by Holly Rayner
With a click of her mouse, she pulled up Ben’s calendar on one of the computer monitors. He had a full afternoon and rearranging it would mean cutting out a launch meeting.
I’d better talk to him before I cancel the meeting, she thought. And maybe I’ll figure out what his troubled mood is all about, while I’m at it.
“This way, Joy,” she said to her daughter. “I have to talk to Mr. Briars. Think you can sit quietly in his office for a minute with me?”
With Joy in tow, Maia pushed open the door to her boss’s private space. A nervous flutter coursed through her as Ben looked up from his desk.
“Yes?” he said.
“Could I talk to you for a minute?”
Chapter 3
Ben
Ben was lost in thought when he saw movement at his office door.
Light from the sunrise reflected off the door’s glass surface, and then the opaque reflection gave way to Maia, who stood in the open doorway.
Golden rays of light illuminated her silky blond hair, which was pulled up in a high ponytail. Her cheeks were rose-pink, which he’d noticed happened to her when she was nervous or upset. A black sweater-and-skirt combination hugged her curves. Her eyes, which were a stunning shade of green, matched the beads of the necklace that lay over her sweater.
For a brief instant, he was struck by how beautiful she looked.
This had happened to him on occasion since he’d hired her. He never expected it, and it often caught him off guard. He’d gotten good at moving through these surprising moments swiftly so that they did not distract him from work. He did this now as he spoke. “Yes?”
“Could I talk to you for a minute?” Maia asked.
He nodded.
The little girl he’d just met was behind Maia. She peeked out from behind Maia’s toned calves and gave Ben an impish grin. Then, before he could react, she ran over to a white loveseat that was positioned on the far side of his office. She wore a small pink backpack that bounced around as she ran. She pulled the pack off once she had climbed up onto the loveseat.
Ben looked back to Maia, who was smoothing down wisps of hair at her temple, as if trying to collect her thoughts. “I got your message about daycare pickup,” Maia said. “You have a meeting scheduled for two p.m. with the entire Connect-Share team. I just want to confirm that you really do want me to reschedule that, so you’re free at three.”
Ben’s attention was drawn to the loveseat, where the little girl was perched. She pulled items from her pink bag, one by one.
“Why does she have a backpack?” he asked Maia.
“She wanted one,” Maia said. “She was nervous about daycare at first, but I told her it was kind of like how big girls go to school.”
“How old is she?”
“Three.”
“Same as my nephew, Colby,” Ben said with a nod. He watched the blond-haired little girl pull a doll from her bag. She whispered something to the doll and began cradling it in her arms on the couch.
Maia leaned forward and whispered, “She likes to play pretend that the doll is her baby. She could do this for hours.”
“Really?” Ben said, amazed. “So is it true, then?” His mind turned back to the statement his brother had made earlier that morning: “Colby will entertain himself.” He’d doubted it, but now that he was seeing this little girl play quietly on her own, he began to wonder if maybe the statement was accurate. “Kids just… entertain themselves?”
Maia laughed. “Sometimes,” she said. “Only if you set them up for success. I try to make sure to always pack a toy or two when I go out with Joy. That way we have something to keep her busy. It really helps.”
“I see…” Ben’s thoughts turned again to Colby and the weeks that loomed ahead. Had Nate packed any toys for Colby to play with? He hoped so.
Maia’s voice pulled him back to the present moment.
“So what do you think?” she said. “Reschedule the launch meeting, or…?”
“Yes,” Ben said. “Better reschedule. Thank you. I have to pick up my nephew from daycare at three. It’s important.”
“I didn’t know you had a nephew,” Maia said.
Ben gave a quick nod. “I do,” he said. “I’m picking him up to help my brother out. He’s in a bit of a jam. It’s been on my mind all morning.”
“I see,” Maia said quietly. “Is he okay? Your brother, I mean?”
“He’ll be fine. Thank you.” He sensed that Maia wanted to know more, but he was not in the habit of chatting with staff members about his personal life, and he kept his lips pinched closed.
