Chapter 3

Chapter Three

Jo

I’d grilled Sophie for as much information about Larison and Juniper as I could get. What a cute name. I’d also gone searching online, but all of Larison’s accounts were set to private and the social accounts for the bookstore, Between the Sheets (clever name), were mostly of construction projects and just a few with Larison actually in them.

I tamped down my initial wow she’s hot reaction because that was not something you should think before a job interview. I promptly closed out of the social app and almost threw my phone to the other side of the room, like I could throw away the thought.

What thought? I hadn’t had any thoughts. No inappropriate thoughts here. None to be found. Just very professional thoughts about job interviews and negotiating skills. There was a per hour number that I had to get, and it was pretty high and that was even if I was able to say the number out loud. And what if Juniper didn’t like me? I’d never get hired.

Sure, I had a whole ass degree and I’d worked at the campus daycare for years, but sometimes kids just didn’t like you. They were people just like anyone else and sometimes personalities could clash. Even if I could work through an initial bad impression, why would her mom give me that chance?

I was spiraling. Absolutely fucking spiraling.

“Reid, I’m spiraling,” I said in a voice note. “I don’t necessarily have a backup plan if this falls through and I really don’t want to have to drop out of school. I can’t tell my mom because she’d suggest selling the house and I can’t. Oh my god. Please delete this.” I sent it without even thinking.

Kid, you are gonna be fine. Deep breaths. It’s all gonna work out.

Her words made me chill out a little. She was right. I was catastrophizing and it wasn’t helpful. So instead of indulging anymore in worst-case scenarios, I went online and looked for potential jobs and made a document full of application links. I needed a backup plan.

Larison and I had agreed to meet at a local café for the interview. It was a short walking distance, so I checked myself one last time in the mirror before I locked the door and headed to the café.

The place was surprisingly crowded with lots of people on laptops with headphones on and more than one who appeared to be having video chats in public. I wanted to shame them for it, but this wasn’t the time or place.

I looked around and my entire body jolted, as if I’d taken hold of an electric fence when I saw her at a small table for two in the back of the café. She had a cup of something in front of her and was scanning everyone who walked in.

Oh.

Oh oh ohhhhh.

She was even more beautiful in person. I couldn’t even see her whole body and I needed to lay down because I didn’t know if my trembling legs were going to support me anymore in her presence.

Shit. I needed to go over to her and I couldn’t make my limbs work. Could barely even keep my lungs functioning. They kept sort of seizing and spasming and I probably looked like I was having some sort of crisis because I was.

Shit shit shit .

For a few seconds, I considered turning around and just leaving. Bailing and being a no show. But then Sophie was bound to ask me what the hell had happened, and I wouldn’t have a good explanation so I guess I was doing this.

Once I managed to convince my legs to cooperate and carry me toward the table, I met Larison’s eyes and I was hit again with that sizzling electricity. Incredible eyes. Lighter brown near the center with a darker chocolate ring around the outside. Stunning. I didn’t think I’d ever seen eyes quite like that before. And her hair. It appeared brown too, but it wasn’t just brown. The sunlight revealed rich red highlights.

This woman was utterly captivating, and also I might be having a heart attack.

“Are you Jo?” she asked. If I hadn’t already been completely overcome by her looks, her voice would have done it. Deep and smoky and sensual in a way that was so inconvenient at this moment. I literally had to swallow a whimper.

I should have run. I should have run away already.

“Yes, I-I’m Jo,” I managed to stutter as she stood up. She was about half a foot taller than me and the fact that I’d have to tilt my head back to meet her eyes if we stood close to each other made my lungs wheeze and I let out a cough that I hoped she wouldn’t interpret as me getting sick.

“Jo,” she said, that voice wrapping around the single syllable, “it’s nice to meet you. Larison.”

She held her hand out and I had no choice but to shake it and try not to react in any way to the slide of her warm skin against mine. The clasp of her fingers. She wore a few rings that I wanted to examine. As well as the rest of her hand. And everything else that was attached to her.

Larison seemed oblivious to my complete and total internal meltdown and gave me a soft smile that I wanted to wrap around me like a blanket.

“Shall we?” she asked.

“Oh, yeah,” I said after two seconds of awkward silence. Too much blood that was supposed to power my brain had gone to deal with other areas of my body and I needed it to come back so I didn’t completely blow this opportunity.

Larison being completely disgustingly attractive wasn’t her fault and it wasn’t enough of a deterrent to me needing this job. My reaction was just because she’d surprised me. It would calm down. Initial attraction didn’t mean a whole lot anyway. It sure as hell wasn’t more important than paying for school.

“Did you want anything?” she asked, and I shook my head as I struggled to remember how to sit in a chair. Somehow I managed to do it without injury and faced her across the table that was far too small. Having her this close was absolutely clouding my judgment.

“I’ve heard so many things about you from Sophie, it’s weird that we’ve never met,” Larison said, trying to be nice and break the ice. What she didn’t know was how much I was already burning inside.

“Yeah, I know. I know.”

That was when I ran out of words.

