Unsuitable Page 8

  She put her hand to her lips. Except for whatever it was her mouth was doing that he thought was significant enough to pull her aside for. Maybe it was the lack of colour that got his attention. She’d been in a state leaving the house this morning, more uptight than Mia, and she’d left her makeup purse on the hall table. No touch ups almost led to a career dust up.

  She looked at her watch. Four hours and fifteen minutes. And not a minute longer. She took the fire stairs down two flights to her office. The very first thing she was doing was calling home to check on Mia, and then she was going to convince herself not to panic about the possibility Chris was already lodging a complaint about her with HR.

  But plans can change. The very first thing she was doing was booting Les out of her office. Les had taken up residency. “Can we do this later?”

  “That bad?”

  “Um. Possibly. I need to call home.” And it would be best to keep what happened to herself.

  Les stood. “About that. I may have opened something on your desktop while I used your phone to check my messages.”

  Les went one way around the desk, Audrey went the other. “What do you mean?”

  “A mysterious live portal into another world which looked remarkably like your lounge room.”

  She plonked down behind her desk and scanned her screen. The nanny cam was running. “What are you doing opening things on my desktop?”

  “What are you doing with non-standard software applications, and how do I get one?”

  “Go back to your own office.”

  “Yours has a nicer aspect of the car park. Tell me about the camera thing first.”

  Audrey rocked back in her chair and considered Les. “All right, but you tell me about two weeks ago, Saturday night. A certain invitation by a certain lust inducing tattooed builder.” She brushed her hand over her head to indicate his hairstyle.

  Les rolled her eyes. “I told you. He was nice to me. Invited me out. But of course I didn’t go. I mean, why would I? He didn’t actually mean it.”

  “You’re lying.”

  “You’re spying.” Les put her hands on her hips. “You have non-standard apps on your desktop.”

  “Are you going to dob on me?”

  “I didn’t go. Why would I go? He was only messing with me. That’s what a man who looks like Polly does with a woman who looks like me.”

  Audrey lifted a hand and pointed to the corridor. “Out.”

  Les sighed with great fanfare. “Okay, I went. I put proper going out on a Saturday night clothes on. I put makeup on. I did my hair. I looked awesome. I went to the pub and he was surrounded by all these glamazon women. He looked right at me and didn’t register I wasn’t a doorknob.”

  Oh no. Audrey grimaced. Why had she pushed this with Les if not to use her to work out her aggression after the encounter with Chris, and that was evil. “You were basically wearing a tent when he saw you, what did you expect?” She winched inwardly because she was still feeling antsy and Les was too convenient a punching bag.

  “I expect to have a nice time when I stay home with a movie and corn chips. I expect men like Polly to look through me, or around me, or over my head. Bad enough it happens at work, it’s guaranteed to happen socially. I don’t expect to be remembered, and I don’t know why I thought breaking that habit was a good idea.” Les looked at her shoes. “I felt like an idiot. I saw Reece and Sky but they didn’t see me and Faux Mo was having a wonderful time. Should’ve seen his take on Bon Jovi. I was the one living on a prayer, Aud. Now tell me why you have vision of your own lounge room on your desktop.”

  It was the least she could do. She beckoned Les around the desk. “It’s a nanny cam program. I had Lin from IT install it for me, so it’s not exactly authorised as standard build, but he owed me one.”

  Les peered at Audrey’s empty lounge room displayed on the screen. “You are spying. I knew it. You’re a stalking, spying, distrustful mother fusser.”

  “You make that sound like a bad thing.” It was hard not to laugh, but that would only encourage Les.

  “Are you going to tell?”

  “If I do that, then it’s not spying, it’s a performance piece.”

  Les frowned. “I guess I can get with that. So long as I can watch.”

  “Don’t you have any work to do? Besides, there’s nothing to see.”

  Les perched on the desk. “In this room, go to the kitchen.”

