Cowboy's Curvy Nanny (Cowboy Billionaires #1)

by J. P. Comeau

  He snickered. “Shouldn’t have put it past her, though. She’s always been assertive and way too headstrong for her own good.”

  “So… care to tell me why she was here? Because I take it that it wasn’t just to drop off the little one.”

  “No, it wasn’t.”

  “Want to talk about it?”

  He leaned back. “I mean, it wasn’t much. I told her I’d give her what she wanted monetarily in exchange for full custody of Marie Lee.”

  My mouth fell open. “You what?”

  He shrugged. “She took it without hesitation.”

  I blinked. “She what!?”

  He snorted. “Yeah. Some mother I gave my child, huh?”

  I got up and moved to the chair next to him, taking his hand. “You did everything right by that woman. You did everything you could to give her the best. She’s the one who spat it back in your face, all right? Don’t forget that.”

  His eyes fell to our connection. “You mean that?”

  I squeezed his hand. “With everything I am, Bryce.”

  I still had questions, though. Questions I was much too curious to bury out of mere sentiment or because of ‘manners.’

  “Did you really give her fifteen percent of your company?” I asked softly.

  He sighed heavily again. “No. I told her I would pay the equivalent of fifteen percent of the company out to her every year until it was paid up if she dropped the alimony. I educated her on how alimony worked and how we would’ve had to have been married for at least four or five years before she was even eligible for it. So, she took that deal.”

  “What else did she take?”

  His hand turned up, holding mine in return. “Half my retirement. Joke’s on her, though. Only one retirement account I have is in my personal name. The rest is in the company’s name with me as the beneficiary.”

  “I take it she doesn't have a right to those?”

  “Nope,” he said, popping the ‘p,’ “and while she’ll get half of my savings account, that thing isn’t as robust as she thinks it is. Our savings account is meager compared to what most people like myself have. And, she’s not on the title to the house. She had terrible credit, so this house and the land and our animals? All in my name.”

  I whistled lowly. “I take it she didn’t know that.”

  “Nope.”

  I sighed. “Wow.”

  He nodded slowly. “Uh-huh.”

  “And you think she’s not going to gun for you after that?”

  “She can’t.”

  I paused. “Why not?”

  He grinned. “Let’s just say she’s more scared of this town chewing her up and spitting her out than she is dragging my ass through the court. I’m having my lawyer draw up the edits to the divorce decree, and by the end of the day, both of us will have signed it.”

  I smiled. “I’m happy for you. Really.”

  “Thank fuck, Texas is a no-fault state.”

  I giggled profusely. “I’ve heard a couple of my friends over the years say that exact same thing.”

  We laughed together for a little bit before he abandoned his sweet tea to scoot closer to me. So close, in fact, that our knees touched.

  My bare knees pressed against his ragged, rusted jeans.

  “There’s something else you should know,” he said.

  I paused. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing’s wrong, no-no. It’s just… you did come up in conversation at one point.”

  “Oh.”

  I heard Marie Lee’s little footsteps as she tore into the kitchen. “I said you, not Mommy!”

  I furrowed my brow. “What?”

  Bryce chuckled. “That’s what happened. At one point in time in our conversations, Patricia tried to get around my custody demand by asking Marie Lee, who she wanted to be with. You, or her.”

  Marie Lee crawled into my lap. “I said you.”

  I snickered. “You did now, did you?”

  He let go of my hand. “She really did. And I thought Pat was going to pass out from all the blood that drained from her face.”

  “Maybe that’ll finally show her exactly where she stands with her daughter. Who knows? Maybe this is the wake-up call she needs to be the mother she needs to be.”

  “Well, she’s not the only one in this equation who did wrong. She brought up a lot of good points I have to take to heart.”

  I cocked my head. “Like what?”

  He licked his lips. “Like, spending more time here during the week and on the weekends instead of always being on the go.”

  I bounced Marie Lee on my knees. “That’s a good point, yes.”

