by Meg MacRose
He turned his mind back to the present. Lacey looked comfortable, barefooted and dressed in a casual floral summer dress. The dress accentuated her slim figure, showing off her exposed neck. The hem sitting just above her knees flaunting the toned shape of her legs.
Nick’s neck and face reddened as his thoughts of Lacey started turning R-rated. He imagined stroking her bare arms and kissing her in the valley of her cleavage.
This wasn’t the time or place to be having thoughts like that. He glanced at his daughter who played happily with some plastic ponies and her wooden blocks. She was obviously a happy child, content to sit by herself and play.
What an idiot he was, it was really none of his business if she did have a man who Therese called Uncle. Nevertheless, he was relieved to hear Ted’s wife mentioned. She’d mentioned Ted to him in the car, but for the life of him he couldn’t quite remember the context. Not someone who forgot details, he was annoyed with himself for not taking more notice.
“The lasagne will be another twenty minutes.” Lacey announced, though her gaze and voice were directed at Therese.
“Yay. Lasagne.” Therese popped up from her sitting position and started running around in circles in the living room.
“You’d think that it was a big surprise that she’s getting her favourite dish tonight. But she is the one who requested it!” Lacey smiled affectionately as she watched her daughter whoop with joy. Nick was unable to tear his eyes away from the scene of mother watching daughter. He had a real urge to be part of it. After less than half an hour from first meeting his daughter, all he knew was that he wanted to be part of her life. And Lacey’s, too. She intrigued him. Not just because she was the mother to his daughter, but she had verve and gusto. She wasn’t needy, she just got on with things. Besides, she was gorgeous in a totally unaware kind of way. He couldn’t imagine Lacey fixating on the irrelevant things in life like Diana.
He poured himself a whiskey, neat on the ice. It’d been a helluva week, and he couldn’t think of a better way to relax than in this room, right now. The living room was lived in but not cluttered. There were minimal pieces of furniture, and the large rug that Therese was playing on. He sensed Lacey’s flair in the understated decorating. A clang of metal on wood disturbed the serenity of the room. Lacey, red faced, had not been successful in trying to juggle her coffee with a pile of cutlery.
“Can I help?”
“No. It’s fine. I’ll put my coffee down and then rinse the cutlery. Therese honey, can you finish setting the table please?”
They sounded like strangers talking to each other. On reflection, they were still strangers. He didn’t know how to change that. Time. That’s what it would take. Time for him and Therese to bond, and after meeting her, he was sure that they would. Lacey’s personality was outgoing, friendly and kind. Although he was at a loss to explain the chemistry reaction that existed every time they were in the same room. The air sizzled and crackled between them.
“Daddy. I’m setting the table for three tonight because you’re here. Normally, I set it for two people. Mum and me. But tonight, you are one more. So, I am setting it for three. I have to put out the plates and the napkins. And I get the water jug and the plastic tumblers.” Her sing song voice spoke ten to the dozen. Her excitement at having a dinner guest was obvious. Lacey came behind Therese to place the cutlery down next to each plate as Therese laid them out with the utmost precision. There was a familiarity between mother and daughter, and a closeness that Nick didn’t think he’d ever seen in his own family growing up. They’d always been served by housekeepers and maids.
As she sat up politely in her own chair, Therese watched with anticipation as the steaming hot lasagne came out of the oven and straight to the table, resting on a wooden board in the centre. His stomach grumbled with the loudest rumble he’d ever heard. Therese thought it was hilarious and told him, “I heard that. It means you’re super hungry. Mum, Daddy is super hungry. You have to serve him a double helping.” Turning to face him, she explained in earnest look, “a double helping is two helpings at once”. Nick hid a grin at her delight as Lacey did just that, served him up two big squares of lasagne from the tray.
“This looks and smells delicious.”
“It is, it is. Mummy makes the best lasagne in all of England. Don’t you Mum? But Daddy, make sure you blow on it first. It’s still hot.”
