Nanny to the Billionaire Dragon - Cynthia Wilde Page 0,5

the “good” knight, Bevon the Brave. The two men laughed with companionable mirth.

Stretching the kinks in his shoulders, Rafe sighed. He could feel his Dragon wanting to unfurl its wings. He just needed to keep it at bay a little longer. He refocused his mind. There was important business yet to attend to. “I have a meeting in about an hour with a potential nanny; do you think you and Red can make sure everything is set to go today? I'll catch up with you later.”

“Of course,” Alec responded. “Good luck. But are you sure you don’t want to hire someone from the faire? I mean that seems a whole lot easier, for a lot of reasons.” He gave Rafe a concerned look.

Rafe always appreciated his council because he was never afraid to speak his mind. “Well, to be honest, I considered it, but I am afraid that anyone from the fair would know what happened and might unconsciously be sort of catering to the “poor damaged children” a bit too much, if that makes sense. Of course, I am sensitive to their needs, but I want a new start for them, and I don’t want their identities to be as poor orphans whose parents were killed. Does that make sense?”

“Wow, well, I guess I never would have thought of that boss. That’s why you get paid the big bucks I guess.” Alec looked at him with a certain thoughtful admiration. “I hope she turns out to be a good fit. Those kids are adorable, but, well…you definitely need all the help you can get. God knows they need a woman’s touch.”

“You're telling me,” Rafe said, his eyes taking on a thoughtful expression. “Don’t get me wrong, I will let the new nanny know the truth in due time, of course, and having someone from the outside will create other complications for sure, but I want whoever takes care of them to see them first and foremost for the beautiful and perhaps “spirited” children they are, because that is how I want them to see themselves. I'm not sure how Peter handled them. But I miss him, and believe me, taking care of them and giving them the best upbringing I can is almost first in my mind.”

“I understand,” said Alec in reverence. “And I miss him too. He was a good man; he knew his duty to you and to all of us.” Alec looked at his friend and boss, placing a hand on his shoulder. “Rafe, it wasn't your fault. Stop beating yourself up. You're doing the best that you can. A damn fine job to tell you the truth.”

“I hope so,” Rafe answered.” I really hope so.”

An hour later, there was a knock at the door. A young woman with blonde hair and brown eyes smiled up at him from the threshold.

“Good morning,” the woman said pleasantly. “My name is Lucy Cline. I'm here for the nanny position.”

Rafe gratefully let her in. “Yes,” he said while trying not to sound too eager. “Please sit down. Would you like something to drink, perhaps some tea?”

“Yes, that would be nice,” she smiled, set down her bag, and then sat in a chair at the dining table. “Tea is always my drink of choice.”

Without a word, Sarah, Rafe's maid, came out of the kitchen with a steaming pot of tea and cookies, and poured a cup for both of them with precision. “Thank you, Sarah.” Sarah returned a minor bow. She took great pride in everything she did, right down to how she poured the tea. Rafe smiled at her as she left the room.

Half an hour later, the interview seemed to be going very well...at least, in Rafe's opinion. This Lucy had excellent references as well as plenty of experience dealing with high profile clients that required discretion. Working in his world would be a leap for anyone, but her prior experience seemed to bode well that she could handle what would be thrown at her. This might work, he thought as he poured them both another cup of tea. As he did so, he heard the children giggling in the living room.

“I think it's time you met my three little ones,” Rafe smiled and set his cup down on the saucer.

“I would love to,” Lucy replied, beaming. At that very moment, a huge gray rat skittered under her chair. Lucy's scream reverberated through the entire house as she jumped up, knocking the chair to the floor. Her still