twisted the ring, wondering why she bothered to wear it. For the baby, she supposed. Certainly not for any residual attachment to Mark. “I’m a widow. My husband died.”
Saying the words aloud seemed as unreal now as they had a few months ago. Mark was dead, his body lost in a horrible explosion that sunk the extravagant yacht he was sailing to a buyer in Greece. She felt both horrified and guilty. Horrified that it happened. Guilty to feel so little grief.
Her expression must have shown the stress of the last few months, because Mariah’s little hand took hers. “Don’t be sad, Kelsey. Daddy and I will make you feel better. You can come to our house and have hot chocolate and graham crackers in bed.” The bouncy curls swirled toward Ryan. “Can’t she, Daddy? We’ll make her feel better and she can look after me while you work. Then she can be my mommy and give me a baby sister. She’s a teacher, too, so she can help us with our geography. I still get mixed up with India and Indiana, you know. It’s the perfect solution.”
Ryan appeared as muddled by his little girl’s logic as Kelsey felt. After staring at the child for several beats, he ran his fingers across the top of his head in an exasperated manner. “You’re a teacher? You wouldn’t be needing a job, would you?”
He didn’t know the half of it. “Exactly what kind of job?”
He gave a short laugh. “It’s nothing quite as involved as Mariah has in mind. You see, Mariah’s au pair has gotten married. We’re on our way home from the wedding.”
“And Miss Janine hasn’t been replaced yet,” Mariah said, folding both hands on Kelsey’s kneecap and staring up into her face. “We interviewed a few candidates, but I have the final veto.”
Her father rolled his eyes and looked pretty much helpless. “It’s a deal we made. I choose qualifications. She chooses someone she likes. I work long hours and need someone I can totally trust with my child.”
“Sometimes I don’t see Daddy for days,” Mariah said. “He works very, very hard, you know, and although I miss him terribly, I understand. People depend on him. That’s why your credentions have to be exemplary. We’ll be spending a lot of time together. I really want a baby sister. And I promise to be lots of help with her. I’ll read all the baby books and learn everything. You won’t have to worry one little bit. And I’m always well-behaved. I promise. Aren’t I, Daddy?”
All during this long persuasive speech, Mariah’s little face was a picture of hope. Kelsey’s heart twisted. With each word, Kelsey had grown more sure that Ryan Storm was a success-oriented workaholic and not much else. Poor little Mariah.
“Yes, you are, peanut.” Ryan tweaked the end of the little girl’s nose and then spoke to Kelsey.
“So you see, with Mariah’s intellect, I need to hire someone who can not only care for her full-time, but who can homeschool her as Janine did. She didn’t fit too well in kindergarten and I don’t intend to expose her to that again.”
“Kids in kindergarten didn’t like me much, although I’ll never understand their reasoning. Playing with blocks seemed a little silly to me, but I was still nice to them and helped them organize the blocks into a color-coordinated map of Dallas.” Mariah frowned. “For some reason, that made them all run away.”
Ryan tilted an eyebrow at Kelsey as if to say, see what I mean? “Private tutors, in my opinion, are best for children like Mariah.”
“Eventually, she’ll have to learn to interact with other children,” Kelsey said. “No matter how bright she is, she needs to learn to play like a normal kid.”
“I’m far more concerned with making the most of her intelligence. Kids are born knowing how to play.”
“Well, I think you’re wrong about that.” Kelsey didn’t know what possessed her, exhaustion she supposed, but she was still annoyed that the child had been running loose in the airport without supervision. Add to that Mariah’s concern about her father’s emotional well-being, and Kelsey figured the guy needed to get a clue. “Socialization is important, too, particularly at this age.”
“My daughter is quite social, as you have already observed.”
“That’s not what I meant. Did it ever occur to you that she needs to be a little girl instead of worrying about you?” Oops. Now she’d gone too far.
He blinked, those intense eyes hardening to onyx. “Excuse me. I think this interview is concluded.”
Well, la-dee-da. Concluded.
“And here I didn’t even know an interview was going on. Silly me.” Story of her life. Lose the job before she even applied for it. Before she could shove the next words back down her smart-aleck throat, she blurted, “Sounds like somebody needs a nap, and I don’t mean your daughter.”
After a tense ten seconds while her former classmate contemplated her with both surprise and curiosity and maybe even a little horror, he turned aside and stared out the frosted window.
Steepling his fingers, he bounced them against his chin with a sigh of utter hopelessness. For a fleeting moment, Ryan Storm, king of Storm International, looked like a lost child himself. Kelsey felt a twinge of sympathy, which made no sense under the circumstances. First of all she should be red-hot and furious at his dismissal, but she wasn’t. She thought his defensive reaction was kind of funny and pompous and completely characteristic of the brooding young man she’d known in high school. He’d moved through the hallways with a know-it-all stare and a chip on his shoulder the size of Texas Stadium. Though he said little, his groupies followed, anxious to do the bidding of the rough-edged boy in fitted T-shirt and faded jeans. He was in command even then.
Secondly, and probably most important given the unpredictable state of her emotions, here was a man of enormous success and confidence who had the world in the palm of his hand. She, on the other hand, was a mess. Why should she feel sorry for Ryan Storm?
Mariah, who hadn’t missed a single glare or sigh or comment, glanced from her father’s stormy face to Kelsey’s and back again. “Can’t we negotiate?”
Worry filled her dark eyes and pinched Kelsey’s conscience. Concern for her daddy emanated from her small form in pleading waves. Here was a child who could probably read Shakespeare but was stuck with a workaholic father who hadn’t a clue. If ever a little girl needed a mommy, this one did.
“Didn’t you hear? Kelsey isn’t interested in the job,” Ryan muttered.
Maybe it was the child’s big brown eyes.
Maybe it was the father’s lost expression. Maybe it was hormones.
Most likely it was pure desperation.
“Actually,” Kelsey said. “I think I am.
CHAPTER TWO
SLOWLY, SLOWLY, RYAN TURNED towards the woman. First, she’d told him he had no idea how to raise his own child. And now, she wanted to work for him.
He didn’t think so.
He ran a hand down his face, heard the scratch of beard left untended.
Bone weary of sitting in this airport, he had missed two crucial meetings, and had just spent forty-five minutes on the telephone trying
