“There will be a lot of activities we can do together, and I think you’re his date for the wedding. But don’t worry, if he starts cramping your style, we can work out a sign, and I’ll save you.” I smile up at her. “But I’m not letting another Italian lothario get near you.”
“What’s a lothario?”
“A man who’s all about sweet-talking your pants off. You have plenty of time for that later.”
She flops back on the bed. “I’m going to die a virgin.”
“No, you won’t. Not if you don’t want to—but promise me you won’t just hook up with a guy who’s out to take that from you. You want to be with someone special. It could be special like your parents had and last for years, or it may just last for weeks. But you want to look back and think of him and smile. You don’t want to not know his name.”
“What was it like when you lost yours?”
“It’s not that exciting of a story. But you’re only sixteen. You’ll find a good guy. I promise.”
“My aunt Alicia thinks men will only want me for my money.”
“That’s pretty jaded. You know when you go to college, you can always go by your mom’s maiden name—Cortez. That way you’ll know people will like you for you and not judge you by your parents.”
“Can I do that?”
“I would think a conversation with your dad and then the registrar’s office could make that happen for your safety, but we can cross that bridge when the time comes. Right now, who will help me decide on pancakes or waffles for breakfast?”
“I’m hungry,” Bex moans from her bed.
“Then I suggest we wear our bathing suits to breakfast so we can hit the pool ASAP. Your dad got home about two am, so I know the yacht didn’t get moving again until then. It may be after lunch before we get to the dock in Italy.”
The girls agree, and as they get moving, I get up and quietly close the door to Nate’s room. Once we all get dressed, we head for the breakfast buffet in the main cabin. There’s a huge spread of food, and it kills me that so much of this will go to waste since most people will be sleeping in. The girls and I load our plates and begin to eat.
“I was having the strangest dream,” Bex says.
I stop what I’m doing and lean forward. “I want to hear all about it.”
“I was in the game I played as a kid, Chutes and Ladders, with Candyland characters competing against us.”
I nod. “My gosh, that would be scary.”
“No, they were our friends, but the gingerbread man was as tall as Daddy, and the gumdrops were as big as me.”
“That sounds lame,” Katrina announces.
I turn and give her the look.
“I’m sorry,” she snarks.
“We were playing up and down a giant building that was hundreds of stories tall, and we’d climb the ladders, but each time we got too far, we’d be forced down a slide.”
Even Katrina laughs as Bex describes going down the slides. Her eyes grow big, and she covers them as she holds the imaginary slide. She’s so expressive, and I love it.
I look at her, my eyes wide. “What did you eat before you went to bed? A lot of candy?”
She tries not to smile, but I can tell that’s exactly what she did. I shake my head. I’m about to remind her not to eat candy before bed, when she jumps up from the table.
“Daddy!” Bex runs over and hugs Nate, holding on as if he’s going to run away.
He’s dressed in swim shorts and a T-shirt, and if he didn’t have a sprinkle of gray at his temples, I’d swear he was no more than twenty-five years old—younger than me.
“I hear you guys are going to enjoy the pool this morning. You don’t mind if I join you, do you?”
Bex jumps up and down. “I can show you the slide. It’s scary the first few times, but I promise you’ll be fine.”
“Phew, I’m glad I have a slide pro. Can I get some coffee first?”
“Yes, but if you eat, Lilly will make you wait twenty minutes before you go swimming. She says we could vomit in the pool, and they’d make us swim back if we did.”
Nate laughs. “That’s great advice.”
Katrina stands. “I’m going to start tanning.”
“Make sure you put on sunscreen,” I say to her backside. “Otherwise, you’ll be miserable in your dress for the wedding.”
Katrina rolls her eyes. I smile. She’s still mad at me for last night, I guess.
“Daddy, I’m going to get my spot at the pool, too,” Bex says. “It’s the last day, so I bet it’s going to be busy.”
“Great idea. If you don’t think it will ruin you and your sister’s cred, you can set up towels for Lilly and me too.”
“Okay,” Bex skips away.
I begin to pick up the girls’ plates.
“There are people here who do that, you know,” Nate points out. “And I would hope that at home the girls are taking care of their own dishes.”
“They are.”
Nate clears his throat and leans in. “I heard you talking with Katrina this morning. What happened?”
Damn. “Oh, you know. Just girl stuff. She’s getting older,” I offer, hoping I won’t have to break my promise to Katrina.
He looks down at his coffee a moment before taking a sip. “I like how you handled her virginity issue.”
I shrug. “I think I felt the same way at her age. It seemed like everyone around me was having sex.”
“You’re good for my girls.”
“Thank you. I try.”
“I also heard what you said last night about me being present, and I’m really going to try this week.”
“I think that’s all that matters.”
He looks over at his girls, who’re surrounded by an insane group of the world’s most wealthy—and some of the tabloids’ favorites. But to them, they’re just their father’s friends and colleagues.
“Do you know why she’s mad at me right now?” he asks.
“Do you want me to blow smoke up your backside or tell you the truth?”
He grins. “I’d be interested in both, just so I can tell the difference in the future.”
