She laughed, and the melodic sound reached all the way inside him, bringing peace to his heart, the same way hugging her had earlier. “Okay, okay. I won’t touch your laundry.”
“Good.” Christian’s smile remained plastered to his face. “There’s one more thing.”
“Fine. I won’t clean your bathrooms either.”
“They’re not even that messy.” Aside from a little clutter of bottles on the counters, the bathrooms were the cleanest rooms in the house. “But that’s not my stipulation. I want to pay you. Twenty-five dollars an hour.”
“Twenty-five?” She sputtered. “Christian … uh … That’s too much. I can’t … ask you … for that.”
“It’s a good thing you’re not asking, then.”
She laughed again, though more subdued than a minute ago. “I see you throwing my words back at me.”
“And I’ll keep doing that until you agree.” He turned onto his side, propping himself onto his elbow. “You’re taking a huge load off my shoulders. I want to help you too. So please let me.”
“Why?”
Because you deserve it. Because even though I don’t know why, I want to ease your burdens. Because just being near you makes me feel more alive than I have in years …
“It’s a fair rate. I paid our last nanny that much, and I’ll pay the next one the same. And because we’re friends, I refuse to take advantage of you.”
“You want to be friends?”
“I really do.” The words left a funny taste in his mouth.
“Me too.” Why did her response sound so sad?
Christian could sense the mood shifting, returning to the foreboding that plagued him earlier. “Hey, are you okay?”
“Yeah, why?”
“You seemed down when you left my house. Is it your job situation?”
“Not exactly,” she admitted. “I’m working through some things right now. I’ll be fine, though.”
She didn’t sound fine. And that bothered him more than it should. He almost said as much, but stopped himself. “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow then.”
“Yeah, see you tomorrow.”
After hanging up, Christian set his phone on the nightstand and clicked off the light. Laying on his side in the darkness, a weight clung to him as he ran through their conversation. The words they said, Hallie’s despondent tone, and her admission of having to workthrough some things. Knowing that she grappled with anything, whatever it was, triggered his protective instincts. He was already doing everything he could think of to help her business. But was he doing enough forher?
It hurt seeing her struggle. Despite his own rising doubts about letting her get close to his girls—and him—he could no longer fight the fact that he cared about her. And he wanted to help her feel the peace that she’d brought to him.
But was he capable of opening his heart enough to try?
The next day, Isla didn’t throw any celebrations when she found Hallie waiting for her in the office at school pickup, but she didn’t seem disappointed either. And though she spent the entire drive home staring at the heart on her hand, her deep pout never made an appearance. All things considered, Hallie counted it as a win.
“What do you girls want to do today?” she asked, stepping onto the porch and letting go of Penelope’s hand.
The girl spun in a circle with her arms out to the side. “Park! Park!”
Hallie laughed at her infectious enthusiasm. “I think we have time for a quick park trip before the sun goes down.” And it might wear them out enough to make bedtime easier for Christian. “What do you think, Isla?”
“Can we have a snack first?”
“Of course. We’ll have a quick snack and then head out.” Hallie nudged the three paper bags out of the way of the front door. Christian had texted her earlier about having some groceries delivered around the time they got home to make dinner prep easier. Again, his thoughtfulness touched her.
After punching the code in the keypad, she pushed the door open, ushering the girls inside while she grabbed the groceries. Princess Pumpkin bounded toward them, and Hallie congratulated herself for not flinching at the sensation of the dog’s wet nose sniffing her hand. At least Pumpkin didn’t jump on her. They were both making progress.
