Filed to story: The Alpha and His Nanny Luna (Tiffany & Asher) Book PDF Free
Finally, she turned back toward the door and started to leave before that happened.
“I’m sure having someone to look after Ella is a relief for you, and that’s why you’re sleeping better,” she called over her shoulder. Her hand lingered on the doorknob for a moment; I swore that her eyes met mine through the slats of the closet door as she glanced over, making me clap my hand over my mouth and step further back into the shadows.
“Goodnight, mom,” Asher said, breaking his mother’s gaze away from the closet door.
“Goodnight, darling,” Verona replied before leaving the bedroom.
A few moments passed before I came out, once I was certain that she wouldn’t poke her head back in. As the adrenaline left my body, Asher calmly stood and moved the tray of milk and pills over to the dresser, then began to unbutton his shirt in front of the full-length mirror.
“How did you get those pups to stop fighting?” he asked suddenly, taking me by surprise. “Those two boys are known for being a couple of little devils.”
I shrugged, walking over to the bed and taking my slippers off. “I don’t know. I just had a sincere talk with them. I think they just need someone to play with them more to release their pent up frustration.”
“Hm.”
Asher continued to unbutton his shirt. I watched as he hung it carefully over the back of a chair, but I quickly looked away when our eyes met in the mirror. Thinking about the pups reminded me of what Kelly told me earlier… About what Asher had supposedly said while I was in the bathroom. It hurt to know that he would say such awful things about me in front of others.
Asher must have seen me picking my bottom lip thoughtfully. “What is it?” he asked suddenly, breaking my train of thought. I jumped, looking up from the spot on the blanket I had been staring at to see that Asher was already dressed in his own pajamas; I must have been lost in thought for at least a few minutes without realizing it.
“You know, I’m not trying anything funny with Ethan,” I blurted out, feeling my face instantly get hot in response to Asher’s cold gaze settling on me.
“Okay,” he replied slowly.
I watched as he got into bed, but still, I wasn’t satisfied. Ethan had been nothing but sweet and lovely since I met him; why was Asher so cold toward him earlier?
“You know,” I said as I slid down into the blankets, “I don’t understand why you’re so harsh with hi–“
Asher abruptly shut off the light, casting the room in darkness. “Enough, Tiffany.” His voice was cold and just as dark as the room. “It’s not your job to question my relationship with that man. I told you that he’s not who he seems, so just listen to me and stop being nosey.”
Asher’s words stung, and it was then that I realized that I had forgotten to put a pillow between us. With a huff, I grabbed one of the throw pillows from beneath my head and shoved it into the space between our bodies before turning over and going to sleep.
…
I awoke early the next morning to find that Asher was still sleeping soundly behind me. So, taking this as an opportunity to quickly get out of bed and return to my room without any conflict, I threw my robe and my slippers back on before quietly slipping out of the room.
If only I had checked to make sure the coast was clear before I walked out!
“Good morning.”
Tiffany
“Good morning.”
I jumped, clasping my hand over my heart and taking in a sharp breath as I slipped out of Asher’s room, only to be immediately met with a familiar voice.
Ethan’s smiling face stared back at me. From one look at him, I knew that he knew that something was going on.
“Uh– I-It’s not how it looks like,” I stammered, looking around frantically with my back against the bedroom door in the hopes that no one else was watching.
Ethan merely chuckled. “Are you really an au pair?” he asked. I could sense a hint of humor behind his voice and it helped me relax just a tiny bit, but I still feared that I had ruined Ethan’s impression of me. I liked him as a person and desperately did not want him to think that I was just after his brother for money or sex.
“I am, I swear,” I replied, grabbing Ethan’s arm without thinking and pulling him away from the door in case Asher was awake and listening. “I’m not a mistress, or anything like that.”
“Well, not that it’s any of my business, but it does sort of appear as though you might be,” he replied.
I shook my head vehemently. “No, really,” I said, lowering my voice so that no one else could hear. “Asher and I have a sleeping arrangement.”
Ethan chuckled again. “A sleeping arrangement?”
“Not like that,” I insisted. “An actual sleeping arrangement. For some reason, my presence helps him sleep better than the pills and the alcohol, so he asked me to sign a contract to sleep with him until his insomnia improves.”
“Really?” Ethan asked, sounding a bit surprised. “Asher has had sleeping problems since before Ella was born.”
I shrugged. “I don’t know why, but for some reason, it just works. He usually falls asleep as soon as I do and wakes up as soon as I do.”
Ethan furrowed his brow. “How did you both come to realize this?”
I felt my heart skip; I couldn’t possibly admit to Ethan that I had already had a one night stand with his brother, so I merely shrugged. “We both nodded off in the living room one night,” I lied. Ethan still seemed a bit suspicious, but didn’t say anything more.
“Come on,” he said, changing the subject and turning to walk down the stairs. “Breakfast is ready.”
I stayed firmly planted in my spot as he walked away, my eyes still wide. Ethan, noticing my absence by his side as he took the first step down, turned back to face me. “Don’t worry,” he said with a smile. “We’re friends. Your secret’s safe with me.”
Ethan’s kind words helped to allay my fears for the moment, although the lingering possibility of Asher’s and my secret being discovered still loomed heavily above my head. What made it even worse was knowing that, should we be caught, it would ultimately somehow wind up being entirely my fault. I couldn’t be entirely sure that anyone, including Ethan or Ella, wouldn’t still take the Alpha CEO’s side of the story over the poor human nanny’s side of the story, and I especially couldn’t be entirely sure that Asher wouldn’t throw me under the bus if our arrangement came to light.
Still, I decided that I needed to continue with my duties and go downstairs to wake Ella up and give her breakfast. When I arrived downstairs, however, she wasn’t in her room. I heard the sound of voices and silverware clattering, so I went to look for her there.
When I entered the dining room, Ella, Ethan, and Verona were already seated at the table. This dining room was much smaller and more intimate than the massive banquet hall that we dined in the night before, with a quaint and round family-sized table in the center that was covered by a lace tablecloth and laden with a beautiful array of breakfast foods. Ella, who was sitting next to her grandmother, jumped up when she saw me and skittered across the room to throw her arms around me excitedly. She was still in her pajamas and had a bit of whipped cream on the side of her mouth, and obviously appeared to be currently experiencing a sugar high.
“Good morning, Tiffany!” Ella exclaimed as she clung to my legs. “Breakfast today is Bell-jam waffles and… om–” She paused, chewing on the syllables on her tongue, before giving up and turning to look at her grandmother for help.