I grin. “The smoke would be: She’s sixteen and teenagers have mood swings. Give it twenty minutes and you’ll have her eating out of your palm.”
“That’s good.”
“And the truth would be: I think she’s angry because you promised to teach her to drive, and then you had Trevor do it. He’s not very patient with new drivers.”
Nate’s eyes go wide. “Wow, that’s pretty direct.”
“That’s the truth.”
“How often do I get smoke, and how often do I get truth?”
“If it’s something you need to know, you always get truth. But otherwise, you often get smoke because my job is to protect the girls and keep things running smoothly. I can tell you, though, that following through on your promises to Katrina will determine whether you have a relationship with her when she’s older.”
He nods. “I appreciate all you do for my family. I have a feeling I’ve made a lot of promises that I’d be someplace, and either didn’t show or handed it off to someone else.”
I shrug. “I know you’ve all been to hell and back, but I’m giving you warning that going forward, I’m going to hold your feet to the fire.”
“I’m counting on that.”
“Good.”
We transition outside and spend the morning under big umbrellas in chaise lounges near the pool, enjoying the Mediterranean Sea. Bex was right. The pool got popular with the other guests. As I look around, most of Nate’s peers are newly engaged or married, but none have kids. That’s hard for his girls. They’re not supposed to be friends with adults.
I see Bex playing Crazy 8s with Caroline Arnault and her friends. I blow out a big breath of air.
Nate leans in close. “What’s wrong?”
I give him a tight smile. “Not many people have the opportunity as a kid to play cards and hang out with th
e Fortune Top Fifty richest women in the world.”
“No, I suppose not. It’s a small club that at times I regret being part of.”
I shake my head. “I didn’t realize you were a woman. I always thought you were a man.”
He laughs.
He’s one of the top-ten richest men in the world these days. I know he blames his success for the death of his wife. They still don’t know who killed her, but he’s probably right—being rich makes him a target.
“Don’t feel like you need to stay here and entertain me,” I tell him.
“I don’t mind. Unless of course you’d prefer to be alone.”
I grin. “You can stay as long as you want.”
Just then Bex stands and screams, “Yes!” She’s doing her celebratory dance.
“I think you’d better go celebrate with her,” I suggest.
“I suppose you’re right.” Nate shakes his head as he walks over. Soon she appears to be giving him the play by play.
“Why does she have to embarrass us so much?” Katrina whines as she sits down in the seat her dad has vacated. A small part of me is disappointed, but it’s probably for the best.
“She’s eleven. Let her enjoy a win.”
Katrina huffs, rolls over in the chaise lounge, and seems to fall asleep. As we approach the Italian border, the sun shifts, and I move the umbrella to protect her. She’s probably tanning with the olive undertones in her skin, but this is a big week, and pictures will be splashed across the tabloids. She’ll be angry if she looks sunburned—despite my warning her.
“Katrina, do you want some lunch?” I ask when I notice the next round of food appearing.
“No, I’m on a diet.”
“Diets work when you eat in small portions. No skipping meals.”
“You never eat breakfast,” she notes. “Coffee isn’t a meal.”
She’s right, and I need to set a better example. “I do eat a piece of fruit for breakfast and a slice of toast. You just don’t see it since you’re at school.”
Why is she dieting anyway? Katrina has some curves, but she’s healthy, and they’re the kind of curves men like. Girls are cruel—not only to themselves, but to each other.
“How about at least some fresh veggies?”
“Fine.” She gets up and walks into the cabin.
“You did that really well with her,” Greer Ford leans over and tells me from a couple of chaise lounges down.
Her husband’s family’s vineyard is hosting us. She’s tiny—the type of girl who doesn’t have to diet because her metabolism is on hyperdrive.
“Once she gets a little older, she’s going to realize she’s the envy of all women,” I tell her. “She’s smart, beautiful, and independent. But for now, we need to enjoy that she’s mostly innocent and not jaded by all the crap she’s been shielded from.”
Greer looks at me. “So true. She’s lucky to have you.”
“I’m just the nanny. It won’t be long before she goes on to college and forgets about me.”
“Nothing is going on with you and Nate?”
“Oh, God, no. He’s almost too wrapped up in everything that’s happened with Cecelia to manage his daughters—let alone anyone else.”
Greer shrugs. “I don’t know about that. It’s been nearly three years. He does have the right to move on.”
“I don’t think you can tell grief it’s time to move on.”
“They did have an amazing relationship, but she wouldn’t want him to be a monk.”
“I’m not sure he is,” I tell her. “There are occasional nights he doesn’t come home.” I’ve never been able to figure out why.
“But we haven’t seen him photographed with anyone.”
I shrug. “My job is the girls—”
The horn sounds, announcing our arrival at our destination.
Greer jumps up. “Well, you’re a delight. Nate would be a fool to miss what’s right under his nose.”
Just then, Nate appears behind her, and I’m sure he heard her. Now he thinks I have a thing for him, and I confided in Greer. Great.
