Page 10 of Rafa's Convenient Wife

“Here.” He knelt next to her. He was so close she could feel his body heat, and she was taken back to the garden and their forbidden tryst.

Embarrassed by the blush burning up her neck and face, she focused on cleaning Jasper. He was just as wiggly in the tub as he was out of it. Normally, she stood nearby to help if Maddie or Jaime needed an extra hand. It was nice to have Rafael there to distract Jasper while she washed his hair and scrubbed his grimy little fingers.

She let Rafael wrap him up in a hooded towel and take him to the nursery while she emptied and wiped down the tub and ensured all the bath toys were in the net to dry. When she walked into the nursery, she found Rafael struggling with a pair of footie pajamas. She squashed the urge to rush over and fix the problem. Instead, she waited the same way Maddie had with her in the early days of helping with Jasper.

“Why does it zip backward? From the top down?” Rafael asked, exasperated.

“Nighttime diaper changes,” she explained, moving closer to the changing table. “You only have to unzip the bottom half, so he won’t get as cold or wake up all the way.”

He made an annoyed sound. “I guess.”

She smiled at his frustration. “Wait until you try to get him into a church outfit.”

Rafael snorted. “I’ve seen the tiny suits Mama sends forla misa. Hard pass on being the one to get him dressed for that.”

“Your mother does send the cutest outfits, though. Jasper is always the fanciest baby at Mass.”

“You go with them?” He seemed surprised, and she couldn’t figure out why.

“Well, yeah. I always attend Mass, even when traveling. It seems there’s always a Catholic church nearby.”

“Even in Iceland?”

“Even in Iceland.”

“Huh. I wouldn’t have thought there were many Catholics there.” He carefully picked up Jasper, who had started to suck on his fingers, a sure sign that he wanted his bottle and pacifier.

“If you want to read him a book in the rocking chair, I’ll get his night bottle.” She plucked a clean pacifier from the drawer where Maddie kept them and handed it over. “In case he gets cranky.”

“Is there a specific book he likes?” Rafael stared at the bookshelves that were neatly arranged by color.

“Hop on Popis his jam right now. He’ll expect you to read it at least four times,” she warned before darting out the door. She returned a short while later with a warm bottle. Rafael rocked Jasper while reading him the story. Just like her nephew, she was entranced by Rafael’s voice and his smooth accent as he spoke.

As much as she wanted to stay and listen, she handed over the bottle and backed out of the nursery to let Rafael have some bonding time with Jasper. She went to the living room to tidy up the mess Rafael and Jasper had left behind. Once the toys were all put away, she wiped down all the new sticky spots and vacuumed up the crumbs left behind from their snacks.

Satisfied she would start the day with a tidy house, she checked the alarm, made a cup of chamomile tea, and retreated to her favorite spot in the library. She glanced at the baby monitor app on the tablet and noticed Jasper was snoozing in Rafael’s arms. He had such a gentle, tender look on his face as he gazed down at the baby, and she couldn’t help but imagine him as a father.

It had shocked her that in all the years she had been gone, he hadn’t found a woman to marry. She had heard from Maddie and Lola that Soila had been actively matchmaking. Sky tried not to show interest when they spoke of Rafael’s love life, butsometimes, she broke down and Googled the women. All the women Soila picked for her son were successful and intelligent, beautiful and poised.

As much as it pained her to admit, Sky would never measure up to those women. She had a high school diploma from a fancy private school and that was it. She hadn’t even managed to finish one whole day at college. She had never even moved into her dorm at A&M. She had fled to Casablanca a week before school was scheduled to start.

And a career? Taking care of Jasper was the most stable “job” she’d had in six years, and it wasn’t even really a job. Sure, Jaime and Maddie paid her, but it wasn’t as if taking care of her nephew was real work. She adored him and would have done it for free.

So, no, she would never be the sort of woman Soila chose as a date for her son. She would never be equal to a man who had done his MBA at Harvard and who headed up a billion-dollar enterprise. She was a nobody. A no one. A reformed wanderer with no future.

“Does he always go to bed that easily?”

Startled by Rafael’s voice, she found him leaning against the door frame. He looked ridiculously sexy standing there, and she hated the way her heart fluttered at the very sight of him. How much longer was she going to nurse this ridiculous crush?

“Not always,” she said, tearing her gaze away from him and all the sinful thoughts he inspired. “I think you wore him right out with all that horsing around in the living room.”

“I need to clean up the mess we left.”

“I already did.” She sipped her chamomile tea and prayed it would slow her racing heartbeat.

“Thank you. Next time, leave my mess for me. It’s not fair for you to handle everything.”

“I’m holding you to that,” she warned, wondering whether he really understood what sort of chore that would be. “Will you need a workshop on how to use the vacuum?”

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