Page 3 of Bully Wolf’s Nanny (Silvermist Wolves #1)

But he owed Felix a duty of loyalty. He had sworn allegiance when he was just sixteen years old, when Felix had decided their fathers had brought enough death and despair to the pack. His best friend had never asked for more than Nicolas was willing to give, and had always tried to do right by him.

He knew Felix. He wouldn’t be bringing this up if he thought Nicolas shouldn’t be hearing it. He was wise beyond his years, and had an uncanny ability to cut through Nicolas’s bullshit to the truth beneath.

If nothing else, he owed it to Felix to hear him out.

“What do you suggest?”

Felix’s shoulders lost some of their tension and he cracked an easy smile. “There’s this agency. Rick told me about it a while back. They specialize in providing nannies for shifter males.”

Nicolas’s eyebrows shot up. “That’s a rather particular niche.”

Felix shrugged. “You and I both know that personal relationships aren’t easy for us. I guess there’s a market for it.”

“Have you used them?”

“No, but I’ve considered it. I think you should, too. They’re highly reputable. Rick wouldn’t have considered them if they weren’t the best of the best.”

“Yet he only considered them? He didn’t want to use them?”

Felix shrugged again. “You know what he’s like about strangers in his house.”

“Yeah, he’s an elitist—"

“Careful,” Felix said, imbuing his voice with just enough of a bite to make Nicolas swallow his insult.

“Look, just check out their agency. I’ll even set up the meeting. It would be good for you to get back into the thick of things.”

Nicolas considered Gracie, all smiles and shiny cheeks, and rolled his eyes. “Okay. Fine. You win. I’ll meet them. But I’m telling you now, nobody they put in front of me will be good enough.”

***

One week later, Nicolas was cramped into a chair too small for his lithe frame, glaring at a rather frazzled-looking woman with gray hair curling around her temples.

For an agency that supposedly catered exclusively to shifter males, he was surprised they couldn’t be bothered to invest in more suitable furniture.

Yet another black mark against them.

The woman was rifling through papers, getting increasingly nervous, shooting wary glances towards him with every clumsy movement. It was no surprise, really; he’d been told many times how intimidating he could be when he wanted.

And right now, he really wanted to be.

“Right! Er…Mr. Accardi. What a lovely name. Italian, is it?”

“Yes,” Nicolas replied tersely, drumming his fingers against the arm of the chair.

“Oh, how lovely. Does your family come from the Alpine wolf clans? Did you know you can trace most shifter genealogies back to precise geographical—"

“If I may,” Nicolas interrupted, leaning forward in his seat, fixing his gaze on the quivering human, “I have some questions about you and your agency.”

“Oh, it’s not my agency, dearie!” the woman laughed nervously. “I’m just one of the local representatives. This is one of our satellite offices, our main office is in Washington D.C. Plenty of shifter types in those parts!”

“Perhaps I should have gone to that office instead,” replied Nicolas.

The woman—Molly, according to the name tag pinned to her crisp white shirt—coughed and readjusted her glasses. “My apologies, Mr. Accardi. Of course, please ask anything you want. It would be my delight to tell you more about our agency and the services we provide.”

Nicolas considered her, focusing the full weight of his penetrating gaze on her. The silence hung thick, and he could tell she was fighting the urge to squirm.

“I’ve been assured that you are one of the most reputable nanny agencies in the country,” said Nicolas eventually, “despite your specialism. What sets you apart from a… human-focused agency?”

Molly blinked. “Well, it’s simple really.

We understand that the political climate has left humans and shifters deeply mistrustful of one another.

We have to coexist, but our institutions remain frustratingly separate.

Humans have government, shifters have their local packs, humans have the police, shifters have pack enforcers, humans prefer country-based identification, shifters identify with their territories.

Yes, we may have various accords between us, understandings both legal and unspoken, but it is undeniable that both species would prefer to govern themselves. ”

Nicolas nodded slowly, his fingers steepled together.

“Here, we believe that there is nothing more important, more requiring of trust, than childcare. Increasing numbers of studies have shown that human nannies who lack adequate training in shifter children, and shifter family dynamics, often enter households utterly unprepared, and it is the children who suffer for it. We seek to remedy this by providing comprehensive training to our nannies, and of course, carefully vetting them for their…shall we say…political views.”

“So you provide nannies who aren’t blatantly anti-shifter.”

Molly turned slightly red. “In a nutshell, yes. In fact, we’ve just finished training a wonderful young woman who happens to be a shifter herself, and a mother to a shifter child. I think she could be an excellent fit to your needs.”

“Hold on,” Nicolas said, holding up a hand, his voice dropping, “how the hell do you know anything about my needs? I’ve only been here for ten minutes! Do you seriously expect me to just accept the first woman you put in front of me and let her look after my daughter?”

“Please, Mr. Accardi, just—"

“No, this is ridiculous. I have to admit, I had my doubts, but you have convinced me that you are nothing but unprofessional, lazy, money-grabbing—"

“Excuse me, Molly,” there was a hesitant knock at the door, “Janice said you wanted to see me?”

Nicolas turned, fully ready to direct his ire at whoever was stupid enough to interrupt him.

Daisy Copperfield blinked up at him, her lips parted, her eyes wide with shock and fear.

“...Nicolas?”