Carter’s insides clenched at her innocent words. A fierce emotion like rage tore through him like a typhoon. Never in his life had he felt like this, but he had no problem realizing that it was jealousy. Paralyzed by the force of it, he stood completely still while his muscles bunched and flexed with the strain of controlling his reaction.
It couldn’t be true. Hannah hadn’t said anything about a boyfriend, and nothing in her demeanor hinted at one. He knew he hadn’t mistaken the hint of warmth in her eyes when she looked at him or the charge of attraction in the air between them any time they were together. But Addi wouldn’t make something like that up.
“Are you okay, Daddy? You look mad.”
Shaking himself out of his emotional stupor, Carter forced himself to relax…at least physically. Managing to smile at her, he said, “I’m fine. Sorry. I was just thinking. Hey, do you want to swim out to the sandbar with me and see if you can touch the bottom there?”
“Yes! Let’s go.”
“Okay. Hold on. I’m going to go take my shirt off so we can head out.”
He just needed to get away for a minute—to spend some time with his head under water and remind himself which girl really mattered in his life. Only Addilynn.
His intentions were good, but as he walked up the sand, he couldn’t help looking Brant over and comparing himself to the guy. He thought they were about the same age, but he was bigger than the over-muscled twerp. When they’d shook hands, he’d realized he had at least five inches on the guy. And even though he obviously spent more time lifting weights than Carter did, Carter knew his physique showed the hours he spent running and working out.
He wasn’t sure what came over him, unless it was just pure male competitiveness, but he made sure to stand in Hannah’s view when he pulled his shirt off. If Hannah was dating this guy, he felt no compunction about trying to make her feel dissatisfied with her choice. He strode over to an empty beach chair and tossed his shirt on to it. “I’m going to take Addi out for a swim,” he told Hannah. As he spoke, he realized that his voice was deeper than usual and tight with tension, but hopefully she wouldn’t notice. He nodded to Charlotte, ignored Brant completely and strode back into the water.
He picked Addi up, tossed her up onto his shoulders, and walked with her into deeper water. When he reached the sandbar, he reached up, grasped her by the waist, and hoisted her into the air. With a scream of excitement, she plunged down into the blue-green water with a splash. She popped up again a moment later, like a little mermaid.
“Did you hit the bottom?”
“Yep! But I can’t touch. Can you throw me again?”
He pulled her close for a hug, and then some of his tension flowed out of him. He threw her up in the air again, and while he waited for her to surface, he decided that he was a fool. A big, egotistical, greedy, fool. Why was he getting so bent out of shape that Hannah was dating someone? It wasn’t like he could have her even if she was single. No doubt this was for the best and he needed to just get over it.
Chapter Twelve
When Hannah looked up and saw Carter walking towards her, pulling his shirt off, his muscles rippling in the sun, her chest grew tight as she held her breath, spellbound by the sight of it. Thank the heavens above for dark, concealing sunglasses. Holy magnificence, the man couldn’t have been any hotter if he’d walked out of a volcano. After he put his shirt down and strode back into the water, he set Addi up on her shoulders as if she weighed no more than a feather, and she saw that his back was just as much a work of art as his chest.
“Oh my dear sweet Aunt Mary, he done took his shirt off.”
It was only when Charlotte roared with laughter next to her, that Hannah realized she’d spoken out-loud, and in true southern form. Blushing she looked over at Charlotte, but only a glance. She didn’t want to miss a second of this view. “Hey, Brant.”
“Yeah?”
“Get out of here.”
“Whatever. Like I don’t know you two are going to talk about him.”
When Brant was far enough away, Hannah said, “Don’t tell me you didn’t notice how hot he is.”
Charlotte leaned back in her chair again. “I noticed. It didn’t have the same affect on me of course.”
Hannah faked an innocent look. “Whatever do you mean?”
“Girl, you lit up like a casino. And don’t think I haven’t noticed the way he looks at you. I admit that I’ve been dying with curiosity.”
