Lucas Reid heard the doorbell from upstairs in his massive bedroom. He rolled his eyes. No matter how many times he told Isabella, his son’s nanny, to just come in, she refused. The next sounds he heard downstairs were Jackson’s pounding feet, then the door opening. Even his housekeeper, Lisa, didn’t bother going with him to see who was there when it was 7:30 a.m. It was always Isabella showing up for work at that time.

Lucas finished tying his tie and stood in his floor-length mirror. His pants were perfectly pressed—thanks to Lisa. His shirt crisp—again, Lisa. His tie was impeccably tied and he gave himself a nod of approval before slipping on his shoes and heading downstairs.

Isabella and Jackson were playing in the living room. He could smell coffee and eggs coming from the kitchen. He walked past the living room and stuck his head in.

“Hey!” he called to them.

They hey’d back and waved. Lucas stood at the kitchen island, drinking his coffee, scrolling through the emails that had come during the night. Business deal correspondence, newsletters with the finance information, stock market updates. The usual stuff and nothing too pressing. Reid Technologies was a well-run machine. So well run by his top-dollar employees that only the most important business decisions were up to him. The day-to-day junk was handled by one of thousands of Reid Technologies employees.

He scraped some eggs onto a piece of toast and ate them quickly. If he could get in and get done the things he needed to attend to, he could be home early and spend some time with Jackson. They’d been working on throwing a baseball, and it was easier to do it before dark.

Lucas went back to the living room and perched on the end of the sectional sofa, listening to Isabella and Jackson play with his toy soldiers. He got up to hug Jackson. Jackson squeezed back for a moment, then tore away to get back to his game.

Isabella stood. He usually hugged her, too, but today she nodded toward the door to the garage. “Can we talk a minute?”

“Sure.”

She followed him into the six-car garage, and he shut the door behind them. “What’s going on?”

His heart rate sped a little. It often did that in her presence, but her wanting to talk had an ominous tone. She wore her usual jeans and t-shirt with her long dark hair pulled back in a ponytail, but it always looked so good on her. He longed for her. As he had for years. And, as he had for years, he pretended he had no feelings for her, that she was just his son’s nanny. The fact that she was also his aunt hardly seemed relevant in their daily routine, but that helped to make his feelings even stronger. She wasn’t just some girl. Isabella was family.

“I have kind of a favor to ask.” She twisted her mouth to the side and gave him an apologetic look.

“Okay.” He chuckled, waiting. But he knew he’d do nearly anything for her.

“This Saturday, I have a wedding to go to. I RSVP’d yes for two people, and I was wondering if you’d accompany me?” She squeezed her eyes shut as if waiting for him to be angry.

It was an unusual request for many reasons. First, she had a fiancé. Why in the world wouldn’t she take Matthew with her to a wedding? They could get ideas for their own big day. Not that he was looking forward to that at all. But that wasn’t the only reason. It was her sister, Jackson’s mother. Abigail had died when Jackson was just one, and left the whole family devastated, especially Lucas.

Isabella had been there for him from the start, helping with Jackson, and helping him. It was how he’d fallen in love with her over the last five years. She was a lot like Abigail, who he had adored, and she was wonderful with Jackson. She seemed more like a mother to him in a lot of ways, and he was grateful for her presence in their lives. But there was also an unspoken rule between them that they’d never go there. For respect for Abigail and their families, to avoid confusing Jackson, and to avoid getting mixed up themselves, they’d never spent time together alone.

And now she wanted him to accompany her on a very public, very romantically charged outing. Him, and not her fiancé.

He let his confusion show on his face. “Why aren’t you taking Matthew?”

Her hesitant smile faltered. Suddenly, she wore a mask of sadness and her words wavered when she told him, “I ended things with Matthew last night.”

He tried not to let his happiness show. She was no longer engaged? The fact that she ended it was better, too. He couldn’t wait to find out why she decided she couldn’t marry that loser.

“Last night?” he asked. “Don’t you think it’s too soon to take another man to an event like a wedding?”

“Yes. That’s exactly why I’m asking you. I can play it off like you’re just my brother-in-law, stepping in to help me out.”

“Former brother-in-law,” he said. He didn’t want her to keep thinking of him as married to her sister.

She shrugged. “Whatever I call you, you’re the best option. There’s no one I’d rather go with anyway.”

The idea of sitting with her, walking with her, dancing with her for hours, just the two of them, excited him. He wanted nothing more than to go with her. “A favor. So, you’ll owe me?” He raised an eyebrow playfully.

“I’ll be completely indebted to you.”

He took out his phone to make sure he had nothing planned. His calendar was clear, but that still didn’t mean he was available. “Did you check with your parents to see if they could watch Jackson?”

“Of course.”

She’d thought of everything. Grandma and Grandpa would love to have their grandson for the night, anyway. It’d been a few weeks since he was over at their house.

“I guess I have no more excuses then,” he said. “What color tie shall I wear?”

“Ah! Thank you, thank you!” She bounced on her toes a few times, then squeezed him in a tight hug.

He held her back, inhaling her scent, and not wanting to let go. But like always, the embrace ended quickly.

“Who’s wedding is it, anyway?” he asked. “Maybe I should have asked that first.”

“Just a friend from college. No one you know. But a lot of people from college will be there, and I just didn’t want to be the only one alone. Bringing a highly eligible, extraordinarily handsome bachelor will make me look very good.” She winked.

“You don’t have to flatter me. I already agreed.”

“I know, but it’s the truth. Maybe if guys see me with you, it’ll make me more attractive to them. I just might meet the man of my dreams this weekend.”

He chuckled, but the idea stuck in his throat. He’d have to watch for that, for any men checking her out. He didn’t want her running off with some new man right away. Not when she’d just become single again. Who knew how long he had to make his move. Should he even make a move?

Something inside him said it was a bad idea. For all the reasons that had ever been there and then some. She’d also just gotten out of a very serious relationship. She probably wasn’t ready to date anyone. But when she smiled at him, he wanted nothing more than to grab her and kiss her and never stop.

“I better get to work,” he said.

“Oh, right. Thank you so much!”

She stood and watched him get into his car. Then, before he backed out of the garage, she called out, “Silver! My dress is silver!”

He nodded and pressed the button to close the garage door. He’d wear his charcoal gray Kiton suit, light gray shirt, and favorite silver tie. And he’d make sure to take her a bouquet of the prettiest silver flowers he could purchase.

When he got to his office, he called to his assistant, Joe. “Can you order me a bouquet of the finest silver flowers you can find for Saturday?”

“Of course, Mr. Reid.”