Emma had just experienced the most wonderful afternoon. She had to hold on to that instead of what she wanted from Daniel...or even what she needed. She could live in this romantic pink glow for a while. It would hold her until she and Daniel were alone again...until she could tell him out loud and clearly what she felt. They chatted on the way home. Every now and then Daniel would reach over and take her hand and they would silently revel in what they’d experienced together. Thoughts of Lydia and the three P’s didn’t invade their intimacy until Daniel veered onto his street and then pulled into the driveway.
After he switched off the SUV, he unfastened his seat belt and then unfastened hers. Leaning toward her, he caressed her cheek. “One more kiss before we go inside.”
She was afraid everything would change between them when they went in. But it shouldn’t. Not after what they’d just experienced together.
The tenderness in Daniel’s kiss was obvious. With each nibble of her lips and each stroke of his tongue, he showed how much he cared. Closing her eyes, she was back in that hotel room with him, shutting out the world. Once they realized how long the kiss had gone on, they broke away from each other. They recognized reality when they felt it. She just hoped they were on the same page with everything else.
Emma and Daniel had hardly reached the front door when it was thrown open. The three P’s poured out.
Pippa wasn’t just crying, she was actually sobbing. She ran to Emma. “I want my hair back.”
Emma took a good look at her and realized her pretty, wavy, shoulder-length hair had been trimmed into a pixie cut!
Lydia stood in the open doorway. “I took them all to a hair salon because I had an appointment I didn’t want to break. Doesn’t it look adorable?”
Through her hiccups, Pippa was shaking her head. Her hair didn’t swing any more. “I hate it.”
Daniel was scowling. He asked Lydia, “Didn’t you ask her before you had it cut?”
“Why would I ask her? She’s only seven. I know what looks best around her face. Plus, this won’t take nearly as much care.”
Emma felt annoyed with Lydia and sad for Pippa. Yes, the long hair had required maintenance, but she hadn’t minded. She had brushed Pippa’s hair and arranged it in pigtails and French braids. She’d liked doing it for her. Crouching down to Pippa without hesitation, she said softly, “I understand you don’t like it, but it will grow out.”
“By tomorrow?” Pippa wailed.
“Not by tomorrow. But you know what? I bet we could find some cute hair bands with butterflies or flowers on them. You could wear those in your hair. They’d look cute.” Emma pretended to pinch Pippa’s nose. “Especially with this button nose.”
Pippa brushed Emma’s hand away with a tiny bit of a smile. “My nose isn’t a button.”
Paris had her lips smashed together as if whatever was inside of her was bursting to come out. She pointed to Lydia. “She doesn’t know how to handle kittens. She wouldn’t even clean out their litter box. I did it.”
“Those kittens are dirty. They can’t even wash themselves yet,” Lydia pointed out. She showed Daniel her arm. “That momma cat scratched me.”
Now Penny chimed in. “That’s because you dropped one of the kittens and Fiesta was protecting her baby.”
Lydia threw up her hands. “Obviously I’m doing everything all wrong. None of you want me here. I’m going back to Virginia.”
As she stalked away, Daniel went after her.
Emma knew exactly what she had to do. She couldn’t separate a mother from her children. She’d lived without her mom all these years. She couldn’t let the three P’s lose their mom. And she couldn’t help thinking that her being around was making the problems between Lydia and the girls worse—that Lydia was messing up because she felt threatened by Emma and the way the girls turned to her first. If Emma stayed, she was sure Lydia would leave...but would that be what was best for the three P’s? She could stay and fight for Daniel, but who would lose? His daughters.
As soon as she settled down the three P’s, she’d pack.
* * *
Daniel hurried after Lydia, wanting to stay with Emma and the three P’s, yet knowing for his daughters’ sake he couldn’t let their mom leave their lives.
In the spare room, Lydia had pulled one of her suitcases onto the bed and was packing it. She’d already put in pairs of shoes. His guess was, one of the suitcases was devoted to them.
She glanced over her shoulder at him then went to the closet and plucked three handbags off a hook. She added those to the shoes.
“Lydia, you have to be more patient with Paris, Pippa and Penny. If you are, they’ll be patient with you. Get their take on things. Ask their opinions.”
Lydia brushed away his words with a fling of her arm. “I’ve made some decisions.”
“Don’t have a knee-jerk reaction to what just happened.”
“This isn’t knee-jerk, believe me. I’ve been thinking about it ever since I arrived. Don’t you think I see the way Emma relates to them?”
Daniel knew Emma related like a mother should. Maybe not “should.” Emma was Emma. She was filled with compassion. It was one of the many things he admired about her.
When she’d murmured to him that she loved him, Daniel hadn’t been able to say it back. His life was so complicated. They hadn’t known each other long. He couldn’t make another wrong decision, for his daughters’ sake.
He responded to Lydia. “Emma is just a naturally warm person.”
“What you’re saying is... I’m not.”
“Don’t put words in my mouth.”
“And don’t act as if we’re still married. We’re not. When I arrived here, maybe I had hoped there was still a slight chance for us. I’ve realized so many things over the past few days.”
