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Kori began to laugh again. “Oh, he must have really been thrown for a loop. You in his bedroom in the middle of the night with the cat.”
The picture Kori painted was funny, and Hadley let herself laugh. “Thank you for putting the whole thing in perspective. I don’t know why I was so stressed about it.”
“Maybe because despite your best intentions, you like the guy more than you think you should.”
Hadley didn’t even bother to deny it. “Maybe I do,” she said. “But it doesn’t matter, because no matter how attractive I may find him, he’s my boss, and you know I’m never going there again.”
Four
After missing Maggie and Hadley at lunchtime, Liam made sure he was home, showered and changed early enough to spend some time with his niece before dinner. She was in her crib and just beginning to wake up when he entered her room. Hadley wasn’t there, but he noticed the red light on the baby monitor and suspected she was in her room or downstairs, keeping one ear tuned to the receiver.
Before Maggie could start to fuss, Liam scooped her out of the crib and settled her on the changing table. Already he was becoming an expert with the snaps and Velcro fastenings of Maggie’s Onesies and diapers. Before the baby came fully awake, he had her changed and nestled in his arm on the way downstairs.
The domestic life suited him, he decided, entering the kitchen to see what Candace had made for dinner. The large room smelled amazing, and his mouth began to water as soon as he crossed the threshold. He sneaked up behind Candace and gave her a quick hug.
“What’s on the menu tonight?”
“I made a roast. There’s garlic mashed potatoes, green beans and apple pie for dessert.”
“And your wonderful gravy.”
“Of course.”
“Is Jacob joining us?”
“Actually, we’re going to have dinner in town. It’s the seventh anniversary of our first date.”
Candace and Jacob had been married for the last six years. They’d met when Candace had come to work at Wade Ranch and fell in love almost at first sight. They had the sort of solid relationship that Liam had never had the chance to see as he was growing up.
“You keep track of that sort of thing?” Liam teased, watching as Candace began fixing Maggie’s bottle.
“It’s keeping track of that sort of thing that keeps our relationship healthy.”
Liam accepted the bottle Candace handed him, his thoughts wrapped around what she’d said. “What else keeps your relationship healthy?”
If the seriousness of his tone surprised her, the housekeeper didn’t let on. “Trust and honesty. Jacob and I agreed not to let things fester. It’s not always easy to talk about what bugs us, especially big issues like his sister’s negative attitude toward me and the fact that I hate holding hands in public. Thank goodness we’re both morning people and like the same television shows, or we’d never have made it this far.”
As Liam watched Maggie suck down the formula, he let Candace’s words wash over him. He’d never actually been in a relationship, healthy or otherwise. Oh, he dated a lot of women, some of them for long periods of time, but as he’d realized a year ago, not one of them wanted more than to have a good time.
At first he’d been shocked to discover that he’d let his personal life remain so shallow. Surely a thirty-year-old man should have had at least one serious relationship he could look back on. Liam hadn’t been able to point to a single woman who’d impacted his life in any way.
He didn’t even have mommy issues, because he’d never gotten to know her. She was a distracted, preoccupied guest at Christmas or when she showed up for his birthday. When she couldn’t make it, expensive presents arrived and were dutifully opened. The most up-to-date electronics, gift cards, eventually big checks. For Liam, their mother had been the beautiful young woman in the photo framed by silver that sat on Grandfather’s desk. According to him, she’d loved her career more than anything else and wasn’t cut out to live on a ranch.
“...and of course, great sex.”
The last word caught his attention. Liam grinned. “Of course.”
Candace laughed. “I wondered if you were listening to me. Turns out you weren’t.”
“I was thinking about my past relationships or lack thereof.”
“You just haven’t found the right girl.” Candace patted him on the arm, adopting the persona of wise old aunt. “Once she shows up, you’ll have all the relationship you can handle. Just remember to think about her happiness before your own and you’ll be all right.”
Liam thought about his past girlfriends and knew that advice would have bankrupted him. His former lovers wanted the best things money could buy. Expensive clothes, exotic trips, to be pampered and spoiled. Living such an affluent lifestyle had been fine for short periods of time, but at heart, Liam loved the ranch and his horses. None of his lady friends wanted to live in Royal permanently. It was too far from the rapid pace of city life.
“I’m out of here,” Candace said, slipping her coat off the hook near the kitchen door. “You and Hadley should be able to handle things from here. See you tomorrow.” She winked. “Probably for lunch. You’ll have your choice of cereal or Pop-Tarts for breakfast.”
Grimacing, Liam wished her a good night and returned his attention to Maggie. The greedy child had consumed almost the entire bottle while he’d been talking to Candace. Knowing he should have burped her halfway through, he slung a towel over his shoulder and settled her atop it. Hadley’s simple ways of handling Maggie’s reflux issues had made a huge difference in the baby’s manner. She was much less fussy.
