Chapter 19

19

ALAINA

I sat on the steps in front of the school with Rafe pacing in front of me. He was the last kid left waiting to be picked up. Yesterday, I noticed he was the last one as well. I wondered what was going on. It didn't seem like something Roan would do. Then again, did I really know Roan? The man was full of surprises.

He hadn't tried to call me since the incident, AKA the kiss that should have never happened. It wasn't supposed to happen, but it did. And I couldn't stop thinking about it.

Rafe kept glancing anxiously down the street.

"Where is she?" Rafe muttered, kicking at a pebble on the sidewalk.

I sighed, knowing exactly who he was waiting for. "Maybe she's just running late, Rafe. Sometimes people get stuck in traffic."

Rafe frowned, unconvinced. "She's never this late. She's supposed to be here by now."

His nanny was a flake. I couldn't understand why Roan kept her on. He had all the money in the world, and he chose to hire what I was coming to believe was the worst nanny in the country.

Trudy came out of the school, her brow furrowed. "Alaina, is everything okay?"

I hesitated for a moment. "Rafe's ride didn't show up. His nanny was supposed to be here by now."

Trudy's expression softened with concern. "Let me call her and see what's going on."

She went back inside, but I had a feeling the girl wasn't going to answer. I turned to Rafe, trying to reassure him. "It'll be okay, Rafe. Sometimes things come up."

He nodded, but I could see the worry in his eyes. I didn't want to admit I had Roan's phone number in my phone, but this was a situation that I had a feeling he would want to know about.

I sent him a quick text and waited for him to answer.

"Is your dad at his office?" I asked.

My thought was I could take him to his father's office. I didn't live far, so it wasn't like it was way out of my way.

"He's in New York."

My eyes widened. "What?"

"He had to go to New York. Kim is supposed to be watching me. I told my dad I don't need a nanny, but he says I have to have one. He said he would look for a babysitter when he got back."

"So, your dad is out of town," I repeated.

He nodded. "Yep."

I took a deep breath. His dad was out of town and his nanny was AWOL. "What about the other guy that picks you up?"

"David?"

"Yeah, him." I nodded.

He shrugged. "I don't know."

Rafe couldn't be expected to arrange his own childcare. I checked my phone again, understanding why Roan wasn't texting back.

Trudy returned a few minutes later, her phone still in her hand. She jerked her head, asking me to step away from Rafe. I got up and followed her to the doors while keeping my eye on the dejected child.

"What's going on?" I whispered.

"Alaina, I tried calling Rafe's nanny, but she didn't answer," Trudy said with a frown.

"His father is out of town." I glanced at Rafe, who looked crestfallen.

"What should we do?" she asked quietly.

I bit my lip, thinking quickly. "I'll take him home. Maybe she just forgot."

"I don't think that's appropriate," she hissed.

"I don't think leaving him here alone is appropriate either, Trudy." A knot tightened in my stomach and I took a deep breath before I snapped at the wrong person. The only villain here was the nanny. "Look, I know his father. Not well, but well enough to know he would trust me with Rafe. Look. We can't leave him here. I'm not calling child services on Roan Lockhart's son and neither are you. He just needs to get home."

"I don't know," she said, rubbing her temples. "This is highly unusual."

I looked at Rafe again. "Look, you turn and look the other way. You know nothing about this. Roan is going to be okay with me hanging out with Rafe, trust me."

She frowned. "Is there something I should know?"

I smiled. "No. Nothing like that. It's fine. I'll get him home. His nanny is probably there, listening to music or doing whatever nannies do."

She sighed, her stern exterior softening just a bit. "You're right. I'm just worried, you know? With all the rules and regulations."

"I understand," I said quietly. "I do. But he can't stay here."

"Fine. I guess if he wants to sue the school, so be it."

"He won't. Relax. I'll see you tomorrow." I walked over to Rafe and put my hand on his shoulder. "You've waited long enough. I'm going to take you home."

"You are?"

I smiled. "Yes, I'm sure your nanny forgot. I'll get you home."

Rafe nodded, seeming relieved to have a plan. "Okay."

"Let's go."

"Where is your car?" he asked.

"I don't have one. Well, I do have one, but, you know, honestly, I'm not sure where it is. Your father had it towed. I'm sure it's in a junkyard somewhere. It broke down. Your dad told me he lived in the Golden Coast neighborhood. Do you know your address?"

"Yes." He laughed. "I'm not a baby."

"Of course, not," I said, grinning. "If I had my car, you could have driven us."

"Really?" he asked.

I laughed. "Well, maybe. Your dad would kill me."

"He doesn't have to know," Rafe said, already in a better mood.

We walked a few blocks. "Where are we going?" he asked.

"The bus stop."

"Why?" he asked.

"So we can take the bus?"

"Oh."

"It's public transportation," I explained.

Inside, I was laughing, but I didn't let him see. The boy was the son of a billionaire. He was used to limousines and helicopter rides.

"We'll have an adventure," I assured him.

Rafe was a little nervous about riding the bus, but I assured him it would be fun. "You know this bus is probably worth more than whatever fancy sports cars your dad has," I said as we climbed aboard.

Rafe giggled. "Yeah, maybe."

There weren't too many people, which was nice. We settled into our seats, and I tried to keep the conversation light as we rode through the city. I knew this was different for him. Rafe told me about his day at school. I listened to his point of view from what was essentially the same day I had. I enjoyed hearing him talking about his friends and how much fun he had.

