6 Mountain Brothers for Christmas

I nearly laughed out loud. “I’ll at least think about it,” I said.

“Fine,” he said begrudgingly. “I’m sorry.”

I couldn’t help but smile. I could see how hard it was for him to say those words. I thought back to what Maggie had said about something bad going down between him and his wife before she died and I softened a bit. Maybe that was why he was so fucked up.

“Fine,” I echoed. “I’ll be back tomorrow at eight.”

He relaxed instantly, sinking back in the chair and slumping his shoulders slightly forward. He took a sip of his coffee, and I followed his lead. We drank our coffee while we discussed the details of my job. We talked about salary and other boring things, but soon, he began to ask for my advice.

“So,” he said. “I’m trying to get Tommy into football, but I think I’m fighting a losing battle. Every time I try to play catch with him, he just mumbles and asks to do something else.”

“It may not be for him.” I shrugged. “Have you tried another sport? Baseball? Or soccer?”

“Ugh, soccer.” Sean rolled his eyes. “I hate soccer.”

“Why?” I laughed.

“It’s just so boring,” he said. “They just run back and forth. Nothing happens.”

“Tommy will probably love soccer, just because you hate it.” I laughed again. “That’s usually how it works.”

“Don’t say that,” Sean groaned.

“You could always try basketball,” I said. “Although, that’s pretty much just running back and forth too.”

“No,” Sean said firmly. “Basketball is so much more than that.”

I nodded, not wanting to interrupt the good flow of conversation we were having by telling him what I truly thought about the sport. Instead I just looked at him for a moment, waiting for him to continue talking. When he didn’t, we just stared at each other for a few moments, before he looked away, casting his eyes down to the table. Dammit. Every time I felt like I was getting somewhere with him, he shut down.

“Are you hungry?” he asked abruptly.

“I could eat,” I said.

“Want a muffin or something?” he asked.

“Sure.”

He stood up and walked over to the counter. I watched him go, my eyes trailing over his strong back and sculpted ass. Swallowing hard, I forced myself to look away. Sean had just hired me back. The last thing I needed was to give him a reason to fire me again.

When he came back to the table, I told myself to just relax. There was no reason to lose myself in the sexual tension between us. I didn’t even know if Sean felt it, too, or if it was just a figment of my imagination. Every time his eyes met mine, though, I could have sworn I saw something stir deep inside him.

The conversation stayed light and easy. We talked more about sports, and I told him all about my brothers and that they used to make me practice with them. He was impressed that I knew how to throw a spiral. When the conversation turned to my degree and my ultimate goal of opening up a daycare, he seemed more interested than ever, and I found myself blushing under his questions.

“Why haven’t you done it yet?” he asked.

“I’m working on it. I hit a few roadblocks financially, but I’ll figure it out.”

“So, you decided to nanny for now?” he asked.

“Something like that.” I nodded. “It wasn’t so much a decision as something I sort of fell into. When I moved back to town, everyone started asking me to babysit. One thing led to another, and eventually, I became the person to call for any childcare related questions. It pays the bills pretty well, but I never truly got excited about a job until this one, until I met Tommy and Sarah.”

Sean finally smiled at the mention of his kids and looked down at his hands. He wanted to say something, and I waited patiently until he was ready to speak.

“They’ve been through a lot,” he finally said. “But they’re amazing kids.”

“They really are,” I said with a smile. “I’ve only been around them for a short time, but I can already see that.”

Sean’s face lit up more than ever. I could tell that talking about his kids was the way to his heart, but I didn’t want to abuse that. Before I could think of another question for him, the door slammed shut again and he stood to leave. “I should get going,” Sean said. “Mrs. Johnston has the kids.”