14. Dante
Chapter 14
Dante
I should not have kissed the nanny.
That one thought ran through my mind on an endless loop throughout a sleepless night that finally ended just as the first streaks of dawn painted the sky. It was a mistake to follow her, to stare at those lush lips as she told me I annoyed her as much as she annoyed me. But when I closed my eyes all I could see was the way her eyes fluttered closed a heartbeat before my mouth crashed down on hers.
I knew it was a bad idea to follow her up the stairs after her comments. I should have just let her go to her room and stewed in my anger while I finished my dinner, but I couldn’t. And dammit if she didn’t taste like fire and sunshine with a hint of whatever chocolate she’d nibbled on after dinner. And as I showered and dressed for the day, there was just one thought running circles in my mind. Now I knew how good she tasted, how her curves felt under my hands and the sounds she made when she was kissed, how in the fuck was I supposed to keep my hands to myself?
The chemistry between us was explosive, I should have known that it would be, because Lucy sparred with me the way no one else did. She gave as good as she got, and had the good sense not to get offended about it too. That was almost as irresistible as her curves.
This was a major problem, because she was the nanny. The hired help. My employee. This had the potential to cause too many problems in my life. Lucy was great with Lena, which meant I had to keep my hands—and my mouth—to myself.
By the time I made it downstairs for breakfast, I felt better about where things stood with me and Lucy. She worked for me, and that was it. Last night was an aberration brought on by a long, exhausting day and a kind gesture, nothing more. There was an undeniable pull between us, and even though she was the first woman who’d fired me up since my divorce, I couldn’t go there.
I wouldn’t.
“Omelet for you, sir?”
I looked up at Dotty’s wary expression and nodded. “Sure an omelet would be great. Egg white omelet, please Dotty.” She frowned, and I wondered why. “What?”
“It’s nothing, you just don’t usually say please.” Dotty’s lips twitched, but she turned to the fridge before I could ask her more and pulled ingredients from the fridge.
I continued to stare at her back with a frown. Was I really such a beast that even basic manners surprised the people who worked for me? “I’ll try to do better.”
Dotty laughed. “It’s all right, sir. You just threw me for a loop.”
“Morning Daddy!” Lena’s voice was loud and cheerful as her feet rushed across the floor to me. “I’m happy to see you!”
I smiled as I scooped her up into my arms and hugged her close. “I’m happy to see you too, sweetheart. Did you sleep well?”
Lena nodded and looked over her shoulder at Lucy, dressed in a loose fitting yellow tank that hugged her breasts, and tight jeans that reminded me of just how good her plump ass felt in my hands. Lucy nodded and Lena turned back to me.
“I did. I had good dreams,” she said and wriggled out of my embrace to take her seat at the kitchen table while she told me about rescuing me from my office. “I was a hero.”
“Thank you for saving me,” I told her as I bit back a smile.
“Love you, Daddy.”
My heart squeezed at how easily it came to Lena to be nice and sweet, so full of love. “Love you too, my sweet Lena.” My gaze wandered over to Lucy who wasn’t glaring at me, but she wasn’t smiling at me either, which was a good thing, I told myself.
“What’ll it be for breakfast, Lena?” Dotty’s voice cut through my thoughts and I reluctantly pulled my gaze from Lucy.
“Sammich!” Lena danced in her seat and sent Lucy a conspiratorial smile.
Lucy sighed, but her smile was as bright as my daughter’s. “Breakfast sandwiches,” she clarified. “Bacon and toast with strawberry jam on both sides.”
I scoffed. “That sounds terrible.”
Then Lucy did glare at me. “Then you don’t have to eat it. Stick to your boring egg whites and spinach omelet.” She arched a brow in challenge before turning back to Dotty. “It was one of my favorites when I was a kid, and I told Lena we could try it out if she finished her book yesterday.”
“I did!” Lena wriggled in her chair again, smiling proudly. “Wanna hear about it Daddy?”
“Of course I do.” And I spent the rest of breakfast listening to Lena tell me about a group of baby animals that lived in the jungle and helped each other learn how to survive without their parents. “That sounds like a big girl book.”
“Lucy said it was a big girl book.”
“Maybe it’s too big,” I said, my narrowed gaze lasered in on Lucy who stared back defiantly.
“Why?” She folded her arms across her chest, ready for a fight.
It was a good thing I was ready too. “A bunch of orphans all alone in the world? That’s too grown up, and probably why she was so scared last night!”
“Or,” Lucy said as calm as could be, “maybe she related to the fact that none of them have mothers in their lives, but they still manage to thrive in the world.”
“Lucy!” I barked.
“And,” she went on in a calm tone, “maybe she was worried because her one remaining parent failed to ease her mind that he would be home, just later than usual. But hey, what do I know? I’m just the help, right?” The moment Dotty set two plates on the counter, Lucy placidly cut the two sandwiches into triangles and brought one plate to Lena with a smile. “They just taste better like this. Let me know what you think,” she said before she picked up the other plate for herself and exited the kitchen.
“Daddy I think you made Lucy mad.”
Yeah well, she made me mad too. “She’s fine.”
Lena slapped her hands on the table to get my attention. “Don’t make her mad Daddy, I like her. What if she goes away?”
Dotty smacked her lips together as she set a cup of juice in front of Lena and refilled my coffee. “Lucy’s tougher than that, Lena. She won’t let your grouchy old Dad scare her off.”
Unfortunately I had a feeling that Dotty was absolutely right. “I’ll apologize,” I promised Lena to ease the fear that clouded her eyes and furrowed her brow. “Time for me to go.”
Lena stood on her chair with her arms extended. “Have a good day Daddy.”
“Thank you. Have a good day yourself and I’ll see you at dinner.”
“Promise?”
I hugged her and smacked a loud kiss to her cheek that made her giggle. “I promise. Love you.”
“Love you back,” she said, still giggling. “Bye.”
I left for the office, my thoughts full of the nanny, to whom I now owed an apology.
I wasn’t dreading it as much as I should have been, and that made me consider going back on my word to Lena. Maybe a little bit of anger between us would cool the desire and the chemistry.
Yeah, and maybe pigs would start to fly.