Chapter 4 This Won't Be Easy

Elise began working at the Rochefort mansion, where only the father and his young son lived.

Although Phillippe still acted spoiled and entitled, Elise did her best to be patient and hold onto the job. She tried to handle his tantrums and his lack of acceptance.

She wanted to give him the love she couldn't give her own baby during the day, as she had to leave him at Sam's house, under someone else's care.

A week had already passed since her new routine began. And although she felt like she was on the verge of losing her mind, one thing kept her going: the thought of seeing her beloved Ángel's eyes again.

"How was your day, sweetheart?" Sam asked, handing her the baby.

"Hi Sam, thank you, it went fine." She took her baby into her arms and showered him with kisses. "I don't know how much longer I can handle it, but I think I'll try to make it work for as long as I can."

"Sweetheart, you have to understand-Phillippe and Lucien went through a great loss. It's still fairly recent. Stay there. With time, the boy will grow fond of you."

"You really think so?"

"Of course he will." Sam smiled. He had known them for years-even if he only ran the shop, he knew Lucien like the back of his hand.

It was Friday-the last day of the week-and Elise was begging inside to return home and see her child. But that day turned out differently. Things at the Rochefort house were about to change.

She was upstairs with Phillippe, helping him with his assignments, when she felt someone arrive.

"Hey, little brother! How are you? It's been ages since I've seen you."

Olivier Rochefort, Lucien's older brother, hadn't visited since his wife had died. Now, due to business in the city, he was planning to stay for a few days.

"Hey, Olivier. I'm fine. You?"

"As you can see, brother, doing perfectly well. Where's my nephew?"

"He's upstairs."

Lucien didn't get along too well with his brother, but he wasn't entirely opposed to him staying a few days. Maybe it would help soften his temper a bit.

Right away, Lucien called Elise to bring the boy down.

They both came down the stairs, but Olivier could only focus on the woman who was caring for Phillippe.

To him, she was an incredibly attractive nanny, and without holding back, he immediately showed interest.

"Well, little brother, I see we've finally started choosing better staff." He eyed her shamelessly, scanning her from head to toe. "And you, little one, come here!" He grabbed Phillippe by the arms and lifted him up-but the boy didn't show a single trace of joy.

"He doesn't like visitors," Lucien said.

"But I'm his uncle. He'll get used to me-won't you, champ?"

Lucien rolled his eyes, as if Olivier had done anything to deserve the boy's affection.He thought to himself, "Yeah, right."

"Sure, I suppose. Come, let's go to the study and talk."

"Wait, first introduce me to the nanny," he said, winking at him."Oh, right. This is Elise. Elise, this is my brother Olivier. He'll be staying here for a few days."

Olivier approached her to shake her hand, but she made an excuse, saying her hands were busy holding Phillippe, so she only gave him a fake smile. She felt genuinely uncomfortable with the way he looked at her.

"Shall we?" Lucien urged him."Sure, let's go," Olivier replied, but he didn't stop staring at Elise. His gaze was anything but pleasant. Lucien's brother had a reputation for being a womanizer-and worse, a stalker. And by the looks of it, Elise was about to become one of his victims.

"How long will you be in town?" Lucien asked as he poured Olivier a drink."I'm not sure yet. But if it bothers you that I'm in the house that used to be my father's, no problem-I'll head to my bachelor apartment outside the city.""Do you always have to bring up the house?" Lucien frowned."I just don't understand why he left the mansion to you when he died, knowing you were already running the company and had more money than you could ever spend," Olivier replied, with clear resentment in his voice."I guess you didn't do enough to earn it. You always blew your money and sold everything our father ever gave you. We all got an equal share of the inheritance.""Whatever. Can I stay here or not?""Of course, Olivier. You're my brother," Lucien said hypocritically. He only agreed out of respect for their mother's memory-she had always asked him never to abandon his brother."It'll just be for a short while.

I promise. A couple of months, maybe.""Stay as long as you need," Lucien replied, and left the study, leaving him alone. Even though he had just told Olivier to stay as long as he wanted, deep down, he wished he would leave that very instant. But he knew him well-his brother was never one to stay in one place for long.

Contrary to what he'd thought, the days passed, and Olivier remained in the mansion. His presence was not only making Lucien uneasy, but also Elise, who felt constantly watched and harassed by him.

Olivier took advantage of Lucien's absences to bother her-until it became unbearable."You're really beautiful, you know that?" he said one day."Excuse me, sir, I need to take these blankets to Phillippe," she answered quickly."The kid's asleep. You and I should take advantage of that.""Take advantage?""Yeah, you know what I mean. Don't act like you're innocent. All girls like you know how to please a man."

