EdrickMoana and I both shot each other a somewhat annoyed glance as Ella decided, against our wills, to volunteer us to participate in the game as her parents. I didn’t know how to explain to the staff member standing in front of us that Moana was just Ella’s au pair, not her mother -- and we were certainly not married, nor would we ever be.The teenage staff member looked back and forth between Moana and I with a somewhat disbelieving expression on her face. I knew she could tell that Moana was human and I was a werewolf, but thankfully she didn’t say anything.“Right this way,” the girl said, stepping out of the way and gesturing toward the center of the park where a group of parents and children had gathered in front of a gazebo with a small stage.Moana and I followed reluctantly, Ella tugging on our hands with even more excitement than she had all day, if that was even possible. As we approached the crowd, we started to get some strange looks from other parents.I was still wear
EdrickI lifted my blindfold, as did she. The sweet scent that I smelled was definitely Moana…Or so I thought. It faded so quickly that I was no longer sure if it was her who I smelled, or someone else. It couldn’t be her, anyway; she was a human. She had no scent.“It looks like we have our first winners!” the announcer called over the microphone.As Ella squealed with delight on the platform above, I realized that I was holding Moana’s hand. I saw her blushing and I quickly dropped her hand. When we re-emerged from the maze, Ella was standing at the entrance with one of the staff members -- the same girl from before.The staff member gave Moana and I a strange look, but still said nothing and instead handed Ella the grand prize; the rare doll that Ella had so desperately wanted.As we walked back to the car, Ella couldn’t stop chattering about how much she loved her doll, how amazing it was that she was able to make me find Moana so quickly, and how this was the best birthday she h
MoanaWhen I woke up the morning after Ella’s birthday, I was shocked to discover that it was already eleven o’clock; three hours past my usual time to wake up in the morning. If it hadn’t been for my phone buzzing on the bedside table, I likely would have slept in for even longer.As I awoke, squinting against the bright sunlight coming in through the large window, I also discovered something else: Edrick and I were cuddling again.Feeling my face flush hot, I quickly climbed out of bed, taking care not to wake Edrick, and picked up my phone to see Selina’s name on my screen.“Selina?” I said quietly, walking away from the bed so as not to wake the still-sleeping Edrick.“Where on earth are you?” she asked angrily, her voice quivering with rage. “You should’ve been up hours ago, and you haven’t answered even though I’ve been knocking on your door all morning.”I gulped, feeling a wave of embarrassment wash over me. “I’m so sorry,” I stammered, trying to come up with an excuse as the
MoanaI finished preparing lunch with the maids and helped them to set the meal out on the dining room table. Although I had already eaten a quick meal in the kitchen earlier as we prepared the food, it was still my duty as Ella’s nanny to stay with her and help her if she needed anything. Besides, the grumpy look on Ella’s face whenever Kelly was around only softened when I was near her, which made me want to be near her even more as support.I sat beside Ella for the duration of the lunch, helping her to cut her food, keep her clothes clean, and get her whatever she needed. Edrick, Verona, and Kelly spoke with each other about trivial things as though I wasn’t even there, which was fine with me. If they had tried to involve me in their conversation, I likely wouldn’t have known the right things to say. I’d never dealt with such wealthy people in my life, let alone tried to have meaningful conversation with them.Not being personally involved in the conversation also allowed me to be
MoanaI decided not to go to Edrick’s room that night. I couldn’t bring myself to do it in good conscience after discovering that he had a girlfriend, and I wasn’t about to be his mistress on top of being his daughter’s nanny!At the usual time that I normally would’ve been sneaking over to Edrick’s room, I instead crawled into my own bed with my sketchbook for the first time in days. It felt a bit strange already to be sleeping alone, but it was also a relief from all of the stress of our strange agreement, and it was nice to have the late night to myself to have some time to draw.Like clockwork, however, my phone started to ring just five minutes after I picked up my pencil. I lifted my eyes from my sketchbook, letting out a deep sigh when I was Edrick’s name on my screen.“Yes?” I said after picking up the phone.“Where are you?” Edrick said. His voice sounded agitated.“I’ve decided to unilaterally end our sleeping arrangement,” I replied. “You can reduce my salary back to the or
MoanaThe day of the Morgan family dinner banquet finally came. Selina informed me that anyone attending these banquets was expected to dress formally, so I found a nice, dark blue dress with bows in Ella’s closet and dressed her up with cute socks and shoes, then curled her hair and put a big bow in it. She seemed to have completely forgotten Kelly’s rude comments at the luncheon the week before, and if she didn’t forget, she at least didn’t seem to let it bother her.“Wow! My hair’s so curly!” Ella said, bobbing her head to make her curls bounce. “Thank you, Moana!”I smiled at the little girl in the mirror and squeezed her shoulders. All of a sudden, her gaze slipped over to my outfit, and her smile faded.“Are you going to dress up?” she asked.I looked down at my own outfit with a slight frown. I had chosen the nicest clothes I owned that were also appropriate for a nanny at a family gathering: a simple dress, low heeled shoes, and no jewelry so as not to stand out too much. I th
Moana“Uncle Ethan!”Ella jumped up and ran over to Ethan. Smiling, he picked her up and twirled her around in a circle. The quiet air of the garden became briefly filled with the sweet sound of the little girl’s giggles before he sat her back down and patted her on the head.“I think your grandma is looking for you,” he said, to which Ella immediately perked up and took off to find Verona.I was still sitting on the bench, utterly shocked by Ethan’s presence.“Fancy seeing you here,” he said, walking up to me and standing in front of me so that his tall body blocked the light.“Fancy seeing you here, too,” I said, standing. “I had no idea you were related to the Morgan family.”“Oh, yeah,” he said, running a hand through his hair. Even now, dressed in his formal attire, I could see a small smudge of paint on the artist’s left pinky. “The whole ‘Bradley’ last name is just a pseudonym. Well, sort of; it was my mother’s maiden name. I use it now to protect my true identity.”I nodded, n
Moana“Ahem.”Ethan and I jerked our heads up from the portfolio of his childhood drawings, our train of conversation now broken, to see none other than Edrick standing in the doorway -- and he didn’t look happy.“Oh, hello,” I said, feeling a bit nervous under the billionaire’s strangely disapproving stare. “Ethan was just showing me some of his work.”Without a word, Edrick slowly walked into the studio. His shoes clicked loudly on the concrete floor, echoing through the room’s tall ceilings. For several long moments, the Alpha billionaire slowly circled the studio and looked at all of the art with his hands in his pants pockets. I noticed that he wasn’t looking around with wonder, like I had when Ethan first turned on the light, but rather with an almost disgusted look on his face. He almost seemed repulsed by the art, which was surprising considering the fact that he had plenty of expensive artwork hanging in both his mansion in the mountains and his city penthouse.Finally, Edric