Is it too late to say I’m sorry for acting so hotheaded?”
It was so unexpected that she was momentarily at a loss for words, which her siblings would have found amusing in the extreme. What she lacked in cooking ability she usually made up for in conversational skills. When she finally found her voice she felt bound to be honest. “I deserved some of what you said. You were right, I should have told you what I wanted from the beginning.”
“You probably should, but it doesn’t justify my biting your head off, even if I was tired to the bone.”
Against her better judgment Bethany responded to the sincerity in his tone and smiled back. “I know what it’s like. Considering how small they are, babies demand enormous amounts of time, attention and love. I can hardly criticize you for giving them to Maree.”
He frowned. “If this Baby House of yours isn’t about baby care, how come you know so much about them?”
“I have five brothers and sisters, four of them much younger than me, so I got a lot of practice at helping to bring them up. I’m also a casual worker at a shelter for disadvantaged children in Melbourne.”
He nodded as if she had confirmed something for him. Then he nuzzled the baby’s tiny pink ear. “You know, Maree, you are wise for one so young.” She gurgled a response and he pretended to listen with rapt attention before nodding again. “Good idea, little darling. Exactly what I was thinking myself.”
Baffled, Bethany observed the strange, one-sided conversation, bemused by the way Maree seemed to understand everything Nicholas was saying. Which was more than Bethany herself did. “Excuse me?”
“Oh, sorry. I was consulting my friend here about an idea we just had. Do you know you’re the first person besides me that Maree has taken to since her parents died?”
What about the lovely Lana, Bethany couldn’t help wondering, but decided to quit while she was ahead. Leaving on good terms with him had seemed impossible a few moments ago. She should be thankful for small mercies.
As if to prove his point, the baby leaned out of Nicholas’s embrace and stretched out her arms toward Bethany. “Ah, ah, ah.”
Bethany reacted instinctively, setting her bag on the roof of the car and reaching to take the child from Nicholas. “See what I mean?” he said as the baby wrapped her arms around Bethany’s neck.
The child smelled sweetly of milk and baby powder, and Bethany buried her face in the satiny folds of her neck, making trilling noises with her lips and tongue. The vibrations made Maree chuckle and the sound resonated through Bethany like music. How could anyone not take to such a delightful little creature? Gradually she became aware of Nicholas watching her with something very much like satisfaction. What was going on here?
Since he didn’t seem to be in any hurry to enlighten her, she gave Maree one last hug and forced herself to hand the child back, closing her ears to the chorus of protesting noises. “I’d better be on my way. Thanks for clearing the air.” She tickled Maree under the chin. “Goodbye little one. It was fun meeting you.”
“You don’t have to leave,” Nicholas startled her by saying.
Was he going to grant her the interview after all? She forced down a sudden rush of excitement. If he had changed his mind, it must be for his own reasons. Until she knew what they were, it was as well not to get her hopes up. She might not be willing to meet his terms.
“I don’t?” she echoed, knowing she sounded foolish but unable to think of a more profound response. Where was the outgoing, articulate Bethany Dale now? Tongue-tied by the nearness of a man she didn’t like, who certainly didn’t like her, but who could make her feel hot and breathless simply by standing within two feet of her.
Nicholas gave her a level look while Maree played with his hair. “If you still want that story, maybe we can work something out.”
A sinking feeling gripped her. Surely Nicholas Frakes wasn’t going to turn out to be one of those men who reduced everything to sexual favors?
She drew herself up, uncomfortably aware that she was trapped between her car and Nicholas’s hard body. But he was hampered by the baby in his arms. “I’m afraid I don’t need the interview that much,” she snapped.
For a half second he looked puzzled, then angry as light dawned. “Good grief, woman, this has nothing to do with your body. Just because Lana’s gone doesn’t mean I’m desperate yet.”
Contrarily, rather than reassuring her, his comment hurt more than she could believe possible. “Well thank you very much.”
Evidently realizing his mistake, he tried again. “I don’t mean I’d have to be desperate to be interested in you. You’re a beautiful woman, and from what I’ve seen today, you’re going to make some man incredibly happy. But this has nothing to do with you and me,” he insisted. “I want you to help me take care of Maree.”
This last came out in such a roar that the baby looked startled. It was nothing compared to the way Bethany felt. She had practically accused him of harassment when all he wanted was her parenting skills. He also thought she was beautiful, she couldn’t help noticing, and resisted examining how that felt. “You want me as a baby-sitter?” she asked, dumbfounded.
“In return for conditional access to the Frakes Baby House,” he confirmed. He raked one hand through his close-cropped hair. “What on earth did you think I was going to propose?”
If she hadn’t been so aware of him as a man, she probably wouldn’t have jumped to stupid conclusions, she told herself, wondering at the same time if there wasn’t an element of wishful thinking there, too. Did she want him to want her? Even though her mind produced an instant denial she suspected she wasn’t being entirely honest with herself.
“I don’t know what I was thinking. It’s been a confusing day,” she dissembled. “One minute you can’t wait to get rid of me and the next you want to hire me on a daily basis.”
“Not daily, full-time, live-in, although I’m glad I didn’t suggest it right off the bat, or goodness knows what conclusions you’d have drawn.”
“There’s no need to rub it in,” she said, feeling her face flame. In case she still harbored doubts, he was emphasizing that he wasn’t interested in her as a woman, but purely as a potential caretaker for Maree. The thought stung, but she had only herself to blame for misinterpreting his first overture.
He watched her closely. “Interested?”
“I don’t know about living in,” she said. Most of her misgivings stemmed from her own reactions to Nicholas himself. He might not be interested in her, but she couldn’t deny the flaring of attraction she felt around him. Sharing close quarters with him amounted to playing with fire, and she’d already been burned by her relationship with Alexander. She didn’t need another lesson in her inadequacies as a woman.
Not that she’d get it from Nicholas. Was that what she really feared, that she could live under his roof without affecting him in the slightest, while he had the opposite effect on her?
“Before the accident, my brother and sister-in-law lived here and had set the place up as bed-and-breakfast accommodation. So, you would have your own self-contained quarters,” he went on. “You’d have to live in because it’s too far to commute from Melbourne every day. Besides which, my work involves clients all over the world, so I’m at the computer till all hours. With you here, I might finally manage to catch up on some sleep. As well as giving you access to the dollhouse, I’m prepared to pay well for your services.”
The salary he named would get her out of financial trouble for some time to come. Added to the appeal of a story about the long-lost Frakes Baby House, the package would enable her to clear her debts and bring her business back from the brink.
“It’s only until I can find someone to fill the job permanently,” he added when she hesitated. “Surely the children’s shelter can spare you for a time?”