Page 2 of Stay

My image of him never included apple juice or him saying the wordsnack, despite knowing he has an eight-year-old son.

“Water will be fine,” I say.

“But would youratherhave something else?”

His eyes narrow on mine and it’s as if he can see right through me, down to all the intimate thoughts I’ve been having about him.

“Uh, I’d love a Coke.”

He nods, as if pleased, and I lean back against the couch cushions needing to catch my breath. I feel winded.

“Thank you,” I add.

He goes into the kitchen and is back within minutes, carrying two bottles of chilled Coke with the caps already popped off.

“Thank you,” I repeat.

I’m not normally at a loss for words, but there’s something about this man that makes me tongue-tied.

He motions for me to take one of the small plates I didn’t notice behind the bucket, and I do, using the little fork on the board to pick out a couple of things. I don’t know if I can eat right now, which is also a problem if I’m seriously considering this job…which I am. Meanwhile, he’s using the other fork and piling food onto his plate like this is his first meal of the day.

Once we’ve settled back into our seats, Sutton directly across from me, he looks at me again with that direct gaze.

“I’m just going to be forthright…you’ll find that I am, sometimes obnoxiously so,” he says, a mischievous grin crossing over his face.

And wow, that smile. All the proper I was seeing before just flipped into pure sin.

I shift in my seat. I like that he’s more down-to-earth than I expected him to be, but I’m still unable to ignore the way the man affects me.

“Of course,” I squeak.

I clear my throat and nod, picking up a dried apricot and taking a bite in hopes that it’ll make me look cool and nonchalant.

“I’ve interviewed twenty-three applicants, and I have to say you were a top runner from the beginning, until?—”

I stop chewing the apricot and let my eyes meet his.

“Until?” I ask, sounding like I’ve run a marathon.

“Until I realized you omitted something very important on your résumé.” He sets his plate down and leans forward, his elbows going to his knees.

The visual is very,verysexy.

Is he aware of what this look does to women?

I swallow hard. “I did?”

He nods. “You did.” His lips pucker and the place between his brow deepens. “Would you care to tell me why you didn’t tell me the truth?”

CHAPTER TWO

SLIM PICKINGS

SUTTON

This girl is stunning, and I did my best to find someone else for the nanny position because of that fact alone, but the pickings were slim. Either they had no personality at all or were so hyper I knew I wouldn’t be able to stand being in the same room with them.

No one stood out like Felicity Shaw.

---