Sealing the Deal

by Sandy James

  Beth tried to shrug off the rejection, telling herself it was for the best anyway. He was her boss, and God knew she needed the money now.

  For the first time, Emma stopped crying the moment Beth picked her up. Not sure how to respond to that blessing, Beth grabbed a fresh diaper and laid her niece on the mattress. She had just finished changing the diaper and redressing the baby when Robert came out of the bathroom.

  He plopped on the far side of the mattress and jerked on his shoes. “I need to go.”

  “I can make us some breakfast,” she offered.

  Robert snorted. “With what? Your fridge is almost empty.”

  Her face flushed hot. “You’re right. I’m going to the grocery store later today.” As if that would matter now…

  He swiped his hand over his face. “I’m sorry, B-B.”

  All she did was shrug, mostly because she had no idea exactly what he was sorry for. For the rather sharp quip about her empty fridge? For the fact he’d almost made love with her?

  She needed some coffee. Now. Despite finally getting some sleep, her brain couldn’t seem to function, and she swallowed hard as she tried to force back her emotions. There was no way she’d let him know exactly how much he’d hurt her.

  “I need to go,” Robert said again. “Got a lot of stuff to do today anyway.” He came to stand at her side. “C-can I tell Emma good-bye?”

  “Sure. I’m gonna throw this away.” Beth snatched up the dirty diaper while he picked up the baby.

  Emma smiled and babbled at him. She put her hands on his cheeks, and he rubbed his beard stubble against her palms, setting her to giggling. When Beth came back to them, Robert kissed Emma on her chubby cheek.

  “Love you, squirt,” he said before handing the baby back to Beth. “See you later. O-k-kay?”

  “Sure, Robert. Whatever.”

  The tears didn’t fall, even after he’d shut the door behind him.

  Love you, squirt.

  He’d said it so easily, so naturally. Emma had charmed her way right into Robert’s heart.

  Was it stupid to be jealous of an orphaned baby?

  Only a few moments ago, Beth had been close to casting aside all her self-imposed rules about sleeping with guys. She might know Robert well, but they had no relationship save being friends and colleagues. Yet she would have stripped out of her clothes faster than a burlesque dancer and let him make love to her without even considering things like safe sex or possible pregnancy.

  But he didn’t want her. All the kisses they’d shared might have seemed passionate—at least to her—but he obviously regretted each and every one. She’d cried more over him the last two days than she had over losing Tiffany.

  Or was her sister’s death one of the reasons Beth was being overly emotional now?

  “You know what, Em?” Beth sniffed hard. “Your aunt needs to stop being silly. Robert just felt sorry for me. That’s all.”

  Emma happily babbled something, but Beth still didn’t understand her niece’s infantile vocabulary. She kissed the baby’s cheek and was rewarded with a sweet, innocent smile.

  Despite her churning thoughts, Beth couldn’t help but smile back. “You know what, squirt? I love you, too.”

  Chapter Five

  “I’m sorry to force the issue, Beth.” The voice of Jim Reinhardt, her principal, buzzed in Beth’s ear. “I know everything you’ve been through, and you know you’ve got my sympathies. I just need to have a date for your return so we can plan for your subs.”

  “I understand.” And she did. The kids were in school every weekday. Only she wasn’t, making her feel guilty for not being there for her students. That, and she was almost out of paid time off.

  “Unless you need a formal leave of absence,” Jim said. “That would be a different story altogether. You know you can take more time off, right? You’ve burned through the paid days, but I can help you do the paperwork for an unpaid personal leave.”

  “No. I can’t afford that.” There was money from Tiffany’s life insurance, but Beth didn’t want to use that for Emma’s day-to-day expenses. Emma was going to college one day, and who the heck knew what tuition would be in eighteen years? Plus, she deserved a nest egg, and that money would provide it. If Beth handled everything well, those funds would pay for Emma’s education and perhaps be a good down payment on a home.

  No, Beth wasn’t going to touch Emma’s money unless she had no choice. “I need to get day care arranged. If I can do that, I’ll be back next Monday.”

