Falling for the Au Pair

FALLING FOR THE AU PAIR

MIA PETROVA

Chapter One

London, England

              London is a city of dreams.

My dreams really.

The place felt right for my Au Pair program.
An Au Pair is a foreign girl that takes the full job of a child or children’s care. The hosting family expects the Au Pair to be an active part of the family.
At least, that’s what I read on a brochure.

People said it was crazy for me to do this, especially for someone my age. But I thought, what the hell? The Au Pair program is something different, something that can make a person grow. I always loved kids, that’s why I was a kinder garden teacher the moment I was old enough to teach. Then, a friend came to me and told me about this program, where you can travel anywhere and become someone a child can depend on. It’s kind of like a nanny, but more intense. I needed something different after what had happened to me.

A few weeks later on, I was a twenty-six all-American girl standing outside the house of a new family, and I felt terrified. An Au Pair is supposed to be a new member of the family, someone they can all rely on.

What if they didn’t like me?

What if the child didn’t like me? Oh God, was this a bad idea?

Suddenly, the door opened and a woman appeared. “Oh, hello there, you must be Audrey,” she said with a very sweet voice I recognized after spending so many hours talking with her on the phone.

A little shaky, I smiled and offered my hand. “Y-yes. That’s me. I’m Audrey.”

My heart pounded so loud I thought it would shake the entire world. All my insecurities however, vanished the moment I saw a small little girl hiding behind the woman’s legs. Her blonde hair looked like gold in the sunlight. Her bright and big eyes stared straight at me, maybe evaluating me as I was doing with her. And it was cute how her pink dress looked too big on her tiny body, as if she was all dressed up for me.

Kneeling to her size, I watched her the same way she watched me – with curiosity, fear, but most importantly, with enthusiasm.

“I think I found myself a princess to look after,” I said, giving her my best smile.

When she returned the expression, I saw her timid face transform into a happy, warm and fearless girl. In a blink of an eye, she was throwing her arms around my neck, giggling as though she had found a new best friend. And oh, how I loved that innocent sound resonating in my ears.

Noticing she wouldn’t let go of me anytime soon, I stood up with her tiny body in my arms. She was quite small for a six-year-old.

“Look at that,” the sweet woman said.

If I didn’t know that the mother in the family had passed away a few years ago, I would have thought that the woman standing there, looking at us like a proud mom, was really her mother. Gloria had brown hair, delicate eyes and was maybe at her fifties. She was the manager of the house and I would work with her every day for a few hours.

“And you must be Gloria. It’s really nice to meet you,” I finally said to her, smiling. I liked her, our talks on the phone about the family and the work were relaxed and easy.

She was about to invite me in, it was my guess, when a man appeared in the hallway behind her. At first, I didn’t see much, I only saw a robust man walking toward the door. There was too many shadows. He had a nice stance, and he looked very confident.

“I’m Rachel. And If I’m a princess, my daddy is the king, right?”

Distracted by Rachel’s voice, my attention went to her beautiful face. “Absolutely.”

She laughed while her tiny fingers played with my short ginger hair. It was there when I was gazing at her that I first heard his voice.

“Audrey,” he said, with a speck of a smile. His first word? My name. “Please do come in.”

Swallowing hard, I turned my head to the door, where Rachel’s father now stood next to Gloria. It was difficult to think and even formulate words. With only the deepness and roughness of his voice, and oh, the accent, made my heart crazy inside my chest.

The sight of him, however, made all the blood in my body turn into liquid fire. He was tall and robust. His clothes fit him perfectly with a brown t-shirt, black jacket and jeans. He had short, dark blonde hair while his eyes were crystal blue. I never once called a man gorgeous, but damn, he was indeed gorgeous. He must’ve be in the house of forty something, as the lines around his eyes were already there. It was really attractive how it marked his face, though. Yet, what struck me the most was his eyes. I’ve never seen so tired eyes before. His smile didn’t quite fit his appearance. He was a serious man, not one to play with. I had to keep that in mind.

If it wasn’t for Rachel’s weight in my arms and the presence of Gloria right next to him I would have said or done something really stupid.

“Mister Abram, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you,” I said and hugged Rachel’s body tightly to my chest to have an excuse to not offer my hand for him to shake.

His skin touching mine own was the last thing I wanted.

“Thomas. Please call me Thomas,” he said and placed his hands inside his pockets.

              Without anymore delays, we were all bundled up in the living room. I had Rachel sitting in my lap while Gloria and Mister Abram explained how everything worked. I already knew all the basics, now I was learning all about Rachel’s schedules. Gloria did most of the talking really, because a few minutes after we were all sitting there, Thomas’s cell phone rang. After answering in the kitchen, which was right in the next room, Thomas appeared, walked to me in confident steps and kissed Rachel’s forehead.

              He was so close I could smell his perfume. It was delicious and enthralling, but not as much as the moment he lifted his head after kissing Rachel and looked me right in the eye.

              “It was a pleasure to meet you, Audrey. We’ll talk later.”

