Read Online The Nannies by Melody Mayer - Free Book Online

scanned the line of hopefuls, each doing his or her best to look casual and not ooze desperation. Every girl had miles of tan skin, tattoos on their lower backs, and long, flat-ironed hair. The strict “this is what makes a girl beautiful” standard made Lydia chuckle. Amazonian women were usually naked from the waist up; if their breasts didn’t sag toward their toes, they were considered unattractive. In the worst of the heat, Lydia had sometimes gone native herself.
    “Come on,” Oksana said, taking Lydia’s hand. “We don’t wait, trust me.” She ducked under the velvet rope, still holding on to Lydia. “Hi, Greg,” she called to the bouncer. “Is Maria here yet? Or Jennifer?”
    “Ox, babe, what’s up? Nah, not yet, but the night’s still young.” The big black guy enveloped Oksana in a bear hug, then grinned as Oksana introduced Lydia. “It’s crazed inside. Some TV show is shooting.”
    Lydia hoped it was a show she had read about. One time the family had stayed in an actual hotel in Manaus because the budget
dormitorio
her parents favored was completely booked. The hotel had a satellite dish, and Lydia had parked herself in front of the TV for practically their entire stay. One station had showed a steady diet of reruns of American sitcoms—
Friends
and
Frasier,
mostly, dubbed in Portuguese. Lydia had adored
Friends.
    “Is it
Friends
?” she asked eagerly.
    Greg cut his eyes at her. “Girl, that show is over and out. Where you been?”
    “In the rain forest,” Lydia replied.
    Greg laughed. “Yeah. And I’ve been on Mercury working on my tan. Anyway, it’s a new reality show.
Platinum Nanny.
”
    “Oh sure,” Oksana said. “Like
The Apprentice,
right? They will pick someone to be rock star nanny.” She turned to Lydia. “Anya has given Platinum tennis lesson.”
    “Okay, back to the masses for me,” Greg announced. “Take these and give them to the cashier.” He pressed two guest passes into Oksana’s palm and waved the girls inside, then went back to the block-long line of wannabes.
    Oksana gave the passes to the cashier and led Lydia into the club. The massive open space was dimly lit by recessed golden domes. Crystal-beaded chandeliers hung from the fifty-foot vaulted ceiling. A DJ was spinning hip-hop; hundreds of bodies throbbed to the beat. Overhead, steel cages swung from the ceiling. In each cage, a stunning thong-clad girl or guy gyrated, flesh glistening.
    Lydia spotted the TV crew immediately; they were shooting near the DJ’s booth. A passel of flunkies with walkie-talkies ringed the camera crew. Curious, she motioned to Oksana that she wanted to go watch. The girls snaked through the dancing throng toward the television shoot. Lydia got close enough to see five girls and one guy dancing together. The guy was tall and broad-shouldered, with blond hair that flopped onto his forehead and a dimpled smile. Very tasty. Four of the girls were variations on Hollywood types, lots of skin and designer everything. The fifth girl, however, was a sweet-faced brunette in khakis and a T-shirt, with her hair in a casual ponytail. She definitely didn’t fit in with the others.
    A woman with a punk black hairdo motioned to one of the flunkies. He coaxed a middle-aged woman in beige knit pants, aqua floral blouse, and beige support sandals into the shot. Instantly, the hot guy pulled the older woman toward him and danced with her, ignoring the cute girls. The older woman moved stiffly, looking as though she’d rather be anywhere except where she was.
    Lydia wondered what all this could possibly have to do with choosing a nanny; then Oksana tugged her away.
    “Let’s go dance!” She steered Lydia toward a red leather banquette and pulled out a hidden drawer underneath. “Put bag here.”
    The only things in Lydia’s mini Chanel bag, also borrowed from the moms, were a small Chanel lip gloss, a tampon, and one of the tiny vials of herbs that Lydia had brought back from the Amazon.