  “Talk to some of the other teachers,” Jim suggested. “Best way to find a good babysitter is to talk to someone else who uses one. That’s what Rose and I did when our kids were younger.” He snorted a laugh. “About a million years ago.”

  “I will. Thanks for the advice.” She already knew who she wanted to be responsible for Emma during school days—Jules’s nanny, Aubrey. But could Beth afford her? And would Jules even allow Emma to have the same nanny as her twins? It would mean Beth dropping her niece off every weekday at an ungodly hour. Since Jules was her own boss, she might not appreciate the intrusion. It was widely known that Jules was horrible to be around in the morning. Shoot, she even joked that she was a “psycho hose beast” before nine.

  “I’ll call by tomorrow with a definitive date for you,” Beth said.

  “Take care of yourself, Bethany. We miss you.” On that, he hung up.

  Beth immediately called Jules, who thankfully answered on the second ring. More often than not, calls to the über-busy Realtor went directly to a chipper voice mail message. “Hey, Beth. What’s up, buttercup?”

  Just cut to the chase. “Do you have a few minutes to come by my apartment?” It would be so much easier to ask Jules about the nanny in person. There was also another topic she wanted to discuss. “I know you’re really busy… but I need your help.”

  “Ask and you shall receive,” Jules replied with a chuckle. “That is, if I can provide it. You caught me at the perfect time. Just finished a closing, and I’ve got a solid half hour with nothing on my schedule.” In her typical irreverent manner, she gave the last word a British pronunciation. “See you in ten?”

  “Thanks, Jules.”

  * * *

  Balancing Emma on her hip, Beth opened the door to Jules’s knock. “Thanks for coming over.”

  Jules smiled, kissed Emma’s cheek, and marched into the apartment. “Damn, Beth. I forget how small this place is. Don’t you get claustrophobic?” She winked to take the sting out of her comment.

  “You know I’m saving for a house, which is actually why I asked you here.”

  Jules took a seat on the chair while Beth plopped onto the mattress, letting Emma stretch out on the quilt. The baby had been fed and changed, and sleep was rapidly overtaking her. Refusing to lie down, Emma reached for Beth. With a small sigh, Beth picked her back up and cradled her against her shoulder.

  “So you’re ready to take the plunge?” Jules asked.

  Beth rubbed Emma’s back while she discussed business with her friend. “I am. Emma needs to grow up someplace with a yard and a bedroom of her own.”

  “Price range?” As always, Jules got right down to business.

  “Not really sure. I’d like to see what my money can get. I’ve got about twenty thousand for a down payment. Is that enough?”

  “Depends on what you want.” Jules pulled her e-tablet out of her enormous purse, and her fingers started flying over it. “You’re a property virgin, so best thing to do is start with what I call the ‘Goldilocks Plan.’ ”

  Beth quirked a brow. “Goldilocks?”

  “Yeah,” Jules replied with a lopsided smile. “I show you one that’s really pricey, one on the low end, then one that’s in the middle. You get to decide what’s just right. Helps narrow down exactly what you’re looking for.”

  A good plan, considering Beth really had no idea what she needed, let alone what she wanted. All her Pinterest posts about houses had been one of two extremes. A house
for her to share with her husband and children or a house for a lady who would be single for her whole life. What kind of house did a single mom get?

  “That sounds like a good plan, Jules. I honestly have no idea what would work for Emma and me.”

  “Don’t sound so forlorn.” Jules raised her gaze from the tablet. “We’ll find something perfect. I promise. I’m pretty good at my job.”

  “That’s why I called you.” Beth drew her lips into a thin line. Even forming the question about child care was difficult. She finally decided to just spit out the request. “I need another favor. You’re always telling me how much you like your nanny.”

  “God, yes. I’d never survive without Aubrey.” She let out a throaty laugh. “Twin boys. I still wonder what I did that karma came back at me by making me the mom of twin boys.”

  “Would Aubrey be able to watch Emma, too?” Hurrying to explain, Beth added, “I’d pay her. I just… I don’t want Emma spending her whole day with some stranger.”

