new doll.
“Where did that come from?”
Darcy glanced over as Iris gripped the doll’s long, dark hair and started swinging it around. “I brought it for her.”
So in the single bag she’d brought, Darcy had managed to squeeze a doll in among her belongings?
“Is that something you normally do? Bribe potential clients?”
Darcy’s eyes widened. “I’ve never had to bribe anybody. Your daughter was being introduced to a stranger and I used the doll as a way to talk to her and make her comfortable. I can take it back if it offends you.”
Colin gritted his teeth. In the span of a few hours his house had been taken over by this free spirit who seemed oblivious to the mess surrounding them and was trying to tell him how to raise his child. She’d calmed Iris in a way he’d never seen and now his new nanny was stomping all over his libido. And he was paying her for every bit of this torture.
Iris started whimpering as she rubbed her eyes.
“Is this nap time?” Darcy asked.
“She tends to nap once a day.” He smoothed a wayward curl from Iris’s forehead and slid his finger down her silky cheek. “There’s no set time. I just lay her down when she seems ready.”
Darcy came to her feet, crossed the room and lifted Iris into her arms. “Come on, sweetheart. Let’s get you down for a nap. I’ll clean the mess today and you can help tomorrow.”
Colin rose. Now that he didn’t have to bend over and pick Iris up, he figured he could carry her to her bedroom. He hadn’t felt even a twinge in his back since he’d been downstairs.
“I’ll take her up.” Colin took Iris from Darcy’s arms, careful not to brush against any part of her tempting body. “You can work on this.”
Holding his daughter tight, he headed up to the nursery. With her little arms around his neck, she still clutched the new doll and with each step he took it slapped against his back. Iris had taken to Darcy exactly the way Colin hoped his little girl would take to a new nanny. Yet some things about Darcy didn’t add up. He’d picked her agency because of its reputation and level of experience. Okay, so she was older than he’d first thought. But why did she have so few belongings and why were her clothes a bit on the cheap, hand-me-down side?
With Iris nuzzling his neck, Colin stepped into the pale green and pink nursery. This was the one room he’d had painted before they’d moved in. Every other room had just been furnished as he’d requested. He’d wanted something special for Iris and the designer really went all out with the round crib in the middle of the spacious room, sheer draping suspended from the ceiling that flowed down over the bed and classic white furniture complete with all things girly, pink and just a touch of sparkle. The floor-to-ceiling window also had sheer curtains that were tied back with some pink, shimmery material, and toy bins were stacked neatly against the far wall.
A room fit for a princess...or duchess, as the case may be.
When he sat Iris in her bed, she quickly grabbed her little heart pillow, hugged her new doll to her chest and lay down. Colin watched until her eyes closed, her breathing slowed.
Darcy might be a bit of a mystery, but with his status, he had to be extremely watchful. She seemed trustworthy so far. If she just wanted privacy that was one thing. Who was he to judge? Wasn’t he lying and pretending to be someone else right now?
The fact that there was more to figure out with the alluring, frustrating nanny left him no choice but to head back downstairs and talk with her now that they were alone.
Of course, he was hiding the fact that he was a prince, one who found her to be sexy as hell. Still, he needed help with Iris. For now he’d have to keep Darcy around, but that didn’t mean she’d be here for the full six months. They needed to pin down a suitable trial period. In the meantime, he could be researching a backup in case Darcy didn’t work out.
Regardless of the end result, he had to ignore how enticing she was. Romance, whether short-or long-term, was not on his agenda, and he sure as hell wouldn’t be so trite as to fall into bed with his baby’s nanny.
Darcy had picked up the living room, piling all the toys and infant blankets neatly in the corner. The rogue cereal pieces were in the trash, except for the crushed bits. She’d have to ask Colin where the vacuum was kept to get the rug back in order. She’d work with Iris and her cleaning skills next time. The girl needed a nap more than she needed a lesson.
Playing with Iris, truly feeling a bond starting to form, was both a blessing and an ache she couldn’t begin to put into words. For so long she’d had that little-girl dream of having her own family, but such things were not meant to be. Darcy hadn’t thought this job would be so intense, yet maybe it was the combination of the baby and the man that had her stomach in knots. As grouchy as he was, Colin was still very sexy, there was no denying the obvious.
At first, the instant attraction to Colin had layered over her anxiety of working with an infant. The man was hot, hot, hot, and that was just the physical packaging. When he spoke with that accent he only rose another notch on the sexy scale. But there was nothing like seeing him holding his beautiful daughter, the way he looked at her with all the love in the world. Something about watching him with his guard down had Darcy melting even more.
As Colin’s footsteps pounded down the steps, she stood at the kitchen sink rinsing the sippy cup. Quickly placing it on the drying mat, she wiped her hands on her jeans. She had no clue what mood Colin would be in or how he might react once they were alone.
Would he ask her to leave simply because of the mess? A good first impression was everything and she’d probably blown it. He’d told her she had until the end of the day to prove herself, but she may not make it that far. She stood to lose her pride and her grandmother’s legacy. There was no plan B, there was no knight who would ride to her rescue. So if Colin was angry enough to ask her to go, she wouldn’t have much choice.
Darcy couldn’t get a good read on him. When he looked at her she couldn’t tell if he was angry or turned on. Ridiculous to think a piece of eye candy like Colin Alexander would find her attractive, but he volleyed between being pissed and raking his eyes over her.
No way would she bring up the fact he turned her inside out. She’d always been a professional and this job was no different...except for the fact she needed this one more than any other.
Just as Darcy turned, Colin was rounding the large center island. Even in the openness of the kitchen, the man seemed to dominate the room. She stepped back, the edge of the counter biting into the small of her back.
“Is she asleep?” Darcy asked, trying to keep her voice steady, though she felt anything but.
“Yes.” His eyes pinned her in place as he rested one hand on the granite counter. “We need to talk while she’s down.”
Swallowing, Darcy nodded. This was like the equivalent of the breakup in a business setting. Still, she wouldn’t go down without a fight.
“I need to clean the rug first,” she told him, knowing he probably recognized the stalling tactic. “I wasn’t sure where you kept your vacuum.”
“There’s
