refused, clinging to Sarah.
“See? He clearly wants to be with you. I’m a stranger to him. Would you really leave a baby with a stranger?”
She pursed her lips, calculating her best response. Of course she wouldn’t do that. But after the extensive research she’d done on Aiden, he didn’t really seem like a stranger. That, however, was not information she cared to share. Which meant she was back at nothing.
“Even worse,” he continued. “A stranger who doesn’t know how to change a diaper, or what to feed him, or what to do if he starts to cry.”
“No idea? I know you have two younger siblings. You never babysat?”
Aiden threaded his fingers through his hair, tousling it in the process. “No.”
Well, shoot. She couldn’t hand over Oliver to a man he didn’t know, especially not one who might not be able to care for him, even if that had been her plan. Her horribly simple plan. “I don’t think it’s a good idea for me to take Oliver to a hotel, either. He needs to get used to being with you. And you’re apparently going to need to learn how to take care of him.”
“Excuse me if I haven’t thought it out quite that far yet. This is still a new concept for me.” He blew out a breath, seeming deep in thought. “I guess the thing that makes the most sense is for you both to stay with me. Until we get things straightened out. And I can hire a nanny. I guess I have to buy a crib, too? I mean, really, this is a lot to pile on a person in one day.”
He wasn’t wrong. Maybe it would be in Oliver’s best interest if she stayed for a couple of days, even if it would make it exponentially more difficult to say goodbye to him. As for the to-do list to get Aiden up and running with the baby, it was a long one if she was going to be thorough. They would need time. With the bad hand Oliver had been dealt in life, she owed it to him to spend a few days in New York so he could be off to the best possible start with Aiden. That was exactly what she’d promised Gail. “Okay. We’ll stay at your place.”
“You’ll have to tell me what you want to be paid. I have no earthly idea how much money a nanny makes. Or even what a nanny does, other than everything a parent would do if they were around.”
She’d first said no to Aiden’s money on principle, but if she was going to help him with Oliver, she could get something from him that was far more valuable than a paycheck. She knew from her online snooping that he was a whiz when it came to growing companies. It was in his blood—the Langfords were one of the most successful entrepreneurial families in US history. Maybe he could help her solve the countless problems she was facing with trying to take her business to the next level.
“I don’t want your money. I want your expertise.”
“I’m listening.” He cocked an eyebrow at her, threatening to make her throat close up.
“Business expertise. I want you to help me with my company. Help me find investors. Help me figure out my manufacturing issues and widen my distribution.”
He nodded, clearly calculating. “That’s a tall order. Between that and me going through baby school, this is going to take more than a few days. We’ll need at least a week. At least.”
How long could she do this? Every minute with Oliver only made her love him more. She clutched him, kissed his head, taking in his sweet baby smell. We don’t have to say goodbye today, buddy. I guess that much is good. “Today is Friday. I’ll give you ten days. I teach you how to care for Oliver. You help me with my company.”
“I think I’d be a fool to say no. You have me in a corner here.”
“I mean it, though. Ten days and I’m out of here.”
“Like I said. In a corner.”
“Okay, then. I want to have a say in the nanny you hire, too. And I want to help outfit the nursery.”
Aiden then did the last thing she ever expected. He smiled. Not a lot, just enough to create the tiniest crack in his facade. Sarah felt as if she’d had the wind knocked out of her. His face lit up, especially his eyes. “Anything else?”
“That’s all for now.”
“Just so you know, fashion is outside my realm of expertise. Women’s clothing isn’t really my world.”
Ah, but he hadn’t let her finish. Given Aiden Langford’s reputation for being a ladies’ man, she had no doubt that he was well-versed in her specialty. “Actually, it’s women’s sleepwear and lingerie. Something tells me you know at least a little something about that.”
Oliver in her arms, Sarah climbed out of Aiden’s black SUV, squinting behind sunglasses at the apartment building before them. About a dozen stories high, it had an antique brick facade blanketed in tidy sections of ivy and dotted with tall leaded glass windows. This was not what she’d envisioned for Aiden Langford’s abode. She’d assumed a high-rise overlooking Central Park. Wasn’t that his birthright? Ritzy address and an equally swanky apartment? Instead, he resided on Fifth Avenue at Twenty-sixth Street, in the Flatiron District with a view of Madison Square Park. She had a sneaking suspicion that Aiden was full of surprises. And that this was the first of many.
“Is that one yours?” She pointed at the highest floor. “The one on top with the biggest terrace?”
Aiden wheeled Sarah’s suitcase from the car, lugging the teddy bear that was easily twice Oliver’s size, while Aiden’s driver John unloaded the remaining bags of toys and baby clothes. “The top four floors are my apartment.”
Sarah gulped, surveying the manicured spaces—a formal balcony with stone columns and wrought iron on the lowest level all the way up to one that looked like a park in its own right, each spanning the building. He’d still gone for swanky, merely in a different corner of the city. “That’s a lot of room for a single guy.”
“My third floor is empty. And the fourth floor is all outdoors. I need my space.”
“I’m surprised you don’t live up by Anna and her husband. She was telling me she lives only a few minutes from your mom.”
Aiden cast his sights down at her, his sunglasses revealing nothing but her own reflection. The crinkles in his forehead and the way his brows drew together were enough indication that he didn’t like the question. The driver slammed the car tailgate. Sarah jumped.
“Like I said, I need my space.” Aiden’s voice was stern, like a father telling his wayward teenage daughter that she’d better be home before eleven.
Okay, then. Dropping the subject.
Together, they entered the beautifully appointed lobby. Black-and-white-checkerboard marble floors and a chandelier dripping with crystals hinted at both wealth and good taste. Sarah pushed Oliver in the stroller while she tried to remember to take deep breaths. Everything about this made her heart beat an uneven rhythm—entering into an agreement with a man she hardly knew, staying in his home, handing over the little boy she’d already grown to love more than she’d thought possible. She did everything she could to ignore the feeling in the pit of her stomach, the one saying
