The Au Pair Affair, page 2
“Could be.” He was about to embroider the story some more when Liam’s sleepy whine came over the monitor. “Sounds like your baby brother’s awake. Want to come check on him with me, or keep working on the fort? Your choice.”
“Fort. Gotta hurry before the hordes come.” Cara continued building.
Louis glanced at Crissi as he climbed to his feet. Not weird at all to be babysitting right under a mother’s watchful eyes. But her expression was more relaxed than it had been during the interview the other day. Maybe she liked how he was relating to her daughter.
Crissi accompanied him to Liam’s bedroom but stayed out in the hall as Louis got Liam from his bed. He was glad she was smart enough to realize seeing Mommy would not allow Liam to bond with Louis.
“Hey, little man, good nap?” he asked, holding out a hand and giving Liam time to decide whether to come to him or not. “Want to go to the bathroom and then get a snack?”
Liam stared at him for a few moments with his dad’s serious, dark eyes. Louis waited. The boy would either burst out crying at the stranger in his room, even though they’d been introduced before Crissi laid him down for his nap or he’d accept Louis as a new friend. At last, Liam climbed out of bed and took Louis’s hand.
“You like juice? How about animal cookies? I like the lions best.”
Pretty soon Louis had the boy roaring and laughing so hard it was a wonder he didn’t wet himself before they made it to the bathroom.
Two for two. Both the kids had taken to him, and he found them sweet and much less spoiled than he’d expected Beverly Hills kids would be. There were a few moments of stress as Cara kept begging him to come help her build while Louis was still getting Liam his snack, but overall the rest of his visit went well. He managed to prevent the three-year-old from eating Legos, anyway.
At the end of the afternoon, Crissi bid him good-bye. “Thanks for coming. You have a great rapport with the kids. Either Dan or I will be in touch with you soon.”
Interview finished, Louis drove back to his apartment in a shittier part of the city. He felt pretty good about his chances of landing the job, but nervous too. His finances were precarious, the money from his last gig nearly gone and bills looming. If the nanny agency had learned more about his checkered past than what was revealed by a cursory investigation, Louis knew they wouldn’t have put him on their roster. He didn’t know how many interviews he’d get. Landing this job felt like his last chance somehow.
If only he’d been able to have his “audition” with the kids under Dan Krefman’s watch, Louis was sure he’d stand a better chance of getting the job. Ah, but that was thinking like old Louis, not new Louis, the guy who didn’t flirt or fuck his way to a goal.
“I have to admit, I was very impressed with the gay guy. He handled both kids well and really hit it off with Cara.”
Crissi sipped her glass of wine and gazed at the single bright gold leaf marring the clear water of the infinity pool. She frowned, and Dan could feel her aching to skim the offending bit of nature off the pristine surface. When they were married, he used to purposely tilt picture frames to give her something to straighten.
He restrained his eagerness, not wanting to let her know he was pulling for that particular candidate. “Both Bridget and Serena seemed okay. Competent. But Cara wasn’t especially drawn to either of them. She talked of nothing but Louis this and Louis that for days. How do you know he’s gay, by the way? Did he say something?”
Crissi rolled her eyes. “Come on, Dan.”
“Well, some straight men are effeminate…and stylish.”
“And some gay men are as masculine as—oh, I don’t know—my ex-husband,” she said dryly.
Dan nodded, point taken. Guilt at what he’d put her through was never far from his consciousness and was quick to rise to the surface. Crissi hadn’t deserved to be caught up in his denial. He’d used her in an attempt to convince himself he was straight until the day he could no longer escape the truth.
“All right. Louis is clearly gay,” Dan admitted. “That’s not a problem for you, is it?”
“Not for me. I was never a homophobe. That was you, dear.”
Dan accepted the paper cut as his due. He couldn’t really argue with the truth.
Crissi’s phone emitted a beep as a text came in, and she read and responded to the message while continuing the conversation. “All I care about is the kids having a good, stable, loving caretaker who will work with us in parenting them. I think Louis could be the right person. But before we commit, you could have him over to your place to see him with them.”
