Chapter 4 Thane
THANE
As I followed Gordanna Redburn through the bifold doors at the back of the house and onto the decking, I wondered who was interviewing who here.
“The children being abed at this hour will not do,” she commented as she walked down the steps into the back garden. “We’ll keep school hours at the weekends too.”
“I don’t need you at the weekend.” Or at all. I glowered at her back.
The young woman was buttoned up so tight, it was difficult to believe she was only twenty-three. And it wasn’t her conservative clothing or the prim bun she wore; it was her pinched mouth and militant demeanor.
I groaned inwardly in despair. Gordanna had come all the way from Cornwall for this interview.
She was the tenth person I’d interviewed for the job of live-in nanny housekeeper, and she was the tenth person I was going to have to reject.
It was incredibly difficult to find someone who wanted to live in such a remote part of Scotland, and I was quickly losing the luxury of being picky.
I’d never considered Caelmore that remote, considering Ardnoch was right next door and was a famous village.
But to those used to large towns and cities, the Highlands were somewhere you visited for the scenic beauty, not a place most would consider settling down.
Most people needed to be near large hospitals, vet services, shops, restaurants, and convenient amenities, not to mention excellent Wi-Fi and phone signals.
Those weren’t bad here; they just weren’t the best.
Living somewhere that required patience and effort in exchange for the stunning surroundings? That compromise wasn’t for everyone.
Including decent nanny housekeepers. This one hadn’t referred to Eilidh and Lewis by anything but “the children” since her arrival.
I was screwed.
“But … I thought this was a live-in position?” Gordanna frowned at me.
“Yes, it is.” The guest annex was perfect for whomever got the position because it even had its own kitchenette. “But I don’t work at the weekends and would like to spend all that time with Eilidh and Lewis, which means you’d have your weekends to yourself.”
Her perturbed expression was almost comical. Apparently, it had never occurred to Gordanna Redburn to have a social life.
She harrumphed and turned on her heel again, marching toward the cliff’s edge.
“This fence will never do!” she called over her shoulder to be heard against the wind.
My agitation grew. Already this interview was taking twice as long as I’d hoped, and I’d told her taxi driver to wait on her.
The meter was ticking—the meter I was paying for.
“Excuse me?” I said as I neared. “What about the fence?”
Gordanna scowled at me as she gestured at my safety fence. “It’s ridiculous to have something so flimsy as a guard between young children and a cliff’s edge.”
I narrowed my eyes at her scolding tone. How dare a young woman barely out of school reprimand my parental skills? “I’m an architect, Ms. Redburn. Trust me when I say this is a sufficient safety fence.”
From the moment she’d arrived, she’d picked apart my house, ordering all the changes that would need to be made to make it safe for the children who had lived in it their whole lives without it ever harming them.
“He’s right, you know,” a familiar voice said.
I turned with the annoying candidate to see Regan Penhaligon standing on Lachlan’s lawn.
The American and her attractive dimples had appeared as if out of nowhere.
“About the fence being safe,” Regan continued.
“I tried to throw myself over it last night, and it morphed into a Transformer that saved me and then offered a therapy session.”
Trying not to laugh at her utter weirdness, I chanced a glance at Gordanna. She looked far from amused as she ran her eyes over Regan and raised an eyebrow. Regan wore a dress much like the one she’d worn yesterday. Conservative neckline. Not very conservative hemline.
Just like yesterday, she was barefoot, her toenails painted a bold red.
Regan’s amusement fled at Gordanna’s perusal, and she crossed her arms and glowered at the young woman as if to say, “Problem?”
“You are?” Gordanna asked, as if she had the right to know.
“Thane’s going to be my sister’s brother-in-law.”
“And do you have a name?”
Good Christ, this woman was a trip.
“Regan. Yours?”
“I’m Gordanna Redburn.” She held out a hand to Regan. “I’m the children’s nanny housekeeper.”
Uh, what? I turned to her, clearing my throat as I prepared for the coming awkwardness. “Ms. Redburn, there seems to be a misunderstanding. This is just an interview.”
She dropped her hand before Regan could take it. “I assumed since I’d traveled all the way from Tintagel that this was all just a formality.”
“No. It’s an interview. And I paid for your travel expenses and accommodation.”
She drew herself up straight. “Mr. Adair, I assure you, you will not find a better candidate than me to look after the children.”