The coffee shop was loud, but the silence between us was louder.

“So, why don’t you tell me about your background, even though I kind of know it anyway.” Right. I had to talk now. This could be a problem.

Some of the blood that had vacated my brain must have trickled back and made me coherent enough to talk to her. It was a miracle.

Larison watched me and nodded, giving her my undivided attention. Those eyes on me were mesmerizing and I couldn’t look away if I tried.

She nodded. “That all sounds great. So I’m really looking for someone Monday through Friday from around nine in the morning to four in the afternoon. It’ll just be for the summer, obviously, because Juniper will be going to kindergarten in the fall. God, even saying that out loud makes me feel like I’m going to have a breakdown, but anyway, do you think those hours work for you?”

If she’d asked me to work one hundred and sixty-eight hours a week, I’d agree.

She also mentioned the hourly rate a little reluctantly, but it was in between the range I’d agreed on for myself, so I let out a huge breath.

“Yeah, I can definitely make that work,” I said, both excited and terrified at the same time.

Larison smiled again. “Great, that’s fantastic. I know I’ve just met you, but I was wondering if you’d like to meet Juniper? I feel like she should be consulted even if I’m making the final decision.”

“I couldn’t agree more,” I said, trying not to have another heart attack. This was all happening so fast.

Larison gulped down her now cold coffee.

“Do you have time today? She’s staying with my parents right now but I need to pick her up in a little bit.”

Oh. I wasn’t. Oh . Shit.

“I mean…” I didn’t know how to respond.

“I wouldn’t normally ask, but since we sort of know each other already. It’s fine. We’ll schedule it for another day.”

I wondered how many other people she was interviewing and if I was the only one.

“No, today is fine,” I said, my voice too loud, even in this café. I needed to tone it down. “I mean, if you don’t mind. I could meet you there.” I had a car that I rarely used except to move it from parking spot to parking spot on street cleaning days.

“Their house isn’t that far. You can ride with me and then I can drop you off. You’ll get to see Juni in her natural habitat.” She snorted.

“Oh. Sure.” That made more logical sense, but it also meant that I’d have to sit in close proximity to this incredible creature for a longer period of time and that was going to be brutal.

Still, if this job was going to work out, I’d have to desensitize myself from being around her. Just get used to her. See her as my employer. The mother of my charge. Once I started working for her, we wouldn’t see each other all that much anyway. She’d be at work and I’d be busy with Juniper. Just ships passing in the night.

I followed Larison out to her car that had a booster seat in the back.

“It’s great that you have a car. I have an extra seat at my moms’ house for you if you want to take Juniper somewhere. She loves the library and there’s a park right near our place. And the beach. She is obsessed with the ocean, but once she goes in, it’s impossible to get her out.” She laughed fondly and it was easy to see just how much she adored her daughter.

“Sounds like a fun kid.”

“She is. She really is.”

From what Sophie had told me, Larison had been young when she’d had Juniper and I guess the dad hadn’t stuck around. I wondered if she missed him.

While she drove, Larison told me more about Juniper, from her food preferences to the strategies she’d use to try and get her way.

“You’ve probably dealt with that kind of thing before though, so I don’t know why I’m telling you all this,” she said, sounding a little nervous for the first time.

“Every kid is different and sometimes it can take some time to figure out what they need from me.” Some kids were easier than others. I had a feeling that Juniper was going to be pretty easy.

We reached a lovely white-painted home with cheery yellow shutters that was smack dab in the middle of the kind of residential neighborhood where kids went trick-or-treating and people sat on their porches and waved to anyone walking by. It was all very idyllic.

“Here we are,” Larison said, pulling into the driveway. “I didn’t tell them you were coming with me.” She pulled out her phone and typed out a quick message.

The front door opened and a little girl who was the spitting image of Larison ran toward us.

She sighed and got out of the car. Juniper flung herself into Larison’s arms, but she set her down and crouched to Juniper’s level.

“Juniper Emily. What have I told you about running out of the house without an adult?” Her voice was muffled, but I could still hear her.

Juniper sighed and rolled her eyes. “Not to leave the house without an adult. But you were right here . I saw you through the window.”

A woman with short graying blonde hair, high cheekbones, and a strong jaw came through the door and I assumed that was one of Larison’s mothers. She winced as she walked toward the car, and she had a visible limp. I remembered something about her needing help because one of her mothers was having surgery.

Larison and Juniper were still talking, and I didn’t know what to do.

“Who’s that?” Juniper asked, pointing at me.

I raised my hand and waved.

“That’s Jo. She’s a friend. Do you want to meet her?” It was probably good to introduce me as a friend for now. Springing me on Juniper without warning might be a little traumatic. I wasn’t sure how much her mom had told her about having someone like me watch her during the day.

I got out of the car and kept my focus on Juniper.

She eyed me suspiciously and I had to hold back a laugh. I liked this kid already.

Crouching down, I met her eyes. “Hi, Juniper. I’m Jo. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Hi,” Juniper said, her eyes flicking to me and then to her mom, who had stood up and was holding Juniper’s hand.

