18. Jessica

18

JESSICA

M ax squealed with delight as he ran from one side of the pool to the other. His little feet slapped against the wet concrete. He didn't run very fast considering he had an inflatable tube around his middle. He gripped it awkwardly as he also had inflatable water wings around his upper arms.

I fought my way through the water with exaggerated slowness. Our little game was that he had to jump into the pool before I could get to him and catch him. We were having fun.

Leaving the house and driving inland to find a pool was one of my more brilliant ideas. Out from under the fog, the sky was a clear blue and the air was warm. The hotel was one of those glamorous boutique hotels from the past. It had never fallen into disrepair and maintained its level of vintage chic. The pool wasn't very large, but since we were the only people using it, it was plenty for our needs.

And I didn't have to deal with Clara or her judgmental attitude. I had a lot of opinions about her, but it wasn't my place to say anything about her. I was the nanny, and very aware of it.

It didn't matter what Dylan said. I was still just another member of the staff, and if I complained about Clara, well, that was no different from complaining to my manager about a coworker in a different department. It wasn't my place, and I didn't want to lower myself to playing the same games she seemed to be playing.

I had my suspicions that she was the reason so many previous nannies had left the job. At first I thought it was because of Dylan. Working for a handsome, sexy, single man could definitely complicate things. Had already complicated my situation, but I believed him when he said he hadn't had affairs with the previous nannies. So it only made sense they would have up and left because of Clara. She was the very definition of a hostile work environment.

I know that I certainly felt the urge to ditch and run because of her. But I didn't because not only did I need this job, but Max needed me, and I was in love with Dylan.

With a loud giggle and a splash, Max landed in the pool. I threw my arms up to protect my face from water, which was a silly reflex considering I was in the water already and completely wet. I got to him and grabbed the inner-tube around his middle and twirled him around in the water, spinning him both around in the floaty and around me. It was a wet ride, and he kicked and giggled the entire time.

The sun in the valley was so much warmer than out on the coast. Why hadn't Dylan's family built their mansion out here? I let go of Max, allowing him to swim off. I spread my arms out wide and floated onto my back. This was great.

It was almost too bad there wasn't a pool at the house. Then again, it would only be warm enough to use a few times a year. If the air got too warm, it turned the ocean into a fog machine. I knew that was one of the bigger selling points for living in this area. It was never too hot. The weather was nicely mild in the middle of the hot part of the summer. But there were times I needed sun on my face.

I stayed in the area because of the job opportunities. I had a greater chance of securing a live-in position here than I had if I had stayed in San Francisco. Plus, I needed to get away. Ryan didn't live here. This was supposed to be a fresh restart.

Max grabbed my hand and pulled me out of my reflective thoughts. I righted myself as he tried to swim away, giggling the entire time. I could catch up with him easily, but where was the fun in that?

"I'm gonna get you," I called out after him as I put on a good show of struggling to swim after him.

Maybe the past couple of years had been a struggle, but right here, right now, this felt like it had all been worth it. I loved splashing around in the pool with this kid.

I caught up to him and lifted him out of the pool, setting him back onto the concrete. This time, I followed him out. I sat with my feet still hanging into the water.

"We're going to need to take a break in a little bit."

Max started to whine. "I don't wanna."

"We can't eat lunch in the pool," I said. "I'll make you a deal. We'll go get lunch, and afterward, we can swim some more."

To Max's little ears, I was pretty sure he heard ‘food and then swim.' Which is what I wanted him to think. My plan was food, drive a bit longer on the way back to the hotel until he fell asleep so he would take a nap, and then more swimming.

I got up and walked over to the lounge chair and table with my towel and phone. As I dried off, I checked my messages. Still nothing from Dylan. He must have been having a busy day at the office.

"Ten more minutes. I'm setting a timer," I announced.

Max was great with timers. He responded to them. I had to thank whichever previous nanny had trained him to them.

I sat back on the edge of the pool as Max jumped back in. He kicked around and giggled. When the alarm went off, he made a disappointed noise but swam right back to me so I could get him out of the water.

He didn't fight me too much when it came to getting dried off and dressed. The clothes felt wonderful and warm after the pool.

I texted Dylan to let him know what his son and I were up to. Not that I typically texted him through the day, but since we were not at home, it felt like something I should do.

The mouth of the valley had plenty of restaurants. While it seemed like most catered to the tourists and upper scale clients, there were plenty where Max and I could get something he would eat and his loud presence wouldn't cause a problem. There was a shopping center only a few minutes away. We parked, and he was good and held my hand as we made our way through the parking lot and walked toward our location.

I had a strange sense that someone was watching us. I looked around, hoping to see Dylan. It would have been a wonderful surprise to have him find us here, but I didn't see anyone I knew or anyone even looking at us.

I couldn't shake the feeling through lunch. Originally, I thought I would convince Max to walk around the shopping center with me. It had winding paths and plenty of space where he could run without being a bother, and window shopping was a great way to while away the time. But the sense of dread and unease was too strong. I wanted to get away.

I felt better once we were in the car and I was driving. My plan to lull Max asleep with a post-lunch car nap worked. When I knew he was completely asleep, I drove back to the hotel and carried him into our room.

Since I hadn't thought to pack much—my goal had been to get out of that house and find a pool—I didn't have a book or my crochet work with me. So, I took a nap with Max. We both slept through most of the afternoon, and it was later than I had expected when I woke up.

Max insisted I change so we could go swimming again. He had managed to get himself up and back into his wet bathing suit before I was fully awake.

I pulled my damp suit back on. It felt clammy and uncomfortable, but I knew that would change as soon as I was back in the water. I put Max's water wings and inner tube on him before we headed to the pool. It was the easiest way to carry everything.

When we got out to the pool, a man was lounging on one of the chairs. He wore business clothes, slacks and a dress shirt, one arm casually leaning behind his head, his other hand holding a cocktail. His eyes were hidden behind dark glasses. He looked completely out of place next to the pool. It was Ryan.

I grabbed Max's hand.

"What are you doing here?" I demanded.

"Fancy running into you here." Ryan chuckled.

There wasn't anything fancy about it. It was the worst possible luck, which I wasn't going to discount. I seemed to keep running into him when I very much did not want to. I wanted to take Max and head right back into the room. My stomach clenched and panic pricked my skin.

"I don't believe this is a coincidence. I don't know how you found me, but you need to leave me alone." I should become a professional with the acting skills I managed to display. I was terrified. I wanted to shake and cry, but I stood a little straighter and glared daggers at Ryan.

Max slipped out of my hand. I turned, trying to grab him again, but my reflexes were slow. He got away and ran into the pool with a splash.

I gasped, and the panic from seeing Ryan took over. All the worst-case scenarios crashed through my brain. Max wouldn't come back up, Ryan would somehow prevent me from helping. It was seconds in time, but several lifetimes in my head, each ending in tragedy. "Max!"

But Max was fine. He had his floatation devices on and was happily kicking around in the water.

"Cute kid. Is he mine?" Ryan asked. His sneer told me he wasn't serious. He was trying to be insulting.

"You know he isn't. What do you want?" I retorted.

I tried to position myself so I could see Max, but I didn't want to turn my back on Ryan. He was dangerous, and I didn't know how far he was willing to ruin my life. He had already pushed me out of my chosen career and ruined my reputation. He had threatened me to do his dirty work. And he had hit me. Was he here to take his revenge and anger to the next level?

I couldn't trust him and refused to. There was no way I was going to turn my back on him and give him an opening to harm me. I wanted to see it coming if that was his plan.

"It would seem that your boss—or is he your boyfriend? How's that working out for you? I thought you were done fucking the men you work for."