Page 23 of Rejected Nanny Mate (Crystal Creek Wolves #3)

After the woman spoke, the room went deadly silent, but it still felt so, so loud.

Where is our daughter?

Rose looked so much like Joe that I hadn't noticed it when the woman's glamour magic had first faded, but in the shockwave of her question, I quickly searched for face and saw the echoes of the beautiful baby that I had been caring for.

It was in her slightly upturned nose, her bow-shaped lips, and the shape of her eyes.

I sat there, stunned, feeling like I'd been punched in the gut.

Joe was the father of this woman's child.

His ex-girlfriend or fling or whatever she was.

Why did this revelation hurt so badly? I knew that this woman existed, but knowing and being in the presence of her were two totally different things.

I glanced at Joe, but his gaze was locked on the woman, who was still sprawled across the couch, a hand pressed to her head. When she spoke again, her voice was quieter and filled with confusion. “What happened to me?”

“Mia,” Joe said with no hesitation. He'd had no idea who Rose's mother was, but now that she was here in his home, he suddenly was confident. It twisted the knife in my gut even more. “The magic surge attacked you.”

Mia sat up straighter, pressing a hand to her forehead and wincing. “I don't know what that means.”

“It's something that's been happening in my territory. I can explain it later. But why were you here, and in disguise?” Before she could answer, Joe looked over his shoulder at me, “Gwen, can you get Mia something to drink and maybe some medicine for her headache?”

I opened my mouth to speak, but realized there were tears on my face.

Joe looked surprised at my reaction, then he reached out to me, and I stepped back.

The hurt on his face made me feel worse, but I couldn't stand being close to him right now.

It made everything so much more real. “Yeah,” I said, sniffling. “I'll be right back.”

I hurried out of the room and into the kitchen, feeling like I was going to be sick.

My body wanted me to curl up in bed and cry for the rest of the night, but my brain was racing through all of the implications of Mia's presence.

I got the water and the medicine, and by the time I had returned, I'd dried my face and composed my features.

When Joe looked at me questioningly, I just shook my head, telling him wordlessly not to worry about me.

Mia had apparently explained quite a bit in the short time I'd been gone, and she continued after she took her pills.

Mia was part of a smaller pack about a hundred miles away, and the Alpha had lost his mind, and his illness was slowly poisoning the pack from the inside out.

It was very toxic, and terrible for the she-wolves in the pack.

Mia wasn't ready to give up on her family, but she knew she had to do something to keep Rose safe, so she'd left her on Joe's doorstep.

But the Alpha had been enraged that she'd escaped and taken Rose to safety, and Mia had been punished over and over for it. Two nights ago, Mia had cast a spell circle, disguised herself with a powerful glamor, and came back to Brokenclaw territory to beg Joe for asylum from her awful pack.

Of course, Mia was a witch, and apparently a powerful one if she was able to cast a multi-day glamor.

The jealousy in me only continued to grow, but I kept my expression neutral.

Joe was listening to her intently, his face grave.

When she finished speaking, he shook his head and ran a hand through his dark hair.

“Damn. That's...that's awful, Mia. I'm so sorry.”

“I'm just glad to be safe.” Mia's blue eyes found me, and I could feel the weight of her gaze.

She was obviously suspicious of me, and I wondered if she could tell that I'd been intimate with Joe.

“If you don't want me to stay, I understand, but I missed Rose so terribly, I just had to try and see her again before things got worse. You understand, don't you?”

“Of course I do,” Joe said. He looked down the hallway to where the nursery was, and I knew exactly what he was about to ask me.

I sighed and went to wake the baby up before he could tell me to do so.

It stung less if I could pretend it was my choice, rather than something I was doing because Joe wanted me to.

Rose was still half asleep and flushed when I brought her out to the living room, rubbing her eyes and leaning her head on my shoulder.

Mia made a sound halfway between a gasp and a sob and jumped up to take the baby out of my arms, and despite a part of me wanting to hold on, I released her and let her mother scoop her up.

“My Rose,” Mia murmured, rocking her back and forth. “I missed you so much.”

“Why don't we all go sit down?” Joe suggested, putting a hand on Mia's shoulder. “And we can talk.”

I sat down on the opposite side of the living room, as far away from everyone as I could get.