Nick made a show of blowing on the top of his lasagne. Then using his fork to lift the cheesy pasta sheets, he blew again in exaggerated blows. Therese, satisfied, diverted her attention to her own plate which was still being served up.
###
Nick lounged back on the oversized sofa. Therese slept soundly, after fighting it for the last twenty minutes. Lacey had carried her into her bedroom. They’d all eaten their lasagne, which Nick agreed with Therese, was the most delicious in all of England. After dinner, they’d taken bowls of homemade ice cream to the picnic table in the backyard. The cicadas, a constant chirp, echoed across the valley. The sun had started to set and the pink and orange clouds in the sky had mesmerised a sleepy Therese.
“Lacey, please sit down. I feel really lazy with you darting around clearing everything up.” Nick patted the seat next to him. Lacey relinquished the toys that she had been clearing up from the floor, leaving them in a box next to the sofa. Finally, Lacey sat down in the chair opposite to him, facing him with one foot folded under her body.
“Sorry. It’s force of habit. As soon as Therese goes to bed, I often do a quick spruce up so that it’s already to go for the next morning.”
“Thank you for inviting me tonight. I feel like I’ve known her for longer than just one evening. She’s a wonderful kid. A real credit to you.”
“She’s enjoyed tonight too. We don’t get many visitors. Ted and Louise visit now and again, but they have busy lives.”
“Where do we go from here, Lacey?” He used the most self-restraint that he’d ever applied. The temptation was there to reach out and touch the short spiky hair just above her ear. But he resisted. His question was loaded, and he knew it. He wanted more than just to see Therese. He wanted to see more of Lacey too.
Shrugging her slender shoulders, Lacey shook her head. “I don’t know. Do you want to come back? You’re welcome to; she really enjoyed your company.”
She really wasn’t diverting the conversation to include ‘them’. Lacey was obviously focused that this was about him and Therese building a relationship. And of course, he had to agree. But he had also hoped that based on their past interactions, there would be room for him and Lacey too to connect. But he didn’t dare raise it any more explicitly.
“Of course, I want to come back. But how soon can I come back?”
“Oh. Well what suits you? During the week I’m stricter on the time Therese goes to bed. Otherwise, it’s too hard to get her up for school.”
“Well, how about next weekend? Would that suit? Maybe we could plan to do something together on Saturday, all three of us.”
“That’s fine. Why don’t you come Friday night again and you can sleep over? That way Therese can wake up to find you here. But only if you don’t have plans on Friday night.”
“Consider it a plan! How about I bring a take-out dinner on Friday night?”
“Excellent. Make it fish and chips, and you’ll have made Therese’s day. It’s another favourite meal.”
On his way home, Nick mulled over the evening. He had just spent a delightful evening with his daughter. And with Lacey. He didn’t know what it was that he expected, but certainly not the ease in which he was welcomed into their home. The next week wouldn’t pass fast enough before he re-joined Lacey and Therese for dinner again. And breakfast too. He couldn’t wait.
“She’s a lovely gal that one.” Carl spoke clearly and roused Nick from his thoughts.
“Yes, I think so. Therese is a treasure.”
“Well, she is too. But it’s Lacey whom I’m referring to. And it’s not just because she�
��s packed me a box of lasagne to take home. Which believe me, is much appreciated. But, after so many years in the job, I trust my gut instincts when I meet a person. She’s got a good heart, and from what I can see, she’s a great parent for your daughter there.”
Nick couldn’t do anything but shake his head in agreement. Lacey was a good person. She was also someone who he was attracted to. Though he had managed to hold his feelings for her on a leash tonight. The point of tonight was to meet his daughter, not woo the mother.
“Nick?” Nick could hear concern laced in Carl’s voice as he called out his name.
“What’s wrong?”
“I’m not sure who you’ve told about Therese already, but once word gets out that you have a daughter here, we’ll be needing to make sure that she’s safe. She’ll probably need someone shadowing her to school and stuff.”
