“That was very responsible of you to test it. Did you try out all the stuff?”
Millie sighed. “I wanted to have a sleepover in your bed, but Daddy said that would be wrong.”
God, shoot him now.
“Well, that was very kind of you to offer to try it, and very...um...nice of your dad to protect my privacy.”
“Yeah, but it really is the best bed. Better than mine. Mine has a dumb old plain top, but yours has this curvy thing, like... Wait, let me show you.”
Again, she grabbed Brynn and yanked, this time with a force that pulled a little yip from Brynn’s mouth as she raced to keep up with the child.
“Millie, don’t kill Brynn on her first day here, okay?”
“Right.” Brynn’s voice was breathless but still tinged with laughter. “Let’s wait until I’ve had a night in this gorgeous— Oh, wow.”
They had reached the entry to the main bedroom, where Millie scampered ahead to display the beauty of the cherrywood sleigh bed with all the grace of a pint-size, bespectacled Vanna White.
“See?” She tapped the curve of the footboard. “Isn’t it so pretty?”
“It’s probably the most amazing bed I will ever sleep in.” Brynn smiled at Millie. “It must have been very hard to stay away from it. You get super bonus points for listening to your dad.”
“I’m a very good listener.”
“I bet you are. Now, I brought my favorite chair with me. Could you help me pick out the perfect place for it?”
“Oh, yes!” Without so much as a glance in his direction, Millie grabbed Brynn’s hand and took off down the hall. Voices and hints of laughter floated back to him. For a moment, he let himself enjoy it. He couldn’t remember the last time Millie had been so enthusiastic about something that didn’t involve a magnifying glass or some kind of chemical reaction. It was good to hear her giggling like a regular little kid. Not that he wanted her to be anyone other than herself, but still.
No, it looked like the biggest challenge facing him now wasn’t keeping Ms. Catalano happy, but keeping his daughter from falling head over heels for someone who was going to leave in a few short months.
* * *
BRYNN WASN’T AT ALL surprised that Taylor was late to help with the move-in, arriving well after quiet Hank had hustled his adorable daughter back to their place. She’d been prepared for the tardiness. What did catch her off guard was the thermos of premixed margaritas that Taylor dropped on the counter as soon as she walked in.
“Rough weekend?”
Taylor shook her head. “Rough month, rough day, rough...whatever. Let’s just say, it’s gonna feel good to help you unpack and exert some brute force on some things for a while.”
“Not that I can’t sympathize, but you know, I kind of like my stuff. Maybe I’ll do the heavy lifting and you take care of the ‘getting drunk’ part.”
“Yay, teamwork.” Taylor raised a glass of pale green liquid and downed half of it in one swallow. Brynn took in the shaking of her cousin’s hands, the tightness of her movements, and decided that further questioning could wait until the alcohol had kicked in.
“Actually, Hank already dragged in the worst of it. I tried to convince him he didn’t have to, but he just shrugged and kept hauling. He even carried Old Faithful in all by himself. Is he always so silent and chivalrous?”
“Quiet, yes. But chivalrous?” She wrinkled her nose. “I’ve never thought of it, but yeah. I guess he is, in a way.”
Brynn had a feeling there was a story behind those words, but she wasn’t sure she should hear it. Not when she was going to spend the next few months living in close proximity to the man. Years of short-term jobs had taught her the importance of keeping the work ties loose.
Though when Hank had bent forward to grab a box from the far reaches of the hatchback, she couldn’t stop herself from noticing that the stretch of his jeans had highlighted one very fine hind end. One very fine, very single hind end—which happened to belong to a member of the family that now employed her.
Nope. She wasn’t asking anybody anything about Hank. Wasn’t going to wonder who else in the family had that thick chestnut hair, wasn’t going to ponder how he would look without that faint line of stubble along his jawline. Instead, she crooked her finger and led Taylor down the hall to the bedroom and the suitcases that awaited.
“That Millie’s a sweetie. Chattered nonstop. How long has she been on the science kick?”
“As long as I can— Oh, damn. You didn’t mention your thing about MythBusters to her, did you?”
“She brought it up first. I was just being friendly.”
“You’re never going to get rid of her.”
Brynn shrugged and removed a pile of sweaters from the suitcase. “No hardship there. She’s a cutie. It’s okay with me if she pops in once in a while.”
“Oh, Brynn...”
It wasn’t Taylor’s words that made Brynn look up from the dresser where she was nestling her sweaters. It was the way Taylor hesitated that caught Brynn’s heart.
“What is it?”
“It’s just that... I really like Millie. The whole family. And it’s killing me that I’m going to have to leave them, you know?”
Brynn took an instinctive step, but Taylor shook her head.
“Don’t. I’m barely hanging on as it is. I don’t want to... Having you here is wonderful, don’t get me wrong. But all of a sudden this is real. I’m going to have to go. And I...”
Brynn’s throat tightened.
“If this doesn’t work, and I do have to leave, will you stay on? Do my job for me until they can hire someone else?”
“Oh, right. Because they would want to keep seeing the person who helped pull the wool over their—”
“Brynn, please. This is important. Will you do it?”
On one hand, Taylor was supposed to be thinking positive thoughts, marshaling her focus on the outcome they wanted. On the other hand, if she was thinking about the job, she wasn’t thinking about Carter.
Maybe.
“Sure, hon. If it will make this easier for you, and if they would want me around, then yes. Of course.”
“Thanks.” After a long moment, Taylor blew out a very loud breath and had another slug of margarita. “Anyway. Enough about me. Be careful with Mills, okay? Her best friend moved over Christmas and she’s been having a rough go of it since then. Not that she was ever one of the popular kids, you know?”
“More power to her.”
“Well, yeah, you and I can say that now. But when you’re little...” Taylor shrugged. “She’s not your average second-grader.”
“Yeah, you usually don’t see little kids running around in lab coats.”
“Oh. That.” Taylor ran her finger along the edge of her glass. “Don’t say anything to her about it, okay? Or to Hank. That shirt was Heather’s.”
“Who?”
“Millie’s mom.”
Ooooooh. “I thought Mom’s been gone for a while.”
“Most of Millie’s life,