“That’s a generous offer…”
“My girls won’t be contagious in another day or two once the antibiotics kick in, so I can relieve her then. No worries.”
Her plan sounded workable. And yet, he hesitated, his gaze drawn back to the suite where Alexa slept. “You’re all busy with your own families, and I have a plan in place here.”
“You’re family,” Paige insisted sincerely. “We want to help.”
“I appreciate that.” Except he genuinely wanted his kids near him—and he wanted to keep Alexa near him, too.
The thought of cutting his time with Alexa short—it just wasn’t happening. Crazy, really, since he could contact her later, after this deal was cinched. If she was even still speaking to him once she realized he never intended to give her the Jansen Jets contract.
No. His time to get to know Alexa was now. He needed to figure out this unrelenting draw between them and work through it. She was here, and he intended to keep it that way. “Thanks, Paige, but I meant it when I said I’m set. I have help.”
“Hmm…” Her voice rose with interest. “You have a new nanny?”
His family chipped in most of the time, but he didn’t want to take advantage so he hired a couple of part-time nannies on occasion, all of which Paige would already know about. “Not a nanny. More of a sitter, a, uh, friend actually.”
“A female friend?” she pressed, tenacious as ever.
“She’s a female, yes.” Definitely female.
“That’s it?” Paige laughed. “That’s all you’re going to tell me, eh?”
“There’s not much to tell.” Yet. His eyes drifted back to the suite as he envisioned Alexa curled up asleep, wearing his shirt.
“Ah,” she said smugly, “so you’re still in the early stages, but not too early, right, or she wouldn’t be there with your children. Because, as best as I can remember, you haven’t dated much and none of those women ever got anywhere near the twins.”
His cousin was too insightful. The way she homed in on the intensity of his draw to Alexa so quickly made him uncomfortable.
He shot up from his seat. “That’s enough hypothesizing about my personal life for one night. I need to go.”
“I’m not giving up. I’ll want details when you return,” Paige insisted, getting louder and louder by the second. “And I want to meet her. I know you guard your privacy, but I’m family and I love you.”
“Love you too, cuz.”
“So you’ll talk to me? Let me know what’s going on in your world rather than hole up the way you did after Pippa—”
“I hear a kid,” he cut her short. “Gotta go. Bye.” He thumbed the off button and flipped the phone in his palm, over and over.
Guilt kicked around in his gut for shutting down Paige and for taking advantage of Alexa’s help. He should send Alexa back to Charleston and then impose on the sister of a cousin-in-law because his ex-wife had dumped his kids off without warning…
Hell, his life was screwed up, and he needed to start taking charge. He’d meant it when he said he could separate the personal from the professional. But he also heard Alexa when she said this was moving too fast for her. She needed more time, time they wouldn’t have if she went back to Charleston while he stayed here. He suspected once she went home, she would erect mile-high walls between them, especially once she learned he’d never planned to sign her cleaning company.
He needed longer with her now.
His mind filled with a vision of Alexa chasing his kids around, all wet from the tub. Warm memories pulled him in with a reminder of the family life he should be having right now and wasn’t because of his workload. Having Alexa here felt so right.
It was right.
And so, he wasn’t sending her back in the morning. In fact, he had to find a way to extend their window of time together. He not only needed her help with the children, but he also wanted her to stay for more personal reasons. The explosive chemistry they’d just discovered didn’t come around often. Hell, he couldn’t remember when he’d ever burned to have a particular woman this much. So much the craving filled his mind as well as his body.
The extension of their trip presented the perfect opportunity to follow that attraction to its ultimate destination.
Landing her directly into his bed.
* * *
Sunlight streamed through the window over the array of clothes laid out on the bed. So many clothes. Far more than she needed for a day or two.
Although as Alexa looked closer, she noticed the variety. It was as if whoever had shopped for her had planned for any contingency. Tan capris with a shabby chic blouse. A simple red cocktail dress. A sexy black bathing suit that looked far from nanny-like and made her wonder who’d placed the order. At least there was a crocheted cover-up. And for this morning’s breakfast…
She wore a silky sundress, floral with coral-tinted tulips in a watercolor print. Strappy gold sandals wrapped up and around her ankles. She scraped her hair back with a matching scarf that trailed down her back.
There was a whole other shopping bag that a quick peek told her held more clothes, underwear, a nightgown and a fabric cosmetics bag full of toiletries. Once upon a time, she’d taken these kinds of luxuries for granted, barely noticing when they appeared in her room or at a hotel.
These days she had a firm grasp on how hard she would have to work to pay for even one of these designer items. What a difference a year could make in a person’s life. Yet, here she was again, dancing on the periphery of a world that had almost swallowed her whole.
Steeling her resolve to keep her values firmly in place, she strode from the bedroom into the sitting area where Seth was strapping the twins into the new, top-of–the-line double stroller.
He looked up and smiled. The power of his vibrant green eyes and dimples reached across the room, wrapping around her, enticing her to move closer into the circle of that happiness. A dangerous move. She had to step away, for her own peace of mind. She wasn’t wired to leap into intimacy with a stranger.
A stranger who became more intriguing by the second.
Surely a billionaire who knew how to work a stroller couldn’t be totally disconnected from everyday reality. That insight buoyed her, and inspired her. Actively learning more about him would help her on many levels. Knowing more about him was wise for her work.
For work, damn it, not because of this insane attraction.
“Are you ready?” he asked.
“Yes, I believe I am.” She could do this. She could keep her professional face in place, while discovering if Seth Jansen harbored any more surprises in that hulking hot body of his.
“Glad the clothes fit. Although for breakfast with the twins, we might be better off draping
