Paint My World Red

(Aya’s POV)“Aya, are you sure you’re heading to the right address?” Addie asked me.“Rose Hills, right?” I gritted my teeth. I was glad we were only talking over the phone; if not, I would have strangled my cousin. “And guess what? I was literally walking on a hill!” I growled, hating that I rode the bus instead of a taxi.I had to use GPS to help me find the address she gave, and before I knew it, I was already walking through a long winding road because the Carlington Residence was sitting beautifully on the hill.“Ah!” Addie chuckled, not expecting this would happen to me. “Tell me, where are you now?”“I’m now in front of Buckingham Palace,” I answered, squinting at the luxury villa behind the majestic and elegant metal railing of the gate and checking my cell phone, telling me I had reached my destination.After an hour of walking, I finally reached the end of my journey, only to be stopped by the guard as he asked for my purpose.“Interview,” I mouthed.“ID and letter,” he mutt

(Red’s POV) “She’s trouble, Liam,” I sighed. I didn’t know if I would be relieved that her choice was a woman, not my kind or me. I was tired of women chasing me after my wife died in a plane crash. “How can you say she’s trouble? You haven’t seen her with your kids yet,” he chuckled, narrowing his eyes at me. “Don’t tell me you’re attracted to her.” I opened my mouth to lie, but he raised his index finger, stopping me from talking. “I’m a man too, Red, and I saw how you looked at her,” he clucked his tongue. “She’s one lad with perfect orbs inside her blouse and the legs, man! Don’t tell me you didn’t feel anything?” “I don’t know what you’re saying,” I denied. “Aya’s beautiful. She should be joining the pageants, not applying for a nanny.” He continued to pile the papers on the table. “Oh, by the way, your mother-in-law called, asking about the kids again.” He stopped what he was doing, crossing his arms to his chest as he looked at me. “Why don’t you allow them to have a va

(Aya’s POV)“Did you walk from Rose Hills to here?” Addie’s eyebrows were knitted, but I knew she was only teasing me as she widened the door.My digital wristwatch told me it was past ten in the evening already. I mouthed, ‘Sorry’ as I entered her apartment, put the paper bags down, and walked to the living room. I slumped on the couch and closed my eyes as my body screamed from exhaustion. I hardly noticed Leslie peering from the kitchen and then advancing toward us with beer cans in her hands.“Nope! I think she went shopping,” Leslie chuckled, placing the cans on the center table and glancing at the paper bags I placed beside the door.“Yeah!” I chuckled, opening one eye. “Where’s my daughter? I forgot to call dad to check on him.”“Katie’s sleeping, and don’t worry about Uncle Dean. Leslie tugged him here to have dinner with us but went home around eight to watch a ballgame. He’s bored, but he’s okay,” Addie assured me.I nodded, closing my eyes again, and if no one dared to talk

(Red’s POV)The new nanny of my kids made my night sleepless, and it irked me that whenever I closed my eyes, I would remember Aya’s soft lips as she pressed her mouth to mine, trying to keep me quiet. Tired of forcing myself to sleep, I got up in bed at five in the morning and readied for my early run.I was hoping to run alone, but as I reached the porch, Mike and Liam were already there, chatting while stretching. When they turned to me, they chuckled, making it obvious I was the topic of their conversation. Skipping the stretching, I walked past them, not wanting to talk about Aya, but my two cousins jogged to catch on to me.“Couldn’t sleep?” Liam smiled naughtily, but I ignored him. “So, now that you know where Aya lives, what’s your plan?”“I told you I wanted to check her address myself,” I lied, tipping my head up to tell the guard to open the gate.He pressed the button, opening the gate but picking up the handset and alerting our security personnel that we were going out of

(Aya’s POV)It was good that I came early because I had the time to meet the nannies and ask about their everyday scenarios. They all said the same thing; it was like hell and crazy, and they were right. I may not be Nanny McPhee, but I could offer them a truce, my chance of saving the sanity of their nannies, including mine.Recognizing Violet’s dislike of me and her strong influence on her siblings, I decided to begin with her. As expected, the girl ignored me, and she was indeed good at pretending she didn’t hear my voice or not seeing me follow her until I asked her what she wanted. If I could do it, she would help me with her siblings, and when I got her attention, I grabbed that opportunity to have a ceasefire this morning while I thought of what she wanted.Only I did not expect her answer.To be heard by their father and a time for them. Each of Red’s kids told me what they wanted, and I promised to talk to their father and hoped to have a response from him. It was going well