Crap. Crap. Craptastic.
“Palmer!
I forced myself to smile and ignore the butterflies in my stomach when he flashed that dimple at me.
“Hey, Mason. I thought you took Charlie up to your room?”
Sutton and Brody exchanged a curious look between the two of them.
“Your mom was kind enough to offer to sit with him while we finished talking about the position.”
“The position?” Sutton asked in pretend surprise.
I tried to keep from throttling my own sister as I shot her a dirty look and reached behind her to pinch the back of her arm.
Hissing, Sutton stepped closer to her husband.
Coward.
Of course, Mason had missed the exchange and went about answering Sutton. “Addie suggested Palmer as a possible nanny for Charlie.”
Those hazel eyes of his were back on me with a soft smile. “Are you able to grab just one quick drink?”
Knowing I had to decline his invitation even though everything in me said to go have the drink, I was about to respond when Sutton spoke up as she gave me a little nudge closer to Mason.
“She’d love to have a drink and talk about it more. She was just talking about this opportunity as we were walking to the elevator.”
Mason’s expression went from unsure to happy as a clam. I was going to kill my sister. Kill. Her.
“Great. Just one drink. I know you said you were tired, and I don’t want to leave your mom with Charlie for too long. I’m sure she’s exhausted.”
Attempting to keep my voice calm and a smile on my face, I said, “How kind of her to offer to watch him for you while we chat.” Clearly one of my sisters egged my mother on with this nanny position. Traitors.
Brody took Sutton’s arm as he pulled his wife toward the elevator.
“You two enjoy your drink,” Sutton called out.
Mason and I both stood there for a moment and watched as the elevator doors shut. I could feel him turn and look at me. A strange, warm sensation ran down my back.
I closed my eyes and chanted, Men. Are. Jerks.
“Shall we? I won’t keep you longer than thirty minutes, I promise.”
My eyes snapped open, and I swallowed the lump in my throat as I nodded. I really liked Mason—that was the real problem here. The next thirty minutes were going to be the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do, but I knew there was no way I would make a good nanny for Charlie.
Not when I was lusting after his father night and day.
Mason
Late November
I sat at my office desk and tried not to let my head fall forward onto the wood as Jennifer Hall said her goodbyes and closed the door.
I’d met Jennifer at the Bradleys’ house on Thanksgiving Day when they’d invited me and Charlie over. She was Braxton’s date and she’d told me about her degree in elementary education. She was unemployed at the moment and looking for something that involved children. I’d really wanted Palmer to take the job, but she had flat-out refused when I’d asked her at her sister’s wedding.
It was strange because the first time I’d ever met Palmer at the Seaside Grill, she really seemed to hit it off with Charlie. She was super friendly, and I felt like we’d made a connection in some way. If I was being honest, I felt a lot more than that…but I was trying not to think too hard on it. Since then, though, she’d been distant with me. Not Charlie, but me. It was clear she didn’t like me, and I wasn’t sure why.
She’d made it even more clear that she wasn’t fond of me at Thanksgiving when she’d avoided me like the plague.
I sighed and pushed my fingers though my hair. Clearly I’d messed things up with Palmer, though I wasn’t sure what I’d done. Sure, I was attracted to her, but I thought I’d been professional and had kept my feelings hidden.
The night of Addie’s wedding, she told me that she couldn’t be Charlie’s nanny. When I’d asked why, she’d stared at me like I should have known the answer. Then she’d looked down at my mouth…and that’s when it happened. Something sparked, and I knew we’d both felt it.
She’d leaned in, and before I knew it, we were kissing.
The shock of how her kiss made me feel had me pulling back and staring at her. It wasn’t because I hadn’t enjoyed the kiss. It was the opposite. It had stirred something inside of me that I’d buried a long time ago.
I’d softly said Palmer’s name, and that seemed to pull her out of her daze. She’d quickly slid off the barstool and had taken a few steps away from me. Her cheeks went red, and I knew she had misunderstood why I’d pulled away from the kiss.
My mind drifted back to the moment.
Shocked by the kiss, I drew back. Palmer looked around as if she was searching for a way to escape. When she finally looked back at me, she said, “I didn’t mean to do that. I drank too much, I’m so sorry.”
“It’s okay, I wasn’t…I wasn’t expecting it, that’s all.”
Her eyes went wide with horror. “I don’t normally kiss men like that, I…” She frantically shook her head. Before I had time to explain how I felt when she’d kissed me, Palmer turned and started to walk away. She stopped and looked back at me.
“Thank you for thinking of me, but I really can’t be Charlie’s nanny. I’m sorry.”
Then she practically ran out of the bar.
A light knock sounded on my office door, pulling me from the memory. Clearing my throat, I said, “Come on in.”
Adelaide poked her head in and smiled. “How did the interview go?”
I closed my eyes and ran my hand down my face.
“That good, huh?” she asked as she sat in the opposite chair.
Dropping my hand, I slowly shook my head. “It started out fine. She told me about herself, how she taught second grade for the last four years and before that, she taught kindergarten. I thought for sure she was the right person for the job.”
“What happened?” Adelaide asked.
It was a dick thing to do, but I replied, “She kept talking. The more she talked, the more I wanted to push her out the door.”
Adelaide brought a hand up to her mouth to keep from laughing. I liked Adelaide. She was an incredibly talented nurse who ran the office like a pro. I had hired her as the office manager, and boy, did she manage it. Everything ran smoothly. And the fact that she was a nurse and could help when things got busy was a bonus.
“She focused on Charlie at first, but then she said if I hired her, she would also be more than willing to provide other services.”
Adelaide’s face went white. “Oh no.”
“Oh yes,” I replied. “She told me I was hot, that she knew how to be quiet during sex, and that she wouldn’t expect anything in return.”
Adelaide closed her eyes and slowly shook her head. After opening them again, her gaze met mine. “I’m so sorry, Dr.— er, Mason.”
I smiled. I had told Adelaide a dozen or so times to call me Mason. “Why are you apologizing?” I asked.
She gave me a small shrug. “You wouldn’t have asked her to interview if you hadn’t met her at my parents’ house.”
“She seemed like a nice person.”