Fake-Dating The Single Dad (Gems 0f Love Book 3)

by Agnes Canestri

  Nick’s gaze steeled. “Yep.” He didn’t elaborate. He bent down and reached into the bag. Instead of a book, he picked up one of the picture frames. Luckily, still intact.

  His eyes softened. “That’s you, right?”

  Ginny leaned closer to take a look at which photo he had in his hand. As she did, a tantalizingly delightful fragrance hit her nostrils.

  Was it Nick who smelled this nice? She sniffed once more, and the scent of roasted nuts and freshly cut grass wafted over her. Her knees wobbled, and she grabbed at his arm to keep her balance.

  He reached out, and as his fingers engulfed her forearm, her skin heated. This man was becoming like kryptonite for her resolution to keep her focus on the prize. Why was his closeness so detrimental to her ability to reason?

  She straightened before Nick could notice how abashed she was. “Yes, that’s me at fourteen. And those two are my twin brother and sister. The other two are my cousins.”

  Nick’s eyes were fixed on the photo. “Gosh, you truly made a caterpillar transformation, didn’t you?”

  “What do you mean?” Ginny’s peered at the picture. Ah, sure. The braces and her mother’s insistence that she comb her hair and dress like a good Catholic girl didn’t help the case of teenage acne she had. So Nick noticed how ugly she was.

  A smile tugged on Nick’s lower lip. “I meant that you metamorphosed into a ravishing butterfly.”

  Ginny’s cheeks began to burn. “Jeez, thanks. I guess.”

  Was Nick implying that he thought she looked ravishing now? No, it was probably his writer habit to speak with such pathos. Any person with sight could see that Ginny had cleaned up since her adolescence.

  Nick seemed to ignore the effect his comment had on her as he continued observing the picture. “So you weren’t lying about your experience as a childminder?”

  Ginny jerked back. Did he assume she’d invented her siblings to get the position? “Of course not. Why would you think that?”

  He blinked at her, his eyes bearing a teasing gleam. “Well, not everything in your story was clear. Like how a mother told you about this position.”

  “It really was a mom, I met her on the playground and she—” Nick put his finger on her lip to block her babbling.

  Soft tingles seared into her skin.

  “Ginny, I was just joking. I don’t care how you heard about this job. I’m glad you did. Jacob likes you a lot, and he’s hard to please. Ever since his mom left, he’s been unreceptive of other mother figures around him. Besides Marcia, you’re the only one he has opened up to. I don’t care if you bugged my phone or went through our garbage to find out we needed a nanny.”

  Ginny’s shoulders relaxed. She held up two fingers. “I swear I didn’t search through your rubbish, nor stalk anyone.”

  Well, not Nick or his family, anyways.

  A piece of what Nick said struck a chord in Ginny. So Jacob’s mother was alive. He wasn’t a widower like she’d assumed.

  “Did you and Jacob’s mom divorce?”

  Nick’s face pulled into a cold grimace again. It must be a pretty ugly story if it got him worked up like that. Ginny thought he wouldn’t answer, but then he exhaled and said, “Yes, we did. Almost five years ago.”

  Ginny clapped a hand to her chin. How was that even technically possible? “Isn’t Jacob just a bit more than five? It would mean that…” She let her voice trail off. She didn’t want to mention anything that she shouldn’t.

  Nick sucked in a breath. “I guess it’s good that you know this. You’re going to live here, after all, and I’ll need your help in—” He paused and pressed his lips together. He shook his head. “We can discuss that later. For now, it’s enough to say that our divorce was bad. Heather, my ex-wife, walked out on Jacob and me when he was only five months old.”

  Ginny’s eyes widened, and she had a hard time suffocating an incredulous cry that rose in her throat. A five-month-old baby?

  Then she thought about her aunt, Sandra. She had walked out on her cousins, Matteo and Bianca, when they were still kids. Yes, but not babies. What kind of mother abandons a newborn like that?

  “I’m sorry, Nick. It had to be hard. I’m sure your wife had her reasons.” Ginny didn’t want to find any excuse for a woman she didn’t know and who had hurt Jacob. The kid, even if they’d only spent three days together, was wiggling his way into Ginny’s heart all too quickly. But she figured it wasn’t her place to judge.