  “She accused me of being an absent father, and she was right. I threw money at our family to pay for the fact that I was working sixty hours a week, training animals, and unavailable during rodeo season because I was traveling every weekend to compete. Wasn’t fair on Pat, nor was it fair on my daughter.”

  “You know now, and what you do with that information is what matters from here on out.”

  Marie Lee interjected. “Swim, pwease?”

  I smiled down at her. “Just a few more minutes, okay?”

  At my request, she wiggled out of my lap and rushed back upstairs. Probably to change her swimsuit to her pink one, since she had time.

  The girl was going to be a handful when she got to be a teenager.

  “So, that brings me to my next topic of conversation,” Bryce said.

  My attention turned back to him. “What’s up?”

  “This note you left.”

  “Ah.”

  “About the job.”

  I licked my lips. “Yeeeeah.”

  “Are you going to take it?”

  I blinked. “I already have.”

  He nodded. “Well, un-take it.”

  “I’m sorry, but what?”

  He took my hands within his. “Willow, in the few weeks you’ve been under this roof with us, you’ve become more like family than Marie Lee’s own mother. You’re the first person to make me smile like this since before I ever met Pat that night at the bar. You being here? It’s good for all of us. You bring light into my life and joy into Marie Lee’s. Maria adores having you around the house, and God knows you make me smile every time I see you. And I think that being here is good for you, too.”

  I quirked an eyebrow. “Really, now. How so?”

  He grinned. “For starters, I know the job you’re about to take won’t pay you as well as me.”

  “Well, no. It won’t.”

  “And you won’t have any horses to race.”

  “You’re right.”

  He scooted closer until his knee pressed against my inner thighs. “And we can talk about you having paid time off for vacation or long weekends with the girls. I bet the place you’re taking that job at won’t give you as much vacation time as I’m thinking.”

  “Mmmm, talk dirty to me, Bryce-y.”

  He snorted with laughter. “Does that mean you’re staying? You won’t leave?”

  I leaned forward and kissed his lips softly, closing the distance between us.

  “Yes,” I whispered against his lips, “I’ll stay.”

  He cupped the back of my head. “Give me the number, and I’ll call on your behalf.”

  I smiled brightly. “I’m a big girl. I can make the phone call, okay?”

  He gazed into my eyes. “Promise me you’re staying.”

  My hand pressed against his heart. “I promise you, with all I am, that I’m staying.”

  And with a tug of his hand, our mouths crashed back together.

  Sealing our deal with a sweet, luscious locking of lips.

  23

  Bryce

  One Week Later

  “Hey, princess?”

  My beautiful daughter smiled from ear to ear. “Mushwooms time?”

  I nodded. “Toss ‘em in, beautiful.”

  “Yeah!”

  Marie Lee took handfuls of mushrooms and
started throwing them into my stir fry. She giggled with delight as I swirled the wok around, the vegetables and noodles and sauces all blending together. The steak was still in the oven, cooking to perfection in strips so we could toss as much as we wanted over our lovely mixture.

  But the best part was yet to come.

  Not only had Marie Lee helped me throw together a very luscious berry crumble, but we all decided to get dressed up for dinner tonight. That meant my sweet princess was in her finest princess dress with a sparkling tiara on her head, and I donned my nice, all-black suit for the occasion.

  What was the best part, you ask?

  Well, Willow hadn’t emerged yet from the guesthouse. And I kept staring out there, wondering when I’d get to look at her outfit for the evening.

  This entire week while Maria was off, felt like something out of a dream. I had my daughter back, the divorce papers had been signed, and I was officially a free man—sort of. My heart had been tethered to another woman already, and I was anxiously awaiting her arrival into the house.

  The only thing she’d tell me about her ensemble was that black really suited her. So, I decided to match her with the suit I put on. After all, I wanted to make this night as memorable as possible because I had something very important to ask Willow now that she had been back with the family for a week.

  I only hoped she said, ‘yes.’

