Chapter Twelve
Mya
When the door closed and Greyson was gone, panic set in. What in the hell did I do with a four-year-old for the day?
Might as well go straight to the source.
“Benji,” I called out the back door. The little guy was already outside in the backyard, getting his wiggles out.
He came over and hugged my leg.
“What do you do all day? We need to make a list of the fun things we can do.”
“I’m hungry.”
At least that was something. While Benji snacked on a red apple and a hunk of cheddar cheese, we made plans. He liked to go to the park and hadn’t been to a museum. Lots of active things. He wanted to go on a hike like he’d seen on a video, backpack and everything.
I made a second column on the page for questions for Greyson.
And I needed a phone.
“What are some rules your dad has?”
Benji put the apple down. “No calling 911.”
Must have been a reason that rule had come up. Poor Greyson.
Solid start. I wrote down another note about asking for rules. We really should’ve gone over some things this morning, but here I was and I still had eight hours to go.
“That’s a good rule. Do you watch TV?”
He shook his head. “Only with Uncle Davy and Titi.”
“Who is Titi?”
“Uncle Davy’s mate. Daddy calls her Sonia.”
I cocked my head. What kid called a wife a mate? “His wife?”
“Yeppers. Like Mama and Daddy.”
“I see.” The snack and list making didn’t last long, but I had a basis for a schedule going forward. The yeppers cracked me up.
“How about we walk to the park?”
Benji talked my head off about not only the swings and the slides but about sunscreen and having enough water and snacks. This tyke was a snacking fiend.
We played at the park. We stopped at the store on the way home where he claimed he liked steak and chicken but no fish. It took us an hour to get through every aisle where I found he had solid opinions about things like ketchup and cereal.
For the record, Greyson had mentioned cereal was a treat, not a breakfast.
Noted.
At home, his home, Greyson’s home, Benji ate lunch and then fell asleep halfway up the stairs, claiming he needed a nap. The boy knew what he wanted.
I carried him to his bed and took off his shoes. His cheeks were pink, and I made a note to put on more sunscreen.
Downstairs, I sat on the bottom stair and caught my breath. It was the first day, but I hadn’t sat down once. Or had lunch.
Or cleaned one damned thing. I assumed some light cleaning came with the job so, while I ate a sandwich, I picked up some things and did a quick vacuum.
Greyson was one hell of a dad. With the exception of a toy here or there, Benji picked up after himself. He had manners and always said please and thank you. He was even polite to the other children at the playground.
Vacuuming the downstairs hallway, I paused to look at the pictures on the wall. They were sobering. Greyson and his stunning wife. On vacation. Her pregnant with Benji. Their wedding. Other sweet moments. A collage of it was right here on the wall.
Goddess, I was drooling over a man who was clearly in love with this woman. When a person loved someone like that, death did nothing to numb it.
“I wanna go swim! Like a big bear!” Benji greeted me after his nap.
“Where do we swim?” I really needed a phone and a map of the city and a laundry list of other things. Like a bathing suit of my own.
“Outside in the yard. We have to blow it up.”
Oh, I was being scammed. But it was activity, so that was good. I had a feeling there was a reason Greyson didn’t have the pool blown up already. He hadn’t told me much, but swimming sounded like fun.
“Sunscreen first. Show me where the pool is.”
We spent two hours setting the pool up only for Benji to get tired of it after thirty minutes. He helped me with dinner, wrapped in an apron and standing on a stool pulled up to the counter. He had his own cutting tools which were dull and actually cut some carrots.
By the time Greyson got home, Benji was eating dinner, the house was clean, and I was one pooped nanny.
Still, it was a job, I loved Benji already, and it was safe here. I had a lot to be thankful for.
“This is…” Greyson kissed Benji on the head. “How was your day?”
“Mya is the best!” he exclaimed and proceeded to devour three helpings of pot roast while we ate our dinner.
“Benji, why don’t you go play while Mya and I talk about her new job?”
“Yeppers.”
I pushed my plate away. “You made the contract?”
“I did. Look over it and see what you think.”
The contract was simple but favored me. Rules were in place. Basic things. Common sense things.
My salary was more than I made in a year babysitting in college. And I got use of his wife’s old car and a credit card. A day off on Sunday and more if requested ahead of time. After dinner, I was off duty.
Duty. It sure as hell didn’t feel like a duty to take care of Benji and make a meal for Greyson. It felt like belonging. And it had been a long time since I belonged.
He was protecting my independence.
But it kind of felt weird. I wanted to be here with Benji and Greyson. I was bonded with them already. In one day.
And my omega found comfort here. We were safe and had a place in this family.
But the contract in front of me meant employee. I understood. There had to be boundaries.
“I have a list of questions and concerns,” I said after signing the contract. How could I not?
“Oh, boy,” Greyson laughed. “Go on.”