  Nick sniffed. “Yes, she had. And he had lots of dollar signs stamped on his forehead.”

  Ginny blinked at Nick.

  His features looked like they were made out of plastic. She preferred his obvious discomfort from before. This glacial mask looked scary to her.

  It was clear why he didn’t like to write happy stories and preferred the gloomy investigations and emotionless detectives as his theme.

  A need to brighten his mood overcame her, and without realizing what she was doing, she reached up and caressed his cheek. His five o’clock shadow tickled the tips of her fingers.

  He flinched but didn’t move away. Slowly the impassive look quit his face, and his eyes sprang to life. Though it would have been better if they hadn’t. The way his pupils dilated, reducing his brown irises to a faint circle did things to Ginny’s insides that she didn’t want.

  That moment Jacob’s excited shouting infiltrated through the half-closed door.

  She let her hand fall and took a step back.

  “Ginny, where are you? Muffins are ready.”

  “I’m coming,” she called back, then looked at Nick.

  He was still watching her with blazing eyes.

  She shuddered. “Are you coming?”

  He slowly shook his head. “No, I need to get back to my writing.”

  “Fine, then see you later. Thanks for your help.” Ginny jabbered the words as fast as she could before she blitzed to the door.

  In the safety of the corridor, she lifted her palms and pressed them on her cheeks. What had just happened? Was this connection she’d felt to him real?

  She shook her head and smoothed down her blouse. It wasn’t something to worry about. There might have been some chemistry between her and Nick, but it would be a stretch to call it a connection. She probably thought this because they’d shared some personal stuff with each other.

  He was her boss and she, well, she was his son’s nanny. It was time she resumed acting like it.

  She hurried to the stairs and shouted, “On my way, Jacob. Don’t eat them all up.”

  Chapter 7

  Nick massaged his forehead with three fingers.

  Gosh, he was too old to be pulling an all-nighter, that’s for sure. He closed his eyes and sighed. If only he’d done more writing instead of fantasizing about that weird moment in Ginny’s room.

  He shook his head to chase away the surging memory of her fingers brushing against his face. Maybe a strong coffee would help his throbbing headache. He pushed back his chair and stood up. His monitor turned black as he tapped the lockdown keys.

  He strolled to the door, thinking about the next scene in his chapter. Should Detective Riley meet that mysterious brunette again? Would a gunfight at the harbor be an adequate closing before his hero moved on with the Russian gang?

  As he stepped out of his office, he bumped into Ginny.

  Her brows shot up. “Wow, you look like you didn’t sleep well last night.” She clapped her hand to her mouth. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude… I just—”

  “Don’t worry, Ginny. I know. I had a restless night, to say the least.” He avoided her eyes, hoping his casual words would ward off further questions. If Ginny asked what was preoccupying him, he wouldn’t be able to keep a straight face.

  He couldn’t let her know that she was affecting him. It didn’t mean anything. He’d been alone ever since his divorce, so it was normal for a beautiful woman to trigger his imagination.

  Ginny gave him a compassionate smile. “I know what you mean
. I had a hard time falling asleep too. It must be related to the weather somehow, so hot and sultry.”

  Nick stared at her mouth as she pronounced these last words.

  Hot and sultry. Yes, that pretty much described it.

  He kicked himself for letting his thoughts wander again in the wrong direction. She was talking about the weather, you idiot.

  Why was he behaving this bizarrely? He was a responsible adult, and he knew his priorities. He needed Ginny’s help with Heather. So any tingle or sizzle that he got from her had to be ignored. It was a simple bodily reaction.

  He forced a polite smile on his face. “Would you care to have a coffee? I was about to make some.”

  Ginny shook her head. “I can’t, I’m sorry. I probably need some, but I don’t want to be late.”

  Nick furrowed his brows and peered at his watch. It was just after lunchtime. “Where are you going? Have a date?” He added the last part as a sort of joke, but as Ginny nodded, his chest fluttered. “Ah, so a date, huh? With whom?”

  Ginny winked. “My favorite man in the world, as of now. Your son.”