  “Daddy?”

  My daughter’s voice pulled my eyes from the window. “What is it, princess?”

  She pointed to the wok. “I can see the air?”

  I looked down and saw my noodles were almost burning. “Shit!”

  She giggled. “Diwty woody.”

  I coughed, waving the steam away. “Sorry, princess. You know, Daddy isn’t perfect.”

  She clapped her hands. “Sit! Sit! Sit! Sit!”

  I never thought I’d be grateful for my daughter’s rising speech impediments. But, at that moment? I thanked my stars that she had one.

  “All right, you little rebel. Let’s get you down from the counter so Daddy can finish up,” I said.

  “Awwww,” she pointed.

  I grunted as I picked her up. “Man, you’re getting big. You sure you’re not ten already?”

  She smiled brightly. “Someday, Daddy.”

  I chuckled. “Right, right.”

  The patio door slid open. “Mind if I join you?”

  And when I looked up at the wondrous voice wafting from the glass doors, I wasn’t prepared for the sight I saw.

  There stood Willow, with her honey-colored eyes that matched the highlights in her chestnut hair, cloaked in a tight dress that accented her curves from head to toe. The dress shimmered with every movement she made, from the sway of her hips to the movements of her arms as she shifted her pearl-beaded black clutch in her hands. I felt my jaw swinging against the floor as she clicked toward me in her black heels. Heels that flexed her legs arched her back, and rounded out an ass my palms couldn’t get enough of.

  “Wow,” Marie Lee whispered.

  I pointed to my daughter. “My thoughts exactly.”

  Willow smiled. “You look nice in black, Mr. Bryce.”

  I grinned. “And you put me to shame, Miss Willow.”

  Marie Lee jumped up. “Wha’ ‘bout me!?”

  I barked with laughter as Willow scooped my daughter into her arms. “You look like the most amazing princess I’ve ever laid eyes on. And that includes all the animated princesses you love so much.”

  My daughter beamed with pride. “You, too.”

  Willow smiled brightly as my daughter looked into her eyes, and I wished I would have had my camera to capture the moment. The bond those two had was some I’d never understand. But, it was also a bond I knew they’d find nowhere else. The two of them were connected on another plane. Some ethereal nonsense I never took the time to think upon or figure out. That kind of stuff was for God, not for my earthly state of mind. But, whenever I watched those two together, I was reminded of the fact that there was a higher power. There was a grander plan in all of this.

  I was reminded that miracles did happen—every single day.

  And I had been blessed with the best miracle of all.

  “Who wants steak stir fry?” I asked.

  “Me!” Willow and my daughter said together.

  I smiled. “Well, let’s get seated then. I’ll ready our bowls and drinks and bring everything over.”

  Willow cocked an eyebrow. “Sure, you don’t need help?”

  “Nope. You just sit and enjoy.”

  She got my wiggling daughter into her seat at the table. “It’s really all right. I can help if you need it.”

  “I promise, Willow. I’ve got it. Just sit and relax.”

  “You’ve been telling me that all week, Bryce.”

  I smiled. “Because I mean it, Willow.”

  I peered over my shoulder and saw her smiling brightly at me before she took a seat. I let my eyes sweep over her incredible outfit one last time before I started making up our bowls. I pulled glasses out of the cabinet and filled them with punch. I walked everything over to the table and made sure to serve the two most important women in my life before I served myself. And after I sat down across from my daughter and right beside Willow, I steeled myself against my nerves.

  I couldn’t wait a second longer to ask.

  “Actually, can we pause for a second?” I asked.

  Willow’s fork full of food paused at her lips. “What?”

  My daughter grabbed handfuls of food and shoved it into her face as my eyes locked with Willow’s.

  “Can I talk with you about something for a second before we eat?” I asked.

  She put her fork down. “Of course. Is this a conversation for little ears, though?”

  I took her hand in mind. “It’s fine. I promise.”

  Her eyes dropped to our connection. “Bryce…?”

