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nazariolahela · 4 years

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Something Domestic: Chapter 13

A/N: Hey y'all! This story is told in first-person narrative, from Riley’s (MC) POV. There will likely be smidges of canon in this, but not too much. Thanks for reading, and please leave feedback, and/or if you would like to be tagged.

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Synopsis: When Riley Brooks takes a new job as a nanny for the affluent Rhys family in New York’s Upper East Side, she assumes she’s just going to care for the children of the couple who hired her. But instead of just school pick-ups and afternoon snacks, she also finds herself spending time with Liam, the handsome divorced dad. Can Riley control her feelings for Liam while still performing the job she was hired for?

All characters are the property of Pixelberry Studios. Thanks for allowing me to borrow them.

Chapter Summary: The aftermath of the tabloid drama has emotions running high.

I rack my brain trying to piece together what the fuck just happened over the last hour. I can’t believe I got fired. As much as I pleaded my case that I had nothing to do with the leak, Madeleine wouldn't have it. The most shocking of it all was Liam’s non-reaction. He just stood behind her, silent, never once meeting my eyes. Does he really think I did this?

The car pulls up outside my apartment building and it’s a total madhouse. A dozen paparazzi stand on the sidewalk, waiting to get a glimpse of the disgraced nanny who broke up a happy home. Hah! Wiping tears from my eyes, I exit the car and am immediately hounded by the clicking of cameras and shouts of “why did you do it.” Fucking vultures. I duck my head and shove past them to the front door. Once I’m safely inside my building, I exhale and that’s when the tears fall. I’m pretty sure my career as a nanny is over. Now that everyone thinks I’m a homewrecker who sleeps with my boss, no family in the tri-state area would even think of hiring me to care for their kids. I guess I should go put in an application at Starbeans.

I enter our apartment and notice that Hana isn’t home. Oh, that’s right. She’s introducing Meghan to her parents tonight. I shoot her a quick text asking how it went. After a few minutes with no reply, I make my way to the kitchen and pour myself a large glass of wine. As I plop down on the couch and drown my misery, my mind wanders back to the leak. I didn’t tell anyone about the divorce, so how did the tabloids find out? In fact, the only person I told was...

No. There’s no way she could have done that. Hana has been my best friend for years. She would never betray my trust like that. I chug the glass of wine and decide to tackle this in the morning. I crawl into bed and cry myself to sleep.

The next morning, I wake up and see that Hana still isn’t home. I also notice she never text me back. I dial her number and wait for her to answer. She doesn’t. Either she’s busy with Meghan, or she’s avoiding me. Don’t think like that, Riley. She’ll call you when she’s free. I decide that the best way to take my mind off all this is to throw myself into a cleaning frenzy.

A few hours have passed and the apartment is spotless, but my mind is still on the tabloid issue. I guess it’s time to take charge of the situation. I gather my things and head out. The paparazzi are still waiting when I step out of my building. Pushing past them, I hail a cab and make my way to Double Tappe to get some answers. A few minutes later, I arrive to a nearly-empty bar and spot Drake behind the counter, drying a rack of martini glasses. Maxwell sits at the bar texting on his phone. He turns and notices me immediately.

“Riley? What the hells are you doing here?”

I drag myself to the bar and take a seat, resting my head in my hands. “It’s over. He hates me.”

The two share a glance. Drake sets the glass he was drying down, tossing the towel over his shoulder. “He doesn’t hate you. He’s just trying to figure out what happened.”

“He didn’t even stick up for me when his ex-wife ripped me a new one. He just stood there like a coward. What kind of person does that?”

Maxwell puts his hand on my shoulder. “I know you’re upset with him right now, but he’s not like that. He’s always been the rational one of our group. He wouldn’t jump to conclusions without gathering all the facts. Trust me, he doesn’t hate you and he doesn’t think that you leaked the story.”

I rub my temples, feeling my emotions bubbling over. “He could have tried calming her down. He could have tried to mediate the situation. Instead, he cowered behind her like a scared puppy.”

“I wasn’t there, so I don’t know what Liam was thinking at that moment. But we just talked to him this morning. His priority is those kids, and he wants to find out who did this as much as you do.”

My heart breaks. Here I am making it all about me when it's the kids who are suffering the most. I can’t imagine how they’re feeling about this. Not only about the divorce, but having to adjust to a new nanny. I wonder what’s going to happen Monday morning when they wake up for school and I’m not there. I take a deep breath. I will not cry. I will not cry. “I just don’t understand. Who would hate me so much, that they’d ruin my career over it?”

Drake finishes drying the rest of the glasses and puts them away. “Maybe that person doesn’t hate you, they just didn’t realize the consequences of leaking the story. Who did you tell?”

“No one.”

“Not one person?”

“Well, except for Hana. But she wouldn’t do that to me.”

He shrugs. “Maybe not, but perhaps she told someone who leaked it. That’s how these things happen, Riley. That’s why I don’t say shit to anyone. Our own families don’t even know half the things we do about Liam and Madeleine. And my sister is married to his brother,” he says, crooking his thumb toward Maxwell.

I chew on my bottom lip. Maybe he’s right. Oh well, the proverbial toothpaste is already out of the tube. Nothing I can do now, except to find out who leaked the story. The three of us sit in silence for a few minutes when the front door slams open and a gust of wind rips through the bar. Drake, Maxwell, and I turn to find Olivia standing in the doorway, shooting daggers. She stomps across the bar in my direction.

“What. Did. You. Do?”

