A Home for Lily (3 page)

He grinned happily to himself.  He had
found a nanny who Hazel seemed to like and it was –

He stopped mid-thought and stared at the woman’s
midsection.  She was kneeling at the small table and her too-large shirt had
been caught under her knees.  It hugged her belly, showcasing the obvious bump
and the feeling of relief that was surging through him, flew out the window.

“You’re pregnant.”  He blurted out.

The woman looked up, clearly startled,
before looking down at her stomach.  She flushed and yanked her shirt free
before standing up.

“I um – well, yes I am.”

“How far along are you?”  He asked bluntly.

“Six months.”  She whispered.  “I – it
won’t affect my ability to do the job, Mr. Anderson.  I promise you.”

“Right.”  He sighed.  He glanced at his
watch again.  “Well, thank you for stopping by, Lily.  I should probably get
started on some lunch for Hazel.”

“Of course.”  She quickly put on her jacket
before staring up at him.  “Um, could I get your email address to send you the
names of my references?”

“Uh, why don’t you just give me your cell
number and I’ll text you my email address.  I do have a few other people to
interview for the position so, you know....”  He trailed off.

Her face dropped and for one horrifying
moment he thought she was going to start crying.  She swallowed hard and
blinked rapidly.  “Right, of course.”

She recited her number and he quickly added
it to his cell before smiling at her.  “Thank you again, Lily.”

“Thank you.”  She said quietly.  She took a
deep breath and walked over to Hazel.  She squatted carefully and held her hand
out to the little girl.  “Bye, Hazel.  It was nice to meet you.”

Logan’s mouth dropped open when Hazel held
her hand out and allowed Lily to shake it firmly.  Lily touched her soft hair
gently before standing and limping out of the living room.  Logan followed her
and stood there awkwardly as she tugged her boots on and put her hat and
mittens on.

Without looking at him, she said softly,
“Thank you again, Mr. Anderson.  I – I hope to hear from you soon.”

“Bye, Lily.”

She slipped out the front door and he shut
it firmly behind her before leaning against it for a few seconds.  “Back to the
drawing board, Logan.”  He muttered to himself before heading to the living
room.

“Hazel?  What do you want for – “

He stopped, his mouth dropping open again. 
Hazel was standing at the living room window and he followed her gaze.  Lily,
her head bent against the cold wind and blowing snow, was limping slowly down
the sidewalk and Hazel was staring intently at her.  She looked briefly at Logan
before looking out the window again at Lily.”

He hesitated a moment longer and then said,
“Hazel – stay here.  Daddy will be right back.”

He jammed his bare feet into his boots and
ran outside.  “Lily!  Lily!  Wait up a minute.”

She turned, and he jogged over to her as
she quickly wiped at her face with the palms of her hands.  “I’m sorry?  Did I
– did I forget something?”

He shook his head, staring at the tear
tracks on her face.  “No.”

A gust of wind blew and he shivered in his
thin t-shirt and jeans.  “Where did you park?”

She stared blankly at him for a moment.  “I
– I don’t have a car.  I took the bus here.”

He stared at the snow that was collecting
on her pink hat and at her bright red cheeks before sighing.  “Just let me get
Hazel into her coat and boots and I’ll give you a ride home.”

“Oh no!  That’s fine.  I don’t need a
ride.”  She protested.

“I don’t mind.  Come back to the house for
a minute.”

Without waiting for her answer, he turned
and started back to the house.  After a moment, Lily followed silently.

* * *

“There you go, baby bug.  All strapped
in.”  Logan kissed the tip of Hazel’s nose and rechecked the straps to the car
seat before sliding out of the back seat of the truck. 

“Ready, Lily?”

She was standing at the passenger side of
his truck and staring at the seat.  The truck didn’t have a running board, and
she stepped closer before standing on her tiptoes and stretching for the handle
at the top of the door.  She could only just reach it, and she realized with
shameful embarrassment that she wouldn’t be able to lift herself into the
truck.  She was too short, her leg was too weak, and her stomach was too big.

“I’m sorry, I um, I don’t think I can –
could you maybe help me?  My leg is still - I just need a bit of a boost.”  He
had already slid behind the wheel and she gave him a look of painful
embarrassment.

