Page 54 of 5+Us Makes Seven

But the feet I saw weren’t feet connected to Emma.

They were feet connected to Carter.

I slowly panned my gaze up and saw him standing there. With his beautiful eyes and his luscious hair and his strong jawline and his stoic features. He was in a tailored suit that clung to his body with a tie that begged for me to grasp it.

And his eyes were locked onto me.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

“Can we talk?”

I looked back into my barren apartment before I nodded.

“I don’t have a place to sit, but sure,” I said.

I ushered Carter in and his eyes took in my apartment. Void of any furniture or decorations and wreaking of chemicals. He stood in the middle of the room, his eyes flickering along the bare walls and the crisp, clean windows.

“Don’t go,” he said.

His words were like a punch to my gut.

“What?” I asked.

“Don’t go,” Carter said.

“Carter, this is my dream job,” I said as I shut the door. “I leave in the morning.”

“I’ll make whatever calls necessary. Just don’t go. Don’t leave us, Natasha.”

“Carter, I can’t do that,” I said.

“Yes, you can. I’ll give you anything. Anything you want. Any pay. Any price. You name it, and it’s yours.”

“It’s not about the money,” I said.

“Then what is it about? Is it about helping children? Because you were helping mine. Is it about control? I’ll give you total control over the entire damn house. You want to see my finances? I’ll let you have them. You want to move the kids into another school district? I’ll buy us a new house.”

“What are you talking about?” I asked.

“I was going to ask you to move in,” he said.

I felt my jaw drop as he took a step towards me.

“That night, when we had dinner. I was going to offer to make you a live-in nanny. Same benefits, more pay, and more control over the environment. You’d have your own key, your own bedroom, your own entrance. Your own rules. Everything.”

“That’s… a very generous offer,” I said.

“And it’s still on the table, Natasha. It’s still there. All you have to do is say ‘yes’.”

I couldn't form the words to speak as he took another step towards me.

“I’ll do everything else if you simply agree to stay.”

Tears welled in my eyes as I shook my head. My gaze lobbed off to the side as Carter closed the gap between us. My eyes fluttered closed as my hand slid up his torso. I felt the swell of his chest panting as his hands fell to my hips. Holy hell, his touch was electric. Shivering, my sweat dripped as the side of my head fell into his body. He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close and I could feel his heart beating.

Thumping loudly at an exponential rate.

“I’ll give you anything you want if you just agree to stay,” Carter said.

---