“Regan?”
Her head turned toward him, and he ignored the way his gut twisted when their eyes met.
Regan heaved a sigh of relief as they drew to a stop before one another. Her light, floral perfume tickled his nose. When she was working, she’d taken to wearing a uniform of jeans and a sweater now that it was chillier outside. Today she wore a long, camel-colored wool coat over her jeans and somehow made it look chic with her Converse. Her hair spilled around her shoulders in perfect, silky red-gold waves. Thane realized over the weeks that she was just one of those women who looked well put together, no matter the occasion.
“Your phone is switched off,” she said, her eyes big and round, lashes fanning with the almost accusatory doe look.
“It is?” Fuck.
“Yeah. I spotted your model on the dining table about twenty minutes after you left and tried to call you to come back for it, but I went straight to voice mail.”
“Who’s watching Eils and Lewis?”
“Robyn. She took them to school. Don’t worry, Eilidh is much better and insisted on going because she didn’t want to miss the Halloween party tonight.”
“You didn’t have to come all the way out here,” he said, marveling that she’d driven all the way to Inverness. Regan was still wary of the roads here. Though familiar with Ardnoch, she hadn’t driven farther afield.
“I thought you had that meeting?”
“I do.” Thane took his work from her, their fingers sliding together with the transfer. He placed the model on the floor at his feet. “I’ll worry about you driving back now.”
Her expression softened. “I’ll be fine. I got here, didn’t I?” She frowned. “Though I’m pretty sure I’m parked illegally.”
Thane grinned. “It’s Lachlan’s car. He’ll get the ticket.”
Her laughter filled the space between them, and his gut tightened again.
Bloody hell.
“Adair.” A booming voice made him wince seconds before a hand came down hard on his shoulder.
Christ. He knew who it was without looking.
Paul Urquhart: mediocre architect and arsehole extraordinaire.
“Paul.” He sent an apologetic look to Regan, and she frowned in confusion.
“And who is this?”
Thane tensed and turned to his colleague. Paul studied Regan with the same heated sneer he’d give a lap dancer. The man was pure sleaze. Thane knew and hated this, but he’d never wanted to punch him as much as he did at that moment. Needing Regan gone from Paul’s presence, he opened his mouth to dismiss her. But she spoke first.
She held out a hand. “Regan. Thane’s nanny.”
Paul couldn’t even hide his surprised delight. He shook Regan’s hand, enfolding hers in both of his. “Enchanté, Regan, nanny of Thane.”
Something took over—obliterating his manners—at the sight of Paul touching Regan. Thane grabbed him by the bend of the elbow and yanked him off her.
“Regan, thank you for the portfolio, but we’re done here,” he clipped out impatiently.
She flinched. “Sure. I’ll see you later.” She marched away, her coat fluttering behind her. Regret filled him.
Thane squeezed his eyes shut. He had a headache coming on.
“Nanny.” Paul’s slithering tone prodded his eyes open again. He grinned lasciviously at Thane. “That’s your nanny?”
“What of it?”
“Does she live with you?”
“Paul,” he warned.
His eyes lit up. “She does!” His gaze shot down the corridor to where Regan had disappeared. “How do you sleep at night knowing prime pussy like that is under your roof? Unless …” He winked at Thane. “Aye, nobody would blame you if you were paying her a wee bit extra to take care of Daddy. Look at your face.” He barked out a repulsive laugh. “Don’t feel guilty, Adair. Women are all sluts. You’d just be giving her what she wants.”
Later, Thane would blame it on lack of sleep.
Whatever the reason, one minute Paul was on his feet, the next on his knees, clutching his bloodied nose.
It had been a horrendous day.
Beyond shattered, Thane walked into the house to find it quiet. Aromatic spices suggested dinner was ready or almost. Regan, to everyone’s surprise, had proven to be a damn decent cook.
However, Thane was used to Eilidh running to greet him, or at least the sounds of his children’s voices filling the large house. Instead, he heard music playing low.
