Chapter 27
Xavier
"And you must be the lovely Rosalee. I've heard so much about you!" Nate flashed a wide smile full of straight white teeth in Rosalee's direction, his arms extended as if he expected a hug.
She tossed her head back and laughed, but I didn't miss the light blush that stained her cheeks. "I am Rosalee, and you must be the brother I've heard very little about. It's nice to meet you, Nate."
Her words stung even though I was sure she hadn't meant them to.
For the past few days, she'd been trying to get closer, to learn more about me, and I'd blocked her at every turn, giving her just enough to placate her.
"Not much to say," I grunted in reply. "Hands off," I growled at my brother and tugged him away from Rosalee.
"Worried she'll choose the more charming brother?"
Maybe. "Hell no."
Rosalee rolled her eyes, but the smile she held was almost affectionate, like an exhausted mother used to the bickering siblings routine. She picked up Violet and held her close to Nate. "And this beauty here is Violet. Violet, this is your Uncle Nate."
My daughter's smile was as wide and wet as it usually was, and when she reached for Nate's tie and shoved it in her mouth, she stole my brother's heart. "Banca!"
Nate's grin widened. "You heard that, right?
She said Uncle." He turned to Violet and scooped her up in his arms. "That's right, sweetheart, I'm your Uncle Nate, but you can just call me your favorite uncle because I'll spoil you rotten and bail you out of trouble anytime.
" He looked at her with such love and adoration in his eyes that it brought a smile to my face. "She's perfect, Xavier."
"She is," I replied through clenched jaws. Violet was going to be loved and cared for the way she deserved.
"The custody paperwork is in that box along with some other things I need you to take a look at." Nate nodded toward the box on the kitchen floor while he cuddled Violet.
My gaze shifted to Rosalee. Her blond brows were pinched into a look of confusion, but she didn't ask any questions.
She just looked away, and disappointment hung around her shoulders like an uncomfortable sweater.
She wanted to know more, but my reluctance to share was cutting into her resolve to keep trying.
She sighed once and flashed a bright smile. "I'll take her so you guys can talk." She plucked Violet from Nate's hold and cuddled her close as she carried my daughter out of the kitchen without sparing another look in my direction.
She was upset, and when she returned with Violet a few minutes later, both of them dressed to go outside, she fled out the front door without a word.
"Trouble in paradise?" Nate at least waited until we were alone before he asked the question he damn well already knew the answer to.
"What do you have for me?"
Nate laughed because he knew what I was doing, but he grabbed the box and dropped it on the coffee table.
He handed me a thick envelope first and smiled.
"This is all the paperwork that makes it official, Daddy.
Updated birth certificate and custody papers.
Medical records and everything else to prove she's yours if you have to. Keep it someplace safe."
"Thanks again, Nate."
"Of course. The rest of this box is business. Your business," he clarified as if I didn't know that. "Now or later?"
"Later." I didn't want to talk about it at all, but I didn't want to hear the it's still your business lecture for the thousandth time.
"So, about Rosalee," he began with a teasing grin. "I like her. She's beautiful and sweet. What the hell does she see in you?"
I wiggled my brows. "Wouldn't you like to know?"
"Not even a little bit." He rolled his eyes and shuddered dramatically. "But I would like to know more about you and Rosalee."
A low groan escaped because I also didn't want to talk about Rosalee. Not because I was ashamed about what was happening between us, but because I knew I didn't have any answers to his questions. "Must we?"
"Is there a reason you don't want to talk about it?"
Yes. "No. I don't know what you want me to say, Nate." I scrubbed a hand over my head and let out a heavy sigh.
"I haven't said anything other than 'tell me more.' How did this happen? Is this just sex, or does it have the potential to turn into something more? Does she know about Triple Horn?"
"No," I growled in answer to the last question. "She doesn't know about the club, but she knows about me and that I've been to a sex club in the past."
My brother's eyes got so wide it would've been funny if it were someone else we were talking about. "You told her about—you know? And she didn't freak out?"
That earned him a smile. "No, she didn't freak out. She's exploring that side of herself to see what she likes, what gets her off." I shook my head. "I'm not saying any more about that."
"Wait, are you trying to tell me she was a—"
"I'm not telling you any damn thing, so drop it." That was Rosalee's business to tell, not mine.
"Okay, but you like her. It's obvious you like her—I'd guess possibly more than like her—from the way you couldn't stop looking at her." Nate smiled. "That's a good thing."
"Is it? I'm no good at this shit. The last time I tangled with a woman, she almost cost me my business."
"Not every woman is like her, Xavier. You know that, don't you?"
Logically, I knew that. "It's still something I can't help but think about." That relationship shook my faith in everyone around me except my family, and it turned me off relationships. Until Rosalee. "I don't think she's like that," I admitted.
"Then why are you hesitating?"
I shrugged. "It's new. She's young, and she works for me."
Nate laughed. "All things you should've thought about before you took her to bed."
"Too late for that." I had thought about it, honestly, too many times to count. "I couldn't resist her." Everything about her was simply irresistible.
"Oh man, you have it bad, and I am damned happy for you. It's about time. But there's one other thing you left out."
"Yeah? What's that?"
"It's obvious she doesn't know who you are."
"Yeah," I agreed.
"And worse, she suspects that you're lying to her about something." Nate shook his head. "If you'd told me that, I wouldn't have come up with work shit, but I need your advice on a few things."
I nodded in acknowledgment that Nate was absolutely fucking right.
I could still see the look in her eyes. It was a mixture of curiosity and disappointment because she knew she wouldn't get the answers she sought.
"We'll get around to it," I said, more to myself than to my brother.
"I still have my name, so it's not like I'm hiding who I am from her.
" It was a weak argument, but it was all I had.
"Sooner rather than later, Xavier. If you never listen to anything I tell you, listen to this: If she learns about this from anyone but you, she will feel hurt, angry, and betrayed. You might lose her. If you're okay with that, keep on doing whatever it is you're doing up here."
"Nate."
He held up his hands. "I'm done. That's all I'm going to say about it, I promise.
Mostly." His lips twitched, and then he burst out laughing just as the back door opened and Rosalee and Violet tumbled inside, laughing together.
Nate stood. "There she is, folks, my new favorite girl in the whole world!
" He crouched down and Violet ran straight into his arms. "I'll visit with her while you take a look at those files. Please."
I took the box and slipped inside my bedroom to look over the contracts and other files Nate had brought for me. Most of it was standard, but there were a few tricky items from my competitors who were trying to get a bigger advantage than they were entitled to. Nate was right to bring these to me.
I got lost in the paperwork for hours, and everything else ceased to exist. There was a strange humming in my arms and legs as I went through each sheet, line by line, until I was satisfied that every hidden trick was uncovered.
By the time I emerged from my room, Nate and Rosalee were having dinner in the kitchen. They laughed together like old friends, and I felt something I couldn't quite describe, but it felt a hell of a lot like jealousy.
Of my own damn brother.
Turned out Nate was right. I had it bad for the nanny.