  It wasn’t a phone call, but if Mia was in the kitchen in range of the camera hidden in the smoke alarm, it would be the next best thing. Audrey clicked the nanny cam program and they caught a quick glimpse of Mia running across the screen. Audrey toggled the menu and there was Mia in the lounge room in front of the TV. She fumbled for the sound and they heard Mia say. “Wiggle time.” She was already dancing. It was one of her most favourite things. She had Wiggle time before lunch most days with Cameron.

  “Oh so sweet,” Les said, and then she said, “that’s very sweet too,” when Reece walked onto the screen.

  He bent in front of the TV to start the video. They got arm with bulging bicep and a close up on his jaw and throat as he loomed too close to the hidden camera. He wore a blue t-shirt and faded blue jeans. He wore socks and so did Mia. Mia moved from foot to foot, fluffing the skirt on her fairy dress. She was excited and Audrey felt an immediate pang of relief. Mia wasn’t missing Cameron and she’d survived half a day with Reece. Four and a bit hours in, and she felt vindicated she’d done the right thing hiring him.

  “Are we going to dance?” Reece said.

  “Yes. Do the propeller,” Mia answered.

  “Is that like crumping?” said Les, as the music started, a simple regular up-tempo beat, soft rock and roll toddler style.

  Mia’s hips moved as if she had a hoola hoop. Her arms were out and she waved her hands. Audrey was transfixed. She knew about this, but she’d never seen it. It wasn’t part of her routine on the weekends.

  Les clapped. “Shake it, Mia.”

  And then Reece moved in front of the camera again. They said, “Oh my God,” together as he did the propeller too, a looser, more artful, hip shifting, knee shaking, rhythmic version. Good Lord, the man could move. He rocked side to side, arms held out elbows rotating propeller style, big gorgeous smile on his face. He was utterly in the moment.

  “Oh my God,” she repeated. Her mouth was dry. Her new nanny was impossibly sexy doing a stupid kid’s dance. Not that he was playing it that way. He danced like a man who thought his only company was a delighted three year old in a fairy outfit. He danced with no self-consciousness and total joy, and he laughed and so did Mia, the two of them hip shaking, elbow twisting, and hand waving along with The Wiggles. Reece even did the, oh yeahs, in the right place.

  “I think I drooled on your desk,” said Les.

  They got to the part of the song where the lyrics talked about the plane going up, up, up, then down, down, down, and Reece and Mia stood side by side, the huge man and the tiny fairy girl partnering perfectly. This was death by adorable. It made Audrey’s throat go tight.

  “What are you two doing?”

  She looked up to see her team assistant, Claire in the doorway. “Nothing. I thought you’d be gone longer.” She moved to shut the nanny cam down, but Les blocked her hand.

  On screen Mia and Reece were making statues, holding poses. Reece stood on one leg, arms in a circle above his head in a reasonable attempt at a ballet dancer, while Mia was a tree, or a possum or maybe a star, it was hard to tell. Didn’t matter, she was delightful.

  “I don’t need root canal after all,” said Claire, as the song ended. “Are you watching The Wiggles?”

  Mia said, “Again, again,” and there was no further question about whether she was comfortable being with Reece. He started the song over, and by that time Claire was leaning over Audrey’s shoulder.

  “Is that the new nanny? You did not say he was man candy. Holy moley. You have that come to your house every day.”


  “He’s taken,” said Les.

  “You wouldn’t anyway,” said Claire, but she didn’t sound convinced, she prodded Audrey in the arm. “Would you?”

  “No. Goodness me. He’s the nanny.”

  “You have a male nanny?”

  Audrey threw her hands up, as Marina walked in. She glared at her star project leader and went for the nanny cam menu again, but Les snatched the mouse, and Claire said, “We want to see this.”

  The four of them watched while Reece worked up a sweat doing the propeller, and by the time he got to the up, up, up part, stretching his hands to the ceiling so that his t-shirt slurped against every muscle in his torso and gapped at the waist of his jeans, Sue had joined them. When he did his ballerina pose there was a chorus of awww, and if Audrey’s own reaction was anything to go by, a whole lot of highly inappropriate female body part clenching.

