Noah - 7

"I don't like her," Jenna firmly announces with a shake of her head. "I don't like her one bit."

I furrow my brow at her odd remarks while I start to loosen and take off my tie. She's been making that pouty face and pacing back and forth around the bedroom since I got home. And I've also noticed that strange attitude and behavior of hers ever since we got off the phone earlier. She hasn't sounded normal since then, and I guess I'm about to find out the reason why.

"Who?" I reluctantly ask while I kick off my shoes.

Jenna stops pacing and sighs as if the answer was obvious. "The new nanny you hired for Taylor, of course. I don't like her. She's just too young. Is she even capable of taking care of Taylor? Wasn't she working at a library just a few days ago?" she adamantly questions.

A natural scoff is drawn from my lips as I close my eyes and silently chuckle. Now I understand why she's been upset all day. It's because of Cassie's sudden appearance before her, the young woman's unexpected presence showing up from out of nowhere in the intimate space shared between us. Though I suppose I should have expected a strong and negative response like this from Jenna. She hasn't exactly been fond of Cassie since the very beginning of their first meeting, and she still clearly isn't fond of the woman now.

"She might not be as qualified as all the other nannies I've hired, but Taylor likes her. I figure the kid might listen to her more because of that," I reply with a shrug. "I mean, it's been working out so far. Cassie tells me that Taylor's been good all day."

"Cassie?" Jenna angrily repeats with a fold of her arms. Calling the new nanny by her first name seems to have struck a nerve with her.

"Yes, Cassie. That is her name. What else am I going to call her?" I respond with another scoff of disbelief while the blonde rolls her eyes. Seeing her irrational temper makes me want to tease her a bit.

I take her hands into mine and cheekily joke with her. "Don't tell me you're jealous."

Jenna's jaw drops as she looks at me in absolute outrage with her beautiful blue eyes. "Jealous? Of her? You must be kidding me. I'm only worried about Taylor's well-being. You know I treat that girl like she's my own daughter!" she exclaims.

My heart is instantly swept away by the sight of the model's fierce glare and frowning lips. The visible frustration on her gorgeous face strangely arouses and excites me. There's just something about seeing a woman in distress which drives me a little wild. I can't help but feel the irresistible urge to kiss her and make her mine when I catch that troubled expression on her lovely face. So I only do what feels right and I pull her face toward me to satisfy my natural craving for her lips.

There's only one way to get her mind off the little things in life that don't matter.

Jenna softly moans as I relish the soft cushion of her lips, her increasing desire returning my passionate kisses with some of her own as she begins to unbutton my dress shirt. The blood in my body immediately rushes to my lower half, and once I begin to feel my cock rising, there's nothing more I want to do than sink into that curvy body of hers. My hands eagerly reach for Jenna's large and supple breasts which happen to fit perfectly within my palms and fingers. A pleasured moan trails from her red lips as I roll my thumb back and forth around her hardened nipple. The sexual teasing gets to be too much for me, so I pull the two of us onto the bed where I grab a handful of her ass and squeeze it.

And right as I'm about to pull off her thong and slip my fingers between her thighs, Jenna stops me and breathily states, "Wait a minute, Noah. We're not done talking yet."

"What else is there to talk about besides how much I want your body right now?" I ask as I plant soft kisses on the side of her neck.

"It's important," she insists with an unconvincing soft moan.

"Then hurry up and tell me before I make you forget all about it."

After giving Jenna a brief window of opportunity to stop me from stripping her naked and having my way with her, she slowly gets off of me and sits up on the bed. There's a hesitant expression in her typically confident blue stare which alarms me. Especially as she reveals her nervous habit of licking her lips to me while she gathers the courage to tell me the important matter that's on her mind.

"I know this is a little out of nowhere, but I've been looking into a few boarding schools for Taylor. Some friends of mine in the UK tell me that they send their kids to these amazing schools with the best instructors to teach and supervise them. And I think it'll be a really good idea for her to get away for a bit and to make some friends with other kids her own age," Jenna explains with a bit of shaky confidence. The clear uncertainty and insecurity in her pitch to me compels her to place her hand on my inner thigh where she suggestively begins to stroke it.

"You won't even need a nanny to take care of her! The school will provide everything for Taylor," she continues with a smile. "I honestly believe that she'll love it there, and I think it's something you should really consider. Both for your sake and hers."

Jenna raises her brow and anxiously beams at me in anticipation of my reaction. But I can only come up with a single response to her suggestion.

"You're kidding, right?" I plainly ask with a skeptical look on my face. However, there isn't a glimpse of jest or humor on her troubled expression.

"Noah-"

"Taylor is my daughter, and I'm not going to ship her off to some boarding school in another country just because your friends casually suggested it to you. I'm not going to be that kind of parent to her. I'm already out of her daily life enough as it is. There's no need for me to leave her behind with somebody else like she's some sort of a burden to me," I angrily state while I get up from the bed in exasperation.