“Yeah, I know. Lacey will have a fit if we suggest anything like that. At this point in time, the only people who know are you, me, my father and Alex. I suggest that we keep it like that. I’m still just getting to know Therese. And Lacey too. I don’t want to scare them off with security guards.”
His own family had never talked about what had happened when he was a child. When he’d been taken hostage in a restaurant. He’d been one of the lucky ones, as a quick-thinking waiter had intervened and managed to drag him back out of the perpetrator’s car that waited outside the restaurant before he’d disappeared. The memory of the man’s tar-stained fingers on his arms still woke him in the night and made him nervous. Security was something he usually took very seriously, and it would be something that he’d have to address with Lacey at some point. But not right now.
Right now, the mother of his daughter turned him on in a way beyond anything that he’d ever experienced before. He’d never had to chase a woman before. There was always a queue of a certain type of woman who waited for their next opportunity to date a billionaire. But Lacey was different. She wasn’t after her next opportunity. She was a self-made kind of girl who stood her ground and who knew what she wanted in life. He was Therese’s father, and he planned to be there throughout Therese’s childhood. It made complete sense to him that they should enjoy each other in the meantime. And anyway, wouldn’t it be easier for Therese if her parents were together? His brow furrowed as her thought about a game plan to convince Lacey that they should take up where they left off. Not in a committed sense, but there was no harm in having fun while he cemented his relationship with Therese.
Ouch, he reflected. That sounded bad. I’m here to get to know our daughter, and while you’re at it, you’re convenient and sexy enough to be my bed partner. Wow that really sounded bad. He’d not be bringing that up with Lacey. He could imagine her eyes icing over, and he could jeopardise everything with Therese.
No, he had to move with baby steps. This whole situation was a new dynamic for them all.
He nodded with resolution. He should stick to being grateful to Lacey for letting him into Therese’s world at all. And leave all fantasies that he’d been entertaining about Lacey as that – fantasies. There was too much at stake to let his lust get in the way.
But man, that was going to be difficult.
Chapter 7
Lacey glanced out of her window. Again. Today had been rather tedious. All day had been spent working on another set of revisions for a new client who, despite being a high-flyer in the London arts scene, was proving to be most indecisive. But at least she hadn’t been outright rude like Diana. Lacey had mocked up multiple versions of how her new house could be decorated, each set of plans with a different theme, and had all her fingers crossed that one of the plans would resonate with her client. The tick-tock sound of the clock prompted her to check the time from her laptop. There wasn’t much time to go, only twenty minutes.
For the previous three Fridays, Nick had arrived at her house fifteen minutes before it was time to pick Therese up from school. Each week, Nick and Carl had joined her and walked up with her to the school. Both men dressed in casual blue jeans and a plain polo shirt and could have been mistaken for any of the local fathers who picked their kids up from school. Although, Lacey hadn’t been able to keep herself from gaping at the snug way Nick’s jeans fit his toned body. And his shirt revealed just enough of his biceps. She guessed that he worked out at a gym to be in such good shape.
She hadn’t minded that they arrived early every Friday. Which kind of surprised her. But then, she’d never had her daughter’s father and his security guard on the scene before. Therese had been ecstatic the first week and had talked non-stop all the way home about what had or hadn’t happened in her classroom that day.
Lacey hated to admit to herself, and she’d never admit it to Nick, but she also looked forward to his presence in their home each week. For a single man of his wealth and stature who just oozed charisma, good humour and an interesting personality, he was also a very decent person. And an amazing father. So far, he’d not put any demands on her or on Therese, and they’d all gotten along really well.
She was both looking forward to and feeling nervous about his arrival. His mere presence made her skin prickle with awareness. His hands burned hers when they grazed past. Many times, she had lain awake in Therese’s room listening to the sound of Nick sleeping in her room next door. Sex with Nick had been fantastic. Her single recollection remained in her memory bank as one of her best sexual experiences. And the almost-tryst they had shared, well she had been set on fire. She had never experienced such exquisite foreplay in all her life than in his and Diana’s half-built house.