Mia looked up at me with those piercing blue eyes again, and I tried to give her a reassuring smile.

There was nothing more to say, but Mia seemed to want to thank me over and over.

I took the baby back and settled her into her crib after a while.

When I returned, I heard Mia and Joe talking quietly in the living room.

I paused in the hallway, out of sight, and listened.

“Joe,” she was saying. “I don't want to impose, but would you mind if I stayed for a while? At least until I'm strong enough to travel again.”

“Of course not,” Joe said. “I'll go get one of the guest rooms set up for you, okay?”

“Thank you so much. You have no idea how grateful I am. And that woman...Gwen. She's lovely, isn't she?”

“She is,” Joe replied, his voice soft. “She's taken good care of Rose.”

“That's wonderful to hear.” Then she passed. “Are the two of you...?”

Joe took longer to respond than I expected, but when he spoke, he said exactly what I had expected him to. “She's Rose's nanny.”

They obviously had a lot more to talk about, so I swallowed past the lump in my throat and went back to my room, but before I got there, I paused in front of the nursery room door.

It might have been my last night in Joe's house, and, therefore, the last chance I'd get to see my sweet Rosie sleeping.

I pushed her door open as silently as possible, and she was already passed out again, hands in fists stretched out above her head.

Blinking back tears, I stroked a finger down one round cheek, marveling at how peaceful and happy she looked.

I wanted to think that I'd been able to make her feel safe here, even if it wasn't forever.

It's better this way, I reminded myself, forcing back the sadness that was threatening to overtake me.

If Rose's mother were here, she wouldn't need me anymore.

I couldn't be a second mom to Rose, and I would have to leave.

But even though it felt like my heart was being ripped out, I knew it was for the best. The baby needed her mother, and I was just a substitute. A fill-in.

There was no way that Mia would let me stay here after the way things had happened between Joe and me. What if she wanted to rekindle whatever relationship she and Joe had had? Even if it was just a one-night stand in the beginning, the three of them could be an actual family now.

With a sigh, I closed the door and returned to my room, climbing into bed. I didn't want to leave, and it was hard to imagine what it would be like to return to Samson's pack. I hadn't realized just how much I'd grown to love living here, and how happy I'd become, even with the magic surges.

I tossed and turned most of the night, and when morning came, I felt more exhausted than ever.

After showering and dressing, I walked out of my room and almost ran right into Joe, who was coming out of his.

He reached out and steadied me, then immediately took a step back once I was on my feet.

I blinked, surprised at how much I missed the touch of his hand against mine.

“Sorry,” he said quickly. “I'm still half asleep. Are you okay?”

“I'm fine,” I said. I was about to ask him if he wanted me to make coffee, but before I could say anything else, Mia opened the door of one of the guest rooms. She was wearing a pair of Joe's sweatpants and a t-shirt that was several sizes too big for her.

She'd pulled her hair into a ponytail, and she looked a lot younger than she had last night.

I felt a pang of jealousy at how cute she looked and how good she seemed to fit in at Joe's place.

“Morning.” I told her briefly before turning back to Joe, “Can we talk here in a minute?” I wanted to tell him I wanted us to be alone, but Joe knew me well enough to read between the lines. He nodded once.

“Let me brush my teeth, and I'll meet you out on the patio, okay?”

“Sounds good.”

He gave me a quick smile and disappeared into his room, and I took a deep breath before heading outside, the cold air biting through my shirt.

I popped back inside long enough to grab one of Joe's old flannels that he had hanging up, and pulled it tightly around myself as I waited for him in the anemic morning light.

When Joe finally came outside, I'd been staring off into the trees for so long that the chill had sunk all the way into my bones. He wrapped an arm around me and tugged me closer to him, and I let myself lean into his warmth for just a moment, trying to memorize the feeling.

“Sorry, I'm late,” he said. “I showed Mia where everything in the kitchen was, and she's feeding Rose breakfast.”

“Don't worry about it.”

He stepped back from me, and I immediately missed his warmth. But he put his hands in his pockets, and I knew he was trying to distance himself. There wasn't much space between us, but it felt like an ocean. I wondered if he felt the same way.

“So,” I started, my voice low. “What do we do now?”