They hadn’t even made it to the blue car when Collette sniffed. “Not much of a story in this one, is there?”
“He loves it,” Penny said softly, sensing Drew watching from the other room. He and his brothers, by the sound of their conversation, had moved closer to the living room. “Besides, he tells his own story. Don’t you, Logan?”
“This is a mom and a dad,” he said, pointing to the couple about to climb into the car.
“Such an imagination.” Collette lay a possessive hand on Logan’s hair, smoothing it down. “Is there a reason he’s not in lessons yet?” She asked the question lightly, almost absently.
Why don’t you ask your son? Penny wanted to snap. “What kind of lessons?” Drew hadn’t talked to her about lessons or preschool, and she’d assumed he had a reason for it.
“French lessons, at least, if not preschool. He’s a little old to be staying at home all day.” She fixed Penny with a penetrating look, as if this was all her doing. “You should encourage Drew to take advantage of his wealth. What’s the point, if he’s not giving his son the very best?”
Collette’s words cut into Penny like a bread knife—serrated and sharp. Even if she’d only been here as Logan’s nanny, it was a cruel thing to say.
But she wasn’t only here for Logan. She was here for Drew. Their pretend marriage arrangement would never hold up if some of his family members had never met her. Not when they were all in the same business.
“I’ve found Drew to be very thoughtful about his parenting decisions,” she said around an ache in her throat.
“Oh, dear,” Collette said, looking across at Penny. “I didn’t mean to suggest you’re a bad choice for a nanny. I only meant that…” She sighed. “My late husband’s work has allowed for our sons to become very…stable. Very well-off. It seems strange to me to pass up available opportunities, especially when it comes to my grandson.” Her only grandson. Maybe that’s why she was being so rude. “Anyway, I’m glad for the chance to meet you. Tell me about your previous experience as a nanny.”
Now Drew did come to the back of the sofa where they sat, putting a hand down on Penny’s shoulder. “Mom, she didn’t come here for another interview.”
Collette laughed brightly. “I’m only asking because I’m interested in the people in your life. I heard through the grapevine that you hired a nanny who’s especially skilled in business. Where did you get all your experience?” She aimed the last question at Penny.
“In Toronto,” she said, hoping that keeping it boring would make Collette less interested.
“Any company I would know about?”
No, she wanted to say, but Drew stood right behind her. “I—” She swallowed a sick feeling. This was precisely the conversation Penny did not want to have. Not with Drew, and certainly not with Collette. Not with anyone. That had been the entire point of moving to Napa. She’d put as much distance between herself and Toronto as she possibly could. “I used to work in a similar industry,” she hedged. “Logistics.” Her chest felt like a deflating balloon.
“Logistics?” Drew chuckled. “No wonder you’re so good at figuring out my presentations.”
“I was good at what I did.” Penny sat up straight. He still hadn’t taken his hand from her shoulder. Relief cascaded down from the back of her neck to her fingertips. “But I wanted a different lifestyle, which is why I got back into nannying.”
Collette pursed her lips, eyes narrowed. “I simply can’t understand why—”
“Mom, Penny is wonderful at what she does. I’m lucky to have her. She’s got Logan sitting through meals and learning the alphabet. He’s happy. We’re all happy.”
The pressure had built to an unsustainable level, and Penny stood up with a huge smile. “Excuse me for a minute.” Behind the sofa, she went up on tiptoe to kiss Drew’s cheek. “Where’s the restroom?”
He pointed her down a hall.
In the bathroom she splashed water on her face and took a series of deep, calming breaths. Collette was more than a little bitchy. And, yes, Penny was already on the defensive because she wasn’t working from a foundation of honesty.
God, it sucked to feel that way. It literally drained the energy from her bones. Being peppered with questions by Collette gave her the same stomach-dropping sensation she’d had when her father called, bewildered, to say that he’d lost the company. He’d lost his retirement package. He’d lost everything.
Jack and Lisa were selling their company to an honorable man. Her father had made the mistake of trusting someone who was far less than honorable. A man who had inflated his own worth. By the time her dad listened to her about her gut feeling that the guy was a swindler, it was too late. He’d signed on to a complicated sale agreement that resulted in the company being hacked up for parts. Her father’s good name had been part of the deal as well.
“That’s not happening this time,” Penny said to herself in the mirror. “His mother is one of those protective grandmother types. You’re helping him do something good. Don’t lose your nerve.”
She came quietly out of the bathroom to find that everyone had moved. Penny put on a happy face and followed the sound of their voices to a dining room off the kitchen.
Charlie and Archer sat on one side of the big table, Logan between them. Archer was pointing out various dishes on the table.
But Collette and Drew stood together at the doorway.
“She’s hiding something,” she was saying, her voice pitched low, her words urgent. “Your father knew everyone in logistics. And she looked very cagey when she answered.”
“I’ve got it, Mom.” Drew gave her a nod. “You know I’d protect Preston over everything. Everything except Logan.” His tone was almost…cold. They wanted success, the Prestons. She saw that clearly now.
But he had defended her.
And the way he acted when they were in bed together…
Smile.
She just had to smile and get through this dinner.
Drew turned his head and saw her, and his face lit up. “Good. You’re back—we can eat. Come sit down.” He held out his hand until she twined her fingers through his.
It couldn’t all be an act, could it?
Could it?
10
In the days leading up to the gala, Drew caught Penny frowning into empty space more than once. It was like a cloud had descended over her mood. But she’d never admit to anything bothering her.
One night as they lay in his bed, feet tangled together, he asked her point blank. “Did my mom say something to upset you? More than the obvious things. She was way out of line in a lot of her questions, but was it something specific?”
Penny looked down, which only had the effect of drawing his attention to the way her breasts peeked above the sheet she’d pulled over her. “It chafes at me, sometimes.”
“The sheets?” he joked, but she didn’t laugh.
“The pretending.”
It tore at his heart. “We’re not pretending this.”