Daniel ran his hand up and down the back of his neck. He had to say what was true. “Lydia, our marriage had been over for a long time, even before we filed for divorce.”
“I know, and I turned to Allen because we were more alike. I had a long talk with him last evening. He made me see I didn’t try to make things better with you. I just ran away. The truth was, and is, I love the girls. But caring for them twenty-four hours a day...”
She shook her head. “That wasn’t me then and it isn’t me now. I do love Allen. And even though I came here looking for a solution instead of turning to him, he still loves me.”
Daniel’s view of Allen had been distorted ever since the affair. They’d been more than partners before that. They’d been friends. He knew he had to forgive Allen just as he’d forgiven Lydia or he couldn’t move forward.
Trying to find out exactly what else was in Lydia’s head, he said without judgment, “So you’re going back to Alexandria and forgetting about the girls again?”
Her response was immediate. “No. I know I was wrong not to come back here and visit them. But I think I have to consider them and me differently.”
“Differently?”
“As you’ve noticed, I’m not like Emma. I care about shopping, hair and nails, the latest fashions. I don’t care about soccer games and hiking in the woods and swimming tournaments. Now I know I’m going to have to become interested in those to connect with the girls. However, I think we’d be better off if they connect with me in my environment, too. Yes, I’ll come back to Spring Forest to visit, but I’d like to show them the sights in Alexandria. Would you bring them there to visit me? I know you don’t want to see Allen, but—”
“If Allen is part of your life, then if the girls visit you, he’ll be a part of theirs, too, whether he’s physically present or not, right?”
“You were always the practical one,” Lydia murmured. “So you’ll come and visit me with them, maybe with Emma, too?”
“That depends on Emma.”
Lydia closed the suitcase on her shoes an
d purses. “No, Daniel, a lot of it is going to depend on you.”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“Sure you do. How she feels depends on whether she comes along as a nanny or as your significant other.”
Tightness gripped his chest. “There’s so much to consider.”
Lydia shook her head. “No, there’s not. My guess is that Emma is in her room packing to leave.”
“What?” The word exploded from him.
“As you said, Emma is warm, compassionate and loving. I saw the look in her eyes down there when the girls turned to her instead of me. And I’m sure she saw my disappointment. She’s the type of woman who will do what’s best for Penny, Pippa and Paris. I suspect that she thinks she needs to leave so we can become a family again.”
“She can’t leave,” Daniel said quickly.
“Why not, Daniel?”
The pieces of this puzzling dilemma slipped into place. Emma couldn’t leave. Not because he needed her as a nanny or an office manager, but because he wanted her to be his life partner.
He loved her.
“You’d better go tell her, and you better make it good, or you’re going to have an empty suite down there and a huge hole in your life.”
After studying Lydia, Daniel asked, “What’s the possibility that you and I can become friends?”
Lydia titled her head...and smiled. “It’s a very good possibility.”
“You’re not going to leave tonight, are you?”
“I’ll stay until morning. I do want to make sure that the three P’s don’t think it’s their fault I’m leaving. Maybe I can show them a map of Alexandria on your computer, and we can discuss a visit.”
“That sounds good,” Daniel agreed. He turned toward the door. “I have to find Emma and tell her how I feel. I just hope she’ll believe me.”
As Daniel jogged down the stairs and headed for Emma’s room, his heart had never beaten so fast. He should have analyzed his feelings and talked about their future before they left the hotel. He should have faced his feelings then. He just hoped it wasn’t too late.
Emma hadn’t even closed her door. The dresser drawers were pulled out, and her clothes lay straggled across the bed. The sight of her suitcase scared him like no other sight could.
He burst into Emma’s suite. “You can’t leave.”
Tears ran down her cheeks and she turned to him. “Daniel, I have to leave. Paris and Pippa and Penny deserve to know Lydia. She deserves to know them. If I stay, I’ll just be in the way.”
“You are not in the way. I need you. My daughters need you.”
Emma was shaking her head. “Ever since Lydia arrived, I’ve felt as if you turned to me on the rebound. I’m convenient, Daniel. And I don’t want to be convenient. Your needing me is not a good enough reason for me to stay.”
Daniel took Emma’s elbow and guided her over to the bed to sit beside him. She kept her eyes on her lap, though.
“I need to catch you up on what’s happening. Lydia had a long talk with her husband. They want to make their marriage work.”
That statement coaxed Emma’s face around to his.
He went on, “She’s going back to Alexandria tomorrow morning. First, she’s going to convince the three P’s that they are not the reason she’s leaving.”
“She’s leaving because of me,” Emma said dejectedly.
“No, that’s not true. She sees you as the loving woman you are, and she wants the girls to be in your care. She feels she has to learn how to relate to them on their terms, but also on her terms. She wants them and us to come visit her in Alexandria. I think she’s right, Emma. Lydia is all about sightseeing, shopping and living someplace important. She considers Alexandria to be that and she wants to show it to her daughters. When she’s on her own turf, I really do think she’ll be able to relate to them better, and that they’ll be more understanding toward her, too.”
“She wants us to visit them?” Emma’s dark brown eyes were wide with surprise.