  “Jacob?”

  Ginny giggled. “Yes, I promised I’d go and pick him up today, instead of Chuck. I might have hinted at ice cream as well.”

  Nick’s stomach warmed at the thought of his son seeing someone besides his driver when he came out of the school. Nick drove Jacob every morning himself to spend more time with him, but the pick-up times were troublesome for his writing schedule.

  “That’s very nice of you. I’m sure he’ll be happy to see you.”

  Ginny waved it off. “I’m doing it as much for myself as for him. I just hope I won’t run into the mothers who—” She stopped, and her eyes darted to his, a guilty look spreading on her face. She looked like a little girl caught stealing a sweet from her grandfather’s cupboard.

  Nick chuckled. “You mean the moms who supposedly advised you to come and work for me?”

  She swallowed and squared her shoulders. “They did advise me. Only…” Her chin dropped to her chest. “I might have prompted them a little beforehand.”

  Nick’s grin grew wider. It was still a bit shady how Ginny’d managed to learn about his need for a nanny. But he didn’t mind it. She was sweet with Jacob, and that’s all that counted.

  Of course, a nanny with hair on her face would be a far safer choice. It would be easier to concentrate on his plan without these distracting butterflies in his chest. But there was no point in questioning whether Ginny was suitable for his purposes. His son had made his choice.

  And in the end, wasn’t it better for Nick to pretend to be in love with someone he felt attracted to?

  He cleared his throat. “I won’t dig into this any further, okay?”

  Her shoulders dropped, and she raised her head. She looked relieved. “Good, thanks. Anyways, I’ll go then.”

  She was about to turn when an idea occurred to Nick. “How will you get to Riversmith if Chuck isn’t bringing you?”

  Ginny shrugged. “I’ll take the bus to my house, then fetch my car. Don’t worry, I won’t let Jacob use public transport. I know how protective you are of him.”

  Nick scratched his chin. His head was still hurting. Perhaps besides a coffee, he could use a break, too. “Why don’t I come with you?”

  Ginny’s eyes widened. “Don’t you have work to do?”

  He sighed. “In theory, yes, but on days like this, it can take me hours to write a single paragraph. So I might just tag along and surprise Jacob.”

  “He’d be in seventh heaven if you came, too, I’m sure.”

  Nick clapped his hands. “Okay. If we drive in my car, we’ll get there much sooner. We might even have time to get a coffee before the preschoolers are let out.”

  Even though the way to Jacob’s school was the same as every other morning, Nick had a hard time keeping track of which turn he had to take. Jacob would always chat about his friends or his favorite cartoons, and the mood would be mellow and relaxed. Now, however, with Ginny sitting so close in his convertible, the atmosphere was considerably different. She sat with her legs crossed, staring out of the window, and although she was quiet, her presence filled every inch of the car. It wasn’t just her flowery smell. No, it was something about her aura that Nick couldn’t quite pinpoint yet.

  Detective Riley’s heart thumped in his chest as the woman’s mighty presence embraced his soul, turning it into something he didn’t quite recognize—just like a flute taming a venomous snake into a powerless, dancing beast.

  “Watch out!” Ginny screamed and grabbed the wheel, steering it to the left.

  “Oh, fudge.” Nick’s fingers hurried to enhance her movement.

  Phew, just in time. They’d almost hit a roadblock. How could he get this distracted?

  After the car was back in its lane, he shot a side-glance at Ginny.

  She was sitting with her back straight, her eyes fixed on the road. Great, she couldn’t look tenser. She must be wondering why he’d been given a driver’s license at all.

  “I’m sorry, Ginny. I’m never this sloppy when I drive, you must believe me.”

  Ginny nodded. “I do. You wouldn’t risk your son’s life each morning.” She turned to him, her face still pale from the excitement. “You know, I was in a car accident once. It’s not an experience I’m keen on repeating. Are you sure you don’t want me to drive?”

  Nick bit his inner lip. So not only did he scare Ginny, he’d reminded her of something awful. “I’m sorry if my carelessness brought up some bad memories. Were you hurt?”

  “No, I wasn’t. None of us were, only the car got wrecked. I guess we were fortunate.”

