Nurse Or Nanny?

Chapter Eleven

David POV

I am finally home after being lost in my thoughts and drive up to my house.  Currently we are living in my parents guest house.  After losing my wife I couldn't take living in that house anymore, and I needed to be closer to some help.  What's closer than your parent's guest house.  Walking in the door I hear the T.V. on, it's late, well only nine, but too late for the T.V. to be on. As I make my way to the T.V. room I see Lauren and Joe watching Finding Nemo.
"Hey guys, you know it's a school night, what are you guys doing up so late?" I ask, I'm a little frustrated, I told the babysitter they needed to be in bed by seven thirty, eight at the latest. 
"Grandma came over and the babysitter went home early, Grandma had too many of her special drinks I think and fell asleep on the couch." Joe said as he looked at me, noting the look in my eyes, "Joe, you know better than to stay up past your bedtime, I can see his from Lauren, but not you."
"Hey! I know better too." Lauren said
"Oh, you do now do you? Well if you know better than how come you are up with Joe? Hmm?" I say and they know I am teasing them.  Lauren takes a minute to think about it and jumps off the couch.
"It's past my bedtime, and because I am a big girl and know better, I am going to bed." She says as she starts to march out of the room, she looks at her big brother and he jumps off the couch too.
"Pajamas, teeth then bed. I'll come and read you both a story in a few minutes." I have to go and find my mother and see what the hell happened.  I can't lose another babysitter because of her again.
I go to my office and put some of my things away.  When I'm done I go to the living room and sure enough, my mother is sleeping on the couch with a half finished scotch. I clear my voice rather loudly and give a small cough and she jumps awake.
"Oh David, I didn't hear you come in, have you been home long?" She looks around trying to get her bearings.
"No, just a few minutes. It's late and the kids were up watching T.V. where is the babysitter? The kids said you sent you home?" I ask, annoyed.
"Oh yes David I did, she was absolutely awful.  She was giving the kids frozen dinners and teaching them Spanish. We speak English here, no need for that other language." She stands up and straightens her blouse. I sigh and pinch the bridge of my nose between my eyes as I can feel a headache coming on, brought on by my mother. "Mom, Adriana was an amazing babysitter, she came at any time of the day and even on her days off when I really needed her.  She was good to the kids and I bought those frozen dinners for when I didn't have time to get to the store. And it's also not the end of the world if they learn a bit of another language, don't forget, their mother was French.
"Oh, I didn't forget." She said shortly, I know she wants to say more on the subject but she won't even go as low as to talk poorly about the dead.
"Just go, you've made more work for me now and I've had a long day."
"You know you can send them over to my house, I don't know why you insist on hiring a sitter when you know I am perfectly capable of taking care of them. I raised you and you turned out..okay." She pauses on the okay and I know why.  She wanted me to become a lawyer and move on from there and possibly become a judge or something, who knows what she wanted. And that was the path I was on before I met Juliette, she made me look at the world differently, and while I did have a passion for the law, I just went a different route. 
"I know Mother, but it's a lot of work and I don't want to wear you out.  Did you need me to call someone to come and get you?"
"No, I'll be fine, I'm a grown woman David." I walk her to the door and see her off.  
I go upstairs and find Lauren already asleep, I go in and kiss her goodnight and go check on Joe.  He's awake, he always stays up and waits for me to read to him. 
"Hey, where's Jackson?" 
"He's out with some friends, that's all he would tell me" Joe says and looks kind of sad. I knew taking in Jackson would have its challenges, but Joe was so excited to have a older boy in the house. 
"Okay, thanks for the update." I lay down beside him, propped up on the headboard and grab his book.  We are currently on the second book in the Harry Potter series and he is in love with it.
"One chapter tonight bud then lights out okay." 
"I kind of figured, but if we do one chapter tonight, can we do three tomorrow?" He says all excited.
"We'll see how work goes, but I don't see why not."
"Cool." He says and makes himself comfortable.  We are three pages in and he falls asleep.

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