“Well that makes two of us.” Hannah looked around to make sure Brant wasn’t close enough to hear. “I do think there’s something between us. It’s just attraction, and maybe it could go somewhere if the situation was right. But it’s not. Everything is wrong.”
“Like what?”
“Like he’s my boss. And we’re from different worlds. I grew up eating Shake and Bake with a side of gravy. He grew up on filet mignon with a side of whatever the heck he wants. If you could have seen the way his mother looked at me! Like I was a bug that crawled out of the drain.”
“The mother thing could complicate things a bit.”
“Plus, I couldn’t date him on principle. The guy waltzed in here with his bags of money, bought the whole neighborhood, built that monstrosity, and snagged one of the best stretches of beach around for his snobby guests. Why do rich people think they can just buy whatever they want and own the whole world?” Then remembering who she was talking to, Hannah gasped and pressed her fingers to her mouth. “Oh my gosh. I forgot you’re…”
“Rich? Don’t worry, honey. You’re preaching to the choir. Before I married Nate, I barely had two nickels to rub together. And I didn’t have a great opinion of people with money.”
For the next little while, Charlotte told Hannah the whole story about how she’d met Nate and fallen in love with him. “But that man drove me crazy with the way he just tried to fix everything with money. He’s lucky I married him.” Then she smirked. “I try to remind him of that every once in a while, when he starts getting arrogant again.” She was quiet for a minute. “But it wasn’t easy getting to this point, so don’t get it into your head that everything has to be right before you can be together. Sometimes, you just have to make it work anyway.”
Hannah nodded, grateful for such good advice. Maybe she could use it someday when she met someone she actually had a chance with. There was no way for her to be with Carter though. Not that she could see.
But there was no more time to keep talking about it because Carter and Addi were slowly making their way into shore. They walked up the beach, leaving a trail of footprints in the sand.
“Did you have fun out there?” Hannah asked, hoping she sounded natural.
Addi nodded and plopped down in the sand at Hannah’s feet. “Yeah. It feels like you could just keep swimming forever. But dad says it gets really deep and that there might be sharks out there.”
“Yeah, they come around sometimes. I saw a hammerhead swimming close to shore once. It was awesome. And you know what? There might even be mermaids out there.”
With eyes as round as sand dollars, Addi asked, “Have you ever seen any?”
“I haven’t. But that isn’t surprising, right? When they show themselves, it’s usually to good looking men like your dad.”
Addi turned wide eyes to her dad, but he just sat next to Addi and leaned back on his elbows as he looked out to sea. “Daddy, Hannah says there might be mermaids out there.”
“Really?” Carter turned to face Hannah. “Well, you would know, wouldn’t you sea witch?”
“Why do you call me that?”
“I have my reasons. Just as you, no doubt, have your reasons for what you call me.”
She thought about what all she called him and grinned. Most of them had no doubt inflated his ego. “I sure do, Hercules.”
Hannah was glad that before the conversation got any more dangerous, they were interrupted by a shout from behind her. Turning, she saw Brant, running up to her. “Hey Hannah, I’ve got some guys
delivering a couch, and I didn’t get here with my key. Can you let me in?”
Glancing at Carter, Hannah saw that his expression was unusually grim. Still, she had never asked him for a break or day off yet. “Carter, since you’re here to swim with Addi, would you mind if I took an hour break?”
“Of course not. Go ahead.” But his words did not match his tone, which was…frosty.
“Thank you.” She turned to Brant. “Let’s go get my key.”
She was one hundred percent positive that Carter wouldn’t want Brant in his condo, so she left him waiting in the lobby while she got her keys. She always left them in the condo when they went swimming so she didn’t lose them. As she went, she wondered if she would have to go the long way around, out the front of the resort, down the street and all the way down another to get to her house, but Brant would probably think she was crazy if she did that since they could walk right across the beach. No doubt he would ask questions. As she walked up to him, he got up from his seat without even taking his eyes off his phone. He followed her without watching where they were going and ran into her from behind. Then he finally looked around.
“Where are we going?”