Dan forced his nervously jiggling leg to still.
“I checked into his background further. Information’s sketchy, and honestly, right or wrong, the fact he was raised in foster homes gives me some pause,” he said. “On the other hand, it seems to have given Louis practical experience in dealing with children, so…” Now he was just rambling, playing devil’s advocate when he was actually more than ready to hire Louis. “I trust your judgment, and if Cara and Liam have taken a shine to him, then let’s go with this guy.”
Crissi sent her text with a flick of her thumb before turning her attention back to Dan. “Good. That’s settled, then. I think it’ll be good.”
“All right. We’ve got a new nanny.”
Chapter Three
Louis couldn’t remember ever being so happy about landing a job. Certainly not in his teen years, flipping burgers or bagging groceries. Definitely not after he’d hit Los Angeles and had his brief movie career, along with the other things he’d done to get by.
Bidding his vermin-infested studio apartment good-bye, he moved into a light, spacious room at Crissi’s house so he could be on call twenty-four/seven. The breeze coming through the window smelled of flowers and privilege. He took a deep breath and held it.
Crissi had given him time alone this first day to settle in, but soon he’d have to take charge of the kids while she went to a meeting with an agent or studio head or something. For now, he simply stood gazing out the window at his little slice of paradise—a flagstone path through lush plants with a glimpse of a shimmering koi pond through huge ferns. This was the type of beautiful home he’d fantasized having when he’d lived in a ranch with a front yard full of dead grass and shared a bedroom with two other boys. Louis felt as if he’d been climbing a treacherous rocky slope for a very long time and had finally reached a safe plateau. As long as he did his job well and didn’t fuck up, he could remain in paradise for a while.
Naturally, the moment he considered possible ways he could screw up, he thought of Dan Krefman—sexy, handsome and off limits. No way was Louis going to let his urges lead him into that sort of trouble. No mixing work and pleasure. Not anymore.
A knock on the bedroom door made him jerk as if he’d been caught with his hand down his pants.
“Yeah. Come in.”
Crissi opened the door and cast a quick look around the room before settling her gaze on him. “You have everything you need?”
“Yes. Thanks. It’s just perfect.”
“I hate to abandon you on your first day. I’d hoped to be on hand for a while, at least until Liam acclimates, but I’ve got to go. Are you clear on how to get to Cara’s school? The school has your name and photo, and you’re cleared to pick her up. I have to tell you, she’s often in a pretty foul mood after kindergarten. I’m trying to get to the bottom of what it is about school that’s bothering her—kids picking on her, or a problem with the teacher—but so far I’m not getting any answer out of her other than ‘I don’t like it’.”
Crissi offered him a set of keys. “These are for the car and the house. Liam’s going to wake up soon and want a snack; then it’ll be time to pick up Cara. It’s all on the schedule I gave you.”
Louis accepted the keys with a nod. “Got it. Don’t worry. I’m on top of it. Everything will go fine.”
A little frown creased her brow. “Okay. Oh, also, Dan might be by sometime later this afternoon. If he wants to take the kids out for dinner, it’s fine. Just thought I should let you know so you don’t feel caught in the middle. I know some divorced couples can get really mean, playing chess with their kids as pawns, but that’s not Dan and me. If there’s one thing we’ve always been able to agree on, it’s our kids.”
“Good to know.” He smiled, wishing she’d go. She’d placed her trust in him, now it was time to prove her right.
“I can’t tell you when I’ll be back, but I’ll text when I know.”
“Sounds good.”
After Crissi left, Louis focused on putting his stuff in order. He didn’t have much, but all of his clothes were quality, and he was fussy about them. Scouring thrift stores, he found amazing deals which outfitted him far beyond his limited means.
The Krefmans had baby monitors scattered throughout the large house. It wasn’t long before he had to drop his unpacking to respond to Liam’s wake-up song. Literally. The boy was singing a tune that sounded like Somewhere Over the Rainbow, but with garbled words.