A tired sigh rushes out of my throat as my bitter emotions consume me. Putting Taylor's name and the word 'burden' together in the same breath is enough to set me off and put me in a foul mood. I'll never see that kid as an obstacle or a problem to me for as long as I live. Not now. And not ever.

That child is my whole damn world, and I'll be damned if someone tries to take her away from me.

Unfortunately, Jenna doesn't seem to understand how much I'm unwilling to part with Taylor. She rises from the bed after me with a look of annoyance and impatience in her eyes.

"And you think hiring these useless nannies are going to help her? Just look at how misbehaved she already is! She needs discipline. I mean, she's already learning how to lie and manipulate you-"

"Stop it!" I interrupt in a booming voice which practically echoes and bounces off the walls in the bedroom. The unexpectedly loud tone of my voice startles not only Jenna who stares at me in frightened surprise, but myself as well. Taken aback by my own little outburst, I lower my head in regret and implore with her: "Please, I really don't want to hear another word of this from you."

"Fine," the blonde fumes as she walks right past me and heads out of the bedroom.

She clearly isn't satisfied with my extreme opposition and lack of consideration for her absurd plan. Yet I still foolishly chase after her while she sprints down the staircase in a hurry. Leaving a fight and argument unsettled between us isn't quite how I want to end our night together.

"Jenna," I call out to her from the top of the steps, but she completely ignores me and continues walking down the stairs like I'm not even there.

Is she really doing this to me right now?

I slap both sides of my face and let out a tiny groan. What a pain in the ass. Her stubborn nature forces me to hurry down the staircase to catch up to her where I manage to grab her by the arm and prevent her from walking away from me. But the upset blonde immediately shakes off my grasp around her wrist once she feels me holding her back from leaving.

"Don't touch me. I'm going home," Jenna snaps as she turns around to glower at me. Her brilliant blue eyes meet mine with a strong sense of displeasure and resentment. There's an unreasonable look of betrayal pouring out from her withered gaze which I don't have the strength to fight against. All I can do is simply watch the woman turn back around and leave through the entrance with a loud and angry slam of the door.

However, I don't even get the opportunity to mull over what just happened when the sound of a set of keys dropping onto the floor draws my attention. The distinct and sudden noise is followed by a very audible "shit" which undoubtedly sounds like it's coming from behind me. I calmly turn my head toward the originating point of the sound and find myself staring at the scene of the new nanny on the floor chasing after her house keys. When she finally manages to pick them up and realize that I've noticed her lurking presence, she nervously laughs and greets me.

"Hi," Cassie grins with a tense chuckle. She points her thumb toward the front door and says, "I was just on my way out when that happened."

The young woman apprehensively laughs again while I silently observe her panicked condition. Her jumpy eyes don't seem to know where to look when my chest is partly exposed in front of her. She can't maintain eye contact with me for longer than a few seconds, but she also can't keep her stare pointed down when my bare chest and abs are visible to her. Everything about her skittish state tells me that she's inexperienced with men, especially with the slight red flush that appears in the balls of her cheeks.

For a woman who likes to talk big, she's surprisingly docile when it comes to men.

"You're not going to ask about it?" I nonchalantly say. "No words of wisdom for me today?"

Cassie stops fretting and slowly lifts her gaze toward me after hearing my question. Her dark brown eyes finally meet mine for the first time without looking away, the bold and daring spirit in her unyielding expression reminiscent of the one I witnessed that night in front of the library.

"Well, it's none of my business, right? I'm trying not to overstep my boundaries here since this is my first day on the job and all," Cassie casually retorts. There's a flicker of mischief in her gaze which she doesn't even try to hide as she gently smiles at me.

Heh.

A dry chuckle naturally sounds from my lips and breaks the cold and cynical front that I have on. I didn't think I'd be able to have the strength or emotion to laugh after dealing with that heated argument with Jenna, but Cassie somehow managed to prove me wrong with her snarky comments. All of the anger and frustration that I was harboring inside my heart from that pointless dispute is gone with just one laugh. It's strange. My chest feels a whole lot lighter and at ease after briefly talking to her.

I continue staring into the young woman's soft brown eyes while a calm silence fills the air. Her honest gaze appears to be taken in and captivated by me like a moth to a flame. I've seen that longing stare from enough women to know what it means. But I know better than to acknowledge the implication and intent behind their earnest expressions. Especially when that feeling can't be returned.

"Good night, Cassie," I utter in a low voice as I begin to make my way back up the staircase.

The young nanny quickly snaps out of her dazed stupor to respond back to me before I'm out of ear's reach: "Good night, Mr. Bishop!" Cassie's flustered voice speaks out.

I can hear the faint sound of the front door closing not long after the young woman's farewell greeting to me. Her departure leaves behind a dead silence which follows me as I climb up the spiraling steps and back up to my bedroom. But something feels off about the mood that I'm in. My heart isn't as troubled by the still noise which accompanies my thoughts as much as it should be. And there's hardly any room for concern in my busy life in regards to Jenna and her little unwarranted outburst.

It's the first time I've ever felt this way toward her.

But maybe all that means is that it's time for a change.