Melissa McClone - The Billionaire's Nanny

“Just holding up my end of a deal.”

Emma looked back at him. “Excuse me?”

His gaze, warm and clear, met hers. “When I was eight, I wanted a space-alien birthday party. My dad said no, so my grandma offered to throw me a party if I agreed to do the same for her when she turned eighty. We shook on it.”

Emma tried to picture AJ as a boy, but looking past the handsome man sitting across from her was impossible. “You remembered that after all these years?”

“No.” He half laughed. The charming sound sent a brush of tingles across Emma’s tummy. “My grandma did. She reminded me in February.”

She rubbed her stomach. Maybe she was feeling the aftereffects of being sick earlier. “Still nice of you.”

“She’s my grandma. I wasn’t about to say no.”

“Would you be returning to Haley’s Bay if it weren’t her birthday?”

“Probably not, which she knows.” Affection filled his gaze. “My grandmother’s a sly one. But I’m on my way so she’s happy. I want the party to go smoothly. That’s what I’m counting on you for, Emma.”

She wrote the words “anticipate and prevent problems” in her binder. “Yes, Mr. Cole.”

“AJ.”

The man had seen her vomit. The only other people to see her do that were her parents, God rest their souls, and Libby. “AJ.”

He smiled. She smiled back. The moment lingered. Filled her with heat. She looked at her binder. “Anything else I should know?”

“My family is big and crazy and loud.” AJ sounded amused, not annoyed. “I have four brothers—Ellis, Flynn, Declan and Grady—and two sisters—Bailey and Camden. Not to mention my sister-in-law, Risa, and more aunts, uncles and cousins than I can count.”

“That is a big family.”

“The single Cole men will hit on you because you’re new in town and their reputations haven’t been sullied yet. They’ve done that in the past. You’re under no obligation to them, and let me know if they annoy you.” AJ’s dark eyes and serious tone told Emma he wasn’t joking. “What you do on your own time is none of my business, but don’t let your actions affect your ability to get the job done.”

His words irritated her. Okay, he didn’t know her, but she wasn’t about to sleep around because good-looking guys were giving her attention. She imagined his brothers were attractive, AJ in multiples, like the Hemsworth brothers. That could be dangerous. To her job and her heart. She jotted a note in the margin. “Stay away from Cole males.”

“I’ll keep my distance.”

A lopsided grin formed. “Smart.”

She hated the way her body responded to his compliment. “It’s been my experience that business and pleasure don’t mix well.”

“Mine, too.”

At least they agreed on something.

“But business has to be fun,” AJ added. “All work and no play...”

“Would be boring.” Emma recalled Libby’s description of the Cole corporate headquarters in Seattle with a game arcade, gym, massages, errand service, and free meals, snacks and drinks at the employee cafeterias. Fun seemed to be the operative word at his company. Not surprising given that he developed a photography-based blogging platform and created a social media gaming site for friends to compete. “I wouldn’t last long as a nanny if I didn’t play. Having fun means everything to children.”

“What about you?”

“I like to have fun.”

He drummed his fingers against the chair arm. “What do you do for fun?”

“Play tag, dress-up, bicycle, hunt for treasure, bake, board games, and go to the Oregon Zoo, the children’s museum or OMSI.”

His fingers stilled. “I meant what do you do when you’re not being a nanny.”

“Oh. Sorry. I like to read, watch movies, hike, volunteer at an animal rescue center.”

“Quiet pleasures.”

“It’s not always quiet at the rescue shelter, but the noise is different there. I love being a nanny. The children are wonderful, but they’re loud and full of energy and want your undivided attention. A little quiet is nice.”

“Alone time is fun for you.”

She bit back a smile. AJ wasn’t grilling her, but he seemed to want to know more about her. She would have expected a billionaire to brag and make sure the conversation centered around him. Not that she knew any billionaires, but she’d worked for a millionaire. “Escaping inside a dark theater with a bucket of popcorn, a soda, a box of candy and no one to take to the bathroom at the best part of a movie is the definition of superfun.”

“There’s a theater in Haley’s Bay.”

“Thanks, but I doubt you’ll be screaming and tugging on my shirt to get attention all day long.”

“No screaming.” He winked. “And I’ve found persuading a woman to take off her shirt works better than tugging.”

“I’m surprised you have to persuade them.” The man’s smile could charm a snake out of its skin. “I assumed women flashed you, like at Mardi Gras.”

“Only in my dreams.” With a wry grin, he settled back in his seat. “But they’re very nice dreams.”

“I imagine so.”

“What do you dream about, Emma?”

“I... Um, a lot of things.”

“Like what?”

She fiddled with her seat belt. “Cats. Children. Family.”

“Nanny things?”

A lump the size of a Super Ball burned in Emma’s throat. She swallowed, kept her smile from wavering and looked AJ straight in the eyes. “Yes, nanny things.”

Cat lover things. Mommy things. Wife things. Things a man who had a family, albeit an estranged one, would never understand. Things she dreamed about. Things she wanted...desperately.

Chapter Three

Charlie, AJ’s chauffeur for three years, cut five minutes off the drive from the minuscule airport to Haley’s Bay. AJ rubbed his thumb against his fingertips.

He liked being on time. He preferred arriving early. Charlie was doing his job, getting AJ to his destination as quickly as possible. But this once, he wouldn’t have minded being late.

Still, he didn’t lower the glass panel and tell Charlie to slow down. Not until AJ had a reason, one beyond his wanting to prolong the inevitable.

Music played from the speakers. Stock quotes ran across the bottom of a television screen. The bar called to him, but he needed to be stone-cold sober when he faced his family. AJ glanced at Emma, seated next to him, the cat carrier at her feet.

She stared out the window. Her serious expression—dare he say dour—took prim and proper to the next level. So different from how she’d been right before landing. Her sense of humor had disappeared. Her smile, too.

She might be upset over getting sick earlier. She might be nervous about her new job. Or she might be acting the way she always did. Whatever the reason, she was his employee, his responsibility. The least he could do was help her relax after a rough flight and coax a smile out of her. “Let’s take a detour. Check out a lighthouse or two.”

Her lips twisted. “You’re expected at your grandmother’s house.”

“I wouldn’t be a gracious host if I didn’t show you the sights.”

“You’re not my host,” she countered. “You’re my boss.”

Being her employer was easy to forget. Libby had hired Emma. “I don’t mind playing tour guide.”

Her nose crinkled. “You have a schedule—”

“Subject to change.”

“True, but as your personal assistant I’m supposed to keep you on schedule.”

“True, but you’re also supposed to do what I ask.”

“Even if doing so isn’t in your best interest? I mean, you haven’t been home in ten years. Your grandmother might be peeking out the window waiting for you to arrive.”

He pictured Grandma doing that. “I’ll concede the point.”