by Susan Meier
Audra laughed gaily. Dominic glanced at her as he sat and then reached for his fork. He slid the pasta manicotti into his mouth and his eyes squeezed shut. “Oh, Lord.”
Tony’s chest puffed out with pride. “It’s good, right?”
“It’s the best food I’ve ever eaten.”
Tony scampered away saying, “I’ll tell Gina.”
Audra laughed. “You better hope I don’t tell Joyce… or my mother what you just said.”
He tilted his head, studying her. “I can’t believe the difference in you.”
“What?” She plucked a cucumber from the salad beside her laptop and popped it into her mouth.
“You’re…you’re…sunny and focused and different. Businesslike but in a happy way.”
She laughed. “Gina and Tony bring out the best in me.”
“I can see that.”
“This is the real me. The Audra I was before David.”
“And this Audra is happy?”
“Happy. Strong. Smart.” Sucking in a breath for courage, she caught his gaze. “And not above having a little fun. Just going out to have fun. I used to like to have fun. I used to date to have fun. My mistake,” she said, holding his gaze, “was thinking David would settle down.”
To her surprise Dominic burst out laughing. He rose from his seat. “I told you so.”
“Yes, you did, but a real gentleman doesn’t say I told you so.”
He caught her gaze again. This time his eyes turned serious, smoldering with heat. She knew exactly what he meant when he said, “I’m not always a gentleman, Audra.”
She held his gaze. “No kidding.”
“No kidding.”
“I think, after almost three weeks of living with you, I know that. I know who you are.”
He thought about that for a few seconds. Finally, he took a deep breath and said, “I have to get back to work.”
She nodded.
He turned to walk away but turned again. “It was really nice to see you.”
Disappointment fluttered through her. She couldn’t have been more clear. And she knew he’d understood. But he didn’t want her.
“Yeah. Nice to see you, too.”
With that he walked away, and Audra sank into her chair. She’d just made a fool of herself.
CHAPTER TEN
A WEEK later, with the new nanny in place and no contact with Audra in seven long days, Dominic paced his huge office. He’d let the week go by to draw a clean line between their relationships. He didn’t want her to think of herself as an employee. He did want her to think of herself as somebody he was so darned attracted to that he sometimes couldn’t breathe in her presence. But he wanted a clear demarcation between their working relationship and their personal relationship.
He decided that would take about two weeks, but today he couldn’t stop thinking about her, and today—if he called her and she agreed to go out with him—all this sexual-frustration and missing-her misery could be over.
He strode to his desk and grabbed the receiver of his phone as he fell into the tall-back chair. While assisting him with Joshua, Audra had given him her cell phone number in case of an emergency and he dialed it from memory. She answered on the first ring.
At the sound of her voice he was suddenly tongue-tied and he said the first thing that popped into his head. “I thought you might want to know about things that have happened with Joshua.”
“Dominic?”
The question in her voice caused his stomach to tighten. Was she forgetting him? “Yeah. I just thought—you know—you would want to hear about things with Joshua, so I thought I’d call and let you know he’s getting a tooth.”
“Oh.” She laughed. “I’m sitting here thinking that’s adorable, but I’ll bet you’re having some sleepless nights.”
“Should I be ashamed to admit I’m not?”
She laughed again. “No. Not if you hired a nanny.”
“I did.”
“Then I’m sure that if the nanny can’t soothe him back to sleep when he wakes, you’ve told her to come and get you.”
Dominic settled more deeply, more comfortably into his chair. The sound of her voice, the very normal way she treated him, soothed him. “No. I didn’t realize I should tell her that.” He paused and then added. “I’m still not a pro with this baby stuff. What could I do to help her?”
“Having you hold him and comfort him might be enough.”
“Oh, okay. I get it.” He smiled. “So the kid loves me, huh?”
“Yep. There’s no accounting for taste.”
He burst out laughing, and his heart swelled. But the conversation had also died. It was his moment of truth. Take the risk that she wanted what he wanted. A simple, uncomplicated relationship. Or back away.
No decision had ever seemed so important. Or so difficult.
He heard the jingle of a phone in the background before Audra said, “That’s my work phone. I gotta go.”
He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. What if she said no? What if he insulted her by asking? He was so sure she’d been hinting the week before. What if he was wrong?
The phone on her end rang again.
“You know you can call me anytime you want.”
“About Joshua?”
“About Joshua.” She paused then said. “Or whatever.”
He took a breath and decided to jump in with both feet. “Or we could have dinner.”
Another pause. The phone in her office rang again. Time stretched out as she obviously debated. Dominic squeezed his eyes shut. He’d put her in the horrible position of having to refuse him. She knew, just as he did, that they were worlds apart. And she probably didn’t want the hassle of trying to fit into his.
“Okay.”
His breathing restarted. Okay? “Tonight?”
“I—” She paused again. Dominic waited, breath stalled in his chest again. “Sure. Why not?”
“Okay. Tonight. I’ll be by around seven.”
He could hear the smile in her voice when she said, “Great.”
