Page 22 of Nanny for the Bodyguard

Giving kids drugs is supposed to be this huge thing. She can’t even have cough medicine, if I remember correctly.

What do I do? What do I do?

My phone buzzes in my pocket, and I pull it out to swipe away the junk email notification.

“Wait. That’s it.”

Going to my recent calls, I swipe on the top one and wait as the phone rings. “Come on, come on.”

“Easton, what’s up?” Hazel sounds confused, but I can’t care right now; I’m too focused on Jade.

“Jade has a fever, and I don’t know what to do. Help.”

There’s a pause, and then I hear shuffling. “Oh, shit. Okay. It’s going to be fine. Do you have any children’s ibuprofen to give her?”

“What? No. I just have Excedrin. I know she can’t have that.”

I’m pacing now, walking the kitchen in circles as I drag a hand across the top of my island. The surface is cool, and it immediately reminds me of how hot Jade is.

“Okay, that’s alright. I’ll swing by the pharmacy and pick some up. You go stay with her. You can put a cold washcloth or ice pack on her head to help.”

Hazel sounds confident and relaxed as if this is a minor inconvenience but totally normal. I suppose it is, but dammit, I clearly wasn’t prepared for the eventuality of Jade getting sick.

Hearing Hazel’s plan does ease my stress, though. She’s got a solid, actionable plan. I can work with that.

“Okay. Okay. Do I need to do anything else?”

There’s the sound of keys jingling in the background, and I head to my freezer to pull out an ice pack and wrap it in a dish towel.

“Are there any other symptoms?”

“Umm.” I think back to today. It was just us, no Hazel. I had the day off, so I hung out with her. She was fine. I didn’t even notice until I hugged her. But Jade was acting more tired than usual. “I was putting her to bed early because she seemed really tired. She didn’t have much energy today.”

“Okay, it’s probably just a little bug. Kids get sick all the time, so don’t panic. I’ll be there as quickly as I can.”

“Alright. Thank you. Really.”

My heart is still pounding, but this is good. We’re okay.

“Of course. Hang tight.”

I hang up, going straight back up to Jade. She’s not in the bathroom, but the sink is wet, as is her toothbrush.

“Jade?”

“I’m in my room! I feel gross!” she calls out, and I hurry over, noticing that she didn’t even turn the light on.

“I’m sorry, honey. Hazel is getting some medicine, but I have this ice pack for now. It’ll help.”

I hand it to her, and Jade puts it on her head, lying back down in her bed like she was before. She’s kicked off the blankets, too.

“Are you feeling anything else? Sick to your stomach?” Jade shakes her head, keeping her eyes closed. “Okay, that’s good. Do you want me to put the tablet music on?”

She nods, curling into herself.

“Alright.”

I get her room set up how we usually have it and stand at the door while I wait for Hazel to get here. Jade looks like she’s trying to sleep, but the fever is making her uncomfortable.