Baby For The Off Limits Single Dadd

BABY FOR THE OFF LIMITS SINGLE DADDY CALLIE STEVENS Copyright © 2023 by Callie Stevens All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. CONTENTS 1. June2. Jarred3. June4. Jarred5. June6. Jarred7. June8. Jarred9. June10. Jarred11. June12. Jarred13. June14. Jarred15. June16. Jarred17. June18. Jarred19. June20. Jarred21. June22. Jarred23. June24. Jarred25. June26. Jarred27. June28. Jarred29. June30. Jarred31. JuneEpilogueUnexpected Baby For My Brother’s Best FriendChapter 1Chapter 2 1JUNE I’m not sure how long I’ve been walking. I don’t even know where I’m going. All I know is I have to get as far away from that house as possible. But walking in the depths of Chicago winter and pulling a rolling suitcase is not a recipe for success. I’m shivering. I didn’t even get to grab my hat. My ears feel like they could fall off. I should just call a car. Or someone… but I’m in fucking shock. I can’t bring myself to pull my phone out of my pocket and call an Uber. I’ve never been fired before. I love my job. And, I have to say, I’m pretty damn good at it. I’ve been nannying ever since I graduated high school. That’s eight years, not to mention all the babysitting I did in my teen years. What’s that saying? Do the thing you love and you won’t work a day in your life? Well, that’s me and working with kids. For every annoyance, I can think of five things I love about the job. This is the first family that I’ve had a problem with. Or should I say, had a problem with me… I’m really not sure yet. Fuck, the kids. Harvey and Ellen. They were perfect in nearly every way. I’ve never left a family I’ve nannied for without saying goodbye to the kids. None of this is their fault. Why should they have to be punished? Saying this is unprecedented would be an understatement. Don’t look back, Juniper. Just keep walking. It’s hard not to believe I did anything wrong. But I know I didn’t. Shame is burning at the corners of my eyes, although it might just be the cold. Her words echo in my brain over and over: “Get the fuck out before I ruin your life.” And they owe me for last week. Doubt that’ll ever come now. I finally get to a Starbucks and force myself inside, suitcase and all. I don’t care how haggard or ridiculous I look. I pull out my phone; I’d love to call my mom and dad. I just want to hear their voices. But now that they’re in Florida, they’re hard to get in touch with. They’re always doing something. Bingo. Canasta. Tanning. The number of messages I’ve left them asking them to call me is staggering. Shouldn’t it be the other way around? Shouldn’t they be begging to hear from me? I’m the girl trying to live it up in her mid-twenties! Except all I seem to be doing is worrying and panicking all the time. I thought I had it all under control. I can’t even go home. I was living with the family full-time. So, naturally, I rented out my house in Mayfair for the year. Get a little extra income. There’s still two weeks left on the lease. I literally have nowhere to go. Nowhere! That’s… well, that’s not something I ever thought I’d say. My parents don’t seem to want to hear from me, all my friends have their shit on lock, whether it’s their corporate job or getting married. Next thing I know, everyone’s going to be having kids and I’ll still be sitting in a Starbucks wondering what the hell to do with my life. I know there is one person I can call. Keifer. My best friend in the whole world. He’ll always pick up. But I don’t want to be a burden to him. I pull up the Uber app, but I don’t know where it could possibly take me. I could stay at a hotel, but two weeks at a hotel would be detrimental to my bank account. At that very moment, my phone vibrates. An Instagram notification. From the man himself. He’s just sent me a meme, nothing important. We’re always sending things back and forth to each other. Doesn’t matter, the content of the message isn’t what’s important. It’s the reminder that he’s there. Available if I let myself ask. That’s my person. Keifer will always help me. I pick up the suitcase and leave the café. As soon as the elevator doors open and I see Keifer standing there, I run into his arms. “Yo, what the hell is going on?” All the emotions that have been frozen inside me, literally and figuratively, burble up onto the surface. I start to weep onto the lapel of his suit jacket. “Oh my god, June…” Keifer is the only thing I have left of my childhood. My best friend since kindergarten. The only person I can trust. Feeling his arms wrapped around me brings me back to reality. “What happened?” he asks, pulling away to look at my face. His light green eyes plead with me to let him in on the secret. “I need help, Keifer.” Keifer looks nervously around the reception area. “Let’s go to my office.” He fights me for my suitcase, waving my hand off the handle. It brings a small smile to my face. We make our way through the halls of Hawthorn, Inc. Thankfully, we don’t run into his dad or either of his brothers. That would just be embarrassing, even though I’m practically a member of the Hawthorn family at this point. They’ve taken me in as one of their own, even more so since my parents moved away. But right now, I’d