a darling…and she’d seen her fair share of kids the past few weeks.
She didn’t think Jared was married. Maybe a niece? Cousin? Family friend, or godchild?
Carefully placing the photo back, she strolled to the other side of the room and tarried at the fireplace mantel. Black-and-white snapshots of a younger Jared and his friends scattered the length. All were framed, many were inscribed.
She sniffed. Obviously there was a different side of Jared Gillette than she was familiar with. These snapshots made the man actually seem human.
She was about to turn away when something caught her eye. A tiny pair of baby shoes, obviously worn, the white leather creased, the toes scuffed and the laces a bit dirty. She couldn’t help it, she picked up one shoe and found an inscription in black felt-tip marker on the sole. J.G.’s 1st pair of shoes.
Jared Gillette was actually this little once? He hadn’t always been a larger-than-life tyrant?
Smiling to herself, Nicki straightened the loops on one of the bows and carefully set the shoe aside. She wandered further down the mantel and discovered a grass-stained baseball encased in a plastic cover. 1st Home Run, Little League, Jared G., Age 11. Next to it, a wooden car along with a tiny plastic trophy, also housed in a plastic case, were identified with a gold plate. 1st Place, Pinewood Derby, Winter Park Cub Scout Pack #47. Further along, there was a brown-speckled rock, an autographed Indiana University baseball schedule, and a silver baby spoon.
Nicki stood back, surveying the collection of odds and ends. Jared Gillette, she thought, this is your life. You may be a hard-nosed businessman, but you definitely have another, much more curious, dimension.
Next to the mantel were two exquisitely framed water-colors. She stood for a moment, studying them.
“Like them?” Jared asked, coming up behind her. “This was my mom’s retreat and she had only her favorite family things in here. I keep telling myself I should dump the personal stuff and stick to only a few good pieces of art.”
Nicki whirled, ashamed to be caught looking. “They’re…” The words died in her throat. The image he presented took her breath away. He was wearing a midnight-black tuxedo. He’d replaced the scarlet business tie with a crisp, formal black bow tie. His pleated dress shirt sported black studs for buttons and there were heavy gold links at his shirt cuffs. He fiddled with one link, adjusting it beneath his jacket sleeve.
Then he caught her glance and lifted a brow, offering her a mind-bending smile. “Yes?”
“The watercolors are beautiful,” she said, fighting to keep her composure. “Keep them.”
His laugh was short, brittle. “Funny. I thought you were going to say something else.”
She hesitated. “I was. Seeing you dressed up like that, reminded me of only one thing. A grinch in a penguin suit.”
His brows lifted in surprise, then he threw back his head and laughed, not the least bit irked at her audacity.
Nicki caved in and actually felt herself smiling. Then she chuckled, her laughter mingling with his in the cavernous room. She slipped the afghan from her shoulders and started to fold it, even as she shook her head, marveling at what had just transpired. “Okay. That’s good. For both of us,” she admitted, replacing the afghan on the back of the leather couch. “A little laugh at the end of a bad day. We may never be business associates, but at least we can laugh about our differences. And by the way, I’m sorry for that crack I made about not working for you if you were the last man on earth. It’s bothered me that I said that. I overreacted, and I know it.”
Jared’s laughter faded and he grew silent. His gaze settled on the top of her windblown hair, then ricocheted between her dimples. The woman had an uncanny knack for amusing him. She was bright, articulate, and remarkably attractive. On top of that, she was sincere.
“Nicki Holliday…you are the most—” The phone rang, interrupting him. He blinked. “Give me a minute…”
He picked up the phone and never had time to offer up the customary “Hello?” Sandra, his ex-wife, launched into her spiel. Even from four steps away, he guessed Nicki could hear her demanding voice. He turned his back. “Sandra…of course, I’ll take her….” While his ex-wife rambled on, Jared was vaguely conscious that Nicki had discreetly moved to the other side of the room. “Then we better do something about joint custody,” he said.
Could he actually turn this around to his advantage? He’d been waiting a long time—and patience had never been his virtue. His lawyer had predicted this day would come…. But Jared could already see through the ruse: his ex-wife was throwing up a smokescreen to get him to up the ante.
Pulling the phone away from his ear, he made a snap decision. He didn’t care what it cost, he wanted his child back.
Snagging a deep breath, he wedged the phone back against his ear, to endure Sandra’s screeching. “Madison doesn’t like Howie, and they pick on each other like a couple of little kids—”
“Fine. I’ll have my lawyer contact yours tomorrow.”
“But you’re still single, Jared, and you spend all your time at that stupid store. Madison needs a real home, a feminine influence. I know you, you’ll just dump her and forget her. She needs a woman around.”
Jared’s eye fell on Nicki, and suddenly the most outrageous idea struck him. Hell, he could bend the truth a little; his ex-wife had been doing it for the past ten years. “Actually, Sandra, I’m currently involved in a very serious relationship. She’s here right now. But…look…don’t say anything to Madison, will you? I’ll tell her when the time is right.”
He was met with dead silence on the other end of the line. Finally, “You?” Sandra accused. “And another woman?”
“Not with just anyone,” he said, thinking of Nicki in a Santa suit. “This is someone who cares. Someone who loves kids. She’s a nice woman. You’d like her.”
“Well, I…”
“Sandra, look…we’ll settle this.”
“I don’t care when it’s settled,” Sandra hissed. “Because I’m sending Madison out to you. Whether you like it or not.”
“I’ll arrange for her airline ticket,” Jared said smoothly, aware Sandra didn’t spend one cent of the child support he sent her on Maddy. She spent it all on herself.
When Jared finally dropped the phone back into the cradle, disbelief washed through him. After all these years he was getting his child back. Even if it was only part-time—for now.
Across the room, Nicki, silhouetted against a wall of windows, half turned in his direction. She frowned, concern written on her features. “Everything okay?” she asked.
“Never better,” he assured. He paused for a moment and straightened his jacket before moving toward Nicki. He had to make a decision and he had to make it quickly. “Would it be easier,” he asked bluntly, “for you to walk away from the Santa job, if I offered you a Santa-like job?”
She stared at him. “Are you serious?”
“Absolutely. You’d work here. In my home. With a pay raise substantially more than anything
