Page 69 of Unexpected

Spots swam before my eyes. If she only knew…if she only knew I was falling in love with my daughter’s nanny. Talk about a cliché.

Chapter Twenty

Alexis slid an envelope across the kitchen counter. “This is for you.”

We’d barely seen each other in days. She was gone before I woke, and she came home late, often long after Sophia had gone to bed. I knew she was stressed and exhausted, but a little hello would’ve been nice. Maybe a kiss. Or was a simple “How was your day?” too much to ask?

I tried to understand. Really, I did. I knew how much Alexis loved her job. I knew how important it was to her. I also knew that I didn’t fully appreciate the pressure she was under, but I tried. I tried to be there for her, but it was difficult when it felt like she was shutting me out.

I picked up the envelope and opened the flap. “What is it?”

“Just a little something to say thank you for all the extra hours you’ve been working.”

Inside, there was a check for five thousand dollars. I stared at the amount before placing it back in the envelope and pushing it away. There was no way I could accept that. It felt wrong—dirty. Like she was trying to buy me off or something.

“What’s wrong?” she asked. “Is it not enough?”

I crossed my arms over my chest, my eyes wide. “Are you kidding? Not enough? It’s way too much.”

“Preston,” she said. “You’ve been working on your days off, staying over late. I don’t expect you to do it all for free.”

“I do it because I love Sophia. I love you.”

She didn’t say it back, didn’t look me in the eye. Finally, she sighed. “Look, I know what it’s like to feel like you’re being taken advantage of. I would never want you to feel that way.”

She slid the envelope back across the counter toward me. “Please—take it. It’s what I’d pay Gabby if she were working extra hours for me.”

I shook my head, holding her gaze. “No.”

She’d barely responded to my texts the past few days, unless it was to tell me she was running late. Now,this?

She threw her hands in the air. “I don’t understand what the big deal is.”

“What’s the big deal? You avoid me for days, then come home and try to pay me off.”

“I’m not paying you off,” she huffed, her face turning red. “I’m paying you for services rendered.”

“Services rendered?” I laughed, but there was an edge to it. “And exactly which services would those be—the babysitting or the fucking?”

“I—” She stared at me with her mouth open, before turning and storming off toward the stairs.

I marched after her. “Is this why you buy Sophia designer clothes and host elaborate birthday parties? To try to compensate for being gone?”

I regretted the words the moment I’d spoken them, but it was too late to take them back. She straightened, and it was then I saw her hidden strength. The fire that blazed in her eyes.

“I’m sorry,” I sighed. “That was uncalled-for.”

“Yeah. It was.” Her voice was hard. “You have no idea what I’ve been through.”

“Maybe that’s because you won’t open up to me,” I ground out.

I kept trying. I’d thought we were finally getting somewhere. That she was finally letting me in. And every time I’d get a little closer, she’d retreat to work again.

I scrubbed a hand over my face. “I thought we’d agreed this was more than a fling. Maybe I was wrong.”

“You’re not wrong,” she sighed, taking a seat on the stairs.

“Then talk to me.” I sat next to her. “Don’t vanish for days, only to come home and throw money at me. It makes me feel… I don’t know…dirty.”