Teo rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “The other nanny used to clean,too.”
Cedar managed a smile. “Don’t worry aboutit.”
He dropped his hand and his shoulders sagged in relief. “Thanks.”
His relief was early. Cedar wasn’t agreeing to scrub his dirty dishes. “I’m sure you can find a wonderful maid service. There are a half dozen in thearea.”
“Oh.” His dimples disappeared. “See, the thing is—I don’t let just anyone in here, and I don’t want a service to tell me who is coming in and who isnot.”
Cedar popped a hip. She was not going to spend her days cleaning up after this guy. “Who cleaned before thenanny?”
“My, um … Amy took a lot of joy in a spotless home.She…”
Cedar caught a hint of bitterness in his tone. “You don’t like a spotlesshome?”
He lifted a hand. “It’s not like that. I just think there are more important things in life than an empty sink or a madebed.”
“Agreed.” Cedar rubbed her hands on her pants. She’d worn linen capris and a button-up shirt with a loud print in shades of coral. The color reminded her of Teo’s blush, and she’d been drawn to the outfit this morning. She was finding herself drawn to him, and that just wouldn’t do. “And for the record, I’m not judging you. I’m just making sure both our expectations areclear.”
“I appreciate that.” His dimples were back. Cedar reached for the counter, needing some support because his smile was doing funny things to her belly and herknees.
Happy squeals and gurgles came through an intercom. “Akoni’s awake,” said Teo as his face litup.
Cedar’s heart jumped at his obvious pleasure. She tipped her head, considering the contradiction between his imposing stature and his adoration of his child. It was such a fun combination, one she hadn’t considered before. Most of the guys she dated who had great bodies were too self-absorbed to think about another person’s long-term needs and care. Maybe Teo took his size for granted and not hiskid.
“What?” Teo asked, watching her watchhim.
“Under all that muscle you’re apushover.”
He took a deep breath, expanding his chest and broadening his shoulders. “Let’s get one thing straight. Ipushpeople over—Ido notget pushedover.”
“Da!” calledAkoni.
“Coming.” Teo sprang down the hallway at a half-sprint.
Cedar laughed. “You think you’re so tough,” shemuttered.
“Are you coming?” Teo called down the hall like a kid’s invitation to run outside andplay.
Cedar giggled and broke into a sprint, following Teo’s pounding footsteps through several rooms, zigging around a coffee table and zagging past a chair as if they were playing a game of indoor tag. There was no way she could have caught him if he didn’t stop in Akoni’sroom.
Akoni was delighted to see them both and bounced on his feet holding the edge of the crib for balance. He’d be climbing out of there in no time. Cedar smiled, her job anxiety melting away. At least if she was stuck being a nanny for a couple of months, the job would be fun. Just how much fun remained to be seen. She liked this version of Teo. The playful, happy father. Maybe she liked him a little too much. A warning sounded in the back of her mind. Her parents were a lot of fun, too. So much fun they preferred playing to parenting, leaving Cedar with her little brother to take care of more often thannot.
If she ended up in a similar situation here, she could quit. And, at least she was getting paid. The only thing she’d have to watch out for would be those pesky butterflies in her stomach. She wouldn’t pay them any attention. They were just butterflies after all, soft and delicate. Surely she could keep her head on straight—even around Teo Parata and hisdimples.
Chapter 12
Teo droppedthe barbells with a grunt. This was his first full workout—cardio and weights—since his family flew home after the funeral. He’d bought the house because of the workout room—he didn’t want to have to leave home to find a gym. Home was his refuge, his castle, there shouldn’t be any better place on earth than athome.
He downed twenty-four ounces of water and gasped for air. His muscles were pleasantly tired. With a cocky grin, he wondered if Cedar would notice a difference in them. Not that one workout would make that much of a difference, but still, a guy could hope. He’d caught her looking at his arms a couple times this morning. Not just looking butlooking,and then she’d blush and drop her gaze, pretending that she was all innocent. He knew better. He just wasn’t sure what to do aboutit.
He used the gym shower and changed into some of the spare clothing he kept under the sink for just such an occasion. Not that he usually had a beautiful woman upstairs, but again, a guy could hope. He shook his head. Who was he kidding? The extra clothes were stashed because he hadn’t taken the time to put them away upstairs. He really needed to pull his life back together. He wasn’t a slob, not by nature. But after Amy passed, he’d been drunk on freedom and had let even his good habits slide. No more. He was going to take his life back; starting with eating right and getting his house in order. With that in mind, he made his way to the kitchen where a container of protein powdercalled.
True to her word, Cedar hadn’t cleaned the kitchen. He had to wash a blender before he could use it to make a post-workout recovery drink. Teo liked her all the more for letting the dishes sit. He poured the banana-flavored, somewhat chalky drink into a shaker cup and popped on the lid before heading out to find Cedar andAkoni.
Akoni’s giggles met him in the hall, and he followed them to the nursery. He poked his head around the doorframe to see what was sofunny.
Cedar was on her hands and knees on the plush carpet, chasing Akoni as he trotted around the room. He grabbed a pair of footie pajamas and screamed like he knew the game was on. Cedar drummed the floor with her palms, chasing Akoni all the way to the hamper. He shoved the pajamas inside and stomped his pudgy feet in victory. Cedar grabbed him, blowing a raspberry on his neck and eliciting more bellylaughs.
