Читать книгу Corporate Daddy - Arlene James - Страница 13

The woman clutched her handbag beneath one arm and patted the steel-gray helmet of her hair even though not a strand had moved out of place. It wouldn’t dare, Logan decided, for fear of being plucked and banished. She looked down her lengthy nose at Amanda Sue, who sat in her father’s lap, his tie once again clamped firmly between her teeth despite all his efforts to prevent it. She looked like a pink-and-white puppy with a favorite sock in its mouth. Logan had seriously tried to interest her in something else, but she was nothing if not determined, this child of his, and she looked so downright happy and adorable that he didn’t have the heart to make her cry again. Some of the other candidates had laughed, but this woman’s disapproval was palpable.

“I’ve dealt with many an unruly child,” the woman said smugly, “and my methods have proven successful in nearly every case. Believe me, I know how to bring a child to heel quickly.”

It had been a long, disappointing morning, and Logan was feeling the strain. Despite his own mental canine comparisons, he rolled his eyes and snapped, “Dogs are brought to heel. I hope you aren’t saying you’ll treat my daughter like a dog.”

The woman narrowed her eyes to black slits. “Please do not put words in my mouth. I’m merely stating that a willful child requires a strong, firm hand.”

Logan pinched his nose, trying to hold on to his temper. His daughter, meanwhile, was continuing to ruin a perfectly good silk tie by gnawing and slobbering on it. Emily had suggested that she was cutting teeth. But he was more concerned about the granite-jawed prison matron sitting across from him. “You do understand that my daughter has been through a terrible loss and trauma, don’t you?” he asked.

The woman inclined her head. “All the more reason to provide a strictly scheduled routine. The structure will give her security and teach her self-control.”

“She’s sixteen months old,” he pointed out. “How much self-control can she have at this age?”

“More than you might realize,” the woman said complacently. “Turn her over to me, and we’ll soon have a different child.”

Logan wanted to smack her. How dare she imply that there was something wrong with Amanda Sue! True, she was strong-willed and much too intelligent for his own good, not to mention adventurous enough to scare the pants off him at times, but she was a Fortune. Of course she was strong-willed and intelligent and adventurous, even quick-tempered. She was also beautiful and charming and perfect just as she was. He wouldn’t have her changed, but he couldn’t help wondering what this hyena in a middle-aged woman’s guise might know that he didn’t.

“Just exactly how might you accomplish this transformation?” he asked.

The woman readjusted her seat on the chair and lifted her chin. “I know the so-called experts counsel against breaking a child’s spirit,” she began, “but frankly my experience shows otherwise.”

Now he really wanted to smack her. He set his back teeth. “Is that so?”

She seemed unaware of his censure. “I believe the old ways are the best ways,” she said sagely. “My mother believed children were to be seen and not heard. She made very sure that my brother and I were well-behaved, well-groomed and well-thought-of. If we broke the rules, we were harshly dealt with, let me tell you, but privately. Publicly, she made sure we were a credit to our parents.”

“Uh-huh. And what about your own children? Are they a credit to their parents?”

“Oh, I have no children of my own,” she said dismissively. “I decided long ago to dedicate myself to the children of others, and one thing I realized early on is that modern parents are too emotionally attached to their children to see what it is they really need.”

He couldn’t quite believe he’d heard her right. Emily appeared at his elbow, saying brightly, “Okay, I think that’s enough. Don’t you, Mr. Fortune?”

“Quite enough,” he agreed, sending her a loaded message she couldn’t help interpreting correctly. She moved around the desk to the woman’s side and literally seized her by the arm, pulling her to her feet.

“Thank you for coming,” she said briskly, propelling the woman toward the door. “We’ll be in touch with your agency.”

Amanda Sue made roaring sounds around a mouthful of his tie and smacked her hands aggressively on the top of his desk, as if bidding the woman good riddance. Logan smiled. Even she had sense enough to know that woman didn’t belong anywhere near a child. He wouldn’t entrust an animal to that woman. Unfortunately, he hadn’t found anyone else to whom he could comfortably give over care of his daughter, either.