“Uh, to my house, of course?”
“Through the parking lot?”
She looked back toward the beach trying to determine if Carter might look over and see her. Most likely not. “Hurry.”
“Why?”
“So I can get back to work.”
“Back to your boss you mean.”
“What are you trying to say?”
Brant chuckled. “Hey, no worries. I’d have the hots for him too if I was a chick.”
Hannah walked along the white fence that edged the resort parking lot, sneaking around it across the sand dunes and up along the side of her house. The whole time she felt vulnerable but glancing over her shoulder, she couldn’t see Carter, so chances were good he couldn’t see her.
When they got to her house, she stepped inside the front door to give Brant a key then went to the kitchen to get a glass of iced tea. She filled her glass with ice, then pulled out the pitcher of blackberry iced tea she’d made the night before. Taking a sip, she moved out on to the back deck and opened the windows to let breeze flow through. She let her mind go blank, refusing to think about the jumble of emotions inside her. It only lasted a few more minutes until her phone rang. It was Carter.
“Hello,” she said, glad that at least she wasn’t looking at his all too tempting physique so she could keep her pulse from reacting to him this time. But then his deep voice made her melt inside.
“Yeah, um, I just wanted you to know I took the rest of the afternoon off so don’t worry about coming back right now.”
She was going to kill Brant. Ugh.
“Okay. Thanks for letting me know. So, I’ll see you tomorrow?” She cringed at the inflection in her voice. Could he hear the hopeful note in her voice? Oh man, she needed to get a grip.
“Actually, I have a dinner date tonight, so I was hoping you could watch Addi this evening instead.”
He had a date. Okay. Of course he did. There was no reason to feel like she’d swallowed a rock. “I can do that. What time do you need me to come by?”
“Six-thirty, if you can. We have a seven o’clock reservation.”
She swallowed. “I’ll be there.”
There was a long pause, then Carter said, “I’m really not sure how late I’ll be. Is that a problem?”
“Not at all.” She was so ready to get off this frustrating, soul-revealing call.
“I hope I’m not ruining your plans for the evening.”
“Oh, I wasn’t doing anything special tonight.” Wait, did that make her sound like a total loser? There was no reason for him to think she couldn’t get a date on a—what was it? Wednesday night? “I mean, I did, but I can reschedule. We didn’t have reservations or anything.”
“Great,” he said, his voice sounding rougher than before. “Goodbye.”
Now that he had hung up, it was the last thing she wanted him to do. It was too abrupt, so she sat staring at her phone screen. She threw it down on the couch and took a drink of her tea. Abandoning her glass on an end table, she paced around the room. “You can’t like him, Hannah. You can’t. You’re just going to get hurt. And don’t forget the house. That’s a huge problem. And he’s a million steps ahead of you on the social ladder. Or a billion, more like. So get a freaking clue and stop reacting to him like he’s a twelve point buck and you’re a doe in heat. Okay, ew. What is wrong with me?”
Realizing she was no longer on the right side of sanity, she gave up on giving herself a lecture and went to take a shower and start getting ready to go. Carter might be going out on a date with someone else, but she was going to do her darndest to make him wish it was her.
Chapter Thirteen
Carter was more annoyed with himself than he’d ever been in his life. Not only had he turned into some kind of jealous, possessive monster over Hannah having a live-in boyfriend, but he’d done exactly what his mom had expected—gone completely off the deep end for Hannah. She was everything he liked in a woman and there was no point in denying that. Beyond her beauty and impish personality, she was like a brilliant sun that chased away shadows. The more he was around her, the more he wanted to bathe in her light.
Well, he could be patient. She wouldn’t be his nanny forever. He just needed to make it through the summer without making a fool of himself. Surely by that time, she would tire of her preening umbrella-guy boyfriend. So, for now, he would play it cool.
That lasted right up till Hannah arrived at six-thirty sharp.