  Instead of immediately responding with a hearty, Sure, bring her over, Jules stayed silent. The answer, however, was there in her eyes.

  Any other time, Beth would have immediately withdrawn the request. Getting on Jules’s bad side was never a good thing, and asking if Emma could stay with the twins had obviously annoyed her. Asking Jules why would only compound the problem.

  Time ticked by in long seconds until Jules finally sighed. “I guess it’s okay.” She might as well have been telling a dentist to go ahead and drill without Novocain.

  “Never mind,” Beth said, trying not to make eye contact. There was no way she’d impose on Jules when the woman was so obviously put out by the request.

  In all the years she’d been part of the Ladies Who Lunch, Beth had felt nothing but affection and support from Jules, Mallory, and especially Danielle. Now she could almost see a wall being built between herself and Jules, like some silly cartoon where the bricks stacked up row after row after row.

  “Beth…” Jules heaved a sigh.

  Beth held up a hand, palm out. “Stop. You don’t owe me any explanation. It’s fine.” She wanted nothing more at that moment than for Jules to go home to her handsome husband, her robust twin boys, and the huge historical building in downtown Cloverleaf she and Connor called home.

  Go back to your perfect life, Jules. I’ll handle my own disasters.

  “Beth… it’s just—”

  “I’ve got to get Emma ready for her doctor’s appointment.” Although the statement was far from subtle and a blatant lie, Beth went to the door and put her hand on the knob. “Thanks so much for coming over. I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of place you can show me.”

  Jules hefted her purse onto her shoulder. She stopped at the door, her face full of an emotion Beth couldn’t read. “I’ll send some e-mail links after I get back to the office, and I’ll start the paperwork to get your mortgage preapproved.” On that, she thankfully left.

  After Beth shut the door, she leaned back against it, holding Emma against her chest since the baby had fallen asleep. Beth pressed a kiss to her temple before sighing.

  The world had gone from orderly to confusing so quickly, she couldn’t quite make sense of it yet. Her adult life had been consumed with being a teacher. In the back of her mind, there had been vague plans of a husband, a family. But Bethany Rogers was a teacher, one with a plan to buy a nice little house. Someday.

  For now, she was a single mother with no reliable child care, an efficiency apartment, and a tiny car.

  “Oh, Em. For such a small girl, you sure knocked me for a loop.”

  After she laid the peaceful Emma in the playpen that served as her crib, Beth fired up her laptop for the first time in days. Sixty-three e-mails, most of which were easy to delete before she even read them. The only one that interested her was from Robert.

  Since when did Robert e-mail her? Why hadn’t he texted? Or called?

  Beth opened the message.

  Sorry, B. Left you on a bad note. Want to come to the new house tomorrow? Some of the fixtures arrived. Thought you’d like to see them. Will bring dinner. See you at six?

  Which meant he’d be there with a bucket of KFC and a couple of sodas. At that moment, it sounded like heaven.

  Robert. She had so much to think about where he was concerned.

  Or did she? Sure, they’d shared a couple of kisses. Hot, soul-stealing kisses from her point of view, but he’d literally run away. Was he running from her or from the idea of commitment? He knew her well enough to know she’d never be one of his arm-candy girls. If he got involved with her, it would be for something more solid.

  But it looked like Robert was ready to have things return to status quo. Otherwise he would never have left so darn fast after they’d kissed. It was probably for the best.

  She typed her reply.

  The munchkin and I will see you then.

  * * *

  Robert looked out the window again, thinking for the third time he’d heard Beth’s car in the driveway.

  Wrong again.

  She wasn’t late. Not yet. He worried anyway.

  Ever since he’d left two days ago, he’d been at loose ends, worrying about whether she hated him for taking advantage of her. His own thoughts about what had happened between them were in tangles.

  He’d practically tried to seduce her while she was asleep. It was a damn good thing she hadn’t hauled off and punched him in the nose. When he’d awakened to her scent, feeling her curves molded to his body, instinct had taken control. He’d needed to touch her, to possess her. Thank goodness he’d gotten a hold of himself before things had gone too far. Yet that interlude haunted his every minute.