Striding into the living area, he found Regan with her back to him at the stove, stirring a pot while another simmered. She’d scraped her hair into a ponytail that brushed between her shoulder blades. As she shifted, the hem of her cropped sweater revealed the smooth, golden skin of her slender back. Thane swallowed hard as he realized how much he was noticing (and enjoying) the way her jeans highlighted her firm, round arse.
Yanking his eyes away, he looked to the living room and saw it was empty. Eilidh and Lewis were nowhere to be seen. The only noise came from the smart speaker that sat at the end of the kitchen counter. A woman’s low-toned voice sung out of it about two people finding each other in the stars.
“Where are the kids?”
Regan shot him a quick glance over her shoulder before returning to the pot. “Halloween party tonight, remember? I dropped them off at school twenty minutes ago.”
Unease filled him at her emotionless tone. “Did you get them ready okay? No drama?”
“No drama. They looked adorable. Robyn took some great photos.”
He could imagine. Eilidh wanted to go as a unicorn, and Regan had sourced a pastel, rainbow-hued dress with a tutu skirt that came with matching unicorn wings and a unicorn headband with a horn. Eilidh loved it so much, he thought she was going to pass out with excitement when she saw it. And Lewis hadn’t wanted to dress up, but all his friends were going as Marvel characters and they wanted him to go as Ant-Man. Again, Regan had sourced the costume for them. Thane felt shit that he’d missed them going to the party, but he’d see them when he picked them up later. “We’ll need to add the photos to the wall if they’re that good.”
“They’re that good.” There was that emotionless tone again.
Thane dragged a hand down his beard, the long hairs reminding him he needed to trim the damn thing. But that would be after he smoothed things over with Regan.
“I’m sorry I snapped at you.” He stepped into the kitchen. “It wasn’t you I was angry with. It was Paul. He’s a sleazebag, and I didn’t want him talking to you.”
“Bit of an overreaction, no?” she replied, refusing to look at him.
Irritated that he couldn’t see her expression, he sighed. “Will you be an adult and face me when I’m talking to you?”
With angry, jerky movements, he watched Regan turn the stove down and then whip around, her arms crossed over her chest. “I am not one of your children. Do not speak to me like that. Ever.”
After the utter swine of a day, Thane did not want to argue with her. “I apologized. The mature thing to do is accept it.”
Regan’s eyes flashed, but as quickly as her ire appeared, she banked it. Using that annoying monotone again, she replied, “You’re right. My apologies. I’ll just get out of your hair. Your dinner is ready. You just need to plate it up.”
His heart hammered stupidly fast and as she moved to march past him, he reached for her without thinking. Thane wrapped a hand around her elbow, jerking her to a stop. Those gorgeous, warm brown eyes flew to his, and he saw what she was trying to hide.
Hurt.
He’d hurt her feelings.
Thane experienced another sharp pang of regret. “Regan, I’m sorry. I’m being a bastard. It’s not an excuse, but I’ve had a hell of a twenty-four hours. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to take it out on you by being a condescending prick.”
To his relief, she relaxed under his hold. Her eyes wandered over his face and sharpened. “What happened?”
“Just a long day.�
�� He released her, and her attention dropped to his hand.
“Thane.” She reached for him, gently cradling his right hand in hers. His knuckles were swollen. The look she gave him demanded answers as she repeated, “What happened?”
“I told you, I’m fine,” he said, but secretly he enjoyed Regan fussing over him.
After he’d explained about hitting Paul, miraculously avoiding criminal charges but not avoiding the conversation with his boss about why he’d hit Paul, Regan had pushed him down onto the sofa and told him to wait.
Thankfully for Thane, Allan, his boss, liked him and did not like Paul. Both he and Paul received warnings for their behavior and that if anything like it happened again, they’d both face termination.
Knowing it could have gone so much worse, relief filled Thane.
