Page 29 of Taming the Boss

When to me, being worthy of a sweet, empathetic woman like her seemed akin to scaling Mt. Everest.

She pursed her lips and shifted her fingers until they inched higher on the underside of my wrist. Almost as if she was…exploring. Testing my limits.

Problem was they were incredibly flimsy, especially right now when my mind was consumed with worry for my son.

Maybe that was exactly her point. She wanted to give me something else to focus on.

Holy shit, was it working, though Owen was paramount. No matter what.

Moments later, we reached my home and I leaned out the driver’s window to command the gates to open with my voice. Beside me, I could feel her goggling at my house and property. Heading up the long, sweeping drive and parking in my four-car garage beside my all-terrain vehicle and my convertible sports car didn’t make her stop, either.

Some part of me liked impressing her, even as I knew ultimately, it didn’t matter nearly as much as her assisting with my son. But if she was awed a little bit, maybe she’d stick around.

Right. Though she hadn’t even wanted to come home with us at first.

Because she had no clue what kind of offer you were making.

Truthfully, I hadn’t known what I was doing then, either. Just that I wanted her to stay with us, whatever it took. She’d made him laugh, and she’d helped us.

Now she was here somehow, and Owen was sick, so all bets were off. Whatever it took to make sure my son was in the best hands possible. References checked or not.

Clearly, I was following my instincts on this one. And my instincts had served me damn well, as proven by my business with my partners and my showpiece of a house.

“This place is…wow. I mean, I’ve known of it for years but up close, it’s…wow. And all these cars too? You live alone, right? You’re single? So, who drives all of this?” She gave my hand a squeeze before she started to open her door with the other.

Rather than answer her questions, I took a breath.

“Wait,” I commanded, reluctantly releasing her hand before I turned off the engine. Then I got out to come around to her side of the car to open her door.

She frowned, staring up at me. “Really?”

“Really,” I echoed. “Don’t the men in your life open your car doors?” When she said nothing, I added tersely, “They should or they shouldn’t be in your life.”

“The only men in my life are my brothers and my dad. I don’t… I just don’t.”

“Don’t what?” I urged her out of the car with a tug on her hand. “Don’t date?”

“No, of course I date, just it’s been a bit.” When I didn’t release her hand again, she released a baffled laugh. “Still doing this?”

“I like keeping my hands on you. If you don’t like me doing this, you should’ve stopped me from the first.” I shifted closer, well aware my lips were entirely too close to her forehead as my quick breaths fluttered her hair.

“No, no, I don’t mind—Jude, what is all this? Are you looking for a nanny or what?”

“Yes, I need a nanny, desperately.” I gripped her hand again as I tugged her to the steps that led up to the passthrough into the house. “Which we can discuss at a later time after Owen.”

“After Owen,” she agreed, surprising me with her rapid acquiescence as she hurried ahead of me up the stairs.

When she paused in front of the door, glancing back at me without trying to disentangle our fingers, I smiled. “Good girl. You learn fast.”

A visible jolt went through her and I wasn’t sure the meaning behind it. Did she not like me saying that to her? Then she stepped backward enough to brush against the front of me, and I was damn well certain she’d felt the evidence of what her easy agreement had done to me.

A low groan nearly left me but somehow I kept it together enough to reach around her to key in my private code before the lock snicked open, the light turning green.

“I could’ve seen that, you know,” she said lightly, not moving until I nudged her forward into the kitchen.

“You can see anything you want to,” I tossed back, shifting close enough to inhale a potent whiff of her strawberries and cream shampoo.

Or perfume. Or sex enhancement potion. Whatever, I didn’t have a clue.

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