The Nanny Clause

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“Won’t you let us bring her home, Dad?” Paris begged.

Pippa went to her dad and gave him a hug. “Please, Daddy. We’ll get to see her kittens born.”

Penny sounded like an old soul when she said, “It would mean a lot to us, Dad.”

Daniel studied each of his daughters, one by one. He didn’t look at Emma. “We do have a spare room upstairs. We could keep her in there, at least until after the kittens are born.”

All three of his daughters cheered, high-fived and gave Emma wide smiles. Then Daniel said, “Why don’t you go up to your rooms for a while. I’d like to talk to Emma.”

His daughters were now ready to do anything he said. They ran off talking about preparations for Fiesta and exactly what they’d put in her room.

As soon as Daniel heard all three girls run up the stairs, he pointed his finger at Emma. “You ambushed me.”

“I didn’t,” Emma protested, feeling defensive. “It happened exactly as your daughters said. What were they supposed to do, write you a letter so you didn’t feel ambushed?”

“You could have called me at work to warn me that this was coming. Instead, all three came at me at once with you managing in the background.”

“I wasn’t managing anything. The girls have felt strongly about Fiesta ever since they found her.”

He shook his head, scowling again. “You shouldn’t have talked to them about the cat until you consulted with me. They’ve had enough loss. What if Fiesta or one of the kittens dies? On the other hand, if the kittens are healthy, I have to find homes for them and the mom. I don’t want a houseful of cats.”

Emma had kept her temper even up until now. But suddenly his words lit a match to it. She pushed her chair away from the table and stood. “If I’m going to be involved in your daughters’ all-day care, then that means I’m going to be involved in their lives. I wasn’t going to tell them what the phone call was about but they heard Fiesta’s name mentioned. I wasn’t going to lie to them when they asked me about it. And as we talked about it, I realized a pregnant cat could teach them about birth and responsibility. It could also bond you with your daughters more than they are now. Did you ever think of that?”

Before she cried in front of him, she tossed her napkin to the table. “I’ll clear this mess later. I’m going to my room for a little while.”

She hurried from the kitchen before more of her feelings leaked out.

* * *

Daniel cleaned off the table and ran the dishwasher. Action was his defense against unsettled feelings. Emma Alvarez had unsettled quite a few. When he’d finished all the kitchen chores—he was not going to leave them for Emma—he knew what he had to do.

Apologizing wasn’t something that came easy to him. Maybe that was one of the reasons Lydia had left, along with many others. Unfortunately, Emma’s actions had stirred up the past. It was a hornet’s nest he didn’t usually disturb. Possibly, that’s why he still felt empty sometimes. After Lydia had left, he’d had to focus on the girls and work. That was it. It was called putting one foot in front of the other and he’d done that for two years.

However, suddenly Emma’s presence had thrust him back into thoughts of his marriage and the aftermath of it. He was uncomfortable. That’s why he’d argued with Emma.

Walking down the hall to her room, he knew there was a possibility that she could be packing to leave. Did she run from arguments? Did she stay and fight? Did she resolve them and go on? He didn’t know how she would respond to their current problem. To his surprise, he wanted to find the answers to all of those questions.

Knocking on Emma’s door, he tried to prepare himself for the scene ahead. After all, that’s what lawyers did. Don’t ask a question you don’t know the answer to. At least that’s what his friends who were criminal-trial lawyers had told him.

When Emma opened the door, her eyes went wide. She obviously hadn’t expected him. She’d changed into a sleeping tank and shorts that had little multicolored paws all over them. That almost made him smile. But the discussion they had to have was too serious.