A couple of the candidates were mere children themselves, just teenagers, really. Two others were in the U.S. only temporarily, one with only weeks left on her visa, and the last thing Logan wanted to do was let Amanda Sue get emotionally attached to someone guaranteed to leave her soon. One woman, while a citizen, didn’t speak English well enough to properly interview. Given the circumstances, he felt Amanda Sue would be too confused to respond well. Another woman had seemed mildly impaired mentally. She was very pleasant, and he liked her a great deal, but he felt uncomfortable leaving her alone with Amanda Sue for days at a time when he was traveling. This last one was the topper on the cake, however, a real brute in support hose.

Emily steered the woman out of his office and her own, then returned, closing the door behind her. “Charles Dickens wrote books about idiots like her,” she said, dropping down onto the corner of his desk. Amanda Sue started crawling up onto the desk to get to her.

Logan let her go. What could it hurt with him and Emily sitting right there? Emily seemed to agree. She reached out and took Amanda Sue’s hands in hers, helping her stand from a crouch, then drawing her forward carefully. “Maybe I should call another agency,” she said, fingering a curl on top of the baby’s head.

“Do that,” he agreed, smoothing a grossly wet, rumpled tie. “This one sure didn’t send over any winners.”

“Still want to schedule the interviews here?” Emily asked, and he sighed. Interviewing nannies wasn’t exactly conducive to business, but he didn’t want any strangers knowing where he lived. The kidnapping of his cousin’s infant son Bryan had taught them all the folly of not taking every precaution. He nodded.

“Yeah. I don’t want anyone I don’t completely trust in my house.”

“I understand,” Emily said. “So tomorrow we start over. Now what?”

He looked around him, wondering if he could keep Amanda Sue here and actually get anything done, but he knew the answer to that. “Why don’t you take her on home,” he said finally. “I’ll try to get through early here so you can get home at a decent hour. Uh, unless I can persuade you to spend the night?”

She sent him a look that said, Please don’t ask. He ignored it.

“I could really use a good night’s sleep myself,” he went on, “and I have so much work to do. And you wouldn’t have to cook or anything. I’ll pick up something.”

“I don’t know. I really prefer—”

“I understand,” he said, “but I’m desperate here. I haven’t even checked my voice mail today.”

“All right,” she said, capitulating reluctantly, “but just tonight.”

He nodded, deeply relieved. “Surely we’ll find someone tomorrow.”

If the smile she gave him wasn’t quite as hopeful as it might have been, he chose not to think about it. He was covered for a few precious hours, and that was enough for the moment. Tomorrow would come soon enough, too soon probably, but he’d cross that bridge when he came to it. Meanwhile, he had a lot of work to do and a little time to do it in. But at least he wouldn’t have to worry about his daughter while he was doing it, and that, he was discovering, was more important than anything else.

What a day it had been, Emily mused, wrestling Amanda Sue into her sweater. She had worked closely with Logan Fortune for two years now, but never like this. It was as if they were a couple, rather than simply a good business team, and such illusions were terribly dangerous given the way she felt about him. She’d held the attraction at bay for such a long time, but she wasn’t superhuman.

She had known from the beginning of her employment with him that any personal involvement would be sheer folly. Logan was a real player in the field of romance, and Emily was anything but. Dalliance with the likes of him could only lead her to a broken heart, but here she was about to spend the night at his house. Still, what else could she do? He and Amanda Sue both were obviously exhausted, and how could she not allow him the benefit of her experience when he was trying so very hard? One night, she told herself, and tomorrow would be a better day for everyone.

Finally getting Amanda Sue properly attired, Emily began to gather their things, all the while balancing the child on one hip. Amanda Sue helped out by grasping handfuls of her blouse, front and back, and hanging on. It was awkward, but it beat setting her down and then trying to keep her from looting the desk while gathering everything. She was heading toward the door, laden with baby, purse and bulging diaper bag, when she called out, “We’re going now.”

To her surprise, Logan got up from his desk and hurried out to send them off. “Wait. Amanda Sue can’t go without telling Daddy ’bye-bye.” He waved at his daughter and pretended to blow a kiss, as before. His daughter, however, had other ideas. She puckered her lips and leaned so far forward that Emily had trouble holding her up. Logan laughed. “What’s she doing now?”

Emily smiled. “I think she wants a real kiss.”

He all but recoiled. “A real kiss?”

“It won’t kill you, Fortune, and my arm’s weakening.”

