The party finally slowed down and they were able to make their escape. Jessica gathered up Jacob, while Alex grabbed their bags and they ran through the throng of people to the awaiting limo.
Birdseed flew at them and cameras snapped and they were both more than grateful to be inside the safe confines of the limo. They didn’t have a very far drive, thanks to the generosity of his parents.
Jessica was exhausted and more nervous than ever being alone with her husband. Was he going to expect her to sleep with him, or would she be allowed her own room? Did she even want her own room? The thought of sharing a house with the virile, masculine Alex and not sleeping with him seemed worse.
She was going to have to wait and see what happened.
They arrived at the gated driveway within a few minutes. Jessica rolled her window down to look out. The driveway seemed endless and was flanked by huge pine trees on either side, giving privacy to the house still hidden from view. When they turned another corner, the driveway opened up to a huge circular turn-around done in colored bricks. In the center was an enormous water fountain with angels dancing in the center, looking as if they were splashing each other.
Jessica didn’t know what to say. The home was a smaller version of the Anderson Mansion. There were three stories with wrap around balconies on each level. There were five huge columns across the front, giving the home a southern plantation look. She was immediately in love with the place. She was afraid to step inside because the minute she did she knew she’d be even more in love and never want to leave. She had plenty of her own money. When things in the marriage failed, as she knew they would, maybe he would allow her to buy the place and stay there. She was tired of apartment living anyway.
The driver opened her door and she reached in for Jacob but Alex had him already. “I can take him,” she said, not liking him taking control all of the time.
“I’ve got him. Go ahead and check out the house. I’ll come back for the bags in a few minutes.”
She wanted to argue with his high-handedness but decided it wasn’t worth the hassle. He would win once again but she was exhausted. The door opened, which surprised her, as she didn’t know anyone was there.
“Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Anderson. I have a snack prepared for you in the kitchen and your room has been prepared. Would you like me to lay down the baby so you can look around?”
Alex handed Jacob over to the woman, which Jessica immediately was going to protest. She wasn’t going to let him hand her child over to a stranger. “Jessica, this is Tina, our cook. She’s worked for my family for over twenty years and is one hundred percent trustworthy,” he said, noticing her concern.
Jessica still wanted to rip her baby away from the stranger but knew she would look bad in doing so. “I will walk with you to the nursery so I know where Jacob is. Are baby monitors set up so I’ll be able to hear him in other parts of the house?” Jessica asked with concern.
“Yes, and you can carry around portable listening and video devices so you know your precious one is safe at all times,” Tina reassured Jessica, as they walked up the grand staircase.
They reached the second story and walked down a well lit hallway. “This is the master bedroom, here to the right and the baby’s room is right here across the hall. Mr. Anderson said you’d want the baby close by.” Tina pointed out a few more doorways and then led Jessica into a lovely baby’s room. The walls were identical to what she’d done at her old place. Alex must have taken pictures and had someone reproduce her artwork. All her nursery items were there, along with many new things. She noticed the camera angled in the corner and felt some relief.
Tina laid Jacob in his crib and Jessica bent down to kiss his soft cheek and cover him up. She could stand there all day and night watching him sleep.
“Here’s the monitor, Mrs. Anderson,” Tina said, handing over a small device. Jessica looked at it and not only were their voices coming through but there was a small screen showing her son sleeping in his crib.
“Thank you so much Tina,” Jessica said with real gratitude. The home was very large and she would feel comforted being able to keep an eye on her son no matter where she was.
Jessica turned to find Alex right behind her. “I tried to match Jacob’s old room as much as possible,” he said in explanation of the decorations. “My father bought this home a while ago waiting for the day one of us would choose to settle down,” That explained how he’d been able to have the nursery prepared.
“It’s lovely, thank you. It has a lot more room than his old one,” she said honestly. She really did like the room. She liked everything about the home.
“This door over here leads to the nanny’s room…Now before you protest, we’ll hire one together and I’m not expecting you to not take care of our son. It’s simply a good idea to have a nanny here to help you. That way you can have some free time to do whatever it is you want or need to do.”
“I, in no way need a nanny.” She wasn’t happy about him thinking he could control everything. She’d been doing fine taking care of her son on her own.
“Your father told me you had a passion for writing but hadn’t been able to do any the last few months because you were either too exhausted or taking care of our son. I just want to give you a chance to be able to do what you need to do. You can still be with him full time. The nanny can be more of a helper for when you need her,” he spoke reasonably.
“I’ll think about it,” was all she said. The thought of writing again was tempting but she would feel like such a bad parent, passing her child off to a stranger. She would at least consider the possibility.
Alex took her around the rest of the home. The home was decorated in a way she would’ve done herself. Some of the rooms reminded her of her childhood home. She loved everything about it. They arrived in the kitchen, where two other staff members were waiting for them.
“This is Edward, our gardener. He’s married to Tina. They live in the cottage on the back of the property. This is Maria, our housekeeper. They’ve all been with the family as long as Tina, which is why I wanted them here.”
“It’s really great to meet all of you,” Jessica said, while shaking their hands. The staff left them to eat the food and then an uncomfortable silence fell between them. Tina had said master bedroom. She wasn’t ready to share a room with her husband nightly. She needed more time to protect herself, to keep her heart out of it.