  She punched a finger on the monitor power and the picture disappeared to the tune of noooo.

  “Does that happen every day at this time?” said Sue. She was the only other female project manager, hired after Audrey.

  “I’ll calendarise it,” said Claire.

  “Make sure we’re all sent a reminder,” said Marina.

  “We need a bigger screen, and popcorn,” said Les.

  Audrey stood. “Out. All of you.” Marina and Claire both backed out. Les hovered.

  It had never been a secret Audrey had a nanny for Mia, but she was uncomfortable with what just happened. It was one thing for her to spy on Reece and share that with Les, who she trusted implicitly, but half the office would know about this before the day was out, and that was a true violation of Reece’s privacy. Not that he’d ever know his propeller caused the kind of excitement in the office attributable to a teen pop star, but still, it had gotten out of hand.

  “A male nanny,” said Sue. She frowned. Her kids were in high school. She’d had a nanny for her youngest. “Couldn’t you get a woman?”

  It was none of her business, but she’d stayed behind to make a point. “He was the best candidate.”

  “Brave of you.”

  “He has terrific qualifications, sterling references. His rapport with Mia was instant. You just saw that. I’d have been an idiot not to hire him. I hired him instead of female candidates.”

  Sue’s eyes flared. “But having a strange man in your house, and alone with Mia all day.” She shook her head. “It would’ve worried me sick. What will you do for the nights you’re travelling?”

  Les’ handset chimed. She backed out of the room, making the kind of face behind Sue’s back that you might make if you had an urgent need to vomit.

  “What are saying?” The unspoken implication was that Reece wasn’t a good choice, and worse, that Mia wasn’t safe with him.

  “Oh, nothing. I’m sure it will be fine. And you’ve got the nanny cam. That’s some security.” Translation: I can’t believe you’ve just compromised the welfare of your child.

  Audrey’d had enough of unspoken implications for one day. Enough of gender discrimination for a lifetime.

  “And you can always keep looking.” Addendum: you’re a bad mother if you don’t act to fix this.”

  Audrey stood. Everyone on the team assumed she and Sue would be friends because they were women. It didn’t work that way and was time for Sue to mind her own business. “I’m excited about having Reece look after Mia. I’m sorry you feel that’s a mistake.”

  “I didn’t say it was a mistake. But I do think it’s taking an unnecessary risk.”

  “Which is exactly why neither of us have been promoted. We’re an unnecessary risk.”

  They stared at each other. This was getting close to being an argument and while they’d never been friends as such, they’d never gone toe to toe before.

  Sue shook her head. “You’re missing the point.”

  “Am I?” Not likely.

  “This is your own child we’re talking about. And you’re trusting a man who dances like a Chippendale stripper to look after her.”

  It was Audrey’s turn to look shocked. “Why don’t you go the extra mile while you’re at it? You think I hired him to have something on the side.”

  “I didn’t say that, Aud.”

  “He’s in my home, not my bed. He has a contract. I pay him a salary. He’s my employee. And I’m—” She shook her head. How had they gotten to this? What she did in her private life was no one’s business. If she wanted to screw the nanny in every room of the house and twice on Sunday in the bathroom, that was between her and Reece. Except it would be a worse idea than threatening your company COO.

  Sue frowned. “Say it.”

  “I’m upset you’d even think that about me. That I’d whore myself out to the nanny.”

  “I don’t think that, Audrey. I was out of line with the Chippendale crack. But I thought you’d laugh. I didn’t think you’d take it this way.”

  Audrey leaned on her desk and closed her eyes. It was only Monday lunchtime, and already she’d turned a difference of opinion with Sue into an argument, put herself in Chris’ sights, compromised Reece’s integrity, and betrayed her own insecurities about hiring him.

  It was going to be a long week.

  9: Magnetic

  Audrey looked trashed, but in a no fresh air, dry-eyed, too much bad coffee and too long sitting way. Reece thought she needed a stretch, a dozen lung busting breaths, a good feed, a drink, a massage and a dozen hours of quality sleep. As it was she’d have to bath Mia, get her to bed, endure through story time and feed herself before she could relax.