He bent and quickly smacked Amanda Sue on the cheek, but the baby objected, wiping it away with a flat wipe of her hand and puckering up again. Logan looked to Emily for help, and it was all she could do to keep from laughing. Finally, he pursed his lips and gave Amanda Sue a dry, fleeting peck on the mouth. Satisfied, Amanda Sue grinned and settled back, her arm looping around Emily’s neck. Logan colored, but the eyes with which he gazed at his daughter were very nearly worshipful.

“See you later,” he said nonchalantly, but he wasn’t fooling Emily. That first real kiss from his daughter had tied his heart into knots.

He turned away, but a sudden thought occurred to Emily. “Oh, wait,” she said. “What about the safety seat? I can’t take her in my car without it.”

“You’re right. Here, take my keys.” He dug into his pants’ pocket. “Better yet, just take my car. Otherwise, I’ll have to walk down with you.”

“True. If you’re sure that’s how you want to handle it, though, we’d better trade. Otherwise, how will you get home?”

“Good point.”

She dug in her purse for her own keys and handed them over, then thought better of it. “Uh, actually, I have to stop to get some overnight things and feed my cat, so I’d better take my apartment key.”

“Right.”

She pointed out the key, and he worked it off the ring, handing it over with his own.

“This thing just keeps getting more and more complicated, doesn’t it?” she said, putting the keys into her bag.

Logan sighed. “To tell you the truth, I guess I’m still reeling from the news. It’s like this whirlwind blew into my life and hasn’t slowed down yet. I keep hoping that when it does, it’ll leave behind some semblance of order, but what are the chances of that?”

“Not much, I’d warrant,” she admitted sympathetically, “but it’ll get better eventually.”

He sighed. “At least I have you until it does,” he said softly. “God help me if I didn’t.”

Emily felt a strange heat blossom in her chest. She quickly turned away before it could spread to her cheeks. “Better get going,” she said briskly.

“Remember,” he called as she pushed through the door, “dinner’s on me.”

She nodded and kept moving, afraid to look back for fear of what she might see in his eyes. Simple gratitude or a certain sensual warmth? The problem was, she wasn’t sure which would frighten her more.

The little car chugged into the driveway and promptly died. Logan pulled the emergency brake, removed the key from the ignition switch and grabbed the bag of Tex-Mex on the passenger seat. The clutch in Emily’s inexpensive car definitely needed an adjustment, as did the driver’s side door, which creaked alarmingly when he opened it and maneuvered his way out.

The temperature had dropped into the upper thirties in the past few hours. Logan shivered, wondering if Amanda Sue had a heavy coat. It would be infrequently needed here in San Antonio, but he couldn’t have his little girl going around cold, not that it was apt to slow her down any.

He made a mental note to ask Emily about the coat as he trudged up the walk to his front door. Then he’d suggest she get that clutch looked at. He wouldn’t have her driving his daughter around in an unsafe vehicle. In fact, he wasn’t sure he wanted Amanda Sue in such a small car at all. It just didn’t seem as safe as his own German luxury sedan. With that in mind, he let himself into the foyer and moved down the hall, baby giggles washing away the tiredness that had been dogging his steps all day long.

He stepped into the living room, a smile on his face, and once more froze in his steps. It wasn’t unexpected clutter, this time. The room, in fact, was in pristine condition, save for the old blanket spread upon the floor and the two playing upon it.

Garbed in a footed sleeper, Amanda Sue lay on her back, one hand fisted around the open collar of Emily’s blouse, which had been unbuttoned almost to mid-chest. Emily lay on her side next to Amanda Sue, propped up on one elbow. She tickled the baby’s round tummy with her fingertips while Amanda Sue kicked and giggled happily and tugged on the collar of Emily’s blouse, laying it open and exposing the plump swell of one firm breast. Emily’s glasses had been put away and her long, sand-colored hair swung in a thick, silky fall to the floor. Her straight skirt was hiked up to the tops of her thighs, her long legs and slender, delicate feet bare.

Desire hit Logan in the gut, his gaze sweeping up those long, graceful limbs to the skirt bunched near their tops. She definitely did not wear stockings on a daily basis. All this time and he had just now noticed this enticing fact. All this time and he had just now noticed how enticing his executive assistant was.

