Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 92417 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 462(@200wpm)___ 370(@250wpm)___ 308(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92417 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 462(@200wpm)___ 370(@250wpm)___ 308(@300wpm)
“You didn’t even want that cookie!” Owen shouted.
“Well, I always want the cup,” Adelaide said triumphantly. “So it was a good trade.”
“Enough!” Mabel’s tone was sharp. “I’ve got a million things to do and breaking up silly fights isn’t one of them. Sit down and eat.”
I was about to go in and rescue my sister when the back door opened, and she came out. “Hey,” I said.
“Hey.” She dropped into the chair next to mine. “Nice out here.”
“At least until they start fighting again.”
She laughed. “If you’d been talented enough to win a second cup at that ring toss game, they wouldn’t have a problem.”
“I was going to offer you a beer, but now you can just fuck off.” I took another sip.
She smiled and crisscrossed her legs, rubbing her hands along the chair arms. “What are you going to do without a nanny?”
“I’ll manage.”
“How?”
“I managed you guys, didn’t I? And you were the worst of them.”
Her lips tipped up. “Yeah?”
“Smart-mouthed little know-it-all with too much sass.”
“I needed sass with four older brothers. How else was I gonna be heard?” She shrugged. “A girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do.”
I harrumphed and finished off my beer. “And now a girl’s gotta dig, huh?”
“A girl’s gotta dig.” She paused. “But speaking of sass . . .”
“No.”
“Austin, you didn’t even give her a chance.”
“Yes, I did, and the answer is no.” I got up and went into the garage to get another beer, and Mabel followed me.
“The kids really liked her.”
“They’d like anybody who promised them two birthday cakes.”
“I really liked her.”
I took out a beer and pointed the top at her. “You’re leaving. You don’t get a say.”
“Ari said everyone at Moe’s adored her, even grumpy Larry.”
“Larry likes a pretty face.”
“And Willene Fleck.”
“My old teacher? She hates me. She’d probably send me a bad nanny on purpose.” I uncapped the bottle and took a drink.
“Ari doesn’t hate you.”
“Ari is one degree of separation from being you. She can’t be trusted.”
Mabel sighed and stuck her hands on her hips. “You’re impossible. You did not give her a fair shake.”
“I gave her as fair a shake as I’d give anybody,” I argued.
“She’s jobless and homeless now!”
I rolled my eyes. “A girl like that will be just fine.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means any woman who’s that attractive will have no trouble getting hired somewhere she’s qualified,” I said.
Mabel gave me a sly smile. “So you were attracted to her.”
“I didn’t say I was attracted to her, I said she was attractive. There’s a difference.” Although I was struggling to remember what it was at the moment.
“Of course.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “Well, now it makes more sense.”
Irritated, I rolled my neck and rubbed at my sore trapezius. “What makes more sense?”
“Your problem with her.”
“Jesus Christ, Mabel, I don’t have a problem with her!”
“Your problem,” she went on in that infuriatingly calm tone, “is that you’re afraid of her.”
“Afraid of who?” Xander strolled into the garage with a saw he’d borrowed from me a few days ago. He was a slightly younger, slightly taller version of me, same dark hair and eyes, although his beard was thicker. His biceps were too, but I didn’t like talking about that.
“This woman we interviewed today to replace me as the nanny this summer,” Mabel said.
“Why’s he afraid of her?” Xander set down the saw, went to the fridge, and helped himself to a beer.
“Because she’s pretty.”
“Ah.” Xander nodded and he uncapped his beer. “That sounds about right. Nothing sets Austin on edge like a beautiful woman.”
“Will you two shut up?” I could feel my blood pressure rising. “I’m not afraid of beautiful women.”
“Really? When’s the last time you went on a date?” Xander pretended to think. “Was it high school?”
“Look, just because I’m not out every night with a different girl doesn’t mean I’m afraid of them. It means I’m busy. And who said you could drink my beer?”
“Why don’t you come over here and try to take it away from me?” he taunted, wagging the bottle at me like a red cape.
I thought about it for a second, but even though Xander was younger by one year, he was taller and stronger, and his time in Special Ops had taught him fighting tactics that gave him an unfair advantage. As much as I hated to admit it, we were no longer evenly matched in hand-to-hand combat. It didn’t always stop me from messing with him, but right this second, I wasn’t sure I had it in me.
Thankfully, I was saved by Adelaide, who ran into the garage out of breath. “She’s back!”
“Who’s back?” I asked.
“The bride lady. She’s at the front door.”
I looked at Mabel, who held up her hands, like it wasn’t her fault.
“Bride lady?” Xander looked back and forth from Mabel to me.