Chapter 4
1496 Words
Josie POV
I groaned as I woke up. The front seat of my car was restrictive, and it smelled like coffee. I fell asleep in my car after I drove out of Pack territory. I found ten more missed calls from Oakley.
I was low on gas and drove to a gas station where I could freshen up and stock up on supplies. I had no choice but to return Oakley’s calls.
She was my best friend, I owed her an explanation.
“Shunned?” She screamed into the phone. “What century is this?”
“You shouldn’t even be talking to me,” I said.
“We’ve known each other since we were toddlers. I’m not going to shun you. I would have hidden you under my bed. I’ll kick Ryan’s ass for this.”
“He’s not worth it.”
“Where are you?”
“I’m outside the Richardson Pack. I’ll call you when I settle down.”
“Call me when you need anything at all!”
“Thanks, Oakley.”
I hung up and proceeded to buy a few things and headed back to my car. I couldn’t cry for the rest of my life. I needed a motel and more hours of sleep. Lily still hadn’t woken up, which was a bad sign.
I found a motel in the Richardson Pack. The Richardson Pack didn’t need outsider wolves to seek permission to enter, which was why I chose it. However, it was farther from my Pack.
When I checked into a motel, I collapsed on the bed. The urge to curl into a ball and cry was strong. My phone rang and distracted me from my pity party.
“Are you out?” Chase said.
“Yeah, I’m in the Richardson Pack.”
“Alpha Tristan’s Pack. You’ll be safe there for a while. I think I found you a gig, though. It won’t be available until the old lady gets back into town.”
“How long with that be?” I asked.
“A couple of weeks. Keep your head low.”
“Thank you, Chase…”
“Don’t mention it. I will always protect you, Josie.”
He hung up before I said another word.
***
A couple of weeks went by, and my money dwindled. I’d been in the same motel for days. No one other than Oakley contacted me from the Gryphon Pack. Chase came good on his word, though. He sent me the address of a woman who needed a bodyguard.
She lived in a huge gothic manor. The place had vines wrapped around the windows and plastered on the sides of the house. The walls were dark, and the overall exterior was depressing.
“Yes?” An elderly man answered the door.
I looked at the piece of paper in my hands.
“Uh, I’m looking for Mrs Dare.”
“Are you the bodyguard?”
I nodded. I wondered what she needed protecting from. The house was massive, and I couldn’t imagine myself living there for four months, but maybe it had its perks.
“This way,” he said.
I followed him through the cold hallway with white painted walls and black marble floors. Seconds later, I was sitting in front of a woman with bright blonde hair and milky blue eyes. I placed her around fifty years old. She didn’t have a warm and inviting face. Again, I wondered why she needed protection.
“You’re quite young,” she commented.
“I’m good at my job, I swear.”
She lifted her chin and lowered it firmly. “Are you able to keep your mouth shut?”
“Yes, I can be discreet.”
“You came highly recommended. I expect a good and clean job.”
“I won’t let you down, ma’am.”
She opened a drawer and pulled out an A4-size photo and handed it to me.
“That is my granddaughter, Marie Charlotte. I want you to protect her.”
I stared at the headshot of a girl with curly blonde hair and bright blue eyes.
“She lives with her Father two packs away from here.”
“I don’t understand. I thought I was protecting you.”
She leaned forward and entwined her fingers on the table. “My granddaughter’s Father is an irresponsible brute who’s incapable of taking care of a little girl. I fear for her life because of his lifestyle. For other reasons, I can’t just take her. I need you to be my eyes and ears in that house.”
“How?”
“They’re in need of a nanny. He’s having a hard time keeping one. That should tell you a lot about what type of man he is.”
How does she expect me to make it on the job?
“I also expect you not to get fired in your first week.”
I shook my head. I wasn’t a spy. I was a bodyguard. Besides, if this man were so horrible, then he might kill me when he catches me working for Mrs Dare.
“I’ll pay you handsomely. Chase said you needed the job. It won’t be for long, just until I can get Marie away from him. Do we have a deal?”
I looked at the picture of the little girl. She looked so sweet and innocent. Those blue eyes might haunt me if I turn this down.
“Alright, I’m in.”
“Good, they’re expecting you tonight.”
‘Tonight?” I gasped.
She nodded. “No one can suspect you’re working for me. Don’t call me. I’ll contact you.”
***
By the time I arrived in Silver Peak Pack, dark clouds blanketed the sky and rain threatened to fall. I didn’t know what I expected the home to be, but I didn’t imagine a building more imposing than the last one I came from.
“I don’t even know if I’m cut out to be a nanny,” I said, dragging my suitcase up the driveway.
My boyfriend left me because he thought I couldn’t have children. Is this even the right gig for me?
A droplet landed on my shoulder, and then another one. Suddenly, rain came down heavily. I ran the rest of the way to the door and rang the doorbell. There was no going back now. I signed a contract with Mrs Dare. This place would give me something to take my mind off Ryan, a roof over my head and somewhere to hide from my shame.
I ran the doorbell two more times.
“Can’t they hear me?”
Wind blew rain in my direction, soaking my clothes.
I hammered on the thick wooden door. My hair was damp, and my teeth chattered. The door finally opened, but there was no one on the other end.
“Can I help you?” A small voice asked.
I looked down and saw haunting blue eyes staring at me.
“Uh… is there a grown-up with you?”
She shrugged.
“You’re alone?”
“My Aunty Bree’s somewhere around here.”
She opened the door wider, but barred my entry.
“Are you my nanny? I want pancakes,” she demanded.
“F-for dinner?”
She nodded. “With syrup.”
“Wouldn’t you like something more—”
She closed the door a little. “I want pancakes!”
She wouldn’t lock me out here, would she?
“Let’s make a deal. Let me inside and I’ll consider it.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Daddy says I’m not allowed to bring strangers into the house unless you make me pancakes.”
Ugh, it was raining cats and dogs. I lost this battle.
“Fine, I’ll make you the pancakes with syrup, just let me in.”
She beamed and opened the door wide. She pointed me in the direction of the kitchen. I left a trail of water behind me.
“I only eat pancakes in my castle,” she said and stomped off.
Tomorrow will be a different day, but Marie Charlotte wins this round. The kitchen was larger than my bedroom back home. It would take me forever to figure out where the ingredients were. A loud bang startled me, and I knocked over my suitcase.
“Shoot.”
I bent to pick it up.
“Who the hell are you?” A deep, masculine voice asked threateningly.
I stood instantly. A man towering over six feet three stood in the doorframe. Water trickled from his jet-black hair down his big, muscular arms and made little puddles on the floor.
A lump formed in my throat. “I… uh… I’m the nanny.”
“Liar.”
I froze. Crap, I hadn’t been here for thirty minutes yet and he already found me out.
“I don’t want to repeat myself. Who are you, and why the hell are you here?
- Writer
