“You’re his father. That’s the way it should be.” She didn’t have the right to give everything and had to hold part of herself back. Otherwise, leaving hurt too much.
Brady’s snorts and grunts changed tone indicating that the grumpy portion of the evening was about to commence. She was grateful for the distraction because the words made her like Jason even more. “I’ll take him into the other room so you can eat in peace.”
“Stay.” He put a hand on her arm and stared at it for a second before meeting her gaze. Shrugging, he added, “Peace is highly overrated. I haven’t seen him all day.”
“I beg to differ. What with the unannounced visitations.”
“Let me rephrase. I haven’t had a chance to spend quality time with him. Keep me company. It won’t take long to wolf this down.”
Her arm tingled from his touch and she felt strange, out of her element, which made her want to run and hide. But how could she refuse? Especially when he said it like that. Not to mention that he was the boss.
“Okay.”
But when she tried to sit, the baby wasn’t happy. She stood and her body automatically started a gentle swaying motion. She turned Brady so his back was against her chest and father and son could see each other. She caressed the baby’s palm with her thumb because he seemed to like that.
“So, tell me,” Jason said, “what did I miss today? What did you do?”
“Let me see,” she started. “I changed diapers. Fed this little guy. Played with him. Sang songs—for your information, his favorites are ‘Row, Row, Row Your Boat’ and ‘Rubber Ducky.’”
“He told you that?” Jason chewed as he studied her.
“Not in so many words. But in body language, he was rockin’ out.”
“Meaning he didn’t have a meltdown during the performance?”
“Pretty much,” she confirmed.
He laughed, then forked up a bite of salad. After chewing, he asked, “What else?”
She thought about the day. “He took two naps, during which I’m quite sure he had a significant growth spurt. I can feel the difference in density already.”
“In one day?”
“Absolutely.”
Singing his son’s praises and giving the blow-by-blow of Brady’s day made her feel more connected than she liked. And protective. She couldn’t shake the sensation of wanting to go run interference for him because he was starting out life with one strike against him. Like her.
Jason smiled tenderly at the boy. “Way to go, buddy. Getting bigger is your job.”
“Speaking of jobs,” Maggie said. “What did you do today?”
Thoughtfully, he chewed a bite of lasagna and washed it down with water. “I had a great day. In between nanny surveillance, I closed a billion-dollar deal, which will net enough money to make a significant donation to a prestigious university. It’s more than enough to ensure that my son will be accepted and get into whatever program he wants.”
“So you bought him a way into college?”
He tilted his head thoughtfully. “Let’s say I removed any doubt.”
He was a man who had the means to get what he wanted.
Twenty-four hours ago Jason had said he wanted her, and here she was. The thought set off a powerful quivering in the pit of her stomach as she recalled the dark and determined look on his face when he’d made the pronouncement.
He wanted her.
That was a heady notion, a thought she refused to take any further.
After Jason finished eating, he set his dishes in the sink, then took the baby from her. Murmuring tenderly, he settled Brady in the crook of his muscular arm, and Maggie barely managed to hold in a sigh.
Was there anything more appealing than the sight of a handsome man holding a tiny infant in his strong arms? If so, she’d never seen it.
She watched the two Garrett men walk away, although technically only one was walking. But that didn’t change the fact that she was alone. Along with the solitude, common sense came pouring in. She’d never felt a pull on her heart like this. Was it because she was a stand-in mom, being the only female on the premises? Is that why she was feeling so connected to the single father and his motherless baby?
Whatever the reason, she had to stop. She was an employee, a very temporary one, nothing more. Soon she would be a nanny to another baby. And darned if the thought of leaving was about as appealing as a header off the top of the Stratosphere. It must have something to do with the fact that they were a family without a mom and she was a woman without a family.
This strong reaction, with five weeks and six days to go, made her wish she hadn’t agreed to stay at all.
Jason wasn’t accustomed to concentration problems when he worked—either at the office, or at his home office, which was where he was now. The baby had changed his life in so many ways, and could be a distraction, but that wasn’t the problem. It had nothing to do with adjusting to his new situation and everything to do with the new nanny.
Maggie.
Margaret Mary Shepherd wasn’t the sort of woman who would normally capture his notice. She wasn’t classically beautiful nor did she have legs that went on forever. As a matter of fact, he’d never seen her legs except covered by denim, apparently the uniform of efficient nannies these days. Her appeal was all about character. She was dependable, efficient and sarcastically witty.
Admittedly, his taste in women left a lot to be desired. Case in point: his son’s biological mother who had required a large sum of money to guarantee Brady’s very existence.
Maggie wasn’t like that. If she was, it would have been easier to put her out of his mind.
A soft knock sounded on his study door. It couldn’t be Brady, so by process of elimination…His stomach tightened just a fraction with what felt like anticipation.
“Come in,” he said.
And there was his distraction in the flesh, wearing jeans and a yellow sweater, looking a lot like a slice of sunshine.
“Maggie. Hi.”
“Sorry to interrupt.”
“Not a problem.” He removed his glasses and turned off the computer, giving her his full attention—full, because she’d already had part of it since she arrived five days ago. “What can I do for you? Is Brady okay?”
“Fine. He was a little fussier than normal tonight. I hope he didn’t disturb you.”
“Never.” Thoughts of her had disturbed him, but that wasn’t her problem. Nor was it something he intended to share. “Any idea why he was restless?”
She stayed in the doorway. “Babies are a guessing game. He could have been overtired. Maybe gas. There’s no way to know. You listen to the various cries—”
“It all sounds the same to me.” Jason leaned back in his chair and linked his fingers over his abdomen. “They’re different?”
“Very.” She smiled. “There’s a frantic edge to it when he’s hungry. A sort of general dissatisfaction when he needs to be changed. Kind of a quiet mewling sound when he’s telling you off because his need wasn’t met in a timely fashion.”
“Fascinating.” As was the fact that she hadn’t moved any closer to his desk. “Where are my manners? Come in and have a seat.”
“Oh—I just wanted to remind you—”
He