“Oh, of course.  Sorry.”

She held her hand out but instead of taking
it like she expected, he slid back out and crossed quickly in front of the
truck.  He was standing behind her and cupping her elbows before she knew what
was happening.

“Watch your head.”  He lifted her easily
into the truck and she gave a small squeak of surprise as she landed with a
thump on the seat.

“Okay?”

“Yes, thank you.”  She flushed again and
stared out the window as he started the truck and backed out of the driveway.

* * *

“This is where you live?”  Logan put the
truck into park and stared at the mansion he was parked in front of.  It was
about three times the size of his house and had a large, three car garage
attached to it.  The driveway had been plowed of the snow, and the steps and
pathway to the porch were shoveled clear as well.

Lily nodded as she unclicked her seatbelt. 
“Yes, sort of.”

“Sort of?”  He frowned.

“It belongs to my husband’s family.”  She
said briefly.

She reached for the door handle of the
truck.  “Thank you for the ride, Mr. Anderson.”

“You’re welcome.”

She hesitated and seemed to gather her
courage before turning back to him.  “Mr. Anderson, I promise if you give me a
chance, you won’t regret it.  I’m really great with children and I keep a neat
house and I’m a pretty good cook.  I’ve had a very normal, easy pregnancy and
there really isn’t anything I can’t do because of it.”

He sighed.  “Lily, the thing is, I’ll
likely have you as a nanny for what – three months, tops?  Once you have your
baby, I’m sure you won’t be interested in nannying for Hazel any longer.  I’m
looking for someone who can stick around until Hazel is in school.  That’s a
year.  Plus, if I did give you the job and Hazel became attached to you, it
would be very difficult on her to have you leave in three months.  She’s already
going through a rough time.  I don’t want to make it worse.”

“Mr. Anderson – “

“Please don’t take this the wrong way, but
I’m not really sure why you need this job anyway.  Your house is obviously
expensive and, sorry I know this sounds rude, but you seem to be doing just
fine in the money department.  Why spend the last three months of your
pregnancy looking after someone else’s kid?”

She took a deep breath.  “When my husband
died he left everything to his parents.  The house, the money, none of it is
mine.  I’m – well, I’m flat broke and I need a job and someplace else to live. 
Barry’s parents have allowed me to stay in the house for a while now but they
would prefer if I – if I found alternate living arrangements.”

He gaped at her.  “Are you kidding me? 
They want their son’s wife and unborn child to move out of their home?  What’s
wrong with these people?”

She sighed and rubbed at her forehead. 
“It’s a very long story and really, not that interesting. The point is – I need
a job and a place to live and I promise you I’ll work very hard and take
excellent care of Hazel.”

When he didn’t reply, she gave him a
pleading look.  Tears were starting to form in her eyes and she blinked them
back.  “Please, Mr. Anderson.  I’m sorry.  I hate to beg and I know how
pathetic I look but I really need this job.  I promise you I won’t leave after
the baby is born.  I swear.  I really won’t.  I won’t even need to take any
time off.  I can just have the baby and go right back to work.”

Despite her efforts to hold them back the
tears were flowing down her cheeks now.  “And I know that a baby can be noisy
at night and I’ll,” she thought desperately for a moment, “I’ll find another
place to stay with the baby when you’re not working.”  She finished anxiously.

“Where would you go?”  He raised his
eyebrow at her.

She swiped at the tears on her cheeks.  “I
could, I don’t know, rent a motel room for the four days a week.  You – you
wouldn’t even know the baby was there.”

She gave him a desperate look edged with
bright panic and he sighed before staring out the windshield of the truck. 
“Can I think about it?”

She nodded.  “Of course.  Thank you for
thinking about it.  I really appreciate it.”

She smiled at Hazel before sliding out of
the truck.  He watched as she trudged carefully toward the front porch before
he met Hazel’s gaze in the rear view mirror.

“What do you think, Hazel?  Do you want her
to be your new nanny?”  He asked, not expecting a reply. 

He turned and stared at the little girl
when she nodded solemnly.  “Hazel, do you like Lily?  Do you want me to hire
her?”