Unlike when she came to work in the morning, tonight she knocked on the door. Striding forward, he opened it and froze when he saw her. She wore a flowing dress that fell above her knees, showing off her slim, tanned legs. Her hair was down and curled into smooth waves, and she wore makeup. He’d never seen her with makeup on before, so he could be forgiven for gaping at her. It wasn’t that she wore a lot, but it emphasized her flashing eyes and tempting mouth. As if he needed to notice them more than he already did.
“Come in,” he said automatically. At least his brain was still semi-functioning. “You…um…sure dressed up for hanging out with a six-year-old and watching cartoons all night.”
She shrugged and passed by him. As she did so, her scent drifted over him, torturing him with its allure. What was it? Coconut? Roses? It was intoxicating whatever it was. And was she blushing?
“Well, if you get back in time, I might still be able to go out, so I got ready just in case. If not, it’s no big deal.”
Carter took one long look at her and resolved to stay out as late as possible. “Ah. Well, no promises. I am not entirely sure where we’ll go after dinner.” He saw her shoulders stiffen for a moment, but then she smiled and he wondered if he had imagined it.
“Where’s Addi?”
Resisting the urge to run his hands through his hair, Carter waved toward his bedroom door. “She’s watching television in my room. She was upset that I was going out, so when she asked if she could at least hang out in there, I didn’t have the heart to tell her no.”
“I’m sure she feels closer to you there.”
“Yeah. I hope you don’t mind.”
“Don’t worry about me. I’m sure I’ll be quite comfortable.” She walked to his room, saying over her shoulder, “See you later.”
As the realization that Hannah would be spending the evening in his bed hit him, Carter very nearly decided to call his whole evening off right then and there. But if he did, she would no doubt leave and join her beach bum boyfriend. And the way she looked… “Yes. Much, much later.” He picked up his phone and wallet from the counter top, then left before he could talk himself out of it.
He went downstairs and met up with the Haverton family, his…um… date for the evening. “Ready to go?” he asked.
Nate smiled. “Yes, we’re looking forward to seeing if the Nautilus i
s as good as you think it is.”
“Better. Shall we go?”
Nate took Charlotte’s hand as they left, and Taylor skipped ahead of them.
“It’s a shame Hannah is your nanny so she couldn’t go with us,” Charlotte said. “I really like her.”
Carter smiled wryly but kept his reflections that he more than liked her to himself.
***
An hour and a half later, Carter relaxed in the booth at the restaurant, enjoying his conversation with Nate and Charlotte. Taylor had eaten his fill, then fallen asleep. Nate let him rest on the bench, which forced him and Charlotte to squeeze together. As Carter watched the two, the way Nate’s arm was around her and Charlotte smiling up at him, he didn’t know how much he could stand to be around two people so flagrantly in love.
“Well,” Nate said, “I guess we’d better call it a night. We need to get Taylor into bed.”
“Yes, of course.” But Carter wasn’t sure what to do now. It wasn’t even nine o’clock. There was no way he was going back yet. “Thanks for joining me,” Carter said. “I think I’ll stay here a bit longer if you don’t mind.”
Charlotte raised an eyebrow. “Why? We already had dessert.”
“Yes. It’s just…Never mind. I’ll come along.”
But when he looked across the table, he saw that Nate had a curious expression. No, more than curious. Suspicious.
“Maybe you’d like to hang out with me. Have some coffee or something?” Nate’s offer was lined with a curious tone, but Nate jumped at the excuse.
As they walked into the lobby, Carter turned to Nate. “Come to my office when you’re ready.”
Carter rode the elevator with them but got out at the second floor. He unlocked the door to the office suite and left it cracked for Nate to come in. He made himself a cup of black coffee, then strolled back to his office. He kept the lights off for a minute so he could see outside.
A wide column of silver moonlight shone down, spreading across the black water. Small white lines showed where the waves hit the sand, and all along the beach, flashlights glimmered from tourists taking walks or hunting for snow crabs. The low lights around the landscaping and the glowing green water of the pool turned his courtyard into a fairyland. No matter when he looked at the view here, it was stunning.
The Trust of a Billionaire Page 7