Oh shit. “Olivia. Listen to me.”

“No, you listen to me. What did I tell you about hurting my friend? You bitches are all the same. You only see dollar signs and don’t even take into consideration the people you hurt in your little get-rich schemes.”

I rise from the barstool and march toward her. It’s then that I realize I’ve got a good 4-5 inches on her. That doesn’t seem to deter her. She may be small, but I wouldn’t want to go toe-to-toe with her in a fight. “Excuse me? I never leaked that story. Someone is trying to frame me. I don’t give a fuck about the money.”

“Okay, that’s enough,” Drake jumps in between us.

She turns toward him and aims a murderous glare in his direction. He returns the glare, not backing down. They’re like two alley cats fighting over turf. “How can you be so blasé about this? Liam is your friend too and he’s hurting!” she snaps.

“Because I know she didn’t do it.”

“Well, who did?” she shouts.

“That’s what we’re trying to find out,” I reply. “I care about those kids. Do you really think I would do something to put them in harm’s way?”

“I don’t know! Maybe you got drunk and blabbed to your hoochie friends about it and one of them leaked it.”

I scoff. “First of all, I take my job seriously, so I would never...” I make air-quotes with my pointer and middle fingers. “...Get drunk and blab to my hoochie friends.” She rolls her eyes at me but doesn’t interrupt. “And second, I wouldn’t do that to Liam. I don’t want his money. I never did. I only wanted him.”

She stares at me for a moment longer, then her shoulders drop. “Ugh...you know. I believe you. But you told someone. That’s the only way this got out. The only other people who knew about this are us,” she motions to her, Max, and Drake. “...and we’re bound by loyalty.”

Maxwell walks up and wraps an arm around Olivia’s shoulder. “Okay, ice queen. Let’s all calm down. This has been an emotional day. Let’s try to analyze this in a peaceful manner.”

“I’ll show you peaceful,” she growls, her jaw clenched. He squeezes her shoulder and she exhales. “Fine. But if I find out she had anything to do with this, I’ll skin her alive and use her hide to make a leather coat.”

I swallow. Jesus, this woman is terrifying. “I can promise you, I had nothing to do with the leak. This shit affects my career, Olivia. Do you think families are going to want to hire me after they find out I banged my boss and then sold his story to the tabloids? I could lose everything from this.”

Olivia nods and makes her way to the bar, signaling Drake to pour her a drink. “Okay. Then let’s find out who did.”

***

I arrive home an hour later and find Hana sitting on the couch, watching reruns of America’s Most Eligible. She looks away from the TV and jumps up when she notices me. “Ohmygods, Riley. You’re okay.” She rushes to me and wraps me in a hug. My body goes stiff and she notices. “I saw this week’s issue of Trend on my way home this morning. What happened? Tell me everything.”

We move over to the couch and take a seat. “Well, long-story-short, someone leaked the divorce story to the tabloids and Madeleine fired me over it.”

“What? Oh, Riley, I’m so sorry. What did Liam say?”

“Nothing. He said nothing. He just stood there while Madeleine blamed the whole thing on me. I spoke to Drake earlier and he said Liam’s trying to find out who leaked it. Everybody thinks I did it, but no one will hear my side of it.”

She wraps an arm around me. “Of course you didn’t. You love those kids. Do you have any idea how this got out?”

“No clue. The only person I told was you.”

“Well, you know I didn’t tell anybody. Right?!”

“Do I?”

She pulls back and looks at me with a shocked expression. “You don’t actually think I did this, do you?”

“I don’t know, Hana. I don’t think you leaked it, but maybe you told someone who did.”

She frowns. “Who would I tell?”

I fold my hands in my lap and stare at them. “Meghan, maybe? I don’t know. Maybe you let it slip during pillow talk and she sold it.”

Hana rises from the couch, her fists clenching at her sides. She inhales, trying to control her anger. That’s one thing I’ve always admired about her. She can control her emotions better than I ever could. I guess we have her parents to thank for that. “I can’t believe you would think that about her. Or me. She would never betray me like that.”

“But she doesn’t know me. What would she have to gain by keeping my secret?”

Hana’s voice quakes. “Riley. Don’t say things you can’t take back.”

I throw my head back and close my eyes. “I’m not saying you or her did this, Hana. I’m just saying that maybe your girlfriend let it slip to one of her friends. That’s how these things happen. That’s why I shouldn’t have said anything to you.” I repeat the words Drake said to me earlier. I open my eyes and see tears streaming down Hana’s face.

“Is that what you think of me?” she chokes. “Of my girlfriend? Well, thank you for telling me, Riley Brooks. I’m glad to know that my best friend of six years thinks I would sell her out.” She makes her way to the front door, grabbing her keys, purse, and coat. She furiously wipes her cheek with the back of her hand. “I’m going to stay at Meghan’s for a while. Call me when you grow up.” She rushes out of the apartment, slamming the door with such force, it knocks a photo of us off the wall.

I sigh and walk over to pick up the photo. It was taken the day of our college graduation. We both have huge smiles on our faces; ready to take on the world. As I examine the photo, I notice the glass is cracked. If that’s not a metaphor, I don’t know what is. I set the photo on the end table and the realization of what just happened hits me. I rub my hands down my face. Hana is the one person who's had my back this whole time and I accused her of selling stories about my boss to the tabloids. Riley, you dumb emotional bitch. I have to fix this.

#something domestic #nanny au #trr au #trr fanfic #playchoices fanfic #riley brooks #nazariolahela fanfic

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