“Thatwas silly, wasn’t it?” Nora said.
“Yeah,” Charlotte said, still laughing. “’Cause dogs don’t use the potty. They pee outside. Ongwass. Andtwees. And flowers…” She paused thoughtfully. “Oh, and sometimes he is really silly and pees on Duchess.”
“Duchess is Duke’s dog friend, huh?” Nora added, like she was explaining it directly to me.
“Uh huh,” Charlotte said. “But that’s otay. Accidents happen.”
That made me smile.
Charlotte had had more than a few accidents while potty training. The fact that she was offering grace to some random dog at the park felt like a small victory.
“Anything else you want to tell your daddy before we finish?” Nora asked.
Charlotte leaned closer to the camera.
“I love you, Daddy. I miss you.” She blew a kiss straight at the phone. “Bye! See you afterwook!”
The video ended.
I stared at the blank screen for a second, my grin still in place. Then I replayed it.
The last nanny had been perfectly fine. Responsible. Capable. But she’d never sent me little glimpses of Charlotte’s day like this.
None of the previous daycare workers ever had, either.
So this was extra thoughtful.
Like Nora understood that even though I was sitting in a conference room about to grill someone under oath, part of me was always wondering what my daughter was doing at that exact moment.
Footsteps echoed down the hallway outside the room. Knowing I only had a few seconds left to myself, I quickly typed a text back to Nora.
Me: Thank you for the video. That was so fun to see.
I slipped my phone back into my pocket just as the door handle turned.
By the time the opposing counsel stepped into the room with their client, my deposition face was firmly back in place. But underneath it, I was still picturing Charlotte running through water, laughing. Because she was having a good day.
A good day, thanks to her thoughtful nanny, Nora.
Charlotte was standing on a stool at the stove when I got home, tongue poking out in concentration while she carefully dumped a measuring cup with shredded cheese into a pan. Nora stood next to her, overseeing the whole thing and ready to step in if needed.
“Just like that,” Nora said softly as she began stirring what I assumed must be the cheese sauce for homemade mac and cheese. “Perfect.”
I set my work bag on the barstool closest to me, and that was when Charlotte spotted me.
“Daddy!” She hopped down, running straight for me.
“Hey, bug.” I caught her, lifting her into my arms and pressing a kiss onto her hair. “How are you?”
“Good,” she said, giving my neck a quick squeeze before pulling back. “We making dinner.”
“I see that,” I said, glancing over to the stove. “It smells so good.”
My eyes slid to Nora next, and when our gazes met, there was a flicker of residual awkwardness in her expression.
“Hi,” she said, an uncomfortable smile pasted on her face.
“Hi,” I said back.