  It had been a long, long time since he’d felt that kind of connection with a woman. Hell, he’d never wanted a woman that badly before.

  Was it because she was forbidden fruit? A colleague rather than a conquest?

  Did he like the idea of winning the “good girl” for once?

  Or did this have nothing at all to do with her? Was this what every man went through when he turned forty? Flirting with younger women?

  There was a third possibility. The way he’d been acting might not be due to either Beth or himself. Did holding Emma trigger some fatherhood gene that had thus far been dormant? Had he spontaneously developed some evolutionary need to be a dad?

  His brain couldn’t seem to do anything except offer up question after question. The answers were far out of his grasp.

  A sound drew him back to the window. At least this time his ears hadn’t tricked him. Beth was here. He hurried out the front door to help her with the baby. “Hello there, ladies.”

  “Hi, Robert.” Beth spoke over her shoulder as she worked on wrestling the complicated car seat out of its base.

  “Need some help?”

  With a grunt, she tugged the carrier loose. Maneuvering it around the front seat and seat belt wasn’t easy, but soon Beth had Emma out of the Beetle. “We’re good. Want to take Em or grab her diaper bag?”

  “I’ll take the baby.” His hand shot out to grasp the handle Beth had pulled up so the seat now became a baby carrier. “Hiya, squirt.”

  Emma stopped sucking on her thumb and grinned at him as spittle ran down her chin.

  “You’re a mess,” Robert joked.

  After slinging the bag over her shoulder, Beth slammed the car door. “I think she’s teething. Started drooling like crazy after her nap. She keeps putting her thumb or her fingers in her mouth.”

  “Have you tried an ice ring?” Funny how much he remembered from when his nieces and nephews had been Emma’s age.

  “A what?” Beth followed him to the front door.

  “My sister had this toy that had water in a plastic ring. She’d toss it in the freezer, then give it to her kids when they were teething. It’s supposed to soothe their gums or something.”

  “I’ll have to stop by Toy Junction on the way home and get her one. It’s a better sugges
tion than my mom made.”

  “What did she say?”

  “Told me to rub whisky on Emma’s gums. It’s a wonder Tiffany and I survived childhood,” she teased. As she walked through the door he held open, she murmured her appreciation. Then she stopped only a few steps inside. “Wow. You’ve been busy.”

  He shrugged. Getting the flooring, bathroom tiling, kitchen cabinets, and granite in quickly hadn’t been easy, but he needed her to see the house taking shape. By the beginning of next week, everything would be in place, and the furnishings would arrive in ten days.

  As Jules always told him, it was easier to sell a staged home. But this time, the deliveries weren’t going to be rentals and they sure as hell weren’t to stage the place. They were going to be his own furniture in his own house.

  They both kicked off their shoes by the door.

  “The hardwoods look great.” Beth gave him a little laugh that made his throat clog with emotion. “Even if that does sound egotistical.”

  He might not be sure exactly what it was that he felt for Beth, but one thing was damn sure. It was something strong, and he was getting too old to be patient. After dinner, he’d spring his surprise.

  “You have a right to crow,” Robert replied. “You did a great job on this. As usual.” He cuffed her on the shoulder as he led the way to the kitchen. “Ready to eat?”

  She set the diaper bag on the kitchen island. He loved that her fingers roamed over the granite surface for a few moments.

  “Depends,” she replied.

  He quirked a brow. “On what?”

  “On if you only got the downstairs floors and fixtures.”

  “N-no. Ups-stairs is done, too.” His nerves were showing.

  “I’m heading there first. Then I’ll eat.” She strode to the staircase before glancing over her shoulder. “You coming?”

  Robert finished disengaging all the straps holding Emma in her seat. “Nah. You go on. The munchkin and I will get the drinks ready.”

  As soon as Beth disappeared up the staircase, he kissed Emma’s cheek. “Counting on you to help me pull this off, squirt.”