For the briefest moment, she dreamt about Nick being in their lives fulltime, just like a real family. She’d have the ultimate sex partner with Nick, who was attuned to her needs and seemed to be as turned on by her as she was by him. She’d also have a partner who shared the decisions and contributed to the household. And most important, Therese would have parents who were together happily ever after. Together as a family they would attend social events, and Therese would have someone to go shopping with to buy Mother’s Day presents. Their meals would be shared, and they’d both roll their eyes when they helped Therese with her schoolwork.
But, would that ever happen? As a child, Lacey had never sat down with her family to eat. Her father always worked, and her mother was always out. Anyway, it wasn’t likely someone like Nick would ever see her as an equal in a partnership. Men like Nick were always happy to have their latest conquest available but were also quick to move on. She’d seen it happen for years in London. The fickle nature of those that have wealth was the driving factor in her own rebellion in her latter teen years. She’d been suffocated by the unwritten rules and what she considered the absurdity of society. Her student years at uni had opened her eyes to a far more progressive and fun way of life. Since meeting Nick again, her thoughts often returned to her own parents and the childhood that they had provided her. There wasn’t much in the way of affection or quality time. She’d always been provided with the latest gadget, and a closet filled with clothes that she’d never worn. There had been a horse that she’d never wanted in the first place and so never rode, and there had always been a member of staff, most likely the security staff, to escort her to any excursions. She remembered when she went to the museum, and some old man who worked for her dad had been given the job to look after her. Within minutes, she’d evaded the poor codger and escaped the museum to go walking around the city by herself, without someone following her. She was sure to this day that her parents’ insistence of having security with her all the time was an overreaction on her father’s side and a sign of status on her mother’s. It was one aspect of life with Therese that she appreciated.
Lacey remained determined. Nick belonged to that other world, the one that she had managed to stay away from. But she had to stay strong and resolved to resist Nick’s sex-appeal. She was happy as a single mum. Life was good. She had a good job that she enjoyed. But more important, she had decided years ago that Th
erese was the first priority in her life. She wasn’t going to complicate Therese’s life by the introduction of male relationships. Especially those that were based on explosive chemistry with a certain billionaire who was used to getting everything he wanted. He belonged to a social stratum that she had no desire to be part of.
She shook her head. No. A relationship with Nick would more than complicate matters. It was important that he had a steady role in Therese’s life. If they had a fling, the sex would be great for the short-term, but chances are they would have nothing more than a fling. It wouldn’t be fair to Therese.
Another quick glance out the window, and she’d decided that it was enough for the day. She emailed the huge file containing all the plans to her clients and started to get dinner prepared.
A slice of pain ran through her finger. Lacey looked down. The blood ran off her finger onto the white chopping board. Thoughts of Nick had occupied her mind so completely, she’d cut her own finger. How on earth could one man provide such a distraction?
It was only fifteen minutes until he arrived. Lacey’s body zinged and tingled with nervous anticipation of Nick’s arrival. Last week, when he was here in her home, any innocent touch between them, and internally she had spiralled into a melted mess. Then by Monday, when he had already left to return to his busy work life in the city, she had pined for him and missed his presence, and then dratted herself for not having the gumption to pursue whatever it was he offered her. The problem was she wanted him, but she was scared too. He represented a world of entitlement and judgement that she never wanted Therese to have to endure.
Lacey had the courage to walk away from her parents, to set up as a newly pregnant woman in a new village, find a new job and soldier on as a single mum. Yet, she chided herself, she didn’t dare let them the obvious chemistry that they had, that they’d always had since the charity ball. She’d not had any intimate relationships with a man since she fell pregnant, maybe it was less Nick and more that she was desperate to rid herself of this lustful itch that had intensified these past couple of months. Almost convinced that the absence of intimacy must be the cause of the desire that had been unleashed, she was left with another quandary. To creep into Nick’s bed tonight and see if he could scratch her itch or pledge to keep Nick safely and squarely in their lives only as Therese’s biological father. It could only be one or the other. No wonder she was a bundle of nerves.