The little girl nodded again and Logan
threw open the door of the truck and slid to the ground.  “Lily!”

She turned and gave him a trembling smile. 
“Yes?”

“I’ve thought about it.  Can you start
Monday?”

Her mouth dropped open and she stared
wide-eyed at him for a moment before nodding.  “Yes, I can absolutely start
Monday.”

Logan threw open the front door and hurried
down the steps.  “Here, Lily.  Let me help you with that.”

Lily, pulling a large suitcase behind her
and carrying her purse and an overnight bag, looked up.  “Oh, it’s fine.”  She
puffed.  “I’ve got it.”

He ignored her and reached for the
suitcase.  “Did you take the bus here?”

“Yes.”  She adjusted the overnight bag on
her shoulder and followed him up the steps.

“I could have picked you up.  I thought you
would take a cab here.”  He set the suitcase down in the hallway as Lily took
her boots off before shrugging out of her jacket and hanging it neatly in the
front closet.

“I don’t mind.”  She said cheerfully.  “The
exercise is good for my leg.”

He stared at the suitcase and the overnight
bag.  “Well, why don’t I give you a lift back to get the rest of your things?”

“I – I don’t have anything else.”

He frowned at her.  “This is all of it?”

“Yes.  I’m sorry.”  She said quickly as she
eyed him carefully.

“Sorry for what?”  He gave her a confused
look.

“Uh, I don’t know.”  She said awkwardly.

“This is really all of your stuff?”  He
frowned again at her.

“Y-yes.  I – most of the items in our home
belonged to my husband and he left them to his parents.”  She gave him another
oddly nervous look.

“Okay.  Well uh, follow me.  I’ll show you
to your room and give you a tour of the rest of the house.”  He started down
the hallway as Hazel, carrying the same doll from the weekend, popped her head
out of the living room.

“Hi, Hazel.”  Lily gave her a bright
smile.  “Do you think you could carry my purse for me?”

Hazel nodded and took the purse, slinging
it over her arm before following Lily and her father up the stairs.

Logan paused at the head of the stairs and
pointed to the door in front of them.  “This is the guest bathroom.  I have a
bathroom off of my bedroom so this one is all yours.”

He pointed to the door to the left. 
“That’s a spare room.  It’s sort of my den/office/work out room.” 

She followed him down the hallway.  “This
is my room.”

She peered in briefly at the large
king-size bed and walnut-coloured wardrobe.  The room was done up in very
masculine colours which, considering he would have shared it with his wife,
seemed a little odd to her but she didn’t say anything as he continued down the
hallway.

“This room is Hazel’s.”  The room was
painted a light purple and there was a small bed covered in princess sheets and
a matching princess quilt against the far wall.  The room was bright and cheery
with colourful posters on the walls and various toys scattered across the
floor. 

“It’s so pretty, Hazel.”  She smiled at the
little girl and squeezed her thin shoulder.  Hazel ducked her head and stared
at the floor as Logan opened the last door.

“And this is your room.” 

Lily walked into the room and stared around
in delight.  It was a good size room with a double bed covered in a light gray
quilt.  A plain white dresser was against the wall and there was a tiny desk
and chair pushed up under the large window.  The walls were painted a creamy
white. 

“It’s a bit bare.”  He said apologetically,
but you can paint it and add your own personal touches to it.  Whatever you’d
like.”

“It’s perfect.”  She sighed happily.  “I
really like it.”

He gave her a strange look that she didn’t
notice.  “Well, it’s not much but like I said, you can make it your own.  Hazel
knows that when I’m at home and you’re in your room that she’s not to disturb
you.”

“Oh, I won’t mind.”  She said quickly.

He shook his head.  “It’s best if you have
some of your own personal time as well, Lily.  Hazel knows the rules and she’ll
follow them.”

He tugged Lily’s purse from Hazel and set
it on the small desk before taking Hazel’s hand.  “We’ll let you get settled in
and unpacked.  Dinner will be in about an hour or so if you’d like to join us.”