“Your mom has told me so much about you. She said you love to go to the library and you love books. Me too.”

Juniper was still studying me with reserve.

“Wanna know something cool?” I asked her.

“Okay,” she said, swinging her arm that was linked with Larison’s.

“I’m named after two book characters. My full first name is Josephine, from Little Women, and my middle name is Emily.”

Larison gasped and Juniper’s eyes lit up.

“That’s my middle name too!” She jumped up and down a few times excitedly.

“No way! That’s an amazing coincidence.” I risked a glance at Larison and found her looking at me with a strange and somewhat shocked expression on her face.

“My middle name really is Emily for the book character Emily of New Moon. I didn’t make that up,” I told her, in case she thought I was lying just to ingratiate myself with Juniper.

“So is hers,” she said.

“You loved that book,” Larison’s mother said, finally speaking. I met her eyes to find her watching the three of us with a smile on her face.

“You and my mom would get along then,” I told Larison, standing up, my knees popping.

“Why don’t you come inside for a moment?” Larison’s mother said. “I’m Allison, by the way.”

I shook her hand, marveling at her strong grip.

“You should rest,” Larison said, but Allison shook her head.

“I’m fine, don’t fuss,” Allison said, limping back toward the front door.

“Oh, uh, sure,” I said, not really sure if I had another choice.

“What other books do you like?” Juniper asked, looking up at me with wide blue eyes. They were her only feature that didn’t match Larison’s.

“I love alllll kinds of books. Have you read the one about the caterpillar who eats everything?”

“Yes, yes!” Juniper was one enthusiastic kid, and that was downright adorable. Once she got started telling me her favorite books, she was on a roll.

The inside of the house was so homey and soft and full of art and pictures of the family. Instantly I felt comfortable and the anxiety I’d felt before and at the beginning of the interview evaporated.

Even the raging lust I felt for Larison had finally decided to take a backseat, which was a relief.

“Mama, please sit down,” Larison said, pulling out a chair at the table in the kitchen that had fresh flowers and a small stack of mail on top of it.

“I’m fine, I’m fine,” Allison said, but she did sit down.

“Mama, can I have some mango?” Juniper asked, tilting her face up and making her eyes big and pleading.

Larison, stroked a few wisps of hair back that had escaped Juniper’s ponytail. “Let’s just have a few pieces because we’re going home soon and we’re going to have dinner.”

“Okay, Mama,” Juniper said before dashing to the fridge and pulling out a container of sliced mango.

Larison turned to me. “Can I get you anything?

“Not going to lie, mango sounds pretty good right about now.”

“Juniper, can you share your mango with Jo?” Larison asked as she went to get two forks.

“I guess,” Juniper said.

“Juniper,” Larison said in that Mom Tone that even made me stand up straighter.

Juniper looked at her mom and then came over to me. “I’ll share the mango, Jo.” Larison handed both of us a fork.

“Thank you, Juniper. Is mango your favorite fruit?”

“Uh huh. I also like watermelon. And strawberries sometimes. But not blueberries or raspberries.” She made a face.

“I like mango and watermelon too. What about grapes?”

Juniper nodded and we sat together at the table and ate mango and talked about fruit. Larison bustled around and poured iced tea for me, herself, and Allison, and couldn’t seem to sit still, fluttering around and cleaning and doing other things. Allison tried to get her to sit down, but she didn’t seem to want to.

Instead I hung out with Juniper and I knew that I wanted to be her nanny. She was funny and bright, and we totally clicked. Of course, I was seeing her just on one day, and there would be times when she was difficult, but I was ready to handle that.

“Jo?” Juniper asked, motioning for me to lean closer once we’d demolished the mango.

“What is it?” I whispered as she leaned close.

“Will you come over and play with me?” she whispered.

Well. That was a pretty good endorsement.

“Why don’t you ask your mom?”

Larison looked up from scrubbing the counter for the second time. I couldn’t tell if this was regular behavior for her, or if she was nervous about something.

“Mama? Can Jo come over and play with me? I want her to read me books.”

Larison’s mouth dropped open and I thought I saw Allison hiding a smile.

“Oh. Um, I’m not sure about today, but how would you like it if she came over and hung out with you while I’m at the bookshop?”

Juniper looked at her mom and then looked at me.

“Okay!” she said, shrugging. “You can stay in my room. You’re too big for the bed, but you can have some of my blankets and stay on the floor.”

I couldn’t help it, I burst out laughing. “That’s really nice, Juniper, but I think I’ll just come over during the daytime and go back to my own house at night if that’s okay.”

She thought about that for a few seconds.

“Okay. I guess .” She didn’t sound very enthused about me going home and I shared a look with Larison, who was also trying not to laugh.

“But would it be okay with you if we hung out during the day?” I asked her. Her mom might be making the final decision, but I had to win over this kid if I was going to keep this job.

“Yup,” she said, nodding her head.

I gave Larison a look.

“That’s great, Juni,” Larison said. “Because Jo is going to be coming over a lot.”

Guess I got the job?