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“Is there any food that can be cooked?” I called out as he turned to look at me for a second. “I can’t waste that gorgeous kitchen using your microwave.”
Chapter 4: Nathan
I watched as Riley plated the fried chicken as Carli and Ella transferred the fries to a plate. It smelled incredible, and I grabbed some plates to bring them to the table, shaking my head. When it was Ella and me, I heated something up and we managed to eat while I yawned through dinner after getting her up early for another bad babysitter. Tonight, she was at home with a kind, funny girl that could apparently cook.
I wondered if I’d need to fire the chef, though anything more than light cooking was not a part of her job duties. I made a mental note to tell her that and Carli brought over one plate and Riley the other. I sensed a nervous energy about her as I picked Ella up and settled her in her seat, giving her a sippy cup of fresh milk. Riley ran back into the kitchen and brought in a bowl of corn, sitting down beside me as she told us to eat.
Carli gave me a sharp look before she got a plate ready for Ella. My daughter ate a little at every meal and grazed a lot. I knew that there would be some dessert a bit later, and I helped myself to a big piece of chicken and some fries as the others scooped corn onto their plates. I took some of that and looked at Riley with a warm smile. “Thank you for this. It smells amazing, but you know I don’t expect it from you. Don’t you?” I watched as she blushed and sipped her water.
“My mama was an incredible cook and so is my sister. I haven’t had a proper kitchen in a long time, so I wanted to cook. I find it to be therapeutic, to be honest," she told me as I took a bite of the chicken. It was better than it smelled.
“In that case, have at it. Don’t push yourself too hard in the process.” She beamed at me as Carli smiled around her fork, and I tried a fry. Just as good. “So, I’d like to discuss a schedule as far as Ella. It’s been a little hectic around here lately.”
“Sure.” She tore a piece of meat from the bone and I watched silently as she chewed it.
“You already know that I like her to be busy. I want Ella to learn everything that she can at this age but have a good routine at the same time. I want her to have some normal to her life after the last year. I am thinking that she could be in a bath by seven if it’s necessary and bed by eight? Carli has be
en reading books to her lately, and she loves that.” I smiled at Carli. “I am not too worried about when she wakes up at this point, just that she eats a good breakfast as soon as she’s hungry. I just want her to know something steady in her life.” I frowned as the memories flashed through my mind before shaking my head. I felt someone touch my arm and looked over at Riley.
“It’s okay, Nathan. She’s going to be fine.” Her voice was soothing, and I nodded slowly. I trusted her. “I think tomorrow we’ll hang around the house and maybe go down to the beach. Keep it light. She can spend the last few hours with her aunt here and we’ll get to know each other.”
“That sounds great,” Carli agreed as she nodded. I told Riley the activities that she liked so far, and we discussed future plans as Ella chimed in about things she liked. After dinner, Carli pleaded with us to let her do the bath since it was her last night and I grinned and agreed.
I helped Riley carry the dishes into the kitchen and she started to get ready to wash them. “I’ll help,” I offered as she looked up at me.
“You don’t work from home?”
I laughed and shrugged. “Sometimes. Not tonight.” I stood beside her and told her that I’d rinse, and she grinned and started working. We chatted softly as she handed the plates to me to rinse and set them in the rack. I had a dishwasher, but Riley appeared to be enjoying this, so I went with it.
I also didn’t mind being this close to her. She smelled like citrus with a hint of vanilla and I took a slow breath through my nose. There was something about Riley that made me want to be close to her all the time. That scared me.
When we were finished, she dried her hands and gave me the towel as our eyes locked again. I swallowed slowly as I stared into her big eyes, getting lost in them. I hadn’t felt for any woman what I was starting to feel with Riley and I watched as she licked her full lower lip. It was slow, and my eyes dropped to watch as I felt myself strain against my pants. Time slowed as I moved my gaze back to her eyes as she pressed her lips together, moving slowly towards me as I watched.
My head moved naturally towards her, tilting to meet her mouth. I was close when I heard footsteps on the stairs and Ella’s voice before I pulled away reluctantly. We stepped away from each other and I turned as my daughter ran into my arms, her hair damp from her bath. I held her tight and closed my eyes as I willed my erection to go down.
