Page 89 of The Keeper

I breathed a silent sigh of relief.

“I was just asking.” The other girl munched on a crisp, her eyes traveling between me and Carina. “If you’re both single, you should, like, date. You’d make a realllyyyy cute couple.”

The heat under my collar intensified. “Alright,” I said abruptly. “Let’s wrap this up and head to the other exhibits. There’s a lot left to see, and I don’t want us to miss our lunch reservation.”

“Okay, but I have to use the loo first,” Briana said.

“I’ll go with her. You stay here with Evie,” Carina told me.

I nodded. Once they were out of sight, I glanced at Evie, who was diligently picking the chocolate chips out of her cookie. She only liked the cookie part of chocolate chip cookies.

“I’m sorry if that conversation made you uncomfortable,” I said, testing the waters. I’d never discussed my love life with Evie, and I hadn’t planned on doing so at the zoo. But given my new relationship with Carina, I wanted to know how she’d feel about me dating again. As awkward as it was, Briana’s line of questioning gave me the perfect opening.

“It’s okay. Bri’s always asking inappropriate questions.” Evie picked out the last chocolate chip and ate the entire cookie in two bites. “I wouldn’t mind though.”

“Wouldn’t mind what?”

“If you got a girlfriend. As long as she’s nice and not weird like my old nannies.” She was too busy brushing crumbs off her lap to notice me freeze.

“You really wouldn’t mind if I started dating again?”

“Nope,” Evie said, oblivious to my astonishment. “Briana’s mum finally started dating again after her divorce. She met him at her ballroom dance class. Bri says it’s been really good for her and that she’s no longer throwing darts at a picture of Bri’s dad’s face in the basement. She thinks Bri doesn’t know, but we totally found the picture the last time I slept over.”

I swallowed past the lump in my throat. “Good to know.”

Here I’d been agonizing over how to broach this topic with her for years, and she’d accepted the idea like it was the most natural thing in the world.

Sometimes, I forgot that Evie was no longer a little kid. Obviously, she had a lot more growing up to do, but she wasn’t a baby either. I had to stop underestimating her ability to handle tough conversations.

“I like Carina,” she added, sneaking a peek at me. “She’s the best nanny I’ve ever had, besides Tabitha.”

Subtle, Evie. Evie liking Carina had never been the problem. I was sure she’d be over the moon if she found out about us dating. That was the problem because I couldn’t guarantee our endgame. Uncertainty—it was almost worse than rejection.

I watched as Carina and Briana exited the toilets and walked back to the table, laughing and talking the entire time. Carina was a natural even with the other girl.

“I know, sweetheart,” I said, my chest tight. “I know.”

CHAPTER 35

CARINA

Noah had to leave for the World Cup on Wednesday, just three days after our zoo day. Normally, players met up with their teams in their home country and traveled to the host nation together, but he’d gotten permission to fly directly to South Africa instead because of Evie, whose school term didn’t end until Friday.

He couldn’t postpone his trip for those extra two days, so we’d arranged for me to take her to the airport, where a private protection officer would be waiting to accompany her to Michigan.

I was already sad about the prospect of sending her off for the summer. We’d bonded immensely over the past two months, and I considered her a true friend, not just my nanny charge.

I was also dreading Noah’s departure. The house would feel so empty without him, and even though we’d both be in South Africa, I imagined he’d be too busy with the tournament to meet up. I didn’t want to wait until after he returned to London for our first date, so I put on my big girl pants and did the one thing I’d avoided since the Danny Lee disaster: I asked a guy out first.

Will you go out with me?

A simple question when we got home from the zoo, followed by an even simpler answer.

Yes.

That was how we found ourselves in one of the city’s most iconic attractions on Tuesday night. I’d debated where I wanted our first date to take place, but it was a no-brainer after Noah mentioned offhandedly that he’d never been to the London Eye.

“I can’t believe this is your first time riding the Eye,” I said as the operator closed the doors and our capsule slowly ascended. “How long have you been living in the city again?”