“Eilidh and Lewis,” I said, my irritation building. “My children are called Eilidh and Lewis. Not ‘the children.’ And I’m afraid I haven’t made a decision yet regarding the position.”
Understanding what that meant, she sniffed haughtily. “Well, thank you for wasting my time. I’ll see myself out, and I’ll invoice you for the taxi fare!”
Before I could say anything else, the woman marched down the side of the house.
“What on earth did I just walk in on?”
The wind blew Regan’s copper-red hair off her face, revealing her elegant bone structure.
While I could absolutely see what Lachlan found attractive in Robyn, my soon-to-be sister-in-law wasn’t a classic beauty.
Her half sister, however, was. She had high apple cheekbones, those disarming dimples, warm, oval-shaped, chestnut-brown eyes surrounded by thick, dark lashes, and lips that were neither too thin nor too full.
A resemblance existed between the sisters, but where Robyn’s nose was a little long, Regan’s was dainty.
Overall, the younger sister had the style of someone who cared about her appearance. Robyn didn’t and somehow was more attractive for it. Lachlan’s fiancée had a certain charisma that was far more appealing than any physical perfection could ever be.
“Well?” Regan pushed.
I scratched my beard and sighed. “I’ve been working as a freelance architect, but the jobs just aren’t coming in.
To run a business, you need time to advertise it, and I don’t have time, what with juggling full-time childcare.
So I’ve had to return to my job with a firm in Inverness.
Between the commute and the work, I’m looking to hire a live-in nanny housekeeper.
We had one when Eilidh was little, but she left for a position in the States. ”
“And fence lady was the best you could get?” Regan screwed up her face.
Irritated by her blasé attitude, I bit out, “You try finding a nanny who will leave their life behind to live in the Highlands.”
Her eyes grew round. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be flippant. But honestly, I only met her for five seconds, and she’s not good enough for Eilidh and Lewis.”
Remembering how well Regan had gotten along with my children, a smile prodded my lips. “No, she isn’t.” I looked beyond her to my brother’s house. “Where are Robyn and Lachlan?”
Regan shrugged and stared out at the water, not meeting my gaze. “They went out.”
“Without you?”
She shrugged again. “They had stuff to do.” Finally, she looked at me, grinning as if she hadn’t a care in the world. But I saw shadows in the back of her eyes. “I turned up out of the blue. They had plans.”
Something was going on with Robyn’s sister. I couldn’t imagine Robyn hadn’t noticed it herself. Behind the smiles and carefree attitude was sadness and something else. Desperation?
Remembering the last redhead with shadows in her eyes who got past my defenses, I promptly ignored my growing curiosity. “Right. I better get back inside. Eilidh and Lewis will wake any second.” I took a step toward the house as I realized, “You’re up early.”
“Jet lag. And stupid automatic blinds in the guest room.”
I chuckled. “Ah. I see. Well. I better go.”
“Wait.” She stepped toward me, her short dress fluttering a little dangerously in the breeze. “I was actually coming over because I promised Eilidh I’d braid her hair.”
“Right.” I remembered. Part of me wasn’t too sure about Regan spending time with my children.
But last night she’d been brilliant with them, while I was constantly doing and saying the wrong things.
It was the first time in weeks both Eilidh and Lewis had laughed that much.
Well, not Eilidh. My Eilidh-Bug found many reasons to giggle.
But Lewis, my serious wee man, had been too broody for a little boy since Lucy.
I had a terrible feeling I’d bungled that entire conversation.
“Eilidh’s not even up yet.”
“Then maybe I can come over to talk with you.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Regarding?”
She grinned. “The genius plan that just occurred to me.”
I waited.
Regan threw out her arms as if to say, “Voila” and continued, “Meet your new nanny housekeeper.”
Confused, I shook my head. “What?”
“I’m staying here for the six months I’m legally allowed, and I need a job.
Like Robbie said, I am amazing with kids and have lots of experience as a nanny.
And I know I don’t look like it, but I can clean, I can cook, I can do laundry.
Six months gives you plenty of time to find a perfect and permanent nanny housekeeper. ”
Thrown by the offer, I tried to think of a polite way to say “no way in hell.”
“Regan … I just don’t think it would be a good idea to hire a family member. And for all intents and purposes, that’s what you are now.”
There. That was diplomatic. And reasonable.
Her face fell. “Oh.”
Guilt suffused me, which was irritating. “I’ll keep an ear out about other jobs that might work for you, though.”
“Right.”
“So … I’ll see you later, then.”