Had he once thought her oval face was too long? Her mouth too wide? He realized now that it was nothing more than the severe manner in which she had been wearing her hair. Without her glasses he could actually see and appreciate her deeply set, golden-brown eyes and the sweep of high, prominent cheekbones. He was astonished to find that she was, in her own unique way, quite breathtakingly beautiful, and she had been sitting right under his nose for the past two years! He couldn’t help wondering just how stupid it would be to seduce the best assistant he’d ever had. If he did, would she suddenly develop dollar signs in her eyes? Somehow he didn’t think so.

Emily looked up just then and smiled welcomingly. “Look who’s here,” she said to the giggling Amanda Sue. “Daddy’s home.”

Quick as lightning, Amanda Sue flopped over and sat up. She clapped her hands and held up her arms. “Daa-dy!”

Logan dropped the food bag onto a corner of the dining table as he passed by and hurried toward his daughter and her fetching sitter. Going down on one knee, he scooped up Amanda Sue, and laughed delightedly at the exuberant hug and loud, smacking kiss that he got. She smelled clean and fresh, his little girl, like something new and bright and wholly Amanda Sue, and he realized suddenly that parental love was something innate and fierce. She was his little girl and he loved her. It was as simple as that. Never mind that she had turned his life upside down, that only days ago he hadn’t known she even existed. She was his now, and that was all that mattered.

Abruptly, his headstrong daughter twisted around and pointed up the stairs. “Boog!” she announced.

Emily laughed. “She has the memory of an elephant, I swear. I promised her more than an hour ago that Daddy would read her a certain book for a bedtime story.”

“Well, Daddy will just have to do that, then,” he said enthusiastically. His empty stomach rumbled, but he dutifully rose to his feet, Amanda Sue cradled in one arm, and reached down a hand for Emily. She slipped her fingers into his palm and let him pull her to her feet. “I see she’s ready for bed,” he said.

“It’s not always a two-person job,” Emily replied lightly.

“I’m beginning to think there’s nothing you can’t handle,” he said teasingly.

She laughed. “I’m going to remind you of that the next time I ask for a raise.”

“Emily,” he told her seriously, “all things considered, I’d say a raise was the very least I could do for you. Just name the amount.”

She laughed again. “Nah, I don’t want you saying I took advantage of you later.”

“That’s usually my line,” he quipped.

She didn’t seem to find it funny. Lifting an eyebrow, she looked away. “Is that our dinner over there?”

He nodded. “I assume you like Tex-Mex.”

“Love it. Why don’t I put it in the oven while you try to get a certain someone down for the night?”

“I’ll give it my best shot,” he said, “but if I’m not down in half an hour, call the anti-terrorist squad.”

Emily chuckled, turning away. “I’m starved.”

“That makes two of us,” Logan said, following her as far as the foot of the stairs, where he turned and climbed upward while she went on into the dining room and kitchen. He carried Amanda Sue across the landing and down the hall, talking nonsense to her while she babbled back.

“What’d you do this afternoon, Amanda mine?”

“Mimy do sum-sum-sum.” She waggled her little fingers above her head.

“Did you play with Emily, hmm?”

She nodded sharply and went on talking. “Up fruffle and pickers. Go see.” She pointed to the door to her own room. Logan carried her inside and flipped on the overhead light.

It looked like something out of a fairy tale. A curving canopy had been erected above the white crib, which now sported frothy pink ruffles over and under. The rocking chair had been similarly adorned, and the window, as well. A lamp in the shape of a carousel sat atop the dresser, surrounded by baby dolls and stuffed animals. The shelves below the window had been filled with small books and colorful toys. A music box had been attached to the side of the crib. Pictures of baby animals adorned the walls. Amanda Sue pointed her little finger at each one and labeled it.

“Pupup. Kitty. Hosey. Sicgen. Pigky. Pish. Moo-cow.”

Logan laughed and hugged her tight. “That’s right!” He pointed and confirmed each name, correcting her pronunciation. “Puppy, kitty, horsey, chicken, piggy, fish, and a little cow.”

“Moo-cow!” Amanda Sue insisted.

“All right, moo-cow. What a smart girl you are, Amanda Sue.”

Bucking, she demanded to be put down. He bent and set her feet on the floor. She promptly led him on a tour of the room, pointing out every item for his approval. Finally they made their way to the rocking chair and the book that lay upon the seat. Amanda Sue snatched the book up and held it by one corner, patting the seat cushion with her free hand. “Daddy ’own.”