Elise could feel her cheeks burn with fury, but she knew she had to keep her job."Excuse me," she said, trying to walk past him. But he grabbed her by the arm, pulling her toward him."Where do you think you're going, little one? I'm your boss's brother-you should be nice to me.""Sir, you're hurting me. Please let go," Elise said, her eyes instantly filling with tears. This man was harassing her-maybe even planning to do worse."I like how your fear smells. Does it turn you on, knowing I'm grabbing you like this?""Let me go or I'll scream," she warned, beginning to struggle against him.

Olivier was clearly much stronger than her. With a single shove, he sent her to the floor. She picked herself up the best she could and ran. He chased after her and grabbed her arm again.

"Be very careful about telling my brother anything. I swear I'll have you fired. Got it?""I will tell him!" she shouted, staring at him with defiance."No, you won't. No one will believe you. Look at you-and look at me. I'm the brother of the owner of this house. Do you really think anyone will believe your version? Of course not. Now go check on my nephew. We'll finish this later."

Elise broke free and ran to Phillippe's room. The child was still asleep, and she felt her heart breaking in pieces. Suddenly, she was at a crossroads.

If that man stayed in the house, he would probably assault her.But if she accused him, he would have her fired. And that was something she couldn't afford-not with all her responsibilities and her son depending on her.

She had no choice but to pretend nothing had happened.What she didn't know was that this was only the beginning of a true nightmare.

Elise was ready to leave for her weekend break after the humiliating encounter with Olivier. The only thing she wanted was to get out of that place and see her baby. Ángel was about to turn three months old, but she barely got to spend time with him. He practically lived with Sam and his wife, and Elise only got to be with him on weekends.

She was almost ready to leave when Lucien stopped her.

"Elise, I need you to help with Phillippe this weekend. I have an exclusive event, and I can't take him with me. I'll pay you for the extra days," he said, not even bothering to ask if she was available.

"Sir, I'm sorry, but you know I have a small baby who needs me, and these two days are meant for him."

"Didn't you read the fine print in your contract?" he asked, his tone cold and serious.

"No... What are you talking about?"

"That as Phillippe's nanny, you're required to be available 24 hours a day whenever I need you," he said flatly. Her face went pale. She hadn't read the fine print.

"No, I'm sorry, but I can't do that, Mr. Lucien," she replied firmly, grabbing her coat and purse, ready to leave despite the consequences. But she froze in place when she heard his next words.

"I don't mind if your baby stays with you for the weekend. Bring him."

She paused, considering it, but the thought of being alone in the mansion with Lucien's brother made her anxious.

"Oh, come on, sir! Do I even have a choice?" she asked, frowning.

"Of course not, Elise. You're staying here this weekend. Go get your son. I'll be leaving in two hours."

And with that, Lucien walked away, leaving her speechless. Elise could only stomp her feet like a little girl before resigning herself. She went to get Ángel and brought him back to the mansion.

When she returned, she walked into absolute chaos. Phillippe was clinging to his father's leg, who held a suitcase in one hand.

"Daddy, don't leave me with her! You promised we'd go play soccer!" Phillippe shouted, tightening his grip on his father's leg. His screams echoed throughout the mansion.

"Son, I already told you-Elise and Ángel will stay with you this weekend. If I get back before two on Sunday, I'll take you then," Lucien said, trying to shake him off.

"No! I don't want to! Take me with you, please!" Phillippe wailed in a desperate cry.

"Come on, sweetheart, let's go play," Elise said gently, extending one hand while holding her baby in the other. Phillippe rejected her instantly.

"I don't want to play with you! It's not playtime anymore! Go away with your baby!" he yelled, walking up to her just to kick her in the leg.

"Phillippe! Oh my God!" Elise gasped as a sharp pain shot through her leg. A lump formed in her throat, and she felt like crying. To make things worse, Ángel started crying too. Now both children were throwing fits, and Lucien had to leave.

"Look, I don't know how you're going to handle this, Elise, but I have to go," he muttered, glaring at his son. "We'll talk later, you little brat." And with that, Lucien left the mansion without even saying goodbye.

Elise looked around and knew this weekend was going to be a disaster. She tried to soothe her baby, but Phillippe didn't even want her to look at him. He'd thrown tantrums before, but nothing like what she was about to experience.

"Phillippe, sweetheart, come on, let's go to your room. We'll put on your pajamas and eat Greis's delicious dinner."

"I don't want to!" he snapped, crossing his arms and pressing his lips together.

