Page 60 of The Accidental Nanny

“Thought so. Spill, kiddo.” I sit on the edge of his bed. Eden stands next to me, watching.

“Go away,” Ace orders her.

I look at Eden. “Please go to your bedroom so Ace and I can have a private conversation.”

“Why?” she whines.

“I need to speak to your brother alone,” I say.

“That’s not fair.” Eden stomps her foot.

“No tantrum. Life isn’t fair,” I reply. She walks off, but the footsteps stop far short of her bedroom door.

“Eden,” I warn. I hear her stifle a giggle.

“I’m in my room,” Eden says trying to be quiet. She thinks she's got one up on us.

Ace and I look at each other. “No ice cream after school,” I call. We can hear her footsteps getting further away as she runs off.

“Dad said no more ice cream anyway,” Ace points out. He's trying to distract me, but it won't work.

“Your dad isn’t in charge of you while he's at work, and what do we say if he asks?” I raise an eyebrow.

“Gemma gave us a carrot stick and an apple until dinner was ready.” Ace can't help his smile.

“And?” I prompt him.

“We only get ice cream as a treat," he finishes off.

“Well done. Now, what’s going on? And don’t lie to me. I can smell a liar a mile off. Is this because of the fight you hadat school? Why did you push that boy?” I stroke the back of his head.

“He was making fun of me because my mum left.” Ace's voice drops, and I can tell by the way he avoids my eyes that there's more to it.

“I see. Who was it?” I ask.

“George.”

Penny's child.

“And?” He was still holding back. I can tell.

“Everyone is mean to me. I’ve got no friends. They call me names and don’t let me play with anyone.” Ace's voice breaks as the words tumble out of his mouth.

The way he looks up at me with those big eyes makes my heart break. This needs to be dealt with now. On the outside I’m calm, but on the inside, I’m a raging maniac.

“Look, sweetie. This is what’s going to happen. I will deal with this, I promise. What I need you to do is go to school today, but I will put an end to it. By tomorrow, everything will be fine, and those bullies will get what's coming to them,” I promise him. "But you need to go to school for me to be able to do that. Can you manage it?"

Ace nods, but I can see he’s worried. “Are you going to tell Dad?”

“Not unless you want me to.” I pull him in for a hug.

“No.” He sniffs and wipes his eyes.

Sitting next to him, I kiss his head. “Get dressed for school, and I'll arrange something special for dinner tonight, I promise.”

“You will?” Eden’s little voice squeals by the door.

“Eden!” I scold her.