Maia took the hint and backed away from his desk. “Well, then,” she said, “I’ll certainly push off the meeting until tomorrow, and let the team know.”
“Thanks.”
“I could tell something was on our mind when you walked in,” Maia said. “I’m sorry to hear that your brother is going through something, but I’m relieved to know that your upset isn’t about me bringing Joy into work with me.”
“Not at all,” Ben said.
Talking about Nate and Colby had brought up many fresh concerns in his mind. Had Colby ever even spent the night away from home before? The boy had been through so much, what with losing his mother the year before and all that had followed afterward. Nate’s emotional state had hardly been stable as he processed his own grief due to his loss. Colby was a good kid, but Ben realized he had no idea how he would react to being away from his one remaining parent for a whole two weeks.
Ben was so preoccupied with his thoughts that he was barely aware of Maia ushering Joy out of his office.
It helped, somewhat, to escape into work tasks. Ben focused on answering emails and making phone calls for several hours. Then, at noon, his mind once again turned to his situation with Colby.
As he mulled over possible solutions to the problem he faced, he scrolled the internet.
Various searches brought up nanny services in New York City, but when he looked deeper into the websites, he saw how involved the hiring process was. He needed a live-in nanny within hours, not weeks or months.
He considered calling one of the services and explaining that he needed to rush the process along, but then Nate’s words crossed his mind: “All you have to do is keep him safe.” If he rushed the process and hired someone who hadn’t been adequately vetted, he’d essentially be hiring a stranger.
He couldn’t do that to his brother—or to Colby. He realized that he could only entrust Colby’s care to someone he knew well.
Frustrated, he looked away from his computer and let his gaze settle on the activity that was going on in Maia’s workspace, just beyond the glass partition that separated his office from hers. Maia was at her desk, smiling at her daughter as Joy pulled items from a small pink lunchbox. Ben noted neatly cut carrot sticks, apple slices, and a silver bottle with a straw poking out of it.
Joy contentedly picked up an apple slice and bit into it. Maia gave her daughter a loving stroke on the arm, and the two laughed. Then, Maia turned her attention back to her computer screen, as Joy squatted down and pretended to offer an apple slice to the doll who was propped up by Maia’s desk.
She’s a good mom, Ben thought.
Suddenly, an idea struck him. He pressed a button on his phone, which alerted Maia that he wanted to see her.
She got up from her desk and took Joy’s hand. Together, they entered his office.
Maia encouraged Joy to play quietly, then she looked at Ben with curiosity burning in her bright green eyes. “What can I do for you?” she asked him.
“Maia… I have a thought I’d like to run by you,” Ben began. He cleared his throat. He wasn’t used to bringing up unconventional ideas—like the one he was about to unveil—to his employees. His company ran like clockwork, and the routine that he and Maia had gotten into over the past two years was rarely disturbed.
Yet I’m about to disturb it, he thought, in a major way. What will she say?
Maia was w
aiting for him to go on.
He paused in order to run through a few numbers in his head. Will five thousand be enough? No, better make it ten, he decided swiftly.
“I’ve been watching you with your daughter, and it’s clear you know what you’re doing,” he began. “As I mentioned this morning, I have a bit of a situation on my hands with my nephew.”
“Right,” Maia said, “you mean how you’re helping your brother by picking up Colby at three? That’s really good of you.”
He shook his head. “That’s actually just the beginning,” he said. “I’ve agreed to help my brother out with Colby for the next two weeks. Slightly over, actually. He’s out of town, and Colby will be staying with me.”
Maia raised her brows. “You’re a good brother,” she said. “That’s a big commitment. How do you plan to manage it?”
“That’s where you come in. I hope,” Ben said. “How would you feel about working as a nanny in my home for the next two weeks? I have plenty of room in my townhouse for you and your daughter. You could oversee the care of Colby. I’d pay you well for your time. I was thinking ten thousand dollars.”
Maia’s green eyes grew wide. “Ten… ten thousand dollars? That sounds… well, that sounds great, Mr. Briars.”