“Do you need some help?  I can – “

He shook his head again. “Nope.  I’m
keeping it simple tonight and I can handle grilled cheese and tomato soup.”  He
hesitated. “Do you like grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup?”

“I do.  Thank you.”  She gave him a sweet smile
and he cleared his throat as an odd warmth filled his belly.

“Okay then, we’ll see you in an hour.”  He
and Hazel left the room, shutting the door quietly behind them.

Lily sat down on the bed and then flopped
backwards.  She stared up at the ceiling, a small smile crossing her lips.  The
room was beautiful and for the first time she was on her own and supporting
herself.  She couldn’t be happier. 

The baby kicked and she rubbed her
expanding belly gently.  “Hello, baby girl.  Mama is going to give you a good
life, I promise.”

Her smile faltered.  She had sent a brief
email to Barry’s parents, letting them know she was moving out but not giving
them any other explanation.  Her cell phone had sang its shrill cry as she was
riding on the bus, and she hadn’t needed to glance at the screen to know it was
them.

She sighed.  She would have to change her
number.  They would hound her relentlessly if she didn’t.  She rubbed her belly
again.  She would tell them when she had the baby.  She was their grandchild
after all and they deserved the right to know that she was born healthy and
safe.  She might even let them meet her. 

She took a deep breath and closed her
eyes.  The important thing was that she didn’t screw this up.  She needed this
job, it meant the difference between giving up and keeping her baby, and she
would do whatever it took to keep her baby.

“No one’s taking you away from me, sweet
pea.”  She whispered as she stroked and caressed her belly.  “No one.”

* * *

“Come on, Hazel.  Eat up, honey.”  Logan
coaxed.

Lily glanced at the little girl before
staring down at her own bowl of soup.  She stirred it carefully, studying the
lumps in it before spooning a sip of it into her mouth.  She swallowed it with
difficulty, it was so salty it made her mouth water, and hurriedly took a drink
of water.

Logan stood and opened the kitchen window a
bit wider.  Lily had gone to the kitchen when she heard the shrill sound of the
smoke alarm.  She had stared in surprise at the scene in the kitchen.  Logan
was flapping a dish towel at the smoke alarm as he moved the pan from the
stove.  A blackened sandwich was smoking in the middle of it and he had tossed
it into the trash before turning and smiling at Hazel.

“Don’t worry, ma’am.  I’m a firefighter.”

Lily had snorted laughter and he had
grinned at her before indicating she should sit down.  “Just a small accident
with the grilled cheese.  Have a seat, the other ones have turned out.”

Now, Lily stared at the grilled cheese
sandwich on her plate.  Although not as black as the one he had thrown in the
trash, it was charred and crispy and she didn’t think there was enough ketchup
in the world to make it edible.

She took another sip of soup to be polite
and couldn’t hide the grimace from her face when she swallowed it.  Luckily,
Logan was still standing at the sink and didn’t notice.  Hazel, on the other
hand, was staring at her and Lily winked at her before stirring the bowl of
soup again.

“Hazel.”  Logan chided gently as he sat
back down.  “Eat your soup, please.”

She shook her head and reached for the
plate of cut-up carrots and celery.  She munched on a carrot stick, staring
from beneath her lashes at Lily.

Logan took a large spoonful of soup and
Lily watched with amusement as he spit it back into the bowl, wiping his mouth
and choking a bit.  “Christ, that’s terrible!”

He glanced at Hazel.  “Sorry, baby bug. 
Daddy shouldn’t curse.”

He sighed and reached for his cell phone. 
“I’ll order us some pizza.”

Lily stood up.  “I can make some grilled
cheese if you have more bread?”

“I do, but you don’t need to do that.  I
can order – “

“I don’t mind.  I like to cook.”  Lily
smiled at him and walked to the fridge.  She opened it and bent over, rummaging
through the shelves.  Logan eyed her ass.  She was slender and her ass was
small, but it looked firm and tight in her yoga pants.

He looked away quickly.  Lily wasn’t here
for eye candy.  She was here to look after Hazel and he would be smart to
remember that.

She straightened, her arms full of various
produce, and carried them to the counter.  “I can make us a salad to go with
the sandwiches.”

