Chapter 3

Javier’s POV

 

I had to go back home early today because of my daughter. That woman said she was teething. She calmed Lucy down in no time, but an hour after she left, my baby started crying again and wouldn’t stop, no matter how much I tried to persuade her. Finally, I put her teether in her mouth, and she stopped crying for five minutes until that got old, and she began wailing her head off again. 

You must be wondering why I took her along to the office. Well, my lovely daughter’s nanny of one day quit just this morning. She claimed my daughter was too much for her to handle. I don’t understand what’s too much to manage about a nine-month-old girl. 

In the last month, she has gone through ten nannies, all of them saying the same thing about my daughter. When the nanny quit this morning, I called the embassy but they refused to send a replacement caretaker. They said all the other nannies claimed my daughter was a headache.

After what happened today, I can honestly say Lucy is a handful. There isn’t anything I can do to get her to stop crying. The only time she doesn’t cry is when she is eating.

And when that woman was holding her. 

Now Lucy has gone to bed after a long, warm bath. I didn’t realize she loved to play in her bath. I spent thirty minutes over the sink with Lucy in her little tub while she splashed water all over my body. I was soaked by the time she was done with bathing. 

I rocked her for a half hour before she finally fell asleep, and I set her down in her crib. And now I am spending my peaceful moment in my study trying to get some work done. 

 

How the hell am I going to cope tomorrow? I have to take her along to the office again. I can’t keep this up for even a week.

What the hell am I going to do?

Then it hit me: Miss Brooks. I pick up my phone and dial the receptionist’s number. She answers on the third ring.

“Mr. Edwards,” she greets me.

“Sorry to disturb you, Miss Stone. Can I get information about the woman that came for the interview today?” I ask pleasantly. 

“What would you like to know, sir?” 

“Give me her full name, age, and marital status.”

“Okay, sir, please hold on.” 

I hear some kind of noise, like she’s typing in the background.

“Found it. Melissa Brooks and she is 24 years old,” she informs me.

“Is she married? Engaged?” I prompt.

“No, sir, it states here that she is single.”

“Thanks for your help, Miss Stone.”

“No problem, sir. Good night, sir,” she answers.

I don’t bother to reply; I just hang up. I can’t afford to get familiar with my employees. I keep everything professional with every single one of them.

 

Melissa Brooks. You might wonder why I asked for her information. I think congratulations are in order. I found a nanny for my daughter. Now all I have to do is convince her to take the position. I have to make sure she won’t be able to refuse. 

You really shouldn’t have left so soon, Gabriella.

My phone saves me from going too deep into the past.

“Hello there, Josephine,” I greet my little sister.

“When will you call me Sophia like everyone does, Javi?” She always asks this question, and the answer has always been the same: never.

“You know the answer to that, Josephine. Now tell me why you are calling at thistime of the night.”

She scoffs. “Can’t wait to get rid of me, brother? I wonder why. Am I interrupting something?”

“Josephine,” I warn.

She sighs. “Okay, fine, I called to check up on you and Lucy.”

“We are fine.” There is no point in telling her about Lucy’s tantrums. 

“I don’t think so. A little birdie told me that your nanny quit this morning, and you had to take Lucy along to your workplace,” she says in a sing-song manner.

“Joseph is such a girl.”

“He isn’t. He just can’t keep anything from his twin sister.”

“Yeah. Keep defending him. I swear Joseph was meant to be a girl. The both of you switched gender,” I tease her.

“Yeah, whatever. Don’t change the topic. Tell me about your day.”

“It was fine. Apart from the fact that Lucy is teething and she wouldn’t stop crying,” I finally tell her. There is no point hiding it now… that twin brother of hersis a blabbermouth. 

“Poor thing. I remember when Anna’s baby was teething, too. She wouldn’t stop crying.”

I cringe.  “I don’t know if you are trying to make me feel better or not, because let me tell you, you aren’t helping at all.”

She laughs. “Don’t worry, big brother. It gets better. Have you tried to get a nanny?” 

“I tried, but nobody is willing to be my daughter’s nanny.”

“That’s horrible,” she says with another laugh.  “Lucy isn’t that stubborn. Such a sweet girl, that one.”

“That’s what you think, but just try to spend a day with her. You will feel like pulling your hair out,” I threaten. 

“Oh, my poor brother. Lucy took after her mother.”

Thankfully, I don’t have to respond to that as Lucy cries resoundthroughout the house.

“Sorry, Josephine, but I have to cut our little chat short. My lovely daughter needs my attention now.”

She chuckles. “Okay. Good night and good luck with that little champ.”

“Goodnight, Josephine.”

Why is the baby crying this time? I enter her room. I swear, it hurts to enter this room sometimes. It reminds me a lot of Ella. 

I pick my baby up, and she quiets for a while before starting all over again. I check her diapers and grimace. Gross. I change them and put her teether in her mouth.

I sit on the rocking chair and cuddle her back to sleep.

Just one more day, Javier. You can do this.