“You took care of her, you said.”
I beamed. “That’s right. Toni was only four when our mother—”
“Our previous au pair lived with the family,” Glenda continued as if she hadn’t heard. “We really had no choice. Someone had to be here full-time. James and I were both working from home during the pandemic, and with the girls learning online... Well, you can imagine.”
I nodded sympathetically. Online learning had been tough for Toni, too.
“Obviously, now that Lily and Sophie are attending school in person, they don’t require the same level of supervision. But the room is empty. And it occurs to me...”
Hope rose in my throat. I waited breathlessly. Was she offering to let melivewith her?
“Perhaps you might consider helping out with the girls. Not at the same salary as our previous au pair, of course. It’s not as if you would be taking care of the girls full-time. But you did say you need a place to stay.”
“You want me to work for you?”
“I don’t want you to feel any pressure. You’re a student in the department. But there would obviously be... advantages to the arrangement. For both of us.” She smiled. “You’d almost be like one of the family. Temporarily, of course.”
I knew all about being a temporary member of a family. “I’d love to,” I said.
—
I don’t get it,” Reeti said. It was Sunday—my day off—and she had invited me for dinner. “You didn’t want to stay with me. Why are you moving in with Dr.Norton?”
“She’s paying me.”
“Au pairs make shit.”
I was making less than the previous au pair. “Every little bit helps.”
I was lucky. Our mother’s trust paid my tuition and left me a cushion to live on. But this trip to Dublin—and the extra two years I’d spent in the program at KU—had definitely made a dent in the fund.
“Anyway, it’s only temporary,” I said. “Until I find a place of my own.”
Reeti stirred the pan simmering on the stove, chicken in a thick red sauce. It smelled delicious, spicy and unfamiliar. “Living with me would also be temporary. What’s the difference?”
Was that a flash of hurt in her eyes? “I don’t want to impose,” I said. “You’ve already done so much for me.”
“Like what?”
You’re my friend. But that sounded pathetic. “You’re making me dinner.”
“You brought dessert.”
“Because the girls and I baked cookies yesterday,” I said.
“And flowers.”
“They were so pretty I couldn’t resist.”
Reeti waved her dripping spoon at me. “My point is, we’re friends. You don’t need to pay me back for an invitation. Friends do things for one another. It is my pleasure to have you.”
Her words curled warmly around my heart.It is my pleasure to have you. But the fear remained that I was somehow pushing myself on her, like an inconvenient child being dumped on a reluctant friend. Like a presumptuous girlfriend taking up drawer space, leaving a toothbrush and tampons at her lover’s house. Could I really be welcome?
Impossible to ask.
“Thanks,” I said instead. Napkins and place mats were stacked on the counter. I found forks and knives in a drawer and started to set the table. “That smells amazing. What is it?”
“Butter chicken.” She drizzled a swirl of heavy cream over the red sauce.
