Chapter Thirty-One

At ten minutes until two, Dennis pushed back from the desk in his home office. Normally, he would spend his Saturday afternoon reading stacks of business reports while Cole played nearby. But today, all he could do was think about Audrey.

He’d been unable to find a way to breach the silence with her last night. I’m sorry, he should have said. But he’d been tongue-tied and afraid that any words would lead to misunderstanding. Maybe she’d think he was sorry for kissing her, but he certainly didn’t regret kissing her. In fact, he would like to do it again. Soon. And often. Followed by plenty more than kissing.

It was his own fault. There was a time he’d known how to charm women. But he’d closed the door on all that after Katherine’s death. It had been the right decision at the time. He’d needed to grieve, and he’d needed to put Cole first.

But here was a woman he couldn’t help desiring, a woman who made him believe that a full life was possible again, a woman who would be good to his son and maybe even love the little boy as he deserved to be loved. Cole responded to Audrey, and so did Dennis in a much more adult way. He wanted to pursue this and see where it would take them. After Cole’s birthday, Dennis would have no more built-in excuses to spend time with Audrey. If he wanted to see her, he would have to ask her on a date. A real date.

But what would her answer be? He’d been awkward and clumsy with her, the exact opposite of the man he hoped to be. Today was his last chance. She would be arriving in seconds, and he had no choice but to find a way to make her understand that he was falling in love with her.

Love. Dennis popped out of his chair, shocked at the depth of his own feelings became clear.

He was falling in love with the nanny. Oh, what a cliché. A wry chuckle escaped him and he ran a distracted hand through his hair. Okay, so she wasn’t a nanny. She was a businessperson who’d helped him out of a bind. But still, there was something decadent about it. Dennis thought of all those middle-aged men at his club leering over their nannies and secretaries and housekeepers. He’d thought it cheap and tacky to get involved in an affair like that. And here he was, not only doing the same, but falling in love with the woman in the process.

Well, too bad. He was smitten and he refused to be ashamed of it. All that remained was to court her and show her that he would be good to her, maybe even win her love back. He would use every trick in the book–flowers, jewelry, romantic dinners for two in intimate bistros–anything, anything at all, because she deserved every bit of attention he could pay her.

He just had to remember how to–well, how to be a man with a woman. Check that. How to be a good man with a good woman. Not a stiff taskmaster with a tolerant but befuddled nanny.

The doorbell rang. Dennis checked his wristwatch. Two o’clock, on the nose. Let the courtship begin.

Cole beat him to the door and tugged at the doorknob. Dennis had the disconcerting feeling that looking down the long central hallway was like looking down the wrong end of a telescope. The door swung open in slow motion, revealing not his fuss-free but adored Miss Turner, but a pocket-sized goddess in delicate pink and mysterious black.

Dennis almost tripped over his own feet. He stopped walking rather than disgrace himself. He froze in the middle of the hall to drink in every detail of her surprising appearance.

She wore black patent pumps with stiletto high heels. Sheer black stockings disappeared under the hem of her pencil-thin black skirt. Stockings. Good lord, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen a woman in stockings. He wanted to run his fingers up those legs, following that wispy silk until he found the lacy tops that he just knew would be there.

But he was locked to the floor. His shock and desire made any movement impossible, any movement but the continuing stroke of his eyes over her beautiful body.

She wore a liquid pink blouse that crossed in a deep fold at her waist. The fabric slipped and slid as she moved, each shift revealing small, seductive glimpses of cleavage. He’d crushed those smooth curves hard against his chest. Now he felt an almost uncontrollable desire to peel back the crossed layers of her blouse and learn her softness with his fingers. His mouth.

He tore his eyes from her body and continued his upward sweep. Her long hair cascaded freely in a wanton display. Had he ever seen her with her hair down before? She tossed her head to flip a silky waterfall over her shoulder, and her dangling earrings sparkled and danced. He felt almost afraid to meet her eyes. His desire for her would surely be on naked display.

Cole slammed the door behind Audrey. The sharp bang roused Dennis from his lusty reverie. His son was present. But still he couldn’t move. His feet had melted to the floor with the heat of his desire.

Audrey walked up to him and a smile played across her pink, glossy lips. Lovely. He wanted so much to kiss her again. Instead, he took the paper shopping bag from her hand. Her fingers brushed the backs of his hands and made his pulse quicken.

“Wow, you look gorgeous.” Dennis’s voice hardly cracked at all. “Doesn’t she look gorgeous, Cole?”

“She looks like a girl,” Cole said. “Why do you look like a girl?”

“Because I am a girl, silly.”

“No you’re not. You’re Miss Turner.”

“What are they teaching you in that etiquette class?” But Dennis smiled instead of mustering the appropriate frown.

Cole tilted his head back and grimaced displeasure. His little bowed lips pressed tightly together. Dennis knew that expression. He’d used it many times himself. Seeing it on his son made him chuckle. He cocked an eyebrow at Audrey.

“I wonder where my son learned that expression.”

Audrey laughed, a trilling sound that sent shivers down his spine.

He couldn’t help sneaking another furtive glance up and down her curves. But an unsettling thought hit him. Maybe this wasn’t for him. Maybe she had plans for the night. Maybe she’d dressed for the moment when she would be free of the Delaney men.

Please, let this be for me.

“So, you have a hot date tonight?” He couldn’t look at her when he asked, so afraid was he of the answer.

“That depends.” She pointed at the shopping bag and he bowed his head to look inside. “You have plans?”

The bag contained a bottle of wine and a bundle of white tapered candles.

His gaze flew to her face and he couldn’t help beaming at her with the full force of all his blossoming new love and desire. “I do now.”