Chapter 8
K ate
There is no way to explain the look that slides across Dominic’s face other than feral. I actually walk toward the house to put a little more distance in between us, because the look on his face is downright frightening. Hot as fuck, but a little bit scary.
“We’ll let you two settle into married life,” his mom says with a light laugh, and I almost ask her to stay. Dominic’s parents would be an excellent buffer to whatever is going on in Dominic’s head right now.
“It’s just a business arrangement,” I stammer. “Nothing to get used to. I’ll still be the nanny, and I’ll still be in my room.”
I hear Nick hum under his breath, and Dominic has the audacity to grin and wink at me. What the hell is happening right now? Hours ago, this was just a way to help me get insurance. Now he’s looking at me like he wants to swallow me whole.
And I kind of want to let him.
“What are the chances of you not telling anyone else?” I ask hurriedly.
“They’ll find out eventually, Katharine,” Dominic says deeply. He’s suddenly right next to me again, and I don’t know how he managed to sneak over. I had consistently put distance between us.
“I have to tell Hannah and Arianna myself. They can’t hear it through your familial group chats,” I respond. “And you have to tell the kids. It can’t get back to them in other ways. If they find out from kids at school, they might hate me.”
Dominic’s expression softens. “They won’t hate you. They might be surprised, but they won’t hate you.”
“Who would hate you?” A voice pipes up from behind us, and I turn to find all three of Dominic’s kids, as well as his oldest brother, Alex, and his two kids.
“I highly doubt anyone would hate you, Kate. You’re pretty dang likable for an almost-cousin,” Alex jokes.
Dominic turns to the crowd, sighing loudly. I watch as Carter mimics his dad’s sigh, which makes Aspen sigh in solidarity.
“I had wanted to take some time to explain this better, because there are some adult things going on here that you may not understand. But to put it plainly, Kate needs medical insurance. It’s very expensive to get by yourself, but my family insurance covers a spouse. So I married Kate so she could get medical insurance.”
Sienna gasps, Carter laughs, and Aspen squeals.
“Are you my new mommy?” Aspen screams, launching herself into my arms.
“What the actual fuck?” I hear from behind, turning to see a very angry Savannah glaring at me. “You have a mommy, Aspen. Come here.”
“No,” Aspen pouts, tightening her arms around me and latching her feet behind my back. She then whispers against my ear, “I don’t like her. Don’t put me down.”
I understand, kid. I don’t like her either. “I won’t put you down.”
“Sienna, Carter, Aspen. Come here right now,” Savannah snarls.
Aspen’s arms tighten around me further, and Carter walks over to stand beside me. Sienna is the only child who walks toward Savannah, but Dominic stops her. “What are you doing here, Savannah?”
“Can’t I come see my kids when I want?” she says with an exaggerated pout .
“According to the state of Colorado, no, you can’t just show up,” Dominic says dryly. “You are only entitled to scheduled visitation when you set it up through my attorney, Savannah. You know this.”
“I don’t see why we need to involve the attorney, Dom,” Savannah says nonchalantly, waving a hand toward us. “But did I hear correctly, that you married the help?”
I don’t get an opportunity to respond before Dominic moves to stand in front of me, one arm keeping Sienna beside him, and the other positioned so the rest of us can’t get past him. “You will not speak to my wife like that. You are on my property, around my family, and you will not disrespect any of them.”
It does something to my insides to hear Dominic refer to me as his wife. Somehow it’s even more final now. I’m really married to him. Butterflies erupt in my stomach as I subtly lean into him. I feel him lean back briefly. Feeling a hand on my shoulder, I turn my head slightly to see Nick and Sofia directly behind me. Alex stands off to the side, but his eyes are on me. He nods his support as he wraps his arms around both of his kids. It’s almost as if they’re my family.
Family.
I don’t regret growing up the way I did. My mom was the best mom out there. Did we struggle? Yeah, absolutely. But there was never a day where she didn’t make me smile and show me that she loved me. I have so many amazing memories from my childhood. But this … this is exceptional. Feeling the Santo family surround me is a balm to my soul.
“If you come back on my property again, Savannah, I will file a restraining order,” Dominic says deeply. While one arm is wrapped tightly around Aspen, I grab Dominic’s hand, the plain white gold wedding band feeling odd on my skin. He wanted something flashy. He pushed for a diamond, but I was steadfast in my refusal to accept a diamond engagement ring from him. I can’t accept that kind of thing for a fake marriage. It’ll make me feel worse than I already do for my current struggles. Besides, I’m not really a diamond kind of woman .
“You can’t keep me from my kids!” Savannah shrieks. Carter buries his head in my arm, and I let go of Dominic to wrap it around Carter, covering his outside ear with my hand. Carter has sound sensitivities. He does not handle loud noises well.
“Tell her to lower her voice!” I hiss at Dominic. “She’s scaring Carter!”
Savannah growls at me. “Don’t you dare tell me anything about my own child, bitch.”
“Well someone has to tell you about him, because clearly you don’t know a damn thing. Carter hates loud noises. Show a little respect toward your child, bitch .” I feel Aspen giggle against my neck, and I don’t feel bad about the profanity. Dominic will probably give me hell about it later, but it is worth it right now. I love these kids, and I’ll fight for them. I don’t care if she’s their biological mother.
“Come over here and say that to my face,” Savannah taunts, removing her outlandish hoop earrings and motioning for me to come to her. I think the fuck not.
“Seriously? You want me to fight you in front of your own children? Are you insane?” I ask incredulously.
“Don’t ask questions you already know the answer to,” Dominic mutters. “Savannah, you need to leave. If you want to see the kids, you know what steps you have to take.”
“Fine,” Savannah spits. “This isn’t the end of this, nanny.”