When we reached the Golden Coast neighborhood, we stepped off the bus. It was a stop outside of the neighborhood. Rafe took the lead, walking us to his house. It was a beautiful, modern home with large windows and a landscaped front lawn. Rafe walked confidently up to the front door and punched in a code on the keypad.

"Whoa," I murmured as the door clicked open. "You know the code?"

Rafe grinned proudly. "Yeah! Dad showed me. Come on, let's go inside."

As I stepped into Roan's house, I noticed how different it was from the man I thought I knew. It was way more colorful than his office, with vibrant paintings on the walls and a few quirky knickknacks scattered here and there. The decor was modern and stylish, but there was a warmth to it that surprised me. Maybe Roan and I were more alike than I had thought.

Rafe led me through the spacious living room, past a cozy sitting area and into the kitchen. It was a gourmet chef's dream, with stainless steel appliances and a large island in the center. I glanced around in awe, imagining what it would be like to have this kind of space.

"Is your nanny home?" I asked.

"She's usually watching TV," he said.

"What's her name?"

"Kim," he answered.

"Kim!" I called out, shouting to make my voice heard throughout the big-ass house.

Rafe and I wandered through the house, looking for his missing nanny. She was nowhere to be found. He opened the bedroom to a guest room, one of several, and stepped inside.

"Is this where she was sleeping?"

He nodded. "Yes."

I saw the unmade bed and some food wrappers on the table between two chairs that were positioned in front of a fireplace. I walked to the closet and opened the door. There were no clothes. No suitcase. Nothing.

"I think she's gone," he said.

"Gone?" I repeated.

"She's not here." He shrugged.

I was floored. Stunned. I walked through the room, looking for any sign a woman was staying in the house. There was nothing. I couldn't believe she had abandoned a little boy.

"Bitch," I muttered under my breath.

"What was that?" Rafe asked innocently.

I had to think quickly. "I said, I have an itch."

"Uh huh," he said, grinning. "I'm going to get a snack."

The boy seemed completely unfazed by the idea his nanny had bailed on him.

"Do you know what time your dad is going to be home?" I asked.

"He said tonight. He said I would probably be asleep. But if Kim's gone, there's no bedtime." He cackled with mad childish glee. "We're watching Star Wars!"

I nodded, realizing I was going to be sticking around for a while. "Let's get you that snack before we make any decisions."

I followed Rafe to the kitchen. Honestly, I would have gotten lost on my own.

"No sugar," I told him, assuming that was a rule.

I pulled out my phone and texted Cate, asking her to make sure she took Beau for a walk, fed him, and gave him his meds.

"Do you think your dad will be home after dinner?"

"Probably," he said. "We have dinner in the freezer. The chef makes them for us."

I couldn't help but laugh. "You have a chef."

"Kind of. Some dude makes dinner and puts it in the freezer. My dad says we can't have pizza every night and he sometimes gets too busy and can't make dinner."

"Your dad makes dinner?" I asked with surprise.

"Sometimes," he replied, pulling a snack pack from the fridge.

I was impressed to see it was actually pretty healthy. "Okay, I should probably make dinner. But first, we need to do your homework."

He scowled. "But you're my teacher."

"I am, which is why I know you have homework."

"Fine," he grumbled. "Can we do something fun later?"

After rummaging through his bag and pulling out a crumpled piece of paper, he plonked down at the large kitchen table. I smiled at the sight of his disgruntled expression and crossed the room to join him. The homework wasn't too difficult, basic math and a bit of reading comprehension. It was over in less than an hour.

"Can I go play?" he asked.

"Sure. I was going to make dinner. I'm not a great cook, but I can make spaghetti. Is that alright?"

He grinned. "Yeah, it's like pizza but wiggly. Like worms."

I frowned. "Well, now I'm second-guessing my choice."

He shook his finger at me. "No take backs."

I laughed. "Alright, fine. Do you know where your dad keeps the pasta?"

Rafe pointed to a pantry door. "Maybe over there?"

"Let's find out." When I stepped inside, it was like walking into a grocery store. "Thank you, Rafe. You can play now if you want."

I found the box of spaghetti and set about boiling water in a large pot. Rafe disappeared, leaving me in the beautiful kitchen. I pretended to be the lady of the house in this fancy kitchen, cooking up a storm. Sure, I was just boiling water, but if I was going to fantasize, I might as well go for it.

Rafe came back with a bucket of Legos. Without warning, he dumped them out on the table with a clatter and got to work building. It was such a strange, yet content moment. I could almost imagine me doing this every night. It seemed like a nice way to spend an evening.

I tried calling Roan again, but his phone went straight to voicemail.

After the spaghetti was wiggly enough, Rafe and I sat down to eat the very simple dinner. It turned out to be vegetarian spaghetti because I couldn't find any ground beef or meatballs. Rafe didn't seem to mind.

After dinner, I sat at the table with him and together we built a castle—of sorts. Around eight, which I assumed would be close to his bedtime, I insisted he go to bed. He seemed tired enough not to argue too much.

I tucked him in and told him to holler if he needed anything.

After, I wandered through the house. It was immaculately clean, with stylish decor and luxurious furnishings. My daydream fantasy started up again, and I pictured what it would be like to live here.

I found myself in a cozy reading nook, tucked away in a corner of the living room. It was filled with plush pillows and blankets, with a floor-to-ceiling bookshelf packed with books of all kinds. The lower shelves were filled with kids' books, which made me smile. I recognized many of the titles.

I picked up a novel and settled into the corner, losing myself in the fairy tale.