3. Avery #2
Finally, he straightens and takes a seat, folding his hands on the desk. “Maddie can be... a bit of, how can I say it? A handful. If you don’t think you can handle her, let me know now.”
I sit up straighter, meeting his gaze head-on. “Don’t worry,” I say with a confidence I absolutely feel. “I can definitely handle her.”
His eyes hold mine for a moment longer than necessary, and the air between us shifts again—charged, heavy. There’s a flicker of something in his expression, and for a second, I wonder if he feels it too.
He clears his throat, breaking the moment. “Okay… down to business.”
Right. Business. Totally here for business.
“You’ll be required to get Maddie up in the mornings, take her down for breakfast, keep her entertained, and then take her to and from school. After school, you’ll look after her until her bedtime at 8 p.m. This will be for the next nine days.”
He glances at me. “Any questions?”
I nod. “Does she have any allergies I should know about?”
“Yes. Strawberry ice cream.”
"What? Seriously?"
"Yup! Well, she thinks she has anyway."
Okay, haven’t heard that one before. “Anything she refuses to eat?” I lean in.
“Yes. Everything apparently. But good luck convincing her otherwise.”
I smile faintly. “What’s her usual bedtime routine?”
“Since she’s been here, Clara’s been helping with that, but Maddie likes to read before bed and she can get a bit irate without her Monkey.”
I nod taking it all in. “Okay, irate without monkey!” Then I ask a few more questions, keeping it all professional, and he answers each one with the same clipped efficiency.
When we’re done, he leans back in his chair, studying me again. “Okay,” he taps his finger on his desk. “Let’s give this a try.”
I nod, determined. “I won’t let you down, Gray.”
He stands, and I follow suit, straightening my skirt.
As he walks around the desk toward me, we end up closer than I’d anticipated.
For a second, we just stare at each other, the tension between us practically humming.
My knees feel like they might give out, and I swear I’m already spinning the opening chapter of my next steamy scene.
The moment is shattered by the sound of Clara shouting from somewhere in the house. “Maddie, NO! Come back with that!”
I blink, breaking eye contact, and step toward the door. Just as I’m about to leave, Gray’s voice stops me.
“So, how’s old Jake?”
I glance back at him, my hand on the doorknob. “Still annoying. Why?”
He smirks, leaning against the edge of his desk again. “No reason.”
“Okay... I’d better go wrangle Maddie.”
The moment I step into the corridor, chaos erupts. Maddie comes tearing around the corner like a whirlwind, clutching a spatula covered in cake mix. Following close behind her is Clara, looking flustered and trying to grab the spatula while shouting, “Maddie, stop this instant!”
Maddie sprints past the small mahogany table with the delicate porcelain ornament perched precariously on the edge. My brain registers the danger a split second before disaster strikes.
Bang! Maddie crashes into the table, sending the ornament flying. Without thinking, I leap into action, diving forward and somehow—miraculously—catching the ornament midair, and Maddie before she hits the floor too hard.
Thank the lord, she’s fine, though her hair now has streaks of cake mix, which is the finishing touch on this masterpiece of chaos.
As I’m catching my breath, I glance up and see Gray’s shoes, then his legs, and finally his face as he stands in the hallway, arms crossed. His expression is a mix of exasperation and fury.
“Maddie!” His voice is sharp enough to make Clara freeze mid-reach. “Jesus Christ. Can’t you just behave yourself?”
Maddie, defiantly, puts her hands on her hips and glares up at him. “I was helping Clara!”
“God give me strength,” he grumbles.
I pass the spatula to Clara, who looks like she’s seconds away from fainting, then help Maddie to her feet.
“Okay, munchkin.” I brush some invisible dust off her shirt and wipe the cake mix from her cheek.
“We’ve got just enough time to clean you up, and then I’ll braid your hair. Would you like that?”
Maddie hesitates, her big blue eyes narrowing like she’s suspicious of my motives. “Will it make me look pretty?”
“Pretty?” I grin, helping her up. “You’ll be the prettiest girl in school. Come on. Where’s the bathroom?”
She takes my hand, and suddenly all her defiance melts away. “This way.” She leads me down the hall.
As we pass Gray, he mutters something about hating kids and disappears into his study.
Once inside the bathroom, I realize there’s no way I’ll have time to wash and dry her hair properly. Instead, I grab a washcloth, wet it in the sink, and gently clean the cake mix out. Maddie giggles the entire time, even as I rinse her hair over the sink.
“Hold still,” I instruct gently while I dab at her forehead.
“This is fun,” she declares, kicking her legs against the cabinet under the sink.
“Fun isn’t the word I’d use.” Despite my words, I’m smiling despite myself.
Once her hair is cake-free, I rummage in a bright pink and glittery cosmetic bag on the counter for a comb and we head back into the sitting room. I gesture for her to sit on the floor in front of the sofa. To my complete shock, she does it without argument.
I kneel behind her, combing through her damp hair. “Alright, stay still. This’ll just take a minute.”
Maddie starts talking immediately, her words tumbling out faster than I can keep up.
She tells me about her school friends, her favorite books, and some elaborate story about a dragon who lives in her school bag.
I nod and hum in all the right places as I work, braiding her hair into two neat braids.
When I’m done, I tie the ends with a couple of hair ties from my pocket and lean back to admire my work. “There we go. What do you think?”
Maddie scrambles to her feet and runs to the mirror in the corner of the room. She tilts her head this way and that way then stares at me. “Not sure.”
Just then, Gray pops his head into the room. “I’m heading to work now. His gaze lingers on me for a moment longer than necessary.
“Okay,” Maddie says without looking up from the mirror. “See ya, wouldn’t wanna be ya!”
Gray’s eyes shift to me, and there’s something broody in his expression. “Umm... very good. Carry on.”
“Thanks.” My voice is a little breathier than I’d like.
He disappears, leaving me standing there with Maddie, who’s now spinning in front of the mirror like she’s auditioning for a spot on a talent show.
I pull out my phone and open the Uber app. “Alright, kiddo, let’s get you to school.”