“Good,” Ben said. “It would be ideal if you could begin tonight. I’ll pick up Colby from daycare, and you can take off early in order to pack. We can go out to dinner to get the kids acquainted, and then you’ll come home with us.” His brow furrowed as a thought occurred to him. “You don’t have pets, do you?”
To his relief, Maia shook her head. “No cats or dogs, sir. Just a goldfish, and my neighbor Caroline can look after him.”
“Perfect.”
Maia’s cheeks were flushed pink again, and Ben wondered if she was upset about something. It occurred to him that maybe he’d put her on the spot, and she really didn’t want to work as a live-in nanny at all.
Just as he was about to speak, a grin graced Maia’s lips. “So, we’ll start tonight,” she said. Her tone sounded happy. “Great. This will be fun.”
Ben wasn’t sure if that was the right word—he wouldn’t call anything about a change to his meticulously calculated schedule fun—but he nodded agreement anyway. With Maia’s help, he’d survive the next two weeks, and that was what mattered at the moment.
“Sure,” he said to Maia. “Something like that.”
Chapter 4
Maia
Maia shrugged her shoulder, so the oversized tote bag’s strap moved back an inch or two. With her free hand, she gripped the cool brass door handle. The word “Pauline’s” was written across the door in curling script. She hoped that Ben had made a reservation, as the restaurant was packed with patrons.
Her other hand curled around Joy’s.
“Want me to hold your bag, honey?” she asked, looking down at her daughter. Joy’s tiny backpack bulged, thanks to the clothing items that Maia had stuffed inside.
“I got it, Mommy,” Joy said seriously. Then, “Where does Mr. Bry live?”
Maia had already fielded many questions, over the course of the afternoon, about their impending stay with Benjamin Briars. She didn’t mind answering a few more.
“Mr. Briars lives in a different part of the city than we do,” she said. “He will take us to his house tonight. I bet it’s a very nice house.” She squeezed her daughter’s hand reassuringly as she scanned the restaurant, looking for her boss.
The establishment’s interior was dimly lit. Candles flickered on the tabletops, and guests were dressed in formal attire. Servers moved through the space looking like ballet dancers as they spun and swooped, balancing full trays with ease.
“Mommy, Mr. Bry is a daddy?”
“No, sweetie,” Maia said. She stood on her tiptoes so that she could search the far end of the restaurant.
“Why does he have a kid?” Joy asked.
Maia had explained this many times already, but she did so again. “Mr. Briars is Colby’s uncle, honey,” she said. “Just like you have Uncle Jimmy in Iowa.”
“Uncle Jim Jim at the farm?” Joy asked.
“Exactly,” Maia said with a nod. She thought she caught sight of Ben in the very back of the restaurant. With Joy’s hand still tucked in hers, Maia began walking in that direction.
“Mr. Bry married?” Joy asked. “Like Uncle Jim Jim?”
Maia realized that in her own way, Joy was trying to compare Mr. Briars to the only other uncle she knew of.
“No,” Maia explained. “Mr. Briars is an uncle, but he’s not married like Uncle Jimmy.”
“No? Why not?” Joy asked.
They neared the table that Maia had thought she’d spotted her boss at. Suddenly, the man seated there turned, and Maia saw that it was indeed Ben. His face lit up with recognition, and Maia smiled and waved.
Without answering her daughter’s question—because how could she when she’d often wondered herself why her boss was not married—Maia spoke in a low tone. “Joy, sweetie, be nice to Colby, okay?”
“Yes, Mommy,” Joy murmured.
Ben stood and reached out to help Maia with her bag. With the luggage stowed safely along the wall just behind their table, Maia felt more at ease. She’d seated Joy next to Colby, who was an adorable boy with the same wavy dark blond hair that her boss had.
Ben had removed his black suit jacket and his tie. His shirt was unbuttoned, and his sleeves rolled up. Maia felt flustered as she reached for a tall, fluted glass filled with ice water. Her hand shook slightly, and she tried to steady it.
