Page 70 of Single Dad's Hot Nanny

Her mouth opened and then closed. Although it was dark, I saw the guilt flicker across her face. “I just thought I’d give you time to enjoy yourself with your friends, that’s all.”

My eyes narrowed to suspicious slits. “Thanks, but now I want to enjoyyou.” It was probably crazy that I craved her with this intensity after only a couple of days without the intimacy I’d gotten accustomed to lately. We had a magnificent time on the jet after Poppy fell asleep. Thankfully, the plane’s bathroom wasn’t so tiny. I’d locked us in there and made use of the few hours we had alone. I was addicted to her and had been for some time now.

Her cheeks practically glowed as her gaze slid away from me again. “I’m really tired, Michael.”

She brushed past me, but I was too stunned to react. It wasn’t her refusal that had me puzzled but the look on her face when she did. I thought about letting her go, but maybe it was best to address whatever was wrong right now. She didn’t get very far when I gently shackled her wrist.

“Not so fast. You’re tired… fine. Stay with me. We’ll just talk.” Afterward, she could sleep in my bed where she belonged.

Her shoulders hiked up, and her eyebrows puckered.

My eyes were fixed on her face, taking in every nuance of her expression. She seemed uncomfortable…with me? Since when?

“Talk about what?”

I gaped at her, utterly pissed that she was playing ignorant. My jaw clenched almost painfully, but I reined in my irritation. I’d been told many times that sometimes I came off as a cold, authoritative asshole—mostly by my equally asshole-ish friends—and I didn’t want to be that, not with Mia, and certainly not when it concerned our relationship. To be fair, she didn’t know we had a relationship—not a serious one, anyway—because I’d been hiding my feelings for her. The intense emotions had creptup on me and taken me by surprise. Since I was adamant from the beginning that what we had was casual, I thought I’d look foolish for changing the rules.

“You know exactly what we need to talk about,” I said, keeping my voice low but firm. “You’ve been distant since we arrived in Boston.”

“I haven’t…” Her voice was small and unconvincing. She glanced at where I still held on to her and tugged her hand free. I let her go with a soft sigh and followed her as she walked toward the suite’s living room.

“Did something happen, Mia?”

She wheeled around to face me, and I almost collided with her. “Nothing happened.”

“Then why have you been behaving as if you and I have a problem?”

She finally met my gaze. “We don’t.”

As I held her gaze, I debated telling her why I really invited her to Boston. When I invited her to come to the wedding, she was supposed to be my date. However, she took it another way, and I was too embarrassed to correct her, so I went with it. I had no idea when I’d become such a coward. Now, I wasn’t sure how to tell Mia that I wanted us to be more than casual.

“Olivia invited me to the wedding,” she said, changing the subject.

I allowed her to because, honestly, I was terrified of getting into a conversation about my feelings. “I heard.”

“I wasn’t sure what to tell her. I figured I’d ask you first.”

“Why the hell would you have to do that?”

She shrugged. “I’m here on the job…”

I could kick myself in the ass for that. I should have set her straight about my reason for inviting her from the beginning. “Right. Of course, it’s okay if you attend.”

“I’m still thinking about it. I didn’t bring anything to wear to an extravagant wedding. I might have to decline.”

The most awkward silence I’d ever experienced settled over us. I cleared my throat as I tried to think of something to say. For a man who was usually sure about things, being uncertain about matters of the heart was torture. I didn’t know how to take charge of this situation like I usually did.

“The ladies are really nice,” Mia said. I figured she threw that out to quell the uneasy silence. “Your friends are too. Everyone is more laid back than I imagined.”

I nodded.

“So… Elena…”

My eyes snapped back to her face. “What about her?”

“I saw you chatting with her the other day.”

I shrugged. “I chatted with plenty of people.”

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