As Savannah flounces down the driveway, I realize how Dominic’s driveway curves just enough that someone can park on the street and not be visible until they’re almost right up to the house. I shiver, thinking that I don’t feel too safe with Savannah roaming around.
I carefully crouch to kneel beside Carter. His eyes are red as he scratches at a spot on the inside of his wrist. I’ve noticed him scratch at this spot when he’s nervous or anxious, and I think it’s like an autistic stim. Similar to flapping the hands or arms.
“You okay, firecracker?” I ask Carter softly. He nods, but his breathing shakes as he attempts to speak .
“I don’t like her,” he stutters.
I smile bitterly. “You want to know a secret?”
Carter nods.
“I don’t like her either.”
A small smile graces Carter’s face, showcasing the empty spot where his top front teeth are missing. He looks up at his dad before looking back at me and whispers, “you said the B-word, Kate.”
“I did,” I whisper. “I shouldn’t have, huh.”
“Do you think Daddy will give you a consequence like he does us?” Carter asks. Good lord. Dominic would probably enjoy that a little too much. I hear him snicker above me as Aspen raises her head from my shoulder.
“Can Daddies discipline adults?” she asks.
I keep my face devoid of emotion as I answer. “I think it’s different when it’s adults, but I’m sure your Daddy is going to have a strongly worded talk with me.”
I set Aspen back on her feet and stand up. Alex approaches and gives me a hug. “Congratulations, Mrs. Santo. Whatever the reasoning, you’re definitely one of us now.”
“We would have loved to have been there, Dominic,” Sofia says.
“How on earth did you find out, anyway?” Dominic asks.
Sofia smiles. “I’m not giving away all of my secrets. Just know I have contacts everywhere.”
When everyone’s phones ding at the same time, Dominic and I groan. Undoubtedly that means the gossip website for Eternity Springs, The Eagle Has Landed , already got the scoop.
Another Santo bites the dust! Sources tell me Dominic Santo quietly married his younger nanny, Kate Reynolds, today in a quick courthouse ceremony in Denver. With no other Santos present, one must beg the following questions:
1. Is Kate Reynolds pregnant ?
2. How long has this been going on?
3. Did the Santo family know about their relationship, and manage to keep it a secret?
4. Or is this wedding a whirlwind where no one knew they were dating?
5. And finally: how does Dom’s ex-wife feel about the outed relationship?
As always, we’ll continue to monitor the situation. We were honestly shocked, Eagle readers, because we thought for sure Kate would snag Dom’s older brother, Alex.
“The fuck?” Dominic mutters. His eyes meet mine above our phones. “Alex? Really?”
I shrug. “I didn’t write the article, Dominic.”
“There must have been something that led them to that thought, Katharine. Did something happen with Alex?” His face shows no emotion, but his voice betrays his expression. A smidgeon of hurt, and a lot of annoyance. I can usually tell how Dominic feels by the tone of his voice. Right now, it’s a hint higher than normal.
“No, nothing happened. I’ve never even seen Alex outside of the hotel or your parents hou —” I stop as I realize that’s not entirely correct.
“What did you do?” he seethes.
“Nothing! I swear. Nothing happened. I ran into him once while grabbing dinner. He asked me to join him with his kids. That’s all. Oh! And I saw him at a dance club in Denver, but we didn’t even dance. Ask Arianna. She was there.”
Dominic scrutinizes me with his intense gaze before he nods. Alex waits beside us with an amused expression. “We good?”
Dominic nods again, making Alex chuckle. I sigh in exasperation. Alex could have participated in that conversation, but instead just sat on the sidelines and watched.
“I’m headed out. Both kids need clothes,” Alex says as he nods his head toward his kids, Abbie and Ben. Abbie is eleven and Ben is eight. I made the mistake of agreeing to watch all five kids by myself once, and I won’t do that again. It’s sheer bedlam when they’re all together. Fortunately Dominic’s other nephew Carson, is still too young, and neither Dominic’s sister Gianna, nor her husband Travis, will allow Carson to hang out with his cousins yet.
“Where are we going for clothes?” Abbie asks, ever the quintessential girl. Alex says she’s all emotion and no critical thinking right now, and I’ve witnessed it firsthand on more than one occasion. Her interest in boys has increased, and she’s asked me to show her different techniques to style her natural curls. My hair is only slightly wavy, but I can at least help her with products and styles. Lord knows Alex would just shave it all off in a military-grade fade if Abbie let him choose.
“Walmart,” Alex mutters.
Abbie’s face screws up in distaste. “Dad! At least take us to Target then!”
“Fine,” Alex sighs. “If I say Target, will you not roll your eyes at me in the next hour?”
“I’ll try my best,” Abbie responds, beaming as if she just won a major victory. Then again, maybe getting clothes from Target over Walmart is a major victory in their house.
I don’t allow myself to go into Target. I’ll want all the things, and I can’t afford their prices.
“We’re heading home as well. We just wanted to stop by and say congratulations to the newlyweds,” Sofia says, her voice dripping with saccharine sweetness. On anyone else, I’d think the sweetness was fake, but I truly think Sofia means it. She accepted me into their family fold immediately, when she could have shunned me as being a product of her ex-brother-in-law’s multiple infidelities over the course of his marriage to her sister. But both Sofia and Angelina, my half brothers mom, accepted me unconditionally. Their unwavering support reminds me so much of my own mom .
Sofia hugs Dominic first, whispering something in his ear that I can’t hear.
“It’s not like that, Mom,” Dominic murmurs.
Sofia pats him on the back before pulling me into a hug and whispering in my ear, “There’s more to this story. I’m just not sure how your part plays out.”
“I don’t know either,” I confess, hugging her back.