Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 76984 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 385(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76984 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 385(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Kiss me, you fool, my eyes begged.
“You look beautiful this morning,” he whispered.
His words were too much. I shut my eyes, tilting my face toward him just in case he chose to kiss me. My lips tingled with hope.
I held my breath as I felt his blowing against my cheek, but my dream didn’t come true. Instead, he placed a chaste, I-could’ve-been-his-sister kiss on my forehead, ending it with a sting by tapping me on the tip of my nose. He rose tall, towering over me. The moment erased, along with my hopes.
Would a small graze of my lips have killed him? He made it seem like it would have.
“Thanks for taking care of her.” He ruffled Esmé’s hair and softly patted her cheeks. Watching his large hands touch her so gently made his rejection hurt even more.
I opened my mouth, moving it up and down like a fish, but no words came out. He’d stolen my breath away, not with a hot kiss, but with the lack of one. I’d been nanny-zoned.
I managed a sad sigh, causing Esmé to scrunch her baby brows at me. Even at her age, she knew what disappointment sounded like.
“I have to get to the office shortly. J.J. will be here in a few minutes.” Lucas stressed the last words as he gave my attire a quick once over, making the meaning clear. I needed to change before I answered the door.
I tilted my head as Lucas turned and walked away from me. I allowed myself to stare hard at his backside. He couldn’t see me, so why not? His ass was the perfect mix of firm and high, made even more apparent in the flimsy pants. I bit down on my lip.
Before he left the nursery, he swung back around toward me, grabbing a hold of the doorjamb above his head. His shirt moved upward, exposing the beginnings of a light brown happy trail disappearing into his drawstring pants. My eyes shot up to his before I was caught in the act of ogling all his sexiness.
“J.J. will be working with me today at the office. You’ll be on your own. I think you’ll be okay without a bodyguard. No one’s bothered you since you arrived here, correct?” His forehead creased in concern.
“I’ve flown under the radar. I don’t fit the billionaire nanny’s profile.” The reason I ditched my favorite holey jeans. I already missed them.
“And I’m glad,” Lucas said. “Before I leave for the day, I want to add an app to your phone so I know where you are at all times.”
“Stalker much?” I held back a smile.
It kind of turned me on knowing he could find me at any given moment, but I also wanted to know his whereabouts too. It would make sense, right?
“I want to make sure you’re safe.” Even from across the room, his eyes took on a darker alpha shade. Desire eyes. I might melt into goo under them.
“Thanks,” I whispered.
Lucas released his hands from the doorjamb, and I thought he was leaving to go get ready for the day, but he stood there quiet, gazing at me. I waited, knowing he had something left to say.
“I want you to know it took everything in me not to kiss you on the lips, Peaches.”
I knew it! I still was frustrated as hell, but at least I wasn’t a nut imagining crazy things.
“Why didn’t you? I wanted you to so bad. And don’t call me Peaches.” Lucas pushed his hands into his pockets, drawing the waistline down for an early morning peepshow. Man, I discovered where the happy trail ended. Another inch and I’d be seeing base camp. Even with all the hotness in my face, he still pissed me off.
“Same reason I didn’t ask for your number when we met. I’m not relationship material. Adding my promise to Barclay, I decided it’s best this way.” A sad expression washed over his face. I wasn’t convinced.
“You know something. I thought about Herb every day after I met you and decided I wanted a guy who was more than a quick hookup. Someone who’d catch me when I’d fall. Did you ever think about me? Wonder if you should have asked me for more?” I baited him, hoping he’d tell me his true reasons, something deeper than he couldn’t or shouldn’t. We were grown adults for heaven’s sake.
“You don’t understand me. For ten years, I’ve had a certain approach with women, and it’s served me well.”
Lucas ran his fingers through his hair. I’d been around him long enough to know he used this move to channel his frustration. I decided to poke the bear.
“Two things. One, you didn’t answer my question, and two, I’m holding a baby from your ‘certain approach.’” His blue eyes bored into mine. The bear was poked.