He nodded, smiling at the praise. “Are we going far?”
I nodded. “Yes, but it will be an adventure for both of us.”
That word perked him right up. “Like the kind where we sleep in a hotel and have pancakes for dinner?” He gasped. “Or sleep outside and eat warm marshmallows? That was the best!”
I smiled at his boyish exuberance. “We’ll see.”
Matteo studied me with intense green eyes identical to mine. “So you won’t be working all the time?”
Shit. That was the problem that hadn’t arisen until this moment. “I’ll be working less,” I assured him, but now I had another problem. Running the DeRossi family holdings remotely was possible, but not with Matteo constantly underfoot, especially in a new, unfamiliar place. He needed structure that wouldn’t disrupt his education. He neededsomeone consistent. Someone who could live in the house with us. “I’ll let you know when I do, okay?”
He nodded, accepting the answer with an easy grin.
“Try to get some sleep. I’ll wake you up when it’s time to go.”
“Okay, Papa.” He snuggled under the blanket with Leo the lion, smiling when I kissed his forehead.
I stepped out of Matteo’s room, knowing that this life had already taken too much from me and my son, and I’d be damned if I let it take anything—or anyone—else.
Chapter 3
Serenity
By late afternoon, the office had that soft, golden glow of late afternoon that I loved. The phones were finally quiet, the lavender scent was finally faint in the air, and the pinks and oranges of the sun bled toward dusk outside the windows. Completed paperwork waited in satisfying piles. I’d just finished onboarding three new hires—smart, capable women who’d aced background checks and glowed in their practical assessments. Now came the fun part: the final pep talk before they started with a new family.
“Remember,” I began with a proud smile. “If you ever have doubts or questions, you call me. Do not swim in confusion when you don’t have to.”
Angie, the youngest of the newbies, flung her arms around me and squeezed tight. “I can’t thank you enough, Serenity. I found you just when I needed you.”
I hugged her back, surprised by how easily warmth rose in my chest. “I’m happy to help. Go out there anddogood.” Many of my girls came to me when they needed a change or a rescue, and I was grateful I could be there for them.
“I will,” she smiled, her grin so big it obscured her big blue eyes. “I promise.”
The excitement of starting a new job faded as they shuffled out of my office with wide smiles and goodbyes. The door clicked shut behind them, and I exhaled. It had been another long day, and after last night’s dating fiasco and intrusive thoughts that made it difficult to sleep, I was ready for an early night. I was updating the shared schedule when my office door opened and Toni appeared with a strange expression that was a mix of excitement and worry. “What’s up?”
“You have a visitor.”
I glanced at my digital calendar. “There’s nothing on my?—”
“He’s a walk-in.” Her mouth slanted into a grin. “A really gorgeous one, I might add. Says he needs to speak to the owner. I’ll keep an eye on Mattie.”
I frowned. “Who the hell is Mattie?” My jaw clenched as I felt my early evening turning complicated. “We don’t take walk-ins,” I reminded her, the words an automatic response on my tongue. Too much went into a placement to leave it to chance and panic, including background checks on our nanniesandour clients, plus a compatibility system I’d built myself as my clientele became more elite.
“I told him that,” she said quickly. “He was...insistent.”
Of course he was. The wealthy—and he had to be if he’d found my business—always believed their urgency mattered above all else. “Fine,” I said on a sigh. “Give me a few minutes to see who’s available, then send him in.”
“Got it,” Toni said, leaving before I could ask the impatient father’s name. Even a preliminary online search would’ve made me feel more prepared for this ambush, I mean,meeting.
The door opened a crack. Toni peeked her head inside with huge, excited eyes and an open mouth. “Oh my God,” she mouthed before pushing the door open and stepping inside.
“What?” Toni wasn’t usually so excitable, so I assumed it was a celebrity or influencer.
She motioned to the figure that stepped in behind her. “This is Mr.—”
“Enzo,” I finished automatically, his name slipping out before my brain could process what was happening. The air around me thinned. “What are you doing here, Enzo?”
Toni made a sound that was halfway between a laugh and a gasp as she slowly backed out of the office, closing the door softly behind her.
