Monty:ย Leave Max with Isaiah and come back to my room. Weโve gotta chat.
Me:ย Am I leaving Max so you can yell at me?
Monty:ย Yes.
Me:ย Cool, cool. Iโll be sure to rush right over for that.
โI found Max a new nanny,โ is the first thing he says before Iโve even closed the door behind me.
Huh?ย I take a seat across the desk in Montyโs hotel room, eyeing him with confusion. โHow? I fired Troy an hour ago.โ
โIโm just that good, and youโre going to hire her because you clearly have shit taste in nannies since you wonโt stop firing them all, so Iโm taking over.โ
โHer?โ
โMy daughter.โ
My eyes shoot to the framed photo sitting next to him. Itโs the same picture he has back in his office in Chicago. The same photo he props on his desk in every city we visit.
I knew the girl in the picture was his daughter, that much was clear, but even though he and I are close, heโs never told me much about her. I always assumed it was because he felt guilty leaving her and traveling for work as much as we do. That, or he knows talking about his kid who he misses will only reaffirm what I already believeโthat itโs nearly impossible to do this job as a single parent.
The girl in the photo canโt be more than thirteen or fourteen years old. Sheโs in that awkward phase we all had in our early teens, donning both braces and acne. Dark hair is slicked back in a tight ponytail, visor shading her face and a bright yellow T-shirt with number fourteen centered on the front. Softball player, with her too-big sleeves cinched together with some
sort of band on each shoulder. A pitchersโ glove rests on a single knee as she poses for her season photo.
Montyย wouldย have a softball-playing daughter.
โSheโs free for the summer and I want her to travel with us,โ he continues.
Makes sense, sheโs out of school for the summer.
โYeah, but Monty, this is my kid weโre talking about.โ
โAnd mine.โ His brows raise, daring me to say something against this plan. โItโs not a question, Ace. Iโm telling you this is happening. Iโm tired of you finding something wrong with every single person we hire. Weโre doing background checks every few weeks for someone new, and changing names on the hotel rooms and plane manifests is becoming a pain in the ass for the travel coordinators. Sheโs Maxโs new nanny, and the best part about it is sheโs my kid and you canโt fire her.โ
Shit.
โSheโs only free until September so weโll have to find someone else to finish the last bit of the season, but weโll cross that bridge when we get there.โ
Itโs clear thereโs no getting out of this. I owe him for everything heโs done for Max and me, and he fucking knows it.
If I have to leave my son with someone who isnโt me, I guess this isnโt the worst possible solution. This is a nanny thatโs probably too young to give a shit about a bunch of pro baseball players, and her dad will most likely be watching her like a hawk anytime sheโs not taking care of Max, which takes that responsibility off my shoulders.
Whatโs two months?ย Just double the time Iโve gone without firing someone.
โCan she drive?โ I ask.
His brows furrow in confusion. โWhat?โ
โLike if something happens to Max while Iโm not around, can she get him to the hospital?โ
โYeah . . .โ
Okay, thatโs good. Sheโs at least sixteen. That photo is probably a couple of years old at this point.
โIs she responsible?โ
โSheโs . . .โ he hesitates. โSheโs responsible at work.โ Weird answer.
The door to his hotel makes that noise when the electric lock is being undone by a keycard. Over my shoulder, dark hair enters first as a woman walks in backwards, using her ass to open the door.
Chocolate hair. Frayed hem to her shorts. Thick thighs.
She turns around and Miss Double Fisting from the elevator is standing in my coachโs hotel room. And sheโs double fisting again, only this time itโs with a couple of coffee cups.
I adjust my glasses on my face to make sure Iโm seeing this correctly.
Green eyes connect with mine.
โYou.โ The word comes out part seething, part shock.
She sighs, her shoulders dropping. โI had a feeling it was going to be you.โ
Huh?
โAce, meet my daughter, Miller Montgomery. Maxโs new nanny.โ My head whips back in his direction. โYouโre kidding me.โ โMiller, Kai Rhodes. Youโll be taking care of his son this summer.โ โAbsolutely not,โ I quickly interject.
Miller rolls her eyes, handing her dad one of the two coffees.
How is this possible? She sure as hell isnโt thirteen or fourteen. Sheโs a full-grown woman who drinks beer and apparently doesnโt sleep. The acne is long cleared up, leaving tanned, flawless skin, and her braces have created perfectly straight teeth in a mouth that says whatever the hell it wants.
She looks like a Miller, though. That wild tomboy thing sheโs got going for her with her cutoff overalls and tattoos.
โSheโs not watching my kid.โ
Miller takes the seat next to mine and points at me with her thumb, giving her dad a look that says,ย this fucking guy.
Monty laughsโtraitor.
โYou two have met already, I see.โ
โYeah, she was double fisting beers in the elevator at 9 a.m.โ
โDear God.โ She throws her head back, and that raspy voice mixed with the sexual way my brain took that phrase has my cock betraying me. โThey were Coronas. Do you know the alcohol content in those? Thatโs some peopleโs form of hydration.โ
โI donโt care.โ I face her dad. โI wonโt leave someone like that in charge of Max.โ
โLighten up, Baby Daddy.โ She takes a casual sip of her coffeeโor rather her chai tea latte per the tag on her paper cup.