  “When was it?”

  Ginny sucked in a breath. “A pretty long time ago, actually. We were in Italy, like every summer. My dad and my mom always closed their restaurant for August, and moved us all to Sorrento.”

  Summers in Italy? It sounded like a great childhood, more exciting than Nick’d ever had. “So were you with your parents when it happened?”

  Though he kept facing the road, not wanting to make a further mistake, from the corner of his eyes, he saw Ginny blush.

  “No, I was with a boy. You know, an adolescent crush that makes you think it’s a great idea to drive around with a guy who has no license.”

  Nick’s neck muscles flexed. The mention of Ginny having feelings for a man disturbed him.

  Was he nuts? It wasn’t even a man, but a boy. Ginny had been a teenager when it happened.

  And it wasn’t even his business whom his nanny liked or didn’t. He should only care that she didn’t have a particular person in her life right now. Otherwise she would never accept his offer.

  “I see. I’m glad you grew out of that age and you can choose your driver more wisely.”

  Ginny’s head snapped to him. “Can I? You almost smashed us on that barricade.” Her voice was teasing, but it still made Nick’s heart pump faster.

  “I did, and I’m sorry for it. It won’t ever happen again.”

  Ginny smiled. “Good. I’ll buy you a double espresso, just in case.”

  “Okay, I’ll take you up on that offer, because we’ve arrived.”

  Nick parked the car outside of the school’s premises so they could easily walk to the coffee shop on the corner without having to pass by the security guards twice.

  As they got out, the heat of the midday sun assaulted them.

  Nick put one hand to his eyes to shade them from the blinding light, and with the other, he pointed at the sign, LuLu’s Haven. “I’ve never actually tried it, but the mothers in Jacob’s class are smitten with the place.”

  Ginny was twisting her long hair into a bun. “As long as they serve a normal size espresso and not just lattes, I’m fine.” Her fingers worked her tresses with the ability of a magician, and in a few seconds, the dark mane that had covered her shoulders was arranged in a neat updo.

  Nick watched how a few tendrils curled on the side of her
ears. “It suits you.”

  Ginny’s brows arched. “What do you mean?”

  Nick swallowed. He shouldn’t have commented on her looks. But it was already done, so he just shrugged. “The bun, it looks good on you.”

  Her cheeks tinted in a shade of pink. “Thanks, it’s so warm today. Maybe I’ll get an iced coffee, after all.”

  Nick gave her a thumbs up. “Good idea, shall we?”

  They walked to the coffee shop. The cold air-conditioning was a blessing after the blazing outside temperature. They stood in line behind two women.

  The redhead looked familiar to Nick. And also that treble soprano. Oh, no. That’s Dave’s mother. What’s her name…Marie…Margot? No, Margaret. Yes, it was Margaret for sure. Let’s hope she wasn’t going to try to coax him into a playdate again. Jacob didn’t even like Dave.

  The woman, as if she sensed Nick’s inquiring gaze on her back, turned, and her carefully painted lips curled up. “Oh, Nick Peterson. What a surprise to see you here.” Her eyes traveled to Ginny, and her smile widened. “Ah, and I see you’ve hired Jessica, after all.”

  Jessica? Nick’s brows shot up.

  Ginny froze beside him, her eyes bulging as if she’d seen a ghost.

  Nick stifled a laugh. Okay, this is going to be interesting.

  Chapter 8

  No, no. This simply couldn’t be true. Why on Earth did she have to bump into Margaret again? And the woman beside her? Darn it, nobody else but Amy.

  Heat crept up Ginny’s back. If, before this, Nick only suspected the questionable methods she’d used to get her job, now he’d know with certainty.

  Would he release her from her duties after finding out she’d even lied about her name to get these mothers to talk?

  Nick turned slowly to her, his brows pulled into a bemused grimace. “Jessica? Ah, right, yes. I hired Jessica on the spot.”

  Ginny jerked back, her throat too dry to answer. What? Was Nick playing along with her lie?

  Amy shot a knowing look at Margaret. “You see, my dear, I told you they were going to be a good match. After all, Jessica trained that little Freddie Knight into a bearable fellow who now sleeps through the night.”