Chapter 9: A Picnic in the Garden

Victor had come home earlier that day because he wanted to keep an eye on Sarah and Benjamin. It was true that she had been working at the mansion for a few weeks now, but he still wasn't a hundred percent comfortable with leaving her alone with Ben, even though she hadn't given him any reason not to.

He was also ignoring things that his mind kept repeating for himself about the nanny; that all this concern was just an excuse because he couldn't help but enjoy spending time with his nephew and Sarah.

Whenever he was at home, he managed to get a way to be at least in the same room as them, even if he was handling some paperwork or anything of that sort. It was just nice to be around them, he thought. The atmosphere was peaceful.

For so long, the mansion had been a very boring and cold place to be. The other nannies weren't that bright and funny, but with Sarah, Benjamin had become a happy and excited kid. So the mood in the mansion was always very pleasant ever since.

But finding Alana there waiting for him wasn't something Victor was expecting that day. The last time he heard about her, she was abroad, studying for something he didn't care to ask. When his eyes met hers, he asked himself the same question he did every time they were together: why was he still hanging out with her?

Victor's relationship with that woman was complicated, even though his intentions were the very opposite of that. He didn't care about women in general; in fact, he didn't trust them. So, Alana had become someone he enjoyed just for primitive and physical reasons.

She was stunning, that was true, but she wasn't someone nice. He knew that. At first, they used to meet just for sex, which suited him fine. But Alana got really clingy and attached to him, and for some other reason he couldn't explain, he wasn't able to see it at the time.

And when he finally realized it, she was all over the place, coming uninvited to the mansion or showing up at his office without a warning. That pissed him off more than he could explain, but he also didn't find the courage to tell her he was tired of her.

Victor didn't know how to do it either. He knew how to be cold and cruel, but for selfish and manly reasons, they ended up in bed every time he tried. She was really good at seducing him and making him change his mind. But whenever the sex was done, he couldn't stand being around her for more than a few minutes.

Alana was shallow, rude, annoying and mean. But she knew how to use her charm and sexiness in her favor.

But Victor wasn't blind. He could see that Benjamin wasn't comfortable around the woman, although he had never seen her treating his nephew badly. Maybe it was just jealousy. Who knew? However, at that afternoon, something different happened.

For whatever reason, as soon as he entered the room, Victor couldn't take his eyes off Sarah. It was like Alana wasn't even there anymore. And when he got back from his business call, he sensed that the tension between the two women was almost tangible. Did they have an argument? If so, why? Could it be that Sarah was feeling jealous?

Victor shook his head to send those thoughts away. The nanny had no reason to feel jealous of him, and he shouldn't be thinking about that either.

It made no sense that he was thinking about her so much, and caring about her feelings towards him. As soon as Sarah and Benjamin left the library, leaving him and Alana by themselves, he felt the need to come up with an excuse and send the woman away.

He pretended to have some business to deal with, and after much pouting and complaints, she went home. Victor sighed, looking at the window and having a glance of his nephew and the nanny enjoying a very nice picnic outside.

They were giggling and enjoying each other, and that made Victor eager to be there as well. He didn't really need to work now, so he took off his tie and went downstairs, ready to spend some time with both of them.

"Daddy!" Benjamin yelled as soon as he arrived to them. "Will you play with us?" the kid asked cautiously, already sensing the negative answer coming. But Victor nodded, which made Benjamin smile like he had just won the best gift in the world.

Sarah gulped. It was true that Victor was spending some time around her and Benjamin lately, but he was always busy with work, so it was like he wasn't even there. But now he didn't seem to be bringing anything with him.

In fact, he looked like a normal and carefree man, his shirt's sleeves folded up to his elbows, no tie and a few unbuttoned buttons. She had to look away to make those dirty thoughts go elsewhere.

"Is everything okay, Sarah? Do you mind if I join you?" he asked, his eyes piercing her like he could read her mind, which she hoped he didn't. She was going to be fired for sure if he was aware of her nasty imagination about him.

"Of course not, Mr. Reed. You're more than welcome, although I must say, this doesn't seem like the type of meal you would have. Right, Ben?" She smiled at the kid, passing him a bowl of cookies so he could offer his uncle.

"Yes, daddy. We don't have nice things to offer you, just some cookies and juice. Sarah said we will prepare something nicer the next time." he explained, handing the bowl to Victor, who grabbed it and ate a whole cookie at one go.

"Hum… Don't worry! I can fit in at any place. You can even say I'm a chameleon." He smiled at Ben, who laughed playfully.

Sarah could see that the little boy wasn't able to control his happiness for having his uncle so early at home and having time to play with him.

"Why don't we play a game? You and Sarah against me?" Victor suggested, looking from the kid to her, those honey-colored eyes scanning her reactions.

"Yay! You're going to lose so badly. Sarah is very good at games." Benjamin said between little jumps.

"Is she?" Victor raised his brows, a little smile showing up at the corner of his lips. "I don't buy it."

He was teasing her. She knew it, but for some reason, he managed to get on her nerves, so she got up quickly and straightened her shirt.

"Okay, I'm afraid I'll have to show it to him then. Right, Ben?" She raised her hand so the kid gave her a high-five and then turned to look at her boss again. "So what are we going to play?"

Victor got up and put his hands on his waist, considering what type of game would be suitable for them. They played hide-and-seek, dodgeball, and even cops and robbers.

Benjamin was on cloud nine. It was already dark when they went inside and Sarah took him to take a shower and have dinner before putting him in bed.

"Sarah?" The kid called her as soon as he got under the blankets.

"Hum?"

"I had a lot of fun today. Can we do this every day?"

She felt her heart shrinking with guilt, although she had nothing to feel guilty about. But she knew that things like that wouldn't happen very often. Mr. Reed was a very busy man, and whatever reason he had to be around today, she was certain that wouldn't come again so soon.