What was I thinking? I’d have to be a complete moron not to realize what a big mistake I made asking Holly to babysit, but apparently, I am the biggest idiot in the world, or maybe just an idiot when it comes to her. The words just came out of my mouth without thinking how tough it would be to have her around and not be able to touch her.
I shouldn’t even have gone to Frank’s. His house is over an hour’s drive from mine. I could have met him in town and I wouldn’t have run into Holly.
But it’s been a while since I saw her, and I couldn’t stay away when I thought she might be back from college. I just didn’t plan on inviting her to spend the whole fucking summer with me. That’s asking for trouble.
But when she said she was looking for something to do and she seemed a bit down, I had a solution. So what do I do but go in like the proverbial knight on a white horse, solve her little problem and dump a whole heap of horse shit at my door?
*
Holly shows up with her suitcase a few days later, her dark hair shining in the evening sun. I tell her to come in and she smiles at me shyly as if unsure of her welcome, even though she’s been here quite a few times with her dad.
As she walks in and I take her suitcase, I catch a subtle waft of the apple shampoo she uses and I want to grab her and pull her to me. But common sense prevails because the twins are running past me and they are all over her as soon as she gets through the door, like over-excited puppies.
“Let Holly get in before you jump all over her,” I tell them, although I’d like to do exactly that myself.
As I show her up to her room, I catch myself looking at the bed, wondering what she’ll be wearing between the sheets in a few hours. (Maybe nothing at all. Fuck!) Knowing she’ll be sleeping in one of the bedrooms just a few yards from me is going to be torture. I might have been better to put her in the guest wing, but she needs to be near the kids.
I thought about saying my plans had changed but in the end, there was no way I could get out of it. I couldn’t tell Frank why I didn’t want her around. He’s delighted I gave her the job. He even called to thank me for asking her. Apparently, she’s been getting so many rejections for fashion jobs, each one another little dig at her confidence, the idea of doing something different for the summer really cheered her up.
Of course, Katie and Jack are happy about it all. They squealed and ran around like crazy, making a racket as only 5-year-olds can when I told them Holly was coming to stay. And I can’t disappoint them either. Mercia, their bitch of a mother, already lets them down far too often. She arranges to see them and then cancels at the last moment because something more important has come up.
Holly will be good for them. I can’t deny that, even if it means saying goodbye to my peace of mind for a couple of months.
I’ll just have to be careful. I usually work fewer hours in the summer to spend more time with the twins, but I can see that if I do, it will only lead to problems. Putting in some extra time at the office will help. I can make a start on the plans to expand the Madrid operation that I was putting off until September.
But then I come out of the kitchen and look at Holly and the twins playing and I know I was lulling myself into a false sense of security. Just doing overtime at the office is not going to cut it.
Holly is lying on the rug in the living room and the twins are crawling all over her, tickling her as she giggles uncontrollably. The hem of her T-shirt is pushed up, revealing the smooth, lightly-tanned skin below. My cock springs up like a spaniel thrown a hamburger. I’d like to plant a kiss on her stomach, just one soft touch of my lips. Fuck! I’ve got it bad.
“Hey kids, leave Holly alone,” I snap.
The twins stop in their tracks, shocked at my reaction, and get off Holly. Katie looks like she might cry.
Holly blushes and gets up, pulling her T-shirt down over her stomach. “It’s okay. They weren’t doing any harm, were you, kiddos?” She wraps a comforting arm around each of them.
No, the only one having any problem with it was me, but none of them knows it. “I just thought you could do with a bit of peace to settle in. That’s all. I don’t want them wearing you out on your first day.”
I have to make amends. “Katie, why not put on Frozen? You can watch that until bedtime.”
“But you said…”
“Never mind what I said, you can watch it tonight.”
After having the thing on auto-repeat for months until I knew every word, every song by heart, I banned it until further notice, though I bet Iris has been letting them watch it.
Katie doesn’t need telling twice. The DVD is slotted into the TV in record time. And peace reigns once more. But for how long?