“Yes. She can see how I feel about you, and I hope how you feel about me. I made a terrible mistake this afternoon, not telling you how I feel before we left the hotel.”
He took both of her hands in his. “I love the way the right side of your lips turn up when you smile, your love of life, your compassion for anything furry with four feet. You give my daughters security they haven’t known for a long time. But more than anything, you give me your desire, your understanding and, I hope, your love.”
He stood and then kneeled on one knee before her.
Emma was crying and he hoped it was because she was happy, not because she was sad. He took her hand and gazed into her eyes. “I want you to be my partner, my confidante, my lover. But most of all, I want you to be my wife. Will you marry me, Emma Alvarez?” He held his breath waiting for her answer.
Emma felt as if she was on a merry-go-round that wouldn’t stop spinning. She’d been so happy with Daniel this afternoon. But after they’d come home, she’d thought she should leave him for his own good. Now, gazing into his eyes, she couldn’t believe he was asking her to be his wife. “Daniel, we haven’t known each other long.”
“I’ve known you long enough to know everything I need to know about you. I know you work hard. You have the biggest heart I’ve ever known, and you love with your body and soul. If you talk about need, that’s what I need. How about you?”
She loved Daniel so much she felt as if her heart was going to burst. She leaned down to wrap her arms around his neck. “I love you, too, Daniel, more than I ever thought possible. Yes, I’ll marry you.”
Daniel stood and swept her up into his arms. As he kissed her, the intensity of it declared his promise to take care of her, stand beside her, be faithful to her and love her for the rest of his life.
After they ended the spectacularly long kiss, they broke away from each other. But Daniel couldn’t stand the lack of contact. He leaned his forehead against hers. “We’ll have to make sure that the three P’s know they have two mothers instead of one.”
“I promise I won’t interfere whenever Lydia wants to spend time with them.”
“We’re going to make this work, sweetheart. I also realized I have to forgive Allen if he’s going to be in Lydia’s life...and my daughters’ lives. This is going to be a process for all of us. We’ll let the girls absorb all this slowly. I don’t want them to think we’re pushing them into relationships they don’t want. What I’m sure of more than anything is that they’ll turn to you on a daily basis. You have their hearts, Emma, just as you have mine.”
Daniel could see in Emma’s eyes that she felt the same joy he did—joy like he’d never known before. As he kissed her again, she held tight to him. He knew that they’d be holding on to each other for the rest of their lives.
Epilogue
A week later, Emma, Daniel and the girls walked into Furever Paws to volunteer. Lydia had left but she’d promised to call the three P’s at least once a week. They could text or call her whenever they wanted. Daniel had already set up a visit to Alexandria for a few days in August before the girls returned to school.
The first person they encountered in the shelter was Rebekah. She handed each of them a paper with their assignment. When Emma reached out to take the sheet, Rebekah gave a little squeal at the engagement ring on Emma’s finger.
Sunshine flowing through the windows caught the beautiful solitaire diamond. Daniel had surprised her with it last night.
“It’s official,” Emma said.
Daniel wrapped his arm around her. “More than official.”
Pippa hugged Emma around the legs. “Emma’s gonna stay with us forever.”
Rebekah glanced at Penny and Paris, who were also smiling. “Best wishes to all of you,” she said. She asked the girls, “Do you want to see the new cat enclosure? It’s almost f
inished.”
They all trailed after Rebekah to examine the expansion project. Emma quickly glanced at the screened-in porch where the cats could experience outside while still being safe inside.
“Are you going to add chairs to the porch?” Emma asked. “That way the cats can get used to people being around them, which would make them more adoptable.”
Rebekah nodded. “We were going to build a few cat trees, but that’s a great idea.”
After examining every nook and cranny of the enclosure, Pippa and Paris went to play with the puppies. Penny stuck with Emma. They were going to give attention to the animals in quarantine.
“I know we have to wash our hands really good afterward,” Penny said. Then she leaned close to Emma. “Did you talk to Dad about the kittens?”
“I did. Why don’t you go over there and talk to him?” Emma was getting supplies ready to clean out cages.
Emma watched as Penny went to her dad. They had a conversation for at least five minutes. One of the other volunteers took Penny with her to give her instructions on how much food to pour into the dogs’ bowls.
Daniel, with a booklet in hand, came over to Emma. “She asked me about the kittens,” he said.
“And what did you say?”
“Since you all ganged up on me, and since those kittens are so dang cute, I did make a few calls this morning. Two of my clients have kids Penny’s age. They’ve wanted pets for a long time. I told them these kittens would be socialized really well. They’re coming over to take a look at them, maybe this weekend.”
“And the others?” Emma asked.
He swung his arm around her. “I suppose if we can’t find homes, we’ll keep Fiesta and two kittens. You think that would make everyone happy?”
Even though they were standing at Furever Paws, even though people were milling about, Emma threw her arms around Daniel’s neck and kissed him. She kept the kiss short but satisfying.
“To be continued later?” he asked. “Remember, I’m going to make an honest woman of you in July.”
They had decided there was no reason to wait to get married. “I can hardly wait to be your wife.”
The Nanny Clause (Furever Yours Book 4) Page 18