Regan handed him a beer. “Take with your left hand, please.”
He grinned and sipped his beer, feeling better already. “Thanks.”
She flicked him a dark look as she sat down close beside him. “Right hand.”
Thane’s lips trembled from holding back another grin as he did as she demanded. Out of nowhere, she produced a small bag of frozen peas and crushed them over his knuckles.
“Fuck,” he bit out at the shock of the cold.
“We need to get the swelling down.” She held it over his hand.
“I can do it,” he said, though he wanted her to.
“You can’t drink a beer and hold ice over your hand.”
“Considering how angry you are, I’m surprised you don’t just leave me to it.”
She shrugged, relaxing into the sofa. Drawing her knees up, they touched his outer thigh. “I feel bad you had a nightmare day.”
“It’s better already.” He took another swig of beer, watching her over the top of it.
Regan smiled softly, her dimples just teasing an appearance. She was so beautiful, it knocked the wind out of him sometimes.
“I can’t believe you punched a guy in the face.”
Scowling, Thane looked away. “He deserved it.”
“What exactly did he say about me?”
“Nothing worth repeating.”
They sat in silence for a moment. “Well … thank you for defending my honor.”
At the teasing note in her voice, Thane replied, “I was defending both of us.”
She frowned but as just as quickly, her confusion cleared. Her lips parted on a little “oh.” “He insinuated you and I …”
Thane grunted his yes.
“He’s not the first one. Even Lachlan knows there’s gossip around the village about us.”
Anger and something a lot like guilt had him barking as he slammed his beer down on the nearby coffee table. “Who else is gossiping? I thought it was just those bloody women at the school?”
Regan tutted and moved a little closer, drawing him back against the couch. “No need to get worked up about it. They’re just spreading their jealous bile from the school gates to the entire village. Everyone thinks you’re sneaking into my annex at night.”
The imagery her words conjured caused an instant reaction in his body, and he flew from the sofa before he did something they’d both regret.
“Your hand.” Regan jumped from the couch just as he moved to walk away, and they collided.
Thane instinctively reached out to steady her as she dropped the frozen peas to grab onto his arms. They tensed against each other, her body tight to his. He could feel the sharp rise and fall of her breasts, hear her quickened breathing, smell her skin.
“Bloody hell,” he muttered hoarsely as their fiery gazes connected.
And there it was, clear as day for him to see in those glittering, chestnut eyes.
Regan wanted him.
For a moment, a lust more powerful than he’d ever experienced clouded his mind. His hands seemed to move down her waist with a mind of their own, tracing the gentle curve of her hips to her tight arse. He gripped her in his hands and pulled her deeper against him, and she gasped at the feel of him hard and throbbing, pushing at her soft belly.
Bending his head toward her, desperate to taste her—finally—Thane was a mere whisper from her mouth when she broke the silence.
“Thane,” she moaned his name with so much need, a savage possessiveness flooded him.
“Thane, you in?” Lachlan’s voice cut through the house from the front entrance.
It was like being hammered by five thousand bags of frozen peas.
“Fuck,” he cursed, unable to believe what he’d just been about to do.
Regan stared up at him in confusion and then something like disappointment.
Oh, hell.
Before he could say another word, she slipped away, hurrying down the corridor behind the stairs, toward the side exit.
Still aroused, Thane scrambled for a large cushion on the sofa, snapped up the bag of peas, and sat down, covering his lap with the former and his knuckles with the latter.
Just in time.
His brother strode into the living room. “Robyn said the kids were at a Halloween party, so I thought I’d stop by, see if you fancied grabbing some food.” He frowned, his eyes going to the stove. “Looks like you’re already sorted for dinner, though.”
“Aye. Regan left it for me. Isn’t there a Halloween bash at the estate tonight?”
Lachlan shook his head as he wandered over to the stove. “We agreed to skip it this year after, well, Fergus and Lucy.”