She went to work quickly and within fifteen
minutes, the smell of perfectly toasted grilled cheese filled the air.  She cut
a sandwich into four wedges and set it on Hazel’s plate.  “Here you go, honey. 
Try it.”

Hazel stared at the sandwich.  The bread
was a perfect light brown and cheese was oozing out of the sides.  After a
moment, Hazel picked it up and bit gingerly into it.  She chewed thoughtfully
before swallowing and taking another larger bite.

Lily smiled with delight and set down a
bowl of salad beside the sandwich.  “Have some salad as well, Hazel.”

She set the second sandwich in front of
Logan.  He took a big bite and gave her the thumbs up.  “It’s delicious.”

She blushed brightly.  “Thank you.”

She cooked another two sandwiches and gave
one to Logan before placing the last one on her plate.  She ate quickly,
dipping the sandwich into a small pool of ketchup.  When she realized Logan and
Hazel were watching her, she blushed again.

“What?”

“I’ve never seen someone dip their grilled
cheese in ketchup before.”  Logan grinned at her.

Her blush deepened.  “It’s pretty good.”

Logan took a bite of his sandwich and
stared at Lily as he chewed.  He had never met a woman who blushed as much as
she did, and he was fascinated by the way her pale skin reddened into a perfect
rose hue.  Hazel was watching her as well and she suddenly pointed at the
ketchup bottle. 

“Do you want some ketchup too, Hazel?” 
Logan asked.  She nodded and he squeezed some on to her plate.  She dipped a
corner of the sandwich into the ketchup before biting off the end of it. 

“Do you like it?”  Lily asked softly.

Hazel didn’t acknowledge her but she dipped
her sandwich into the ketchup again and took another bite.

Logan shrugged and squeezed some ketchup on
to his plate.  “When in Rome…”

* * *

She was awakened by the sound of Hazel
screaming.  She was on her feet, her heart pounding madly in her chest, and
running to the door of her bedroom when she heard the heavy thud of Logan’s
footsteps running down the hallway.  She opened the door and stood uncertainly
in the hallway as Logan’s deep voice came from Hazel’s room.

“You’re okay, baby bug.  Shh, you’re okay. 
Daddy’s here.  Don’t cry.”  He appeared in the hallway, holding a crying,
shaking Hazel in his arms, and jerked a little when he saw Lily standing in the
hallway.

“Is she okay?”  Lily whispered.

He nodded.  “Yeah, she’ll be alright.  Sorry
to wake you.”

He carried Hazel into his bedroom and shut
the door behind him.  Lily went back to her room and crawled back into bed. 
Faintly, she could hear Hazel crying and the sound of Logan soothing her. 
After about five minutes, there was silence and she closed her eyes and tried
to drift back to sleep.

* * *

“Okay, so – you’ve got my cell number and
Betty’s number if you need anything or if anything goes wrong.  I mean, nothing
will go wrong but if you need help just give me a call.  Alright?”  Logan said
anxiously.

Lily smiled at him.  “You bet.  We’ll be
fine.  Don’t worry, Mr. Anderson.”

“Call me Logan.”  He paused as he was
pulling on his jacket.  “Oh uh, I never asked – can you drive?  Do you have
your license?”

She nodded.  “Yes, I have my license and I
can drive.”

“Great.  My wife’s car is in the garage. 
Please use it to run any errands or to take Hazel on outings.  I’ll call and
have you added to the insurance, and the keys are hanging on the hook by the
phone.”

“Oh, um, thank you.  That’s very generous
of you.”  Lily said, surprised.

“Don’t mention it.  Hazel’s extra car seat
is already set up in the back seat.  She likes the library.”

“Alright.  I’ll maybe take her there later
this afternoon.  Would you like that, Hazel?”  She looked down at the little
girl who was standing next to her.

Hazel shrugged without looking at her and
Lily frowned a little.  The little girl was pale and tired looking, and she
seemed even more withdrawn this morning than ever.

Logan knelt down and kissed Hazel’s cheek. 
“Daddy is going to work, honey.  You’re going to stay with Lily while I’m at
work.  You’ll have lots of fun with her and when Daddy gets back we’ll go to a
movie together, alright?”