Logan obediently sat, then gathered the child into his arms. She snuggled into the crook of his elbow and crossed one little ankle over the opposite knee, ready to be read to. He was halfway through the brightly illustrated book about—what else?—baby animals, when Emily slipped into the room. Amanda Sue beckoned her over so that Emily stood behind the chair and peered over their shoulders at the pages of the book. Amanda Sue pushed her head back, looking up at Emily. “Cav,” she said, adding, “Moo-cow, cav,” as she pointed to the mother cow and the baby calf.

“Good grief, she’s bright,” Logan said proudly.

“She certainly is.” Emily moved away then, walking softly. “Mind if I turn down the light?”

“No, go ahead.”

“How about a little background music?” she asked as she switched on the lamp and switched off the overhead light.

“Sure.”

Suddenly the mood was entirely altered, softened, as tinkling music filled the air.

“Keep your voice low and rock gently as you read,” Emily counseled in a whisper as she clipped Amanda Sue’s pacifier to her shoulder and placed Sugar Bear in her lap. The child immediately popped the nipple into her mouth and got a hammerlock on the toy. Logan began to rock, carefully, quietly reading and turning the pages. Soon he realized that Amanda Sue was no longer paying attention. She had dropped off, her face turned into his chest. As he watched, she pushed the pacifier out of her mouth with her tongue and sighed. Suddenly Emily was at his shoulder, whispering into his ear. “Just get up very slowly.”

He laid aside the book and slowly rose, carefully shifting his sleeping daughter as he did so. Emily floated across the room to fold back the covers on the crib. Logan followed and gently lowered Amanda Sue to the mattress. She stirred, sighed, and collapsed into deep slumber, Sugar Bear atop her chest. Logan tucked the covers around her as Emily rewound the music box. He turned on one monitor. She picked up the other and slipped from the room. Again Logan followed, gently closing the door behind him.

“She loves that room,” Logan said as they moved away, keeping his voice low. “She had to show me every little thing, and she kept saying, ‘Mimy do, Mimy do.’ I didn’t realize she was talking so much, not that I could understand much of it. She knows all the animals, though. That much, I got. Did you teach her?”

Emily shook her head. “No. You’ll have to credit her mother with that and much more. Amanda Sue has been handled with great care. She’s been read to on a regular basis and taught all the basics. Tonight when I brushed her teeth, she didn’t protest a peep, just opened her little mouth and patiently waited for me to finish, then rinsed her mouth and gave me a big smile. She kept talking about you this evening, too. ‘Daddy come? Daddy come?’ I kept assuring her that you would, but I could tell she was missing you.”

Logan felt a lump rise in his throat. “She’s amazing, isn’t she? I can’t get over how bright and loving she is.”

“When she’s getting her way,” Emily said cheekily.

He chuckled. “Too true. No one will ever run over Miss Amanda Sue, you can bet on that.”

“Not that they’re likely to get the chance,” Emily said, looking back over her shoulder at him as she began descending the stairs.

“Meaning?”

“They’d have to go through her daddy first, now wouldn’t they?”

He found that he liked the idea. A natural protectiveness seemed to come with the job. “It’s so strange,” he said. “She didn’t exist for me just days ago, and now…” He shook his head, unable to put it into words. He didn’t have to.

“I know,” Emily said, reaching the bottom of the stairs. “A child changes everything.”

He couldn’t argue with that. They walked on into the kitchen, where she had laid out plates and flatware. Emily poured the iced tea while he got the food out of the oven and set out the containers. His stomach rumbled again as the aromas of refried beans, rice, tamales, guacamole and spicy enchiladas mingled. They sat down and dug in. The first pangs of hunger were satisfied before his mind turned to other things.

“You were quick to credit her mother earlier,” he said to Emily, “but I couldn’t help noticing how well you handle Amanda Sue, as well as you do everything else, in fact. You said something yesterday about nieces and nephews, but I have a nephew, and I haven’t learned what you have about kids.”

She smiled and put down her fork. “Maybe we should put this into perspective. You see, I’m the next to youngest of seven children, and we’re pretty spread out, so I have nieces and nephews only a few years younger than me, and quite a few even younger ones. The count went to sixteen, total, this year, some of whom have children of their own.”