I’m going to be staying at his house! she thought nervously. I’ll be sleeping under the same roof as Ben Briars! The thought had first flitted through her mind earlier that day, just after he’d proposed the extra work to her. She remembered how her cheeks had flushed the minute he’d brought up the idea of the overnight work.
Get it together, Maia, she scolded herself. She forced her hand to steady and took a small sip of the ice water.
“Glad you found the place okay,” Ben was saying. “I hope traffic wasn’t terrible for you.”
“We took the subway,” Maia said.
“You did?” Ben seemed surprised to hear this. “With your overnight bags?”
“Sure,” Maia said. “We packed light, and we’re used to it. Joy and I are experts at navigating the subway, aren’t we?” She focused on Joy, who was just barely tall enough to see over the edge of the table.
Joy was too busy introducing herself to Colby to answer her mother. “Joy Emma Cormack,” she said, with her hand on her chest. Then she pointed to the plush toy that Colby clutched in his tiny hands. “That’s Pete?” she said.
Maia looked over at Ben. “You brought a toy to dinner?” she said.
“Per your advice,” he said.
“Nice.” She grinned. “I think you’re going to be just fine at this.”
“That was my one move,” he said. “Colby started crying as soon as I picked him up, asking for his dad. I drove right over to the toy store and let him pick something out. It stopped the crying, but that’s all I got.” He held his hands out, showing they were empty. “I’m out of moves.”
He reached for his glass of beer and took a sip. Then with a flick of his hand, he hailed a server. “Would you like a drink?” he asked as the server approached. “Dinner is on me,” he added.
While Maia pursued the wine list and then changed her mind and requested a bottled beer, she kept one ear on the conversation that was occurring between the two young ones at the table.
“He’s my bestest friend,” Colby said of his stuffed animal.
“No, Pete the Penguin is my best friend,” Joy said. “I have the book. Nana gave it to me.”
“I love Pete the most,” Colby insisted.
“No, I do,” Joy said.
“I do!” Colby said, his voice louder now and edged with emotion. “I love Pete this much!” He opened his arms wide.
“I love him this much!” Joy said,
spreading her arms wide. She wasn’t an argumentative child, but she wasn’t one to back down easily, either.
Maia handed the beverage menu up to the server, then looked over at the children. “You know what?” she told the two toddlers. “I have something very exciting to tell you. Are you ready to listen?”
“Hrmph.” Colby clutched Pete to his chest and looked as though he might cry.
Maia could feel her boss’s eyes on her, and she knew he was curious to see how she would handle the situation.
She smiled first at Colby and then at Joy. “The really magical thing about love is that it can be really, really big. So big that we can’t even measure it!”
Colby opened his eyes wide. “That big?” he said.
Maia nodded. “Yep,” she said cheerfully.
Joy looked at Colby. “Maybe we both love Pete the Penguin the same,” she said.
Colby held out his toy. “You can hold him, if you want to.”
Joy accepted the gift, and the two started chatting about penguins.
Maia looked away just as Joy brought up the fact that she liked Pete the Penguin’s yellow feet, because they helped him to “swim super fast and catch fishes.”
She noticed that Ben was chuckling to himself. A server swooped past the table, depositing a bottled beer on his way.
“Crisis averted,” Ben said, raising his own beer.
“Cheers to that,” Maia said, lifting her bottle, too.
As she sipped her drink, she felt an effervescent feeling fill her body, matching the bubbles that rose up in her drink. This is going to be a good few weeks, she thought to herself, as she watched Ben out of the corner of her eye.
He looked different, here in the ambient lighting of the restaurant. It occurred to her, too, that she’d never seen him without a tie on.
She lifted her gaze and was drinking in his handsome profile when he met her eye.
“I think this will work out well,” he said. “The two seem to get along.” He motioned with his chin over to the toddlers, who were giggling together. “This is the happiest I’ve seen Colby all day. He’s had a rough year… I worried about the change to his routine.”