I heard another knock on the door. This time, louder. I was hesitant to open the door to whoever it was standing behind the thick plank of wood that separated us. I narrowed my eyes as I peered into the peephole secretly wishing it wasn't Matthew.

Thank god!

I let out a sigh of relief as I unlocked the door to find a maid with a trolley full of food.

"Room service! Compliments from the agency," she said cheerfully as she whizzed passed me and parked the trolley next to the desk. Scrumptious croissants, pastries, fruits and mouth-watering snacks left a trail of sweetness in the air as she walked out of the room.

I toyed with the snacks between my fingers. I felt full after eating my first American burger twenty minutes ago.

That's when I noticed another card under the plate of food. It was from the same company that was printed on Matthew's business card.

I looked back at Matthew's card and compared the two, holding them up to the light as if they would magically inform me of their true owner. Definitely the same company.

Was he catering for the agency this weekend? Is that how he knew I was here?

I didn't want to think about it, I needed a distraction. I reached for my phone and decided to FaceTime Steven.

"Hi baby! How are you?" He was still in his work clothes; white shirt and brown framed glasses that left indents at the side of his temples when he took them off.

"Hey! I'm doing good, tired. How are you? Shall I call you back when you're home?"

"No, that's okay. I was waiting to hear from you! How's the Big Apple? Have you met Trump yet?" He laughed.

"Ha! As if!" I eye-rolled at his sarcastic joke.

"New York is good, the skyline is amazing. It's so hot here and busy too! The city's packed with people everywhere. It's like the tube, over-packed and jammed..."

Steven listened intently as I rambled on. He headed out of the office and into his car.

"Have you made any friends yet? Anything exciting happening?"

Just that I think my ex-boyfriend may be stalking me.

"No," I lied. "Nothing exciting, just a weekend of training and then I'm going to get the tube - sorry, subway to my host family's place."

We exchanged goodbyes after telling each other our weekend plans and I hung up the phone. I texted my parents and my friends to let them know I landed safely and arrived at the hotel.

I laid on the bed, staring at the ceiling above me. A short nap before my meet and greet session with the agency sounded like a great idea.

**********************************************************************************************

The welcome session lasted longer than it should have. I received numerous books and pamphlets on childcare and watched tedious videos of advice on how to manage kids. It all felt a little patronising to be honest but the training was mandatory and thankfully, only lasted one more day.

I was the only nanny on the program that was from England. The rest were from Colombia, France, Germany, Sweden, Mexico, and the international list goes on. But what we all had in common was the fact that we were all women. Not a single male nanny in sight.

I tried making friends with some of the other girls but they naturally stuck with other girls from the same country, like a clique, leaving me on my own.

I stuck to a simple "Hello, where are you from? Where's your host family based?" whenever I had the chance to mingle with the other girls.

The session was finally over and I headed outside before the sun went down. I figured this was the perfect time to get a US sim card for my phone and essential toiletries.

People were swarming the streets to go home and celebrate their weekends. I, for one, was looking forward to settling in with my host family. The only communication I had with them while I was in England was over FaceTime and emails.

I had seen pictures of the parents and the two little girls I would be looking after. They were aged one and four; Amelia and Ashley. The parents worked full-time in the health sector and desperately required a live-in nanny.

After setting up my sim card from Verizon and toiletries from CVS Pharmacy, I wandered down onto Fifth Avenue, passing all the famous shops that I saw on Instagram; Tiffany's, Victoria's Secret, Louis Vuitton, Hugo Boss. It was just like the movies. Minus the money I could spend in these stores.

Since I didn't have any plans for the evening, I figured I'd get the subway to Central Park and catch my first sunset view of the city.

I tried to understand the subway map as I got into the station but the numbers, colours and lines didn't make any sense at all. I decided to get the subway to Columbus Circle and walk towards the well-known Bethesda fountain.

Riding the subway wasn't that different to riding the tube in London. Whilst the stench and the people had similarities, unlike riding the tube in London, my urgency to get off the subway was non-existent. I could stay on the subway forever. The push and pull movement lulled me into a rhythm that comforted me in this foreign city.

Horses and carriages flooded the park as tourists rode them. Everyone looked like tourists in this part of the city. The only people that looked like New Yorkers were the ones jogging and walking their dogs.

I found an unattended bench and sat in the middle, hoping no-one would sit next to me or ask me to move up. The sun felt warm against my back. It was starting to cool down as a soft breeze blew my hair along with the wind. Between the soft howls of the trees and the gentle chirping of the birds, I couldn't help but feel lonely.

Even though I was surrounded by what seemed like hundreds of people in the city, I was alone. Away from Steven, my friends and my family. I was out of my comfort zone. The only person that felt like home to me in this place was Matthew.

I reached into the back pocket of my jeans to find Matthew's business card all crumpled up.

I caved into my foolish desires as I dialled his number, my fingertip lingering over the call button.

Oh what the hell! Just do it.

I let it ring three times before hanging up.

This is stupid, what am I doing?! I love Steven. This was wrong-

My heart pace quickened and my eyes widened at the screen whilst my phone rang. It was Matthew. He was calling me back.

"Hello?" I answered curiously, as if I wasn't the one who called him first.

"Hi, who's this? You just called me?" I was momentarily stunned by his American accent, which I found incredibly sexy. I could just imagine him holding the phone close to his ear while his left hand ran through his light brown hair.

I guess he couldn't tell it was me from my voice.

I hesitated before responding.