  I drew in a deep breath. “Willow, you’re part of this family. Whether you expected to be or not, that’s what happened. You captured my daughter’s heart and attention and respect, but you also caught mine.”

  She swallowed hard. “Your… what?”

  I grinned. “My attention. My respect. And…”

  I smoothed my thumb in soft circles as I gathered my thoughts.

  “And my heart, Willow. You captured my heart in more ways than anyone on this planet ever has, and I don’t want you staying in the guesthouse any longer.”

  Tears welled in her eyes. “You--you don’t?”

  I shook my head. “No. I don’t. I want you in the main house like the rest of the family is. I want you to take up residence with us and get out of that stupid guesthouse. You’re one of us now, and I love you. And whether you move into my room or the guest room, it doesn’t matter so long as you’re in the house with us.”

  “You--you love me?”

  I brought her hand to my lips to kiss. “I do, Willow. I love you.”

  A tear trickled down her cheek. “You’re ruining my makeup, jerk.”

  I reached out, wiping the tear away. “Collateral damage I’ll assume responsibility for.”

  She sniffled before clearing her throat. “Bryce?”

  “Yes?”

  “I’d love to move in.”

  “Then, it’s settled. I’ll help you move all of your things--.”

  “And I love you, too.”

  I paused. “What?”

  She leaned over, cupping my cheek. “I love you too, Bryce. I have for some time now.”

  It was time for my eyes to water. “You have no idea how happy that makes me to hear.”

  She smiled so brightly, her eyes closed. “Yeah, I think I have a feeling on how happy it makes you.”

  I wanted to kiss her so badly at that moment. I wanted to capture her lips with my own and pull her into my lap. But not in front of my daughter. Marie Lee was about to go through enough change with the divorce and Willow moving in. I wanted to try and slow things down a bit with h
er and what she saw. However, once we were all done with dinner, and the dishes were put away in the dishwasher, we both wasted no time in putting my daughter down for bed.

  And then, we were alone.

  “So, beautiful. Would you like to see your options for rooms?” I asked.

  Willow grinned. “I’d love a grand tour, thank you.”

  I took her hand in mine. “All right. Well, across the hall from Marie Lee is one of the two guest bedrooms.”

  I threw open the door and flipped on the light before I held her from behind.

  I settled my chin against her shoulder. “It’s a basic layout. Nice queen-sized bed. Drawers with a mirror. Though this bedroom doesn’t have its own bathroom. You’d be sharing with Marie Lee.”

  I kissed her neck softly, feeling her head fall off to the side.

  “Doesn’t sound too bad,” she whispered.

  I nibbled against her skin. “Want to see the guest bedroom downstairs? That one has a bathroom attached?”

  She giggled. “Let’s finish the rooms up here first.”

  I massaged her clothed breasts for a bit. “Sounds like a plan. Come with me.”

  The two of us walked hand in hand until we threw the double doors of my bedroom open. And after I took Willow’s hand, I tugged her against me. Her back, seated against my stomach as her head leaned back against my shoulder.

  I whispered in her ear. “This is my bedroom. It boasts of a California king-sized bed, four posters, and it’s own private balcony overlooking the front yard.”

  She shivered. “Sounds amazing.”

  I nibbled on her earlobe. “The sunsets are perfect from the balcony up here.”

  She groaned. “Oh, I bet they are.”

  My hand softly slid down her stomach. “You’d have to share the ensuite with me. But, there’s a double vanity.”

  She gasped as my fingers pressed against her clothed pussy. “My own sink.”

  I kissed her neck. “Mhm. And, there’s a walk-in shower big enough for three as well as a jetted tub.”

  “Oh, Bryce.”

  I grinned against her bare shoulder. “You like that?”

  “I love this.”

  “What is ‘this’?”

  She slowly turned around, gazing into my eyes. “This. All of it.”

  I slid my hand between her thighs, watching her eyes roll back. “All of this?”