Squaring my shoulders, I look at him. “The girls and I still need to pack up our things. We’ll meet you on the dock in maybe twenty minutes?”
He looks at his watch. “That really means forty-five.”
“I’ll try to get them to hurry.”
“Don’t worry about it. They’ll have a few shuttles, so we’ll be fine.”
I head over to motivate the girls and get them packed. “I’m fairly certain the vineyard has a pool,” I tell them to counter their complaints.
At least that gets them moving.
Chapter 3
Nate
“I was just telling her, Cecelia wouldn’t want you to be a monk forever,” Greer notes as we watch Lilly round up the girls.
“What did she say to that?” I’m suddenly curious.
“That she doesn’t think you’re a monk—that you stay out all night from time to time. Though I’ve noticed you’re never photographed with anyone.”
I turn to Greer. There aren’t many people I can say this to, but she’s one of them. “We live in the house Cecelia helped pick and decorate. The whole place is her. I can’t imagine taking the girls away from that, but there’s too much in that house that reminds me of what’s gone now. I hate being there.”
“Then keep the house and live somewhere else. Move up to Napa or down to Carmel. You have a helicopter—you can fly in and out of San Francisco for work.”
“I couldn’t do that to the girls. It’s too far from their friends.”
“Have you talked to them about it?” she asks.
I sigh. “No. It feels impossible to explain without hurting them. It’s their last connection to their mom.”
Greer stands and begins to move her things into her bag. “You have every right to move on. I truly think that’s what Cecelia would want. And to do that, you have to get yourself to a place where you’re comfortable, and you have to be open to dating. I’ll tell you this, my father had a habit of marrying often. He’d just show up with someone new to whom he’d gotten engaged or married . That’s not the best approach.” She stops and looks at me. “My advice is to tell your girls upfront that you’re interested in dating, and let them know you’ll introduce them to anyone who becomes truly important to you.”
“Thanks, Greer. I’ll think about it. Your advice is spot on. I just need to decide if I am interested in dating.”
She smiles sweetly. “I like Lilly for you. She’s great with the girls, and she’s got a backbone.”
I snort. “Yes, and if I fucked it up, she’d leave. I have no doubt the girls would take her over me any day of the week.”
She pats my arm. “You’ll figure it out.”
As I predicted, it took the girls closer to forty-five minutes to get packed and back to the dock. I heard Katrina insisting on taking a shower, and then I heard the blow dryer. That alone was a half-hour escapade. But I don’t mind.
Lilly, on the other hand, is not happy. She pushes a stray hair out of her face, and I can tell she’s lost her patience.
“You look like you could use a break,” I tell her as we board the shuttle to the vineyard.
She glares at me.
The girls sit in window seats, far apart from one another. I know sitting with them means choosing a side, so I let them sit alone. As the shuttle fills quickly for the ninety-minute drive to the vineyard, I decide to sit next to Lilly. When I take my seat, her eyes grow large.
“I know you wanted a break, but I think all the seats on the shuttle are going to be full, so it’s sit with me or one of the girls.”
“Thanks, but you can sit with your friends.”
“I sit with them all the time.”
She starts playing with the hem of her dress. “I know you came into my conversation with Greer at the end. I don’t want you to think I would be cavalier about what I share with her.”
“She worked me over after
you left. She did say you thought I wasn’t coming home sometimes because I might be involved with someone.”
“I’m sorry. I did say that. I didn’t mean to share your private life. I was just explaining that you weren’t the monk she was making you out to be.”
“I haven’t been with anyone since Cecelia died. When I don’t come home, I’ve slept on the couch in my office.”
She reaches for my arm. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t kn—”
“Are you kidding?” I smile. “Maybe they’ll leave me alone about dating if they think I have something going on.”
“I can’t say this from experience, but I’ve been immersed in your family’s life for the last three years, and I do believe Cecelia would want you to move on.” She offers a shy smile.
I find myself incredibly interested in what that smile might mean, and shocked at my own feelings at the same time. But I can’t sort through any of it, because of course Dillon picks this moment to lean over and talk to me. He starts going through what Clear Security has found on the boat we captured.
“Who would launch such an assault on the boat we rented?” I ask, refocusing my attention.
“Andy wants to meet with us and one of his brothers sometime after we get to the vineyard. They have some questions. It could be they were just going to rob us, not knowing who we were. Andy should have more information after the interviews the authorities did.”
“And the coast guard? That guy was a bit crooked, wasn’t he?”
“We’ll have to ask Andy.”
I nod and turn back to Lilly, ready to continue our conversation, but her eyes are closed and she has earbuds in. I can see her lips moving, and I’m guessing she’s singing along to the song. She’s beautiful. It hits me that she’s like Cecelia in so many ways, but she’s also different.
Am I suddenly thinking about exploring things with Lilly just because she’s here? Or because my friends keep suggesting it? Or is it because the more I’ve gotten to know her, the more I like her. I can see clearly why Cecelia hired her. She’s Mary Poppins with the girls. But would it be worth risking those relationships she’s built so carefully by asking her out?
Showdown: Tech Billionaires Page 3