โDonโt call me that.โ
โI had a beer to celebrate me quitting my job this morning. Youโre acting like I was doing lines of coke off the handrails in the elevator, which yeah, now that Iโm saying that out loud, I realize sounds oddly specific, but I promise Iโve never done that.โ
I turn back to Monty. โThis your kid?โ โThe one and only,โ he says with pride. โHow old are you?โ
โTwenty-five.โ
I didnโt realize Monty became a dad at such a young age. Thatโd put him at . . . twenty years old when she was born? Damn. I thought this was hard at thirty-two.
โHow old areย you?โ she asks.
โIโm asking the questions here. Iโm trying to figure out if itโs worth risking my kidโs safety just to hire you and get your dad off my back.โ
โAnd Iโm trying to figure out if itโs worth ruining my summer by spending the next two months working for a guy with a giant stick up his ass.โ
โIโm being responsible. I donโt have a stick up my ass.โ
โProbably been lodged so far up there and for so damn long that you forgot it was even inside of you.โ
โMiller,โ Monty interjects. โYouโre not helping.โ โDo you have any childcare experience?โ โAdult children, yes.โ
I shoot a pointed glance towards Monty. โWe donโt know if Max will even like her. You know how he is with women.โ
โHe was practically throwing himself at me in the elevator. I think weโre fine in that department.โ
โIโm pretty sure he was going for your bottles. They look a lot like his.โ โYouโre not going to get over the beers, are you?โ
โNo.โ
โOkay.โ Monty claps his hands together. โThis is going to be interesting.โ โDo you smoke?โ That voice of hers suggests she might.
โNo, but it seems you might drive me to if this is how the rest of the summer is going to go.โ
โMiller,โ Monty interrupts like a stern dad breaking up a fight between his kids. โThanks for the coffee. Can you give me a minute with Kai?โ
Miller sighs, quickly tying her long brown hair up in a knot on top of her head, giving me a better view of the artwork on her arms and shoulders. Itโs mostly intricate line-work making up a sleeve of florals. Almost like the outlines of a coloring page.
Max will like those.
โFine.โ She stands from her seat, taking her chai with her, that sweet scent of dessert wafting from her again before she turns to me. โBut so you know, Iโm doing this as a favor. So, try to be less of a dick about it, yeah? See you later, Baby Daddy.โ She stops at the door, her hand on the knob as she cocks her head in contemplation. โOr should I say,ย Baseballย Daddy? Oh yeah. Much better. Baseball Daddy, it is!โ
She leaves us alone with that.
I shake my head in disbelief. โYour daughter is unhinged.โ โSheโs the best, right?โ Montyโs chest rumbles at my annoyance.
โYou canโt be serious about this. Thereโs no way sheโs the right person to take care of Max.โ
He leans back in his chair, tattooed hands crossed over his stomach. โIโm not just saying this because Iโm biased, but youโd be lucky to have her. She might be my wild child and not know what the hell a filter is, but when it comes to work, sheโs the most driven person I know. She will do everything for your boy.โ
I toss my head back. โCome on, man. Letโs be serious about this.โ
โI am being serious. Trust me on this, Kai. I know my daughter. If for some reason, she ever gives you aย validย reason to fire her, Iโll even offer to be the one to do it. Thatโs how much faith I have in this situation.โ
Staying silent, I eye him, searching for any sign of bullshit.
I might not know Miller, might not trust her, but I do trust Monty with both my life and my kidโs. And I know heโd never put Max at risk, even if this situation benefits him.
I canโt believe Iโm even considering letting him talk me into this, but I owe him. โShe gets one strike,โ I say, holding a single finger to reiterate.
โBaseball puns, Ace? Youโre better than that.โ โShut up.โ
He puts his hand out to shake mine. โOne strike, and sheโs outta here!โ โOkay, way too far.โ
I put my palm in his, but before I can pull away, he tightens his grip, willing my eye contact.
โIโm gonna give you a word of advice, son. Knowing her, sheโll make sure you have the time of your life this summer, both you and Max, but donโt even think about getting attached to her.โ
My brows cinch in confusion. โDid you not see that interaction?โ I free my hand, gesturing towards the door Miller left through.
โI did, and Iโm telling you this, not as her dad but as your friend. She will leave when the summer is over. I love my daughter to death, but sheโs a runner and the last thing she wants is to get caught.โ
Monty should know me well enough by now that the last thingย Iย want is for her to stay. In fact, if it werenโt for Max growing up far too quickly, Iโd be wishing the summer away already.
โTrust me, Monty. You have nothing to worry about.โ He hums, unconvinced.
Standing, I tuck my chair into the opposite side of his desk. โSee you at the field.โ
Iโm almost out the door when he stops me.
โAnd Ace,โ he calls out. โKeep your dick in your pants. We all know how fucking fertile you are, and Iโm too young and too goddamn attractive for someone to be calling me Grandpa.โ
โJesus Christ,โ I huff, leaving his room.