  It wasn’t Reece’s job to cook for Audrey at night, but he’d made a meat sauce for Mia’s spaghetti dinner, though he knew from Cameron’s briefing notes she’d only eat the noodles and play with the rest, but he thought Audrey might make use of what Mia didn’t for her own dinner. He’d also shifted a bottle of white wine from her wine rack to the fridge, and there was an extra baguette from lunch, along with a mini apple pie he’d bought at the fresh food markets near Mia’s kindy gym. He’d worried he might’ve overstepped the mark with the pie, but looking at Audrey’s pale face, the droop of her shoulders, he was glad he’d chosen to close out the first week by making it easier for her.

  “Hi,” he said, as Audrey entered the kitchen, dumping her laptop bag on the table and swooping to kiss Mia. He looked away, while they talked. He was so lame. Five days on the job without Cameron and still unsure how to relate to Audrey. He felt too big and too lumbering around her. She was so fine and so well organised; she made him feel even younger than he was by comparison.

  “Red jelly is better,” Mia said. She’d eaten more jelly than spaghetti, but some of the meat sauce made it into her mouth, as well as onto the front of her top and the table.

  “It’s my favourite too,” Audrey said. She straightened up and smiled at him. “We made it through our first week together.” She rolled her head, putting her hand to the back of her neck and closing her eyes momentarily. It sounded as though she hadn’t been sure.

  “Tough week?” He coughed. “I mean, not me. You had a tough week, I mean, did you? My week was good.” Good for learning to gibber. Shit. Way to prove competence, genius.

  Audrey kindly let the incoherence pass through to the keeper. “Feels like the week had more than five days.”

  “I won’t dispute that if you want to pay me for more than five.” Reece scratched his cheek. He wanted to put his big clumsy hand over his enormous stupid mouth, because oh, yeah baby, let’s shift it up from gibbering to grasping.

  She smiled. “Nice try. Run through the week for me. What worked, what didn’t? What do we need to change for next week? How was Mia today?”

  “I was good, Mum. I was special good at kindy gym. I did tundling. It was dizzy Lizzy.”

  He wiped the table in front of Mia, a slop of jelly. “Tumbling.”

  “Tundling.”

  Who was he to correct her tonight? “Close enough.”

  Audrey’s eyes wer
e busy, watching Mia, watching him. “So kindy gym was a success.”

  Other than their brief handover in the morning when Audrey was rushing out the door and in the evenings when he was, this was the only time they’d spent together. There’d been a daily phone call to check in, brisk and business-like, but their actual contact had been pretty limited. No wonder she wanted a week’s end roundup.

  “How was playgroup?”

  Playgroup had been a challenge. Of course he’d gone twice with Cameron, so he’d been introduced to the other mothers and carers, but it was a different thing to go it alone. To be the only male in the group. He was asked the girlfriend question four separate times and he was fairly sure Carrie, Eugenia’s mum, propositioned him. He pretended not to hear her suggestion he bring Mia over for an afternoon nap so the two of them could chill.

  “That good,” Audrey laughed.

  “Mia loves it.” All the kids were around the same age; it was chaotic, but more laughter and learning than tears.

  “We don’t have to do it forever.”

  “More jelly, Reece.

  Audrey smoothed a hand over Mia’s hair. “Say may I have more jelly, please, Reece.”

  “May I have jelly prease, Reece.”

  He took her bowl and gave her another tablespoonful. “You’ll turn into jelly.”

  She shook herself head to tail. “Wibble, wobble.” She turned to Audrey. “We did dancin’ all the days, before lunch.”

  “Did you? Was it Wiggle time?”

  Mia nodded around her spoon. “Did you dance on your own?” Audrey looked at him, Mia’s brand of mischief in her expression. “Cameron wasn’t a dance fan.”

  He dropped his head, wondering what Mia would come out with. Fortunately she was unlikely to say he busted a move to Big Red Car and Hot Potato.

  “I did up, up, up and down, down, down. I was a statue.”