Like Real People Do

Charcoal Grey Pencil

"Architecture." I let out a sigh of relief as he passed the sketchbook back to me, happy to have it in my possession once more.

Twisting his body, he crossed his legs so that he was mirroring my sitting position, leaning back against the arm of the couch as well. "So you have a degree in it?"

I suppose I always knew we'd have this conversation eventually. It wasn't like I could keep it a secret forever. At least now, I was much more comfortable telling the story. "Yep. Went to grad school any everything."

"And then?"

Here came the hard part.

"And then I choked," I admitted, tracing a finger down the outside edge of the sketchpad. "During the interview for this super prestigious architecture firm, I choked. Like literally, I vomited into the partner's trash can."

He snorted with laughter and I couldn't help but smile as well. "Yikes. Safe to say you didn't get the job?"

"Nope," I let out a soft laugh. "I think it kind of worked out for the best, though. My sister took me out for some retail therapy to cheer me up and that's how I found the flyer for the nanny agency Amy hired me from."

I'd always believed in karma and fate and that everything happened for a reason. When I'd first bombed that interview, I'd thought the universe was trying to tell me that I needed to find a new dream, because architecture just wasn't what I was meant to be doing. So I'd switched to being a nanny and although I still wasn't sure this was my life's calling, I did think that maybe the universe brought me a new gift in the form of Jaxon Rigali. Because even if it was only momentary, even if it didn't last forever, I was truly blessed to get the opportunity to know him at all.

"So I guess that was a good day for me too," he blinked in amazement, realizing the implications of that statement, "Do you think you'll ever try and go back? I mean, I assume you don't want to be a nanny forever."

"Sick of me already?" I quirked an eyebrow upwards.

His eyes widened in horror as he shook his head. "No, of course not."

"It's okay, you're right," I laughed, not wanting to keep him worried that he'd offended me for too long, "I guess I'm still trying to figure it all out."

I thought that being a nanny would give me a chance to discover what I wanted out of life, but so far, I hadn't had the time or the energy to do any serious soul searching.

"I'm sure you'll get there," he said quietly, his gaze direct.

Startlingly direct, in fact. So incredibly direct and deep and soulful that I felt as though I was going to fall into an endless abyss, so I quickly changed the subject. "Are you avoiding telling me about your date?"

It worked. He immediately averted his gaze down to his hands, where he was tugging at the sleeves of his shirt. "No, there's just not much to tell."

I found that hard to believe. First dates were goldmines for stories, whether they were good or bad. "It didn't go well?"

"I mean, she's beautiful and sweet and charming and I enjoyed myself," he shrugged, "but I don't know, there was just no...spark."

"What does that mean?" I blinked in confusion. He's just listed off a whole heap of amazing qualities, so it made no sense that he wouldn't be giving the date rave reviews.

"You know. The spark," he said, his voice soft, but clear, his eyes locking on mine, "When there's tension between the two of you and your stomach is doing backflips and your heart is pounding in your chest and you feel like there's electricity pulsing through your veins." He listed those effects off deliberately, but with a sense of urgency, as though he wanted to feel exactly the way he was describing. And it was working, because my stomach was in knots and it was a wonder he couldn't hear my heart beating. Eyes wide, I sat frozen as the rate of his speaking slowed and the volume of his voice lowered to just barely above a whisper, "and then all of a sudden, everything is perfectly calm. And there's a shift and you're hanging on to every word they say and you realize that you'd do anything to make them smile just one more time because it's their smile that's holding your entire world together."