We made our way to the bedroom, so I could watch Carli read to her as Riley slipped into her room. I looked back as she disappeared and headed up the stairs after Carli. Ella talked her into two books and I smiled from the recliner in her room as my sister settled back against the wall. She loved spending time with Ella and I felt relieved that she just lived in Seattle and could visit often, depending on her job as a publicist.
Carli kissed Ella’s head and stood as I went to whisper how much I loved her. I told her to have sweet dreams and that I’d be home for breakfast in the morning before we both left the room and closed the door. Carli sighed and told me that she was going to finish packing while I looked from my room to the stairs. I chose the stairs and grabbed a beer from the fridge before wandering back to the closed door of Riley’s room. I sipped the beer and tapped on the door, hearing footsteps on the hardwood floor. Riley opened the door gently and looked out at me with a surprised smile. “Hi.”
“Ella is down for the night. I am going to be here for breakfast tomorrow so don’t worry about getting up right away.” I leaned into the frame, my hands keeping me from pressing closer to her like I wanted to.
“I have the monitor on. I didn’t listen to you guys or anything but turned it on afterward. I wanted to be ready for her.” Riley was dressed in leggings and an oversized t-shirt that hung from one shoulder, baring her skin. She looked right into my face as she licked her lips, her face freshly washed and beautiful in a way no woman had ever been before now. “It’s my job, Nathan.” There was a reverence to her voice, a reminder of why she was here despite the attraction flowing between us.
“I am often home for breakfast with her. I am also taking my sister to the airport tomorrow, so I have the day off.” She nodded and leaned against the crisp, white wall as she bit her lip. Fuck me but I loved everything that she did with that mouth. “You’re welcome to come along. We might have lunch along the way. Carli always has a hard time leaving Ella.”
“I can see why,” Riley drawled lightly as a blush washed over her pale cheeks. “I’d love to.”
“Okay, then. I’ll see you tomorrow morning.” I dropped my eyes to her lips again before reluctantly pulling back. I thought that I loved my Brenda when we first met but it was nothing like this. It was hot lust that faded once we were married with a baby and reality set in for her. Even if she didn’t get the cancer, I suspected that we were headed towards the end of us. I felt my skin heat up as my eyes slipped down her petite but curvy body, lifting them to her face as my body reacted a bit too strongly.
“Good night, Nathan,” Riley called out as I turned to leave. “Sweet dreams.”
“More like wet ones,” I murmured to myself before I looked over my shoulder and nodded at her. I kept going, shutting the lights off downstairs and making sure everything was locked before heading upstairs. I switched my monitor on, knowing that Ella was capable of getting up and coming to find me if she needed anything. I still listened so I would know the second that she did. I wondered if it had to do with the time that I was dealing with Brenda dying in the den and was always on edge. I attributed to it being my protectiveness of my daughter. I dressed for bed as I stared into the mirror, trying to sort of my thoughts as I moved automatically.
I walked over to the bed, sliding the window open to listen to the ocean. All the bedrooms had a view of the water and I thought about Riley in her room below me. She was different from anyone I’d ever met, and I barely knew her. I was her fucking employer and needed to learn some self-control and soon. I dropped on the bed and shut the light off as I thought back over the last few years. It all happened so fast, too quickly for me to take it all in right away. I closed my eyes and dropped against my pillows as the guilt hit me. It was always the same lately… I didn’t miss Brenda the way that I should. I wanted to be devastated like everyone that told me how sorry they had expected me to be. It wasn’t easy raising a baby on my own after that, but I loved every moment that we spent together. I didn’t find it to be a sacrifice, just exhausting.
I felt the blood surge to my groin as I imagined Riley’s bare shoulder. How the hell could just a shoulder get me all wound up? I reached into my workout shorts and gripped it, thinking about the routine sex I’d had a few days ago. It felt like nothing to me and I slipped my hand up, knowing that this was going to be much better with my nanny’s face and body in my head. I jerked forward, rocking into my hand as I let my mind wander to the things I wanted to do to her. I got a little crazy with the fantasy and moved harder, feeling the pressure at the base of my cock. I moaned her name softly as I jerked, coming into the shorts and my hand and my body tingled.
I went to clean up and change, slipping under the blankets as I let out a weary sigh. I needed to get this out of my system and start acting like a man, not a teenager like I was right now. I turned on the TV to distract me though my brain just kept running with the fantasy. Tomorrow she would be here all day and it would be a normal thing. I’d get over this desire that was taking control of me.