"It's me, urm, Alyssa. I got your card from the hotel."

"Hey stranger!" He sounded genuinely pleased that I called him.

"I was wondering when you would call me!"

He was thinking about me?

"How did you know I was here?" I cut straight to the point.

"I have my ways, as you know," I could just picture the cheeky grin on his face, he sounded smug.

I waited for him to give me a definite answer but there was a pause between us.

"We haven't talked in months, how did you know I was here?" I asked him again, this time in a serious tone.

"We're catering for your agency this weekend. I'm a sous-chef now and I put together the menu after I received the dietary requirements from your agency. Your name was on the list and I remembered you said you were going to travel this year..."

His voice trailed off in my head as did my thoughts.

So it was by chance that he found out I was here. It's not because he wanted to know where I was or how I was doing.

"Oh okay," I said, not knowing what else to say.

"How long are you here for anyway?" He asked me.

"As long as I like," I lied. I didn't want him to know I was on a one year visa contract. I didn't want this to be just another holiday fling. That's if it were to amount to anything at all.

"What are your plans for the weekend?"

I filled him in on my training, meeting my host family, and our conversation felt natural, as if nothing had changed between us. He told me all about his career and how he had travelled to different countries for ideas on new recipes.

"I want to open my own restaurant in the city someday," he told me about his dreams and aspirations but we both left out our current relationship status.

"What about you?" He continued.

"I, urm, I need to figure out how to get back to the hotel," we both burst out laughing.

"Where are you now?" He asked me.

"I'm in Central Park by the Bethesda fountain. I came out for a walk but I'm heading back to the hotel soon."

"Do you wanna maybe grab dinner tonight? Have you tried New York style pizza yet?"

I loved Matthew's spontaneity.

"Okay then, it's a plan! Stay there, I'll come to you."

I liked how Matthew took the lead, the courage, to just surrender his plans and cease the day with me.

"See you soon," I hung up the phone and felt my smile widen with glee.

Strangely, I didn't feel nervous about seeing Matthew after years. I was excited and eager to see him. I waited for about thirty minutes until he called me again to try and find me in the 840 acres of land that is Central Park.

I guided him towards me and after much failed, chaotic directions and wrong turns, he finally found me.

I saw him from afar walking towards me with a grin on his face as soon as he recognised me. That's when our song started to sing in my head.

'I never came to the beach or stood by the ocean'

I was taken aback by his height as I forgot how tall he was and how blue his eyes were. My heart was racing in my chest as I stood up to greet him.

'But you brought me here and I'm happy that you did'

He smelled like he always did. I never forgot his scent; masculine with a strong whiff of aftershave. I went in for a hug but was disappointed as his hands were full with two slices of pizza; one for him and one for me.

'.. Here I am, next to you...'

He offered me a slice and we continued to walk along the busy path in Central Park.

"Isn't this the best pizza you've ever eaten?!" He stopped mid-bite to ask me.

"I'm gonna give it a 7 out of 10," I concluded, whilst chewing a mouthful of pizza.

"Just a 7? Why not a 10?" He was baffled at my response as he pulled his teeth away from the pizza, leaving a string of mozzarella cheese hanging in the air.

We continued to walk around Central Park whilst holding a slice of pizza in our hands. We walked over the bow bridge and made our way to the park's Sheep Meadow.

"Okay, hear me out," he raised his eyebrows at me and waited for me to give my full verdict.

"It's missing ketchup!" I exclaimed and felt embarrassed as soon as I said it out loud.

"Who the hell eats pizza with ketchup?!" He said repulsively.

"I do! I need more sauce with it!" I said as I pointed to the pizza highlighting the dryness of the bread.

He gave up and shook his head at me.

"Let's find a spot," he pointed ahead and we sat down on the grass.

The grass felt warm and tickled around my ankles as I sat cross legged next to Matthew.

"I've missed this," I said shyly, looking at him.

"What? The park? This is your first time here," he said sarcastically.

I rolled my eyes at him.

"No, silly! I meant I've missed you," I bit lip and regretted those words as soon as they left my mouth.

He picked up a bunch of grass in his hands and threw them into the wind. I watched them fall down to the ground as I waited for his response.

"I've missed you too," he said as he stared into the far distance.

It was getting dark as the sun had set on New York and the buildings were dimly lit against the sky. People were packing up their picnic baskets, re-attaching leashes to their dogs and getting ready to head home.

We sat still in silence for a few minutes and watched everyone around us.

I was forever waiting for Matthew. Waiting for what? I wasn't sure.

"I should get going. It's getting late and I have to be up early tomorrow," I decided to break the silence.

"Sure, I can walk you back if you like," he politely offered.

"It's okay, I'm going to get the subway to downtown."

"Hey! Check you out using the New York lingo!" He playfully nudged me with his elbow.

We walked towards the nearest exit that led us to the subway.

"I'm this way," he said as he waved in the opposite direction of the subway.

He stopped and turned to face me; my head aligned with the top of his shoulders. I tilted my head and smiled at him. I was inches away from his face, his broad shoulders towering over me. He leaned in to kiss me and my lips reciprocated.

His lips felt soft against mine. I could feel his short stubble rub at my smooth skin. He snaked his arms around my waist and I wrapped mine around his neck. His tongue entered my mouth and our kisses picked up a passionate pace.

We didn't care that we were in the middle of the streets in Manhattan kissing in public. This was New York, the city that never sleeps. The city that changes you.