“You wouldn’t understand.”
Sitting down in the chair beside him, his sister simply said, “Try me.”
“Willow is…well…she’s not in a particularly good place right now,” he began carefully. “She’s got a degree she doesn’t want to use, she doesn’t really have a job…”
“She’s unemployed?”
“Sort of?” Then he shook his head. “She walks dogs. Like a lot of dogs.”
“What’s a lot of dogs?”
“Picture every cartoon or commercial you’ve ever seen where a person is walking an almost comical amount of dogs at one time. That’s Willow.”
“Wow, good for her! She’s a tiny little thing, but she must be strong!”
He never thought of that.
“And she’s a part-time nanny.”
“Well she’s wonderful with kids. I’ve never seen Olivia bond with someone that quickly.”
Nodding, he explained, “Anyway, her folks are pressuring her to buckle down and get a position with a practice–preferably theirs up in Seattle…”
“Seattle? Is that where she’s from? Because her accent is totally a New York one.”
“No, she’s born and raised on Long Island. Her parents moved there…I don’t know when.” He paused. “The thing is, she’s probably the sweetest woman I’ve ever met, and she’s a little lost right now. She made up a boyfriend so her grandmother wouldn’t worry about her so much and here we are.”
“You sure about that?”
“What do you mean?”
“Levi, there’s obviously a bit of interest there,” Natalie said with a knowing smile. “On both ends.”
That was brand new information.
“Seriously? You think Willow’s interested?”
Her smile turned mischievous. “You mean you hadn’t noticed?”
“Well…”
He was interrupted by some loud thumping over their heads and the sound of Willow and Olivia singing something else and laughing hysterically.
“Moana,” Natalie said. “How Far I’ll Go. Another favorite of Olivia’s.”
“Ah.”
“Okay, before we get all teenage girl gossipy here, let’s go back for a minute. Why do you say she’s lost and what does any of this have to do with you not telling her you own the pub?”
“She doesn’t know what she wants to do with her life and it’s an issue for her right now. I think she feels comfortable with me because she doesn’t see my job as being intimidating. I’m relatable, you know?”
Nodding, Natalie said, “I guess. But with all the getting to know you time the two of you have had, how has it not come up?”
“Anytime she mentions me talking to my boss, I just nod,” he said solemnly. “She’s opening up to me and sharing so much of herself and…I don’t know, I don’t want to do anything to jeopardize it. I’m afraid if I tell her, she’ll look at me and be…”
“Intimidated.”
“Exactly.”
“Well, damn. That’s both commendable and stupid all at the same time.”
“I wouldn’t say stupid…”
“Look, you need to be honest with her. If this thing goes beyond being her fake boyfriend for the week, it’s not going to look good that you lied to her. And it’s a silly thing to lie about.”
“Nat…”
“What? I’m serious! It’s not like you’ve got a wife and kids back home or anything. Now that would be a big lie–the kind you don’t get over. But having a good job? Owning a business? Um, yeah. I’d be okay if someone admitted that to me.”
“I’m sure Jeff would love to hear you say that,” he teased. “Speaking of my brother-in-law, when’s he going to get home?”
“Any minute. And don’t worry, I gave him the head’s up on this whole crazy relationship thing.”
“Levi? You awake?”
The house was pitch-black and everyone had gone to bed about an hour ago, but Levi had been staring at the ceiling ever since. He was on the floor, and Willow was on the sofa beside him. Her soft whisper made him practically jump right out of his sleeping bag.
“Yeah,” he whispered. “You okay?”
“Yeah. I’m having a little trouble sleeping.”
Join the club.
Sitting up, he focused on her. It took a minute for his eyes to adjust, but then…there she was. “Do you need more pillows? Blankets?”
But she shook her head as she propped herself up on her elbow. “I wanted to thank you.”
“Really? For what?”
“For introducing me to your family. This has been a really good day.” She let out a soft hum that sounded far sexier than Levi imagined she meant it to. “I wish we didn’t have to rush out of here in the morning.”
“Well, we need to stay on schedule to get to your grandmother’s, right?”
“I know.” She paused and yawned. “But I had a lot of fun tonight. Your nieces are so sweet.”
“And they loved you. Seriously, Willow, you were great with them.”
“Can I tell you a secret?”
“Sure.”
“One of the reasons I don’t want to go into psychology is because…” She sighed. “I studied child psychology, and it made me really sad.”
“Sad? Why?”
“I love kids. Like…I know I said earlier that I had no idea what I wanted to be or do with my life, but I really love working with kids. Just…not to analyze them. I hate to see a child in pain–physically or emotionally.”
“I imagine that would be rough.”
“But the thought of teaching them or playing around and making them laugh? That’s something I could really get on board with.”
“Willow, that’s amazing. Why not go into teaching? Or…or…being like a nanny or something? The way you were today with Livvy was a bit on the Mary Poppins side.”
She let out a low laugh before changing the subject on him. “Tell me about the sister we’re staying with tomorrow.”
“Katie.” Leaning over slightly, he rested his arm on the couch. “She’s the oldest; married to Aaron for about a dozen years. My nephew Brandon is their only child. He’s ten and a total riot. I don’t think he’s into Disney songs, but he is all about sports. The kid is crazy gifted in baseball. Katie said she thinks he’s on track to go pro.”
“At ten years old? Seriously?”
He couldn’t help but laugh quietly. “It seems weird to me too. I mean, a lot can happen between now and when he’s eighteen. But they are doing everything they can to keep him