              Without trusting my vocal cords, I nodded and gave him a simple smile. And in that moment I never felt more embarrassed. I was in that house to take care of Rachel, to be a part of that girl’s life and be someone she could really count on. And there I was, head over heels over her father. Taking a deep breath, I told my mind to stop that nonsense. It would never happen and I wouldn’t risk my relationship with Rachel.

*****

              A few months ago, Gloria’s idea for having someone, an Au Pair, at the house exclusively to take care of Rachel and be more active with her sounded like the best idea. Now I wasn’t so sure. Maybe because I had this thought in my head that the person was going to be older, like those nannies that we often see in television when the wife hires someone that cannot tempt the husband.

Gloria had played me, it seems. The woman was more than the manager of the house, she often looked like the mother I never had, even though she was a few years older than I was. And the subject of how lonely I felt was pretty much out there, to everyone to see.

              I was a man still hurting about the death of his wife. And she had died more than four years ago. It was twice as hard when Rachel bared her entire soul. Physically, Rachel was just like me, but the goodness, the smiles, the giggling; it was everything Sarah once was. It’s difficult to move on when you see pieces of your dead wife every time you look at your daughter.

              Seeing Rachel with Audrey, though, made all the wrong kind of feelings to surface. I was at the kitchen, studying a new murder case when a gentle and sweet voice came crashing and penetrating through the entire house. It sent chills throughout my body. Good chills that I haven’t felt for quite some time.

It felt good.

Too good.

              I stood there for a moment, paralyzed, not knowing what to do with the sudden feelings that seemed to reach me through infinite walls of solitude. But I had to move, I had to meet her sooner or later.

Forcing my legs, I moved my muscles and went for the hallway. Instantly I saw a woman standing outside my door, holding my daughter tightly in her arms. It was quite a vision. A sight that messed me up inside. I liked that image with the ginger girl. A girl that would be noticed among thousands upon thousands of girls.

              Taking note of the hardness of my body for the first time since I couldn’t remember, I was then standing next to Gloria. I said a few words to Audrey while I tried to let her beauty take in. She was young, younger than I thought she would have been, but nonetheless, she wasn’t a girl, was she? She was a young woman. A beautiful young woman with short ginger hair. Her eyes were dark though, almost black, which set her beauty apart. I thanked Rachel for being in her arms, covering most of her chest and her curves. Only the sight of her legs in those jeans, however, made all the blood center in the middle of my legs.

              Bloody hell, was I supposed to be living with her?

In the same hallway? The same house?

              Thank God when my phone rang when we were in the living room, demanding my presence at work. My partner finally had gotten a great lead about the murder case we were working on.

I thought about leaving with just a little wave and a faraway goodbye, but I didn’t want to break tradition. I always kissed Rachel’s forehead before leaving to work, and if I didn’t do that, Gloria would surely notice something was happening to me.

              Therefore, I went there, I kissed my beautiful daughter’s forehead while Audrey’s great presence unsettled my every thought and movement. When I lifted my head and saw her face staring straight at me, I sensed this rare smell of lilies.

Holy hell, she was exceptional.

I loved the way she gazed at me with those big dark eyes.

              All I knew was that I was going to be thinking about her instead of the dead girl I was supposed to be helping. What a great lead detective I was going to be today.

Chapter Two

              My first day with the Abram family moved so fast that I didn’t even see it.

Gloria showed me to my room, which was right next to Rachel’s. I felt relieved. I didn’t want to be next to Thomas’s room, in which was down the hall, next to the bathroom. The house wasn’t small, but it wasn’t big either. It was comfortable. Every room seemed to have the perfect size, and Gloria kept everything neat and clean.

              I stayed in my room for a few hours, rearranging my things while trying to feel at home. Rachel was there, in my bed, telling me everything about her. I listened, giggled and enjoyed every single word she said to me. She was the most adorable girl I had ever met. Suddenly, I never felt so lucky.

              It was difficult not to think about her father though, because Rachel talked about him all the time. And how could she not when she was his daughter and loved him very much?

              “My daddy is a detective, he helps people,” she said while we were in the living room playing with her LEGOS.

              “Really? I didn’t know that,” I replied, clearly showing how surprised I was with the revelation.

It all made sense now. That’s why he walked with that much confidence, and how he transmitted security with simply standing next to you. That’s why he looks so very tired. For all the TV shows I watched, the detectives always worked too much and too hard.

              “Yeah. My daddy is the best hero of this town.”

              I smiled with that comment. “I’m sure he is, Rachel.”

              “So, you don’t have to ever feel afraid, Audrey. Because he always takes the bad guy.”

              “Wow, you’re not just a little girl, are you?” I said, getting a little closer to her. “I think you’re tricking me into believing you’re a little girl. Are you tricking me, Rachel?” I was now sitting right at her side.

              She laughed. “No, I’m not tricking you.”

              “Well, I think you are,” I said and put my fingers on her belly, beginning to tickle her senseless.

              Her giggles and screams rushed to every nick and crane of the house. Her sounds so innocent and enchanting it was hard not to laugh with her.