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It was too much of a distraction to be around Heather all day. I’d already established that. When I wasn’t watching her every move with Collins, I was analyzing all the things we said or didn’t say to each other. I told myself that all this close observation was to figure out what I could do or say to keep Heather here indefinitely.
To be honest, though, I didn’t believe it. Heather flummoxed me, and I liked puzzles. The mystery of her was too intriguing to let it go.
Which is why I had to lose myself in work.
“Good to see you back, Mr. Hilborne,” Rita said, smiling prettily from her desk just outside my office as I strode in. “We’ve missed you around here.”
“Have you?” I countered. “I bet it’s been nice and quiet.”
“Never,” she said, laughing. “This place bustles no matter where you are, sir.”
I tried to settle into my routine—putting out fires and making new connections—but it wasn't easy to do so. Heather wasn’t my only distraction.
There was something else that had been really bothering me recently, which is the way that woman just showed up outside my office door, claiming to be there to interview for a position that hadn’t even been posted yet.
I picked up my phone, started to punch in numbers, then set it back down on my desk. The whole thing was troubling enough for me to think about contacting the head of my security team. They were consummate professionals, though. If there were a threat to either my daughter or me, they would brief me. Me asking them about a pretty—if misguided—woman showing up at my office would come off as more than a little paranoid.
I could handle women.
Except, maybe, for my new nanny. Or rather, temporary nanny, as she insisted on calling herself.
Instead of calling security, I called Jason.
“Please tell me we’re going out tonight,” he said as soon as the call connected.
“Hello to you, too.” I snorted. “You’re a grown man. You can go out by yourself.”
“Yeah, no. A guy showing up to a club alone is highly suspicious. We need to move together. Have each other’s backs. I need my wingman, G.”
“You’remywingman,” I corrected, even if it was a blatant lie. Jason was insatiable. I had no idea how he kept straight the names of all the women he took home. He was my best friend, though, and I supported him.
“Found a replacement for your nanny?” Jason asked. “I’m dying over here, man.”
“For now. Hopefully, for good.” If I had anything to say about it, Heather was going to be permanent. She just maybe didn’t know it yet.
“Thank God,” he groaned. “Sick of you being on baby duty 24/7.”
“You know, one of these days, you’re going to have a kid of your own,” I began.
“Not yet,” Jason said. “Not that I know of. And, God willing, not if I have anything to say about it.”
I continued as if I hadn’t been interrupted. “And it will change your life forever. Irrevocably. In ways that you can’t even imagine.”
I could practically hear Jason’s shudder through the phone. “I don’t even want to imagine, G.”
“Change for the better, though,” I added. I didn’t want to scare the poor guy away from ever starting a family. Someday, he’d get there.
“You’re calling to tell me we’re going out, though, right?” he almost whined. “Not to fuck me up with all this talk of kids?”
“Actually, I wanted to see if you sent someone over to my office earlier this week,” I said, drumming my fingers on the desk while already feeling like an idiot. “Someone for the nanny position?”
“No,” Jason said. “Why? I thought you said you had somebody.”
Of course it wouldn’t have been Jason. I hadn’t told him until later when I had to turn down an invitation to go out because I didn’t have anyone I trusted to care for Collins.
“I did, and I do,” I said quickly. “Never mind.”
“So, where are we going tonight?”
