“What the bloody hell am I going to do now? I don’t have time for this.” His voice, while raised, was discreet given he wasn’t in private. I still couldn’t believe he was here, and that I was holding his sweet nephew. I shifted him on my lap, trying to get more comfortable. It was amazing how much heavier they felt as they slept. I missed these days, though Chloe and I did snuggle on the couch when we watched our favorite shows and stuffed our faces with popcorn.
Mr. Wickham paced and paced some more, talking more quietly. “Stella, I can’t just pick someone off the street.” He glanced at me and his nephew before abruptly stopping. His lips curled and his eyes brightened. “Let me call you back. I think I have an idea.” He hung up without another word and shoved his phone into his pocket. He walked back in, his lips pressed together, assessing me even more than he had previously.
“Ms. Parker, do you like your job here?”
“Um . . .” That was an unexpected and uncomfortable question given the morning I’d had.
“Hesitation,” he said, pleased. He shut the office door and leaned against it.
Icouldn’t help but stare at him. The picture on his book cover didn’t do him justice. Which was ridiculous. Because my second thought was that this was inappropriate. Closed doors had become something of a taboo. You’d be surprised at some of the salacious stories that had circulated around the bank.
I bit my lip. “Mr. Wickham—”
He pushed off the door. “Please call me Miles.” He took his seat back, grinning between me and his nephew, who, by the tender look he gave him, he was obviously fond of. “You see, Aspen, I’m in a bit of a bind. I came here because of my sister’s last wishes and to work on my novel.”
I wanted to say it was about time—I needed that book—but instead I attentively listened.
“She loved Carrington Cove,” he said wistfully.
“I grew up there. It’s a beautiful place.” My parents still lived there. Chloe and I lived in Edenvale because it was cheaper and closer to work.
He clapped his hands together. “Splendid. I think a bit of kismet is at play here.”
“I’m not following you.”
He gave me a charming grin. “I’m in need of someone who can be both a nanny to my nephew and a personal assistant to me.”
I laughed, startling Henry, who I quickly soothed back to sleep. “You’re kidding, right?” I looked around for a recording device. “Did my new boss put you up to this?”
“I assure you, I’m not having a laugh at your expense. I’m in earnest, and somewhat desperate.”
I blinked an inordinate amount of times. “No. No. I’m not a nanny.” And I certainly couldn’t be his personal assistant.
He stareddown at his sleeping nephew. “You seem to have a magic touch when it comes to wee ones.”
I shrugged. “I wouldn’t say that, but I have a daughter.”
“How old?” he asked.
“Twelve.”
His brows raised. I knew what he was thinking.You look too young to have a child that age.He was right, but I would never regret it even if it meant having the most worthless ex-husband in existence. Chloe was the best thing that had ever happened to me.
He cleared his throat. “Excellent,” he stammered as if he was unsure what to say to that. “You have plenty of experience then. Exactly what Henry and I need.”
“Listen, Miles, you don’t know me. I have a degree in business management, not child development.”
“I would do a background check on you, of course. And I need a savvy business mind.”
“I don’t think I’m the right person. Maybe I could ask around for you.” I looked down at sweet Henry and my mother’s heart wanted nothing more than to see that he had the right person to take care of him.
Miles slapped his hand on the desk. “Whatever you are making here, I’ll double it.”
My head popped up. Our eyes locked.
“What do you say now, Ms. Parker?”
Oh. Wow. I leaned back, stunned. “Can I think about it?”