“Wow!” He shook his head, wondering what else he didn’t know about this woman. Funny, he’d spent more time with Emily Applegate these past two years than any other person of his acquaintance, and yet he knew next to nothing about her.

She picked up her fork and cut a piece of tamale. “That won’t last long, though,” she said.

He brought his mind back to full attention. “What’s that?”

“Sixteen.”

“Nieces and nephews, you mean.”

She nodded, chewing and swallowing her tamale. “My little sister has just announced that she’s in the family way again.”

“Your little sister?”

Emily nodded again. “Her name’s Lola. She’s twenty-three and has been married four years already. We marry young in Kentucky.”

“Kentucky,” he echoed, thoroughly irritated with himself for not knowing where she was from. Why had he never asked? “Didn’t I hire you out of Dallas?”

“That’s right. After college I worked in Kingsboro, then Memphis, Tennessee, and then Dallas.” She toyed with her guacamole, then forked up a tiny bite. “I was the only one who couldn’t wait to get out of Kentucky—well, not counting Cathy.”

“Cathy? That one of your sisters?”

Emily shook her head, a tiny smile curving her mouth. “Cathy Wazorski,” she said, eyes twinkling. “She was my very best friend. We grew up plotting ways to get out of Kentucky.”

“And you found your way out through college,” he surmised correctly.

“True. It wasn’t easy, mind you. We were poor as church mice. Mom and Dad just couldn’t afford to help, so I’m still paying off the school loans, but it’s worth it.”

Logan shifted uncomfortably. He knew the value of hard work. He’d earned his way to the top of the family company, and no one could say otherwise, but he’d never had to worry about money, certainly not as a college student. Now he wondered if Emily was not somehow a stronger or better person than he for having done it all on her own. To turn aside his thoughts he changed the subject of the conversation.

“And did Cathy make it, too?” he asked.

Emily grinned, making him feel that she’d just been waiting for him to ask. “You could say that, seeing as you probably know her as Ciara Wilde.”

He dropped his fork. “You’re kidding! The actress?” He fleetingly pictured the tall, shapely star with the flowing blond hair as he’d seen her in her last movie, enveloped in satin and furs, and tried to reconcile that with a picture of Emily’s childhood friend from Kentucky.

“The very same,” Emily confirmed proudly. “In fact, as I’m sure you’ve heard on the news, she’s filming a movie here in San Antonio right now, and we get together as often as our schedules allow.”

He shook his head. “I’m absolutely amazed.”

She laughed. “Don’t let the movie star persona fool you. Cathy’s nothing like her public image. She’s really a sweet, down-to-earth person.”

He picked up his fork. “I wasn’t talking about Cathy, or Ciara.”

“No? What then?”

“You! What else don’t I know? Not only are you the best executive assistant I’ve ever had, you’re an expert with children, and you came by that expertise as a poor kid from a big family in Kentucky who pulled herself up by her bootstraps and now hobnobs with movie stars. Add to that your looks, and Emily Applegate is an altogether unexpected bundle of surprises.”

She frowned at him, leaning forward slightly over her plate—and unwittingly giving him an excellent view of the deep cleavage between her breasts. “What about my looks?”

As if she didn’t know. “You hide them, that’s what,” he said. “You pretend to be this mousy, prim, pseudo librarian type, when you’re really quite beautiful.”

Emily gaped at him, then pointedly clamped her mouth shut and swallowed. “If that was supposed to be a compliment, then, thank you—I think. I was unaware, however, that my efforts to present a professional appearance offended you.”

“I didn’t say that,” he protested. “I just meant that you look different without your glasses and with your hair down and…” He cleared his throat and switched course. “You just surprise me sometimes, that’s all.” He lifted his napkin to his mouth and changed the subject. “Let me know whenever you and your friend want to get together, and I’ll see to it that you’re free.”

Emily bowed her head, her long, silky hair sliding across her shoulders in a multicolored cascade of biscuit brown, sand and gold. “Thank you, Mr. Fortune. I appreciate that.”

He liked the way she said his name, but he suddenly decided that it was not enough just to hear her say it in casual conversation. No, indeed. Before he was through, he would hear her whisper his name with longing and shout it with ecstasy. Wise or not, he was going to find a way to have Emily Applegate in his bed.

Then he would know all her secrets.