The Nanny

Chapter 19

Once inside, her eyes widened at the neat, bright decor. Though simple, Beyoncé was amazed at how nice it looked compared to the beach houses she and her family had rented when she was a child. Mostly she was amazed because it simply didn't even look like a beach house - it looked like someone's home. No cheesy sand dune or sailboat paintings donned the walls. No seashells in vases or scattered on tables as centerpieces.

Beyoncé instantly liked it, though she wasn't sure why. She always enjoyed family beach vacations when she was younger, even when the houses her family rented looked like beach houses.

Finally the young brunette noticed that Jr. was nearly at the top of the stairs. She began her ascent after him, following him into the bedroom he'd entered so she could deposit Anyla's bag on her twin bed. Turning around, she exited the room and immediately opened the door next to it, only to find that what she thought would be a bedroom was actually a study. There were only three more doors, one of which was slim and clearly a linen closet. She opened up the second to find a bathroom, and the third door was obviously the master suite of the house.

Which meant that they'd either each be sleeping in a room with one of the children, or Beyoncé and Onika would have to share a bed together.

Beyoncé's heart leapt into her throat.

"Hey Jr., you wanna put away all your stuff while your mom and I unload everything else from the car?"

As he nodded and turned to his bag, Beyoncé surreptitiously placed her bag just inside the master bedroom door, unsure of where else to leave it, then quickly headed back down the stairs. When her foot hit the last step, Onika and Anyla appeared around the corner, fresh from the bathroom.

"I, uh, put Ny-Ny's bag on her bed in the kids' room," Beyoncé explained, jerking her thumb back toward the stairs.

"Wonderful!" Onika replied, smiling brightly, before looking down at her daughter. "Lady Bug, would you like to go upstairs and ask your brother to help you put your clothes away?"

Ringlets bounced excitedly as she nodded and slowly began to make her way up the steps of the staircase, holding on to the railing tightly as she climbed the stairs step by step.

Silently Beyoncé and Onika watched her, just to make sure she was safe. When the little girl reached the top step and hurried into the bedroom, Beyoncé finally turned around to face Onika. "I noticed there were only two bedrooms," she said nervously.

"Oh, I'm sorry," the older woman replied softly. "My parents allowed Michael to turn the third bedroom into an office last summer. I didn't think about it."

"Um, so where exactly am I supposed to sleep?" Her voice displayed at least a low level of awkwardness and discomfort.

Onika bit her lip. "Well I suppose one of the children could sleep with me, and you share the other bedroom, or you could just share my bed, whichever you feel more comfortable doing," the older woman offered. "I won't be offended if you choose the second option," she added, whispering. "But there is a probability that I'll be disappointed."

"You know that I haven't," the brunette started to say. "What if Jr. and Ny-" Beyoncé sighed. "Onika, I don't know what to do about us," she whispered, glancing down between them. "I haven't made any decisions."

Withholding the devious smile that she felt tugging at her lips, Onika glanced around Beyoncé up the stairs, listening hard for the sounds of the children. Satisfied that they were pulling open drawers and unpacking clothes, Onika pulled Beyoncé away from the stairs, along the wall where they would be out of eyesight from the top of them. Slowly she backed Beyoncé against the pale yellow wall.