When they hung up, he rose from his desk chair and headed out of his office. They might come from two different worlds, but it didn’t matter. They weren’t working toward anything permanent. He wanted a simple, uncomplicated relationship. Someone to have fun with. Someone to talk to.
And he could see from their conversation at the restaurant, that was what she wanted, too. He might have a business to run, but she had a business to build. She needed something uncomplicated as much as he did.
The conversation through dinner was unlike any conversation they’d had before. Dominic talked about the work he had done that day and his plans for Manelli Holdings and how some things were working well while others weren’t. Not only did Audra understand everything he discussed, but she had valuable input. Suddenly she saw everything he’d seen all along. Even though their lives were worlds apart, professionally they were now in the same boat. And personally they clicked.
A band began playing in the corner of the large room and Dominic led her to the dance floor. He pulled her close, nestling her against him, and every worry Audra had about their potential life together flew out of her head. She’d never been this attracted to anyone before. Not even David. This was the man she was made to be with. She refused to think any further than today. Being held in his arms, so close she could feel his breathing, knowing he wanted her—her—was amazing.
They danced two songs without breaking apart even when the music ended. But just as the third song was about to begin, he glanced back at their table and then grinned at her.
“I see Andre has brought out dessert.”
She stepped close, wanting to dance again. “Not interested.”
“Come on. Please.” He pulled away, caught her hand and began dragging her toward their table. “I love cake.”
“Hey, I like cake, too, but—”
The area was dark, and a quick glance told Audra that while they danced, the table had
been cleared of their dinner dishes, and a small white cake sat in the center, surround by candles in little red votive cups.
“What’s this?”
“Sit!” He pulled out her chair. “I have a little something for you.”
She narrowed her eyes at him, but sat as he had ordered. He handed a little jewelers box to her. Not ring size. A little bigger. Big enough that she wouldn’t get confused.
“A present?”
“Open it.”
She flipped the lid on the small square box and gasped when she saw the heart-shaped charm on a gold chain. She glanced up at him. “It’s beautiful.”
“It’s a locket.” He nodded at the box. “Open it.”
She pulled the necklace from the box and opened the locket to find pictures of Dominic and Joshua.
“You helped me find my way back to sanity with some pictures. I thought I could use pictures to show you how I feel about you.”
Connected. That was the first word that came to mind. Then family. He thought of her as family. A part of his life.
Her chest tightened. Butterflies took flight in her stomach. Happiness overwhelmed her. She loved him. He was good, kind, responsible, as perfect as the necklace he had given her. They were good for each other. They helped each other. And they were so attracted a mere kiss could melt her. She’d be a fool not to see what was going on between them. They were committing. They simply weren’t using a ring or a piece of paper.
“Here,” he said, removing the locket from the case and rising to walk behind her chair. He looped the chain around her neck and the heart fell with a soft plop on her chest.
He reached for her hand. “Let’s go home.”
Home. He’d said it that way because he knew she belonged with him, and now, with the locket, she did.
They spent the drive kissing in the backseat of his car and entered the foyer, laughing, snuggling. Before they’d reached the steps, her mother walked into the hall from the door behind the huge curving stairway, holding Joshua.
Snuggled against Dominic, undoubtedly looking like a woman who had been thoroughly kissed, Audra felt like a child caught with her hand in the cookie jar. Her mother had seen her hundreds of times kissing David. Her mother also knew David had slept over at Audra’s apartment and that she’d stayed in his mansion, sailed with him for weekends and gone on vacations with him. Her mother wouldn’t condemn her for sleeping with someone.
But this was Dominic. Mary’s employer. And, technically, Audra was the daughter of Dominic’s hired help.
She casually straightened out of Dominic’s hold.
“Mary?”
Her face and voice emotionless, Audra’s mother said, “Your new nanny quit.”
“Oh?”
“She tried to call you but didn’t get an answer.”
He winced. “I turned off my cell phone.”
Mary smiled thinly, disapproval finally evident in her expression. Her gaze slid over to Audra, then immediately came back to Dominic.
“You have to be available when you have a baby.”
Audra assumed the disapproval was meant for Dominic, a little scolding for turning off his phone. Nothing serious. Just enough that he would remember the lesson. But at the same time, Audra had been on the receiving end of her mother’s gentle scolding one too many times to let herself off the hook so easily.
Her mother had warned her about dealing with Dominic. Even before Audra had decided to work for him, Mary had made sure Audra knew the youngest Manelli was a playboy. Then, when she and Dominic had had trouble communicating, Mary had reminded her daughter that Dominic was different. He’d been raised differently. Wanted different things. Expected different things. Played by different rules. Because he was wealthy. Privileged.
He took a breath. “You’re right. I should have thought of that. But I—”
Had been so eager for our date that I forgot. Audra suspected that was what he had been about to say. And though the thought that he’d been as eager to see her as she had to see him filled her heart with even greater happiness than the locket he’d given her, it struck an odd chord with her. She wanted him to love her differently than he loved Joshua. Not more.