Louis grinned. He could get along with a kid who woke up singing. He went to Liam’s room and found the three-year-old sitting in the middle of his floor, looking at picture books.
When Liam saw his new babysitter in the doorway, he beamed like sunshine. Excellent. Louis had been a little afraid they’d have to start from scratch getting to know each other.
“Hey, you like Wizard of Oz?”
Liam put down his picture book and stood up. Grabbing Louis’s hand, he led him to the living room, took a DVD of the movie out of a cupboard and thrust it at him.
“We don’t have time to watch a movie right now, buddy. Got to get you something to eat, then go pick up your sister. We’ll watch part of it when we get back, okay?”
Liam’s sunny face began to cloud, so Louis quickly distracted him, singing as much as he could remember of Over the Rainbow as he led the boy to the kitchen. Louis got the DVD out of sight, out of mind by offering Liam a butter knife instead and letting him help spread peanut butter on bread—messier than doing it himself, but good for the kid’s motor skills.
Pretty soon Liam was sunny and singing again. Louis noticed he didn’t talk much. At three, he should be asking tons of questions, chattering from the moment he got up until he switched off at night. Neither of the Krefmans had mentioned Liam having learning disabilities. Maybe he was just a quiet sort of kid.
After sharing a peanut butter sandwich and scrubbing the same from Liam’s hands, face and every surface he’d touched, Louis announced it was time to suit up and go on a mission. Making the trip to get Cara from school sound like a rocket-ship adventure was an easy way to get Liam into his car seat.
When they pulled into the pickup area in front of the school, Louis made a game out of who would spot their quarry first. Liam squealed with excitement and pointed wildly when he saw his sister’s bright red sweater amidst the other brightly dressed munchkins on the other side of the fence.
“Good job. Sit tight for a second, okay, buddy?” Louis went to introduce himself to the staff guarding the gate. The woman looked at his ID to confirm who he was, even though she could see the Krefman’s hybrid SUV with Liam in the backseat. Only then was Cara surrendered into his care.
The little girl threw her arms around his legs, hugging him fiercely, not shy at all. In fact, she was one of the most self-possessed little people he’d ever met.
“Mommy said you’d pick me up. I’ve been so excited all day long. I want to show you my book of ponies I’ve been making, and then we can build another fort.”
“I’d love to see your book. Is it a scrapbook or drawings or a story you’ve written?”
“You’ll see. Come on.” She grasped his hand and hurried him to the SUV. Talking the whole time, she climbed in back and strapped herself into her car seat before Louis could help. She talked about ponies and kids at school and going to the beach and fifty other different subjects. She talked while they waited in the traffic jam to get out of the school drop-off zone. She talked all the way back to the house and continued to talk as she dropped her backpack in the hall, tore off her sweater and tugged on Louis’s hand trying to get him to come with her to her room.
“Just a minute, peach fuzz. I’ve got to take care of your brother first.”
“Peach fuzz,” Cara repeated and giggled so hard she snorted.
“Why don’t you do me a solid and take care of your school things while I get Liam squared away, okay?”
She laughed again. “You talk funny.” But she did as he bid, collecting her school gear and hauling it to her room.
Louis looked at Liam after she’d left them alone in the front hall. “Your sister’s a little high energy, isn’t she, buddy? Come on. Let’s see if you need to pee before we have an accident.”
Crissi had warned him that Liam was struggling with potty training. He was in don’t-ask-don’t-tell mode—if you didn’t ask periodically if he had to go, he wouldn’t tell and would simply wet his pants.
After spending some time in the john coaxing Liam to just let loose already, it was time to get Cara her after school snack. She sat at kitchen table, showing him the truly amazing pony book while she ate. It contained carefully clipped-out and pasted images of horses from magazines, some of her own drawings and her own little stories, which either her mother or father—maybe both, since they were in different printing—had transcribed. The child managed to pack away a banana and several cookies without ever stopping her explanation of her project.
