“So why don’t they date?”
“He’s dropped a few hints in that direction, but they’re not suited. He’s rich. She’s normal. Plus, he’s not cut out to be a family man, so she knows he would never consider a permanent relationship with her.”
“He’d never consider anything permanent but he wants to sleep with her?”
Audra thought that through. “I don’t think it’s quite like that.”
“I still don’t like it,” Belle said without hesitation.
“But even you said it makes perfect sense.”
“No, I didn’t! I said it makes sense that he’s overwhelmed by the baby.”
“So that’s why he’s flirting—”
“Audra, you’re twisting this to make a scoundrel seem like a good guy.”
Audra gaped at Belle. “That’s not fair. You don’t even know him.”
“I don’t know the girl, either, but I can tell you some things about her. If she’s tolerating a boss flirting with her, she’s got very low self-esteem. Probably she’s recently been hurt.”
“She has, but her self-esteem is fine. She’s definitely over her hurt and able to handle herself.”
Shaking her head, Belle rose from her seat. “I hope so.”
“She is.”
Belle stopped at the door. “If she continues to work with that guy—whatever her reason—she needs to set him straight. If nothing else, flirting with an employee is out of line.”
With that Belle left the conference room, closing the door behind her. Audra fell back on her seat. A headache formed at her temples. She might be strong enough to resist Dominic, but she’d forgotten one important detail. As her employer, Dominic was out of line. And Belle was right. She had to set him straight.
Shrugging into her coat again, she walked through the reception area to the front door.
“Where are you going?” Julie called after her.
“Bank. I have a check I have to deposit.”
“You’re doing very well with him.”
Dominic kept his attention on dressing the baby for bed, feeling odd. Not only was Audra behaving stiffly and formally, but also the baby had been inordinately happy to see him. The chubby cherub on the changing table grinned toothlessly at him, making spit bubbles in the corners of his mouth, gooing and cooing, as if joy spilled from him.
With the little boy warm and squirming under his hands—very real, very human, very vulnerable, yet somehow very sweet—the truth of his situation plowed into Dominic. He was Joshua’s parent now. He was responsible for raising him. And the only parenting example he had was bad.
Grateful that Audra was helping him, he said, “If I’m doing well, it’s because I have a good teacher.”
She walked to the rocker and bent in front of the bookcase to choose a book. “Don’t get too cocky. You’re not a pro.”
He knew something was bothering her. “I might not be a pro. But I’m good enough to handle him in an emergency.”
Book in hand, she faced him. She took a breath that shifted her breasts beneath her simple yellow T-shirt, drawing Dominic’s attention to them. He nearly said something flirty, if only to get her out of her bad mood, but suddenly realized she was right. He wasn’t a pro, and the kid currently squirming against his palms was his now. His. He couldn’t alienate the one person in his life who was helping him.
“I know you think you’re too busy to spend time with Joshua, but also I think we could fix that with a good schedule.”
All right. He might not want to alienate her, but sometimes her ideas were a bit extreme. “You want me to create a schedule to spend time with my own family?”
“Yes.”
Dominic turned his attention to fastening the snaps of the outfit of a baby who cooed at him, touching his heart when he thought his heart was untouchable, once again making him feel Audra was correct. He should spend more time with Joshua.
But how? His schedule was already filled to capacity.
“Don’t look at scheduling time with Joshua as a bad thing,” she said. “When a parent works, schedules are sometimes necessary.”
“I live and die by schedules, now that I’ve taken over the family business.” And because he had the same pressures his father had, Dominic could actually surpass his father in inadequacy. “I know how important they are.”
Audra nodded at the baby in his arms. “So be a little flexible, then. This baby has lost his parents. All he needs is a piece of your time.”
He glanced at the baby again, his chest squeezing with panic. He’d always said having no time at all with his father would have been better than the miserable hours he’d spent in his presence. And maybe the same was true for Joshua?