Joshua stretched from Mary’s arms to Audra and Audra grabbed him. “Hey, sweetie.” She brushed a kiss across his forehead as he snuggled into her chest.
Mary’s mouth thinned again. “I’m not surprised he’s cuddling you. I think he’s missed you.” She glanced back at Dominic again.
He smiled. “I get it. I’m the love giver. The one he’s supposed to be accustomed to. The one he should reach for. I’ll take him.”
Audra handed him the baby, smiling with pride. He’d remembered the number-one lesson. The most important thing. Joshua was Dominic’s family. He needed to give the love. So what if he forgot and turned off his cell phone? He was learning.
“Babies need two parents,” Mary said, then she turned and walked back down the corridor, pushing through the swinging door before either Dominic or Audra had a chance to react.
Holding the squirming Joshua, Dominic took a breath. “I’m not sure what she meant by that.”
But Audra knew. Her mother wouldn’t condemn her for making love with someone. She considered that part of the process of finding a mate. But she knew Audra and Dominic had no intention of marrying. Though Audra considered that an outdated, antiquated way to look at life, her mother had actually made a better, stronger point. Dominic had no intention of marrying her. Audra knew that, but the ramifications of that hadn’t sunk in until just this second. Someday Dominic would want to marry. And when he chose a wife, someone to help him raise Joshua, it wouldn’t be her. She was the girl he was playing with.
She was the girl he was biding his time with.
He would never marry her.
And she knew better than to put herself in this kind of position. Her mother had raised her to fight for what she wanted, not settle for second place or second-rate, even if it did seem right in the moment.
Yet here she was, settling.
Dominic handed Joshua to her. “Here, you put him to bed. I’ll grab a bottle of champagne and some chocolates and meet you in my room.”
It didn’t seem like an out-of-line request. She knew how to care for Joshua, and Dominic knew where to get the champagne. She didn’t. Yet suddenly it all seemed wrong.
She licked her dry lips. “I, um, no.”
Half-turned to the left, Dominic stopped. “No?”
“Didn’t you hear what my mother said?”
“Yes.” He frowned. “Which part?”
“A baby needs two parents.”
“No, a baby needs family. Someone to love him. Not necessarily two people. Especially since I will always have a nanny to care for him.”
“And I’m the nanny?”
“No.”
But she stood there holding Joshua, had been told to put him to bed.
He ran his hand along the back of his neck. “I know this looks bad, but that’s not how I see you.”
“But you also don’t see me as somebody you would marry.”
“I’m not getting married.”
“You say that now, but my mother was right. Eventually you’re going to see that Joshua needs a mother. Once you get comfortable as overseer of Manelli holdings, you’re going to realize you’ve settled down. And you’re going to want someone to share your life with.”
He stepped over and kissed her. “And who says it won’t be you?”
“You have.” She plucked the locket from her throat. “This does.” When he gave her a confused look she said, “We’ve known each other our entire lives. We’ve spent a good bit of the past few weeks together. I’ve fallen in love. You’ve fallen, too. But not in love. In lust. And this,” she said, displaying the locket one more time, “is the best you can give me.”
When he didn’t reply, she drew in a shuddering breath as her eyes filled with tears. “In a way you’re saying exactly what David said when he
left me at the altar. I’m fun to have around, but I’m not a keeper.”
She handed the baby to him, then reached behind her and removed the locket. Tears streaming down her cheeks, she gently placed the locket on his palm. “Goodbye, Dominic.”
Head high, she walked out of the foyer. She prayed he’d come after her, and say all the right things to make her realize he did love her. But when she had enough time to call a cab company and have a car arrive to take her home, she knew he wasn’t going to.
Dominic awakened the next morning feeling incredibly out of sorts. When he opened his eyes and saw his old bedroom, he had a flash of sensation that his life was good. That everything that had happened in the past months had been a dream. His parents weren’t in Florida. Peter and Marsha were alive. His life was back to what it was supposed to be.
Then a soft cry issued from the baby monitor on his bedside table. He remembered he was sleeping in his old room because the nanny had left. He’d expected to come home with Audra, drink champagne and make love until dawn. Instead, because Mary met him and Audra at the door with Joshua, somehow his entire life had been turned upside down, and he’d spent a big part of the night calming a cranky baby.
He tried not to think of Audra pressing his locket into his palm before she walked out of his life. He could still feel the heat of the little gold heart, still feel the pain of rejection that sliced through him.
Joshua cried again.
He rolled out of bed, determined not to let this get to him. Peter’s death had devastated him, nearly ruined him. He was finally getting himself back on track, understanding his place, loving Peter’s son the way he should—the way he had to. Running the company as himself, not second-guessing what Peter would do. He couldn’t let Audra’s rejection take him down. Joshua needed him.
He entered the nursery, pajama bottoms low on his hips, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. “Hey, buddy.”
Joshua sniffled at him.
He reached into the crib and pulled out the sobbing baby. But instead of Joshua’s crying stopping, the little boy stretched around him as if looking for something—or someone.