Liam sat on the floor nearby, playing with some blocks and quietly minding his own business. Easy kid.
Louis became so engrossed in reading one of Cara’s imaginative tales that when he heard footsteps approaching, it took him by surprise. He looked up as Cara jumped down from her chair, shouting “Daddy!” and ran to her father’s arms.
Dan scooped her up and gave her a big hug. “Hey, Kermit. How was school today?”
Cara hugged him back, then squirmed to be put down. “I’m showing Louis my pony book. Come, look at it with us.”
Krefman picked up Liam and held him on his lap as he sat beside his daughter.
“How’s everything going?” he asked Louis.
“Great. We’re having a good day.” Louis indicated Liam. “No accidents, and I think we’re all hitting it off okay.”
“Good to hear.”
Dan Krefman turned his attention back to Cara. Louis was glad to sit quietly and just watch them together. They made a cute pair—the attractive man in his well-tailored suit and his little sprite of a daughter. Cara might have her mother’s blonde hair and clear blue eyes, but her mannerisms were her father’s. They both frowned at the same time as they discussed one of the pictures, and the resemblance was striking.
Liam began to squirm.
“Want me to take him?” Louis asked.
Dan handed his son over, and Louis was pleased that the boy didn’t fight the exchange but happily went into his arms.
“Let’s get back to those blocks, okay?”
Louis sat on the floor and helped Liam stack colored blocks of various shapes and sizes. He snuck another glance at his employer just as Dan looked down at him. A smile curved the man’s lips before they returned to their customary straight line. Not much for smiles, that one, but he seemed very sweet and kind with his daughter. His aloofness didn’t come out in his relationship with her.
Louis decided he was simply used to being around gregarious, extroverted men. Dan Krefman was more of an introvert than he was accustomed to, a character trait which it seemed Liam had inherited.
“You want to go to the park and stop for dinner afterward?” Dan asked.
Cara clapped her hands. “Yay! Louis too?”
Dan looked at him again. “If he wants to.”
Damn, was that just a look or was it a look? Every time Louis decided he was nuts for thinking Krefman leaned the gay way, the man would do something to ping his radar. But even if his employer was attracted to him, it certainly didn’t mean either one of them would ever, ever act on it.
Louis was too used to random encounters—eyes meeting across a crowded room, pleasantries exchanged, then bodies coming together fast and furious. He had to stop thinking like a club boy and start thinking like a solid upstanding citizen in a responsible position.
“Sounds good,” he answered. “Maybe we should bring along a kite to fly. Do you have one, Cara?”
“Sure. With ponies on it.”
“Naturally.” Louis rose and pulled Liam to his feet, clasping his tiny, somewhat sticky hand. “Ready for the park, little man?”
“Ducks,” Liam said, nearly the first word Louis had heard out of him. Liam reached to take his dad’s hand too, linking them together in a chain.
Dan chuckled. “Yes, we’ll bring along some bread crumbs to feed the ducks.”
When Dan looked at him, his smile included Louis, and Louis knew for sure—it was that sort of look.
Chapter Four
As usual, Dan’s mind was spinning in about a hundred different directions. Business was always too busy with some new financial crisis or monumental ego to deal with. As a producer, it was his job to keep all the balls in the air, make sure the money flowed and the project was completed on time and hopefully not outrageously over budget—which Birthright was rapidly becoming thanks to wunderkind director Bernard Green, the little shit. It was hard to leave those balls proverbially spinning in the air and give his total attention to his kids. Some days he was better at it than others. But he was determined never to be the single-minded workaholic his father had been.
Dan sat on a park bench beside the new nanny, watching Cara and Louis chase ducks and send them running into the pond. The kids had already depleted their supply of bread. “So, Louis, where are you from originally?”
“Barry, Georgia. It’s a little town near Atlanta. My mom and I moved to the city when I was pretty young. After she died, I went into foster care like I said.”