Thane understood. One of Lachlan’s security guards had been murdered on the estate only a few months ago. The creepy Halloween party they usually put on at the castle would seem in poor taste this year.
“Chicken curry,” Lachlan announced, stirring the pot. “Enough for two.”
Thane laughed, trying to sound normal. “Grab us both a plate.” He held up his bruised knuckles and peas. “Had a bit of an incident.”
His brother frowned. “I’ll plate up, you explain. Want another beer?”
“Can’t. Picking up the kids from the party in a wee while.”
“Can’t Regan do that?”
Scowling, he snapped, “No, Regan can’t do it. She’s not my beck-and-call girl.”
Raising an eyebrow, Lachlan set out two plates. “I never said she was. You’re in a fucking mood.”
With a sigh, Thane slumped into the sofa. “It’s been a day.”
“Tell me.”
It took the length of the story about Paul for reality to cool his libido. He did not, however, mention his interlude with Regan. What the hell had he been thinking? He’d almost kissed her. Though burying his arousal in her stomach seemed worse than a kiss, anyway.
“I can’t remember the last time you lost the plot like that,” Lachlan observed as Thane sat down at the island with him to eat. His brother ate a forkful of chicken curry and rice. “Regan cook this?”
Thane nodded.
“She’s not bad at all.”
“I know. She’s been a godsend.”
And I’m the vile bastard who nearly took advantage of her.
“Is that why you cracked Paul in the face? Or is the village gossip getting to you?”
“How bad is the gossip? I wasn’t even aware of it until tonight.”
Lachlan shrugged. “People daren’t say to my face, but you know I have my ways. They’re all twittering about you being shacked up here with an attractive younger woman.” Seeing Thane’s horrified expression, Lachlan frowned. “It’s just gossip, and you haven’t let the village gossip bother you for years.”
“They’re nosy, bored, pains in my arse.”
“Aye, well. Even so … you haven’t been quick with your fists since you were a boy.”
It was true. When he was younger, Thane was always in some kind of fight. He was quick to anger whenever someone said shit regarding the people he cared about. A lot of the anger was from loss, but he’d mellowed with age.
“I would have punched that git, Guy, if you’d given me the chance.
But you beat me to it.” He referred to Arro’s ex-boyfriend, Lachlan’s former chef at the estate. Lachlan discovered he’d beat up Arrochar and had not only fired him but had taken a nasty swing at him too. Thane found out after the fact, once Lachlan’s security escorted Guy out of Ardnoch.
“Still. Sounds like you’re protective of Regan.”
Concerned Lachlan could tell she’d gotten under his skin, he shrugged. “Don’t you want me to be? She’s family. I’m just defending her as I would Arro or Robyn.”
“It’s appreciated.” Lachlan gave him a serious nod. “I’m glad it didn’t cause too much trouble for you.”
Too much trouble?
That was an understatement.
Regan was trouble.
But only because he wanted her.
Like really, really was seriously lusting after her.
His nanny.
His brother’s soon-to-be sister-in-law.
His employee, thirteen years his junior.
Never again, he vowed.
Thane was not that hotheaded youth anymore. He was a grown man with children and responsibilities and a respectable reputation within their community. He could control his attraction to an inappropriate woman.
Never again.
Thane could only hope Regan understood that. At any rate, he planned to make sure she did.
13
Regan
I was twenty-five years old.
You would think by now, especially after what I’d been through, that I wouldn’t be naive enough to assume that just because a woman got a man’s dick hard that it actually meant anything.
And boy, was Thane out to prove it didn’t.
My hurt was a deep, hot, wounded ache in my chest that I hadn’t expected. I had a crush on the guy, but after his treatment that morning, I worried my response meant it had developed into something more.
When he’d held me in his arms yesterday, I thought I was going to come out of my skin I was so desperate to have his mouth on me, his hands touching every inch of my body. Never had I been that turned on. And I’d read some smokin’, spectacular sex scenes in romance novels.
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