Marriage Material

“There’s no wife. It’s just me and Charlotte, and as you can see, I need the help.” He looks down at his little girl. “She’d agree with you, but you’ve worked some kind of baby magic.”

That makes me laugh, and for some reason I’m completely at ease with this total stranger. “Okay,” I agree before I can even think about asking any more questions.

“Okay, really?” His head snaps up to look at me as if he doesn’t believe me.

“Yeah, really. She’s adorable, but you do look like you could use some help, and maybe a little sleep,” I tease him with a smile.

“I’m not sure how nannies work, but you move in, right? I have lots of space, so you can have your pick of the bedrooms,” he offers.

“You want me as a live-in nanny?” I’ve never done that before, but this might be how I get out of my parents’ house and my brothers won’t be able to stop me.

“I know that might be extra, but I’ll pay it, just name your price.”

“You’re in luck, because I’m available.” I want to hug him, but I don’t want him to know just how desperate I am for a job and a place to live.

I watch as his body relaxes. “Thank god. When can you start?”

“How soon do you need me?”

“Yesterday.” He lets out a small laugh, and it’s so sexy. A man should not have this much power over my lady business.

“How about tomorrow? I have some stuff going on tonight.” I love how he needs me a little too much.

“Do you have a date?” he asks, and it’s then I realize that I’ll be living in a house with this man. Just the two of us, three if we count the baby. My brothers will lose their minds, but maybe I can be all moved in before they even know about it.

“I have a family dinner tonight. My brother has some news he wants to share.” I dodge his question for some reason because I don’t want to tell him about the date and I don’t want to lie. I do have a family dinner, I just also have a date afterwards.

“That will work.” He reaches into his back pocket, pulls out a card and hands it to me. “My cell is on there. Just ignore the other business stuff on that, I don’t work there anymore.”

After I take the card he reaches up and brushes his thumb across my cheek. My breath catches at the touch and I lean into it.

He takes his hand away and he looks down at his feet. “You had something there,” he tells me, and I see the trace of flour on his thumb.

“Oh, yeah, thanks,” I say nervously. “I’ll be by tomorrow,” I rush to say. I’ve got to get out of here before I make a complete idiot of myself. He’s making me feel hot on every inch of my body.

“You don’t know where I live,” he tells me as I turn around to go check out.

“You said you bought the Jenkins’ place. I know where it is,” I say over my shoulder.

I stop at the end of the aisle to get myself together. What the hell was that?

My phone vibrates, breaking me from my fog. I look at it and see a text from my mother asking where I am. Crap. I rush to check out and hurry to the parking lot. This is all so crazy. I can’t believe he hired me right on the spot and asked me to move in. Maybe he’ll change his mind once he realizes that he invited a total stranger to help care for his baby. But he seemed desperate and maybe it was just luck that I was in the right place at the right time.

When I pull up at home I see everyone is already there. I hop out of my car and push open the front door. My youngest brother walks over and takes the bags from me.

“Did you get me some Reese’s Cups?” he asks.

“You know I did,” I tell him, following him into the kitchen.

“What happened to my imported beer?” I hear the sound of broken glass clinking as Kent pokes around a box I recognize as the one I dropped earlier. I have to fight a laugh because I don’t feel the least bit guilty about breaking his package. Sucker had it coming.

His wife Julie comes up behind him. “It’s fine. You can order more.” He turns around and kisses her, and it’s a little more heated than normal.

“Get a room,” my dad mumbles as he walks into the kitchen. Everyone is here and my mother looks ready to burst.

“So,” Ma says, clapping her hands together. “What do you want to tell us?”

Kent and Julie both smile. He wraps his arm around her, pulling her snug to him. “Julie’s pregnant,” he says proudly.