"Yes, you do, come on," she insisted. Ángel had drifted back to sleep, so she took the opportunity to lay him in his stroller. She needed to calm Phillippe down.

"I said no, stupid!" Phillippe shouted and ran up the stairs. Elise sighed, assuming he'd gone to his room. She took advantage of the moment to be alone with her baby. She wanted to breastfeed him and rest a little. She'd deal with Phillippe later.

Elise was mesmerized by her little boy. She couldn't stop looking at him, feeling overjoyed to have him close. As she cradled him, she drifted off to sleep, completely losing track of time-and forgetting all about Phillippe-until Greis came out with dinner in hand.

"Miss Elise, it's past the boy's dinnertime. Where is he?"

Elise startled awake and shot up from her chair, still half-asleep.

"You're right, Greis. I assume he's in his room. I'll leave my baby here-can I ask you to watch him for a moment?"

"Yes, but hurry. Little Phillippe can't be left alone for even a second."

"I know, I'm sorry," Elise replied before rushing up the stairs to Phillippe's room. She began calling for him, thinking he had fallen asleep. But to her surprise, his bed was empty.

"Phillippe? Where are you, sweetheart? Phillippe!" She searched every corner of the room-the closet, under the bed, everywhere. He was gone.

Panic started to rise in her chest. Unfortunately, the mansion was enormous, with far too many rooms. Still, she began searching one by one, but found no sign of him. Elise bolted down the stairs to where Greis was.

"What's going on, miss? Where is the boy?" Greis turned pale at the sight of Elise's face.

"I... I can't find him."

"This has to be a nightmare!" Elise muttered. She was breaking into a cold sweat. She checked on little Ángel, who was still asleep, and held her head in her hands as anxiety and fear overwhelmed her.

"Calm down. He's probably just around here somewhere," Greis said before heading to the kitchen to look for him. Elise did the same, terrified that something had happened to him because of her carelessness. She felt absolutely awful.

She and Greis searched every corner of the house for him. Both were already imagining the worst. Elise wished the earth would open up and swallow her whole. A desperate void churned in her stomach-she had no idea what to do. She had completely lost control. What was going to happen now? She sat down on one of the large living room chairs, trembling uncontrollably, unable to stop imagining the worst.

She knew that beyond losing her job, it would be catastrophic if something had happened to the boy.

"Elise, we need to call the police and Mr. Rochefort. We're in serious trouble," Greis said, looking at her with terror in her eyes. She knew what was coming, and even though the babysitter had been the one to slip up, she too would pay the consequences.

Elise couldn't stop crying and blaming herself, but after searching even beneath the plants, she had no choice but to let Greis call Lucien. Just as she was about to do it, the mansion doors swung open, and to Elise's astonishment, Olivier walked in holding the child's hand.

"What the hell...?" Elise rushed toward Phillippe, immediately crouching to his level, checking him all over before glaring at her uncle.

"What's wrong, sweetheart? Don't you trust his own uncle?" he said, while she stared at him in pure disgust. Greis felt her soul return to her body as the boy walked over to greet her. Meanwhile, Elise kept her eyes locked on Olivier with unrestrained fury.

"Why did you take the child without permission?"

"Because he's my nephew, and you're negligent. I took him to get some ice cream while you were fast asleep with your baby. By the way, you have beautiful breasts-they looked absolutely delicious while you were feeding him."

She clenched her fists. Consumed by rage, she raised her hand to slap him, but he was faster. He grabbed her wrist roughly, causing her pain.

"Careful with what you do, you idiot. I could have you thrown out right now-and even more so when my brother hears about your little mistake. Do you understand? You'll be kicked out on your *ss, and you'll have nothing to feed that baby with. So don't get smart with me."

Elise's face turned bright red-not just from crying, but from the burning urge to attack him and beat him to a pulp. Olivier was becoming a true nightmare, but she knew that unpaid bills and the overdue mortgage her husband had left behind would keep her there for a long while.

"Don't mess with me, because I can talk to Lucien too."

"I already told you, no one's going to believe you. Now go take care of my nephew-that's what you're paid for, not to nap in the chair. Be grateful I'm not telling my brother."

Olivier walked away before she could even defend herself. She quickly went to Phillippe, who was tired after his outing with his uncle. She gave him dinner and then took him upstairs to his room to put him to sleep. She had never slept there before-it was her first night in the mansion.

She felt cold, overwhelmed with anxiety. No one had even told her where she was supposed to sleep. Her baby spent part of the night in her arms and the rest in his stroller. She couldn't sleep, not just because she had no bed, but because she was terrified-terrified of what Olivier might do. That night felt endlessly long.