shot Coco a dark look. “Ya think?”
Emma gave another raspberry and he would have sworn he heard Coco snicker, but he was too busy protecting himself from some vile puréed vegetable to check. He rubbed Emma with a cloth and she began to fuss.
“I’ll take her then I’ll go to bed,” Coco said.
“TV is out here,” he pointed out.
“I can read a book. G’night,” she said.
“But—” Benjamin said as Coco lifted Emma from the baby seat.
“We’re good,” Coco said and took Benjamin’s daughter to the bathroom.
“You sure I can’t help?” he asked.
“No. We’re taking a bath,” Coco said.
Benjamin visualized Coco taking a bath and his body instantly tightened. He walked toward the bathroom and spied Emma in the bathtub. She gurgled at Coco, who encouraged her.
He paused before speaking. “Does she like this?”
“In the right conditions,” Coco said. “Optimal temperature, etc...”
“How do you know all this?” he asked.
“Experiment and practice,” Coco said, still not looking at him, which irritated him.
“You wanna give me a clue?” he asked.
“Soon enough,” she said. “I’ll write it all down, but there are a lot of particulars.”
“Is that a woman thing?” he asked.
Coco rinsed Emma and pulled her from the tub. She shot him a sideways glance. “There are particulars for every baby. Male or female.”
“But in my baby’s case?”
“She likes berry-scented soap and her fave temp is almost hot. She loves a sip of apple juice while she’s in the tub...”
“Hell, that sounds like an apple-tini,” Benjamin said.
“No vodka needed for Miss Emma,” she said. “Just good hugs and a lullaby.”
“And what about the nanny?”
Coco paused for a long moment and bit her lip. “Not your problem.”
“Why do I feel like it is?” he asked.
“Misplaced responsibility?” she asked and placed Emma in his arms. “Enjoy your sweetie pie. I’m going to bed.”
“Whoa,” Benjamin said. “She looks like she’ll be gone for the night in just a few minutes. Flat-screen is available as soon as she’s asleep.”
“I need to protect myself,” Coco said.
“What do you mean?” he asked.
“I mean that you are dangerous at night. I need to avoid you then,” she said and turned away.
Benjamin held his daughter as he watched Coco walk away, and he suddenly felt alone. Regret filled him, tightening his chest and spreading outward.
“Hey,” he said. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
She glanced over her shoulder, but didn’t meet his eyes. “I’m great. Let me know if you need help with Emma.”
“I will,” he said, feeling alone. Very alone. He knew he had made a mistake kissing Coco and undressing her as he had. On the other hand, he hadn’t slept last night, either, and he’d thought about her all day.
Maybe another night would cure him, he hoped. If not, another day would do it. He swore under his breath. If twenty-four hours didn’t do it, then he would need help.
* * *
A couple hours later, Benjamin went to bed. It took a while for him to fall asleep. A vision swam before him. Coco appeared and lowered her mouth to his. Time passed in a millisecond and she was naked against him. He realized that he was also naked and her breasts felt delicious against his bare chest. Her nipples were taut and sensitive as he touched them.
Her moan made him unbearably aroused. I want you, he said.
I want you, she echoed.
Seconds later, he slid his hand between them to the top of her thighs where she was moist and swollen. He stroked her as he kissed her.
“You feel so good,” he said, sinking into her kiss and the intimate sensation of being so close to her. His breath hitched in his throat and he stretched toward her, wanting to be inside her.
Finally, he thrust inside, where she was wet and warm. He pumped, feeling the sweat bead on his forehead. His heart hammered against his chest. He was so aroused he could explode.
Coco stretched her legs around him and held him close. “I love you,” she whispered.
Her words stopped his heart. “Don’t love me,” he said. “I’m not the right man for you. Not right now.”
“I love you anyway,” she said.
He felt himself rise again inside her. Swearing, he couldn’t hold himself back. Even though she’d told him she’d loved him. Even though she shouldn’t love him, and he shouldn’t let her.
But he couldn’t control the way she made love to him with her body, and he couldn’t stop the way he made love to her with his body, either. He began again the rhythm of sinking himself inside her. He felt himself grow closer and closer to release. He was almost there....
He woke up, sweating, his pulse racing, and he was as hard as a brick. It took him a few seconds to separate the dream from reality. Coco was not in his bed whispering alarming words in his ear while they made love to each other.
“Thank God,” he muttered as he sat up, though his body was in complete disagreement. His body clamored for satisfaction, and his heart— His heart wasn’t involved, he told himself. His heart had no room for the woman who was the nanny to his daughter and who had just learned she was part royal.
* * *
The next morning, Coco tried to avoid Benjamin, which was difficult because the villa wasn’t that large. So she took Emma for walks in the stroller. Three of them. She was just about to leave for a walk on her own when Bridget called.
“Time for shopping,” Bridget said. “Now don’t turn me down. I know you’re not doing anything. Mr. Bernard reports that you’ve taken Emma on multiple walks.”
“I don’t know, Bridget,” she said and decided to be honest. “These boutiques may be a bit out of my price range.”
“Oh, don’t worry about that. Eve wants to give this to you as a gift,” Bridget said.
“Oh, no. I couldn’t,”
