Page 86 of Hearts Aweigh
“Yes, sir. But I have important business that requires longer.”
“What business?”
“The Shippers found a new candidate.”
Her casual announcement raked an irritating path through his brain. Couldn’t his mother and her matchmaking friends donormal senior activities to amuse themselves? Why not take up knitting? Collecting recipes? Canasta?
He feigned a playful tone. “Not another minister?”
“I’ve got a date with the ship’s doctor.”
The doctor? An attractive profession to someone with marriage on her mind. He drummed his fingers against his knee. “How can you wholeheartedly hand your future to a bunch of meddlers?”
“Don’t call them that.” Abby’s eyes glinted. “I’ve seen how good the Shippers are at making matches.” She glanced away. “They might not always get it right, but they don’t give up.” Her gaze met his. “And neither do I. In the past, I may have dated a few flops, but I still want to get married.”
Spencer blinked at her unabashed statement. “Why?”
“Why?” Abby blinked back. “Do I need a reason? Most people want to get married, don’t they?”
“I suppose.” Spencer’s upper lip lifted at one corner. “But I wouldn’t recommend it. I speak from personal experience when I say it isn’t the lifelong honeymoon the romance novels portray.”
Abby placed her hands over Madeleine’s ears. “You shouldn’t say those things in front of Maddie. I’m sure she loves her mother.”
“I doubt she could pick Priscilla out of a crowd. From the day she was born, Madeleine spent the majority of her time with nurses and nannies. My ex-wife was never the nurturing type. Too busy with parties and social gatherings and lunches at the country club. She remembered she was a parent when she required an accessory for the annual mother-daughter fashion show.”
“I’m thirsty,” Maddie exclaimed.
She waited until Abby removed her hands, then hopped off the couch and ran to the kitchen. After opening the fridge, she grabbed a bottle of water from inside, shut the door, and unscrewed the bottle cap.
Abby watched her with a smile. “I can’t fathom anyone ignoring Maddie. She’s too precious. I want one exactly like her.”
“These days, you can have children without the old-fashioned trappings of matrimony.”
“Not in my family.” Abby’s nose crinkled. “My father would tan my hide from Tampa to Tallahassee.”
“So you want to get married for the kids?”
“Not just kids. The whole thing. The till-death-do-us-part promise that you’ll have someone on your side through thick and thin. I’m not so starry-eyed that I regard myself as incomplete without my ‘other half.’ But if you had the choice between completing a huge challenge alone or with a partner, wouldn’t you pick the partner? Is there any greater challenge than life?”
“As long as your partner doesn’t end up being deadweight.”
She huffed. “I can see we’ll never agree.”
“Well, until you find this ‘other half’”—Spencer made air quotes with his fingers—“why wish for a child exactly like Madeleine when she’s available? If you agree to be her governess, you can share your motherly affection with her and get paid well while doing it. Then you can take your time finding Mr. Right.”
“No, thank you, sir.”
Again with the “sir.”What had he done to make her testy?
He propped his elbows on the arms of the chair and steepled his fingers in front of his mouth. “It hasn’t escaped my notice you’ve adopted a more formal tone with me.”
“Just maintaining professional boundaries. We’ve both struggled with that in the past.”
A red flag waved in Spencer’s brain. Boundaries. There was one definite time where neither of them maintained their boundaries. He lowered his hands and sat straighter. “Are you referring to a specific instance?”
She averted her eyes. “Let’s just say you can save Maddie’s step stool for toothbrushing time.”
He knew it. She was still upset about their kiss at the pathetic waterfall the Shippers insisted on visiting. He must not have made his regret clear that night on the beach. A muscle popped in his jaw. He swallowed and leaned forward in the chair. “Abby, I deeply apologize if I’ve offended you. I didn’t mean—”
