“Wow, that was quick.”
She smiles, and it has the same effect it had on me when I first met her—calming.
“This is my mother’s recipe. It will take away the sting of a burn, bug bite, and even sometimes arthritis.”
She chuckles at her claims, and I join her.
“Thank you,” I say once she’s done.
She twists the top back on the bottle and places it on the counter in front of me.
“You can keep this one here for my chunky baby. I have plenty.”
I swear the best thing I could have done was hire this woman as my son’s nanny.
“Now,” she says, placing her hands on her hips, she looks me directly in the eye. “What’s wrong? You’ve been avoiding me like we slept together.”
I choke on the sip of coffee I’d just taken. She isn’t wrong. I just wasn’t expecting her to be so forward about it.
After wiping my mouth, I take a paper towel and clean the spill I’d made.
“I…uh… haven’t been avoiding you.”
When I look up, her brow is lifted in the universal mom way. The one that tells you without words to stop playing with her. I didn’t have a mom growing up, but even I know that look.
Sighing, I toss the used paper towel in the trash and then lean against the counter.
“I’m sorry you had to witness what you did the other night. You didn’t take this job to be a nanny and a shoulder for me to cry on. I’m sorry.”
Ms. Rose waves her hand through the air. “Child, don’t apologize for that. When I took this job as a caregiver, I was offering my services not just to my chunky man, but to everyone in this household. That includes you.”
I look down at my shoes, not able to show her how much her words warmed my heart.
“Well, thank you. I really appreciated it.”
She hums. “Mmmhmmm. Now, you want to tell me what’s bothering you?”
Standing up straight, I ask, “What do you mean?”
She watches me closely before going over to the fridge to grab some fruits and vegetables we used to make Noah’s food.
“I was standing in this kitchen for two minutes watching you before you spilled that coffee. Your mind was miles away.” She looks back over her shoulder at me. “I was a married woman once, and I know that distant look. I’ve burned grits once with that look in my eyes.” She gathers the banana, breast milk, and leftover green bean puree and takes it to the counter. My son will eat green beans only if you mix them with a fruit. He’s just like his father with vegetables; if you don’t cover them with something, Nico won’t eat them.
The moment the thought crosses my mind, pain hits my chest.
“There it goes again,” Ms. Rose says with a chuckle.
I drop my head, feeling caught.
“As you heard the other night, Mr. Basille and I are kind of at odds.” I don’t know why I felt the need to tell this woman my business. I guess it’s the lack of a mother figure I’ve always wanted. Hell, it could be that lying in her lap that night was so soothing to my soul. It felt like home.
She stops peeling the banana and turns to face me, giving me her undivided attention. “Yes, I heard you two that night. Even if I didn’t, seeing him creep around this house every morning like a thief in the night would’ve clued me in.”
I smile at her description of Nico. Feeling even more comfortable with her, I tell her a little more.
“He’s avoiding me because he doesn’t want to let me in.”
She listens with no judgement on her face.
