Her mother was Margaret.”
“Hello, little Maggie.”
Humming a random tune, Hadley rocked Maggie. The combination of soothing noise and swaying motion put the baby to sleep, and Hadley placed her in the car seat.
“You are incredibly good at that.”
Hadley looked up from tucking in the baby and found Liam Wade standing too close and peering over her shoulder at Maggie. The man smelled like pure temptation. If pure temptation smelled like soap and mouthwash. He wore jeans and a beige henley beneath his brown-and-cream plaid shirt. His boots were scuffed and well worn. He might be worth a pile of money, but he’d never acted as though it made him better than anyone else. He’d fit in at the horse shows he’d attended, ambling around with the rest of the guys, showing off his reining skills by snagging the flirts who stalked him and talking horses with men who’d been in the business longer than he’d been alive. His cockiness came from what he achieved on the back of a horse.
“This is the first time she’s been quiet since she got here.” His strained expression melted into a smile of devastating charm. “You’ve worked a miracle.”
“Obviously not. She was just stressed. I suspect your tension communicated itself to her. How long has she been here?”
“Since about seven.” Liam gestured her toward the black leather couch, but Hadley positioned herself in a black-and-white armchair not far from the sleeping child. “Her grandmother dropped her off and left.”
“And you weren’t expecting her?”
Liam shook his head and began to pace. “Perhaps I should start at the beginning.”
“That might be best.”
Before he could begin, his housekeeper arrived with a pot of coffee and two cups. After pouring for both, she glanced at the now-sleeping child, gave Hadley a thumbs-up and exited the room once more. Liam added sugar to his coffee and resumed his march around the room, mug in hand.
“Here’s what I know. A woman arrived this morning with Maggie, said her name was Diane Garner and that her daughter had died after being in a car accident. Apparently she went into labor and lost control of the vehicle.”
Hadley glanced at the sleeping baby and again sorrow overtook her. “That’s just tragic. So where is her grandmother now?”
“On her way back to Houston, I’m sure.”
“She left you with the baby?”
“I got the impression she couldn’t handle the child or didn’t want the responsibility.”
“I imagine she thought the child was better off with her father.”
“Maggie isn’t mine.” Liam’s firm tone and resolute expression encouraged no rebuttal. “She’s my brother’s child.”
At first Hadley didn’t know how to respond. Why would he have taken the child in if she wasn’t his?
“I see. So I’ll be working for your brother?” She knew little of the second Wade brother. Unlike Liam, he hadn’t been active in reining or showing quarter horses.
“No, you’ll be working for me. Kyle is in the military and lives on the East Coast.”
“He’s giving you guardianship of the child?”
Liam stared out the large picture window that overlooked the front lawn. “He’s unreachable at the moment so I haven’t been able to talk to him about what’s going on. I’m not even sure Maggie is his.”
This whole thing sounded too convoluted for Hadley’s comfort. Was Liam Maggie’s father and blaming his absent brother because he couldn’t face the consequences of his actions? He wouldn’t be the first man who struggled against facing up to his responsibilities. Her opinion of Liam Wade the professional horseman had always been high. But he was a charming scoundrel who was capable of seducing a woman without ever catching her name or collecting her phone number.
“I’m not sure I’m the right nanny for you,” she began, her protest trailing off as Liam whirled from the window and advanced toward her.
“You are exactly what Maggie needs. Look at how peaceful she is. Candace spent two hours trying to calm her down, and you weren’t here more than ten minutes and she fell asleep. Please stay. She lost her mother and obviously has taken to you.”
“What you need is someone who can be with Maggie full-time. The clients I work with only need daytime help.”
“The agency said you go to school.”
“I’m finishing up my master’s in child development.”
“But you’re off until the beginning of February when classes resume.”
“Yes.” She felt a trap closing in around her.
“That’s four weeks away. I imagine we can get our situation sorted out by then, so we’d only need you during the day while I’m at the barn.”
“And until then?”
“Would you be willing to move in here? We have more than enough room.”
Hadley shook her head. She’d feel safer sleeping in her own bed. The thought popped into her mind unbidden. What made her think that she was in danger from Liam Wade? From what she knew of him, she was hardly his type.
“I won’t move in, but I’ll come early and stay late to give you as much time as you need during the month of January. In the meantime, you may want to consider hiring someone permanent.”
Despite what Liam had said about Maggie being his brother’s child, Hadley suspected the baby wasn’t going anywhere once the DNA tests came back. With the child’s mother dead and her grandmother unwilling to be responsible for her, Liam should just accept that he was going to need a full-time caregiver.
“That’s fair.”
Liam put out his hand, and Hadley automatically accepted the handshake. Tingles sped up her arm and raised the hair on the back of her neck as his firm grip lingered a few seconds longer than was professionally acceptable.
“Perhaps we could talk about the things that Maggie will need,” Hadley said, hoping Liam didn’t notice the odd squeak in her voice.
“Candace started a list. She said she’d get what we needed as soon as you arrived.” His lips curved in a wry grin. “She didn’t want to leave me alone with the baby.”
“Why not?”
“It might seem strange to you, but I’ve never actually held a baby before.”
Hadley tore her gaze away from the likable sparkle in Liam’s arresting eyes. She absolutely could not find the man attractive. Hadley clasped her hands in her lap.
“Once you’ve held her for the first time, you’ll see how easy it is.” Seeing how deeply the baby was sleeping, Hadley decided this might be a great opportunity for him to begin. “And
