love dogs.”

“Good.” He sets the box aside. “I’ve got some things in the car for the dog, so I need to go get them.”

“Do you need help?”

“Um…sure. That’d be nice. Thank you.”

I follow him off the porch and around the house to his very nice car. He opens the trunk, which is full of dog supplies. He hands me the pink, furry bed and a bag of toys. Then he picks up a bag of puppy chow and another two plastic bags.

“I like to be prepared.”

“I see that.”

He closes the trunk, and we go into the house through the front door.

We set everything in the living room, then he turns to me.

“I guess we got off on the wrong foot.” He offers his hand. “Preston Michaelson.”

I reach forward and feel the warmth of his hand in mine. A soft, yet firm, handshake. “Rachel Flynn. Nice to meet you.”

He takes a few steps back. “My mother called me after she left today.”

I smile. “I hope it was to say she found me charming and up to the task.”

He doesn’t return my smile. “She said she approved of you.”

“Oh. That’s good…right?”

He nods. “We’ll see.” He leaves me to find Lilly and take the dog outside.

I watch him go. Hmm. Not a barrel of laughs, I see.