by Leanne Banks
“She’s allowing you to carry her,” Coco said and couldn’t withhold a chuckle. Benjamin appeared as if he were carrying a live grenade and it would go off at any moment.
“What do I do now?”
“She’s probably due for a diaper change,” Coco said, goading him just a bit.
He shot her a dark glance. “I think the smashed pea shooting is enough for one day.”
“In that case, carry her upstairs and I’ll join you in a minute or two,” she said.
“What am I supposed to do for that minute or two?” he demanded.
“Bond with her.”
Benjamin groaned and walked into the hallway.
Coco cleaned up Emma’s messy high chair and counted to three hundred. Carefully, she crept up the stairs to stand outside the nursery. She heard Benjamin talking. Peeking inside, she saw Benjamin pick up one of Emma’s bunnies and move it from side to side in front of the baby.
Emma reached for the stuffed animal and squeezed it for a few seconds then dropped it.
“Oops,” Benjamin said, reaching down to scoop up the bunny. Emma reached for the bunny again and dropped it again. “Fickle little thing, aren’t you?” He caught sight of Coco and gave a nod.
“I see you’ve reached a peace agreement,” she said.
“For now,” he said and handed the baby to Emma.
“You just need to keep spending a little time with her. Soon enough you’ll be giving her horseback-riding lessons,” she said as she put Emma on the changing table and changed her diaper. “Helping her learn to ride a bike, then teaching her how to drive.” She looked up to meet his horrified gaze.
“Driving,” he echoed and shook his head. “Maybe she won’t want to drive.”
Coco laughed. “Now you’re just dreaming.”
“Let’s take this one step at a time. The next step for me is to change out of this shirt that’s covered with strained green peas.” He glanced from Coco to Emma to Coco again. “See ya later,” he said.
As soon as he left, Coco turned to Emma. “Good job!” she said. “You’ll make a daddy out of Benjamin Garner before you know it.”
* * *
The next day, Benjamin rode on horseback to check fences with one of his assistant foremen, Jace. Jace was young, but a hard worker, and both Benjamin and his foreman Hal valued good work ethics in their employees.
“Looks like there could be the beginning of a problem in the northeast corner,” Jace said from his horse.
Benjamin lifted his binoculars and nodded. “Good catch.”
“I should be able to get to it this afternoon,” Jace said.
“That’ll work,” Benjamin said. “Let’s check the other pasture, then we’ll be done.”
“Hal mentioned that we should be on the lookout for strangers coming on the property,” Jace said.
“Have you seen anyone?”
“No. Hal also said it was something to do with the new nanny. She’s not in danger, is she?”
“No,” Benjamin said. “Coco’s fine.”
“Well, speaking of the nanny, she sure is nice,” Jace said.
Benjamin glanced at Jace. “How would you know?”
“I met her when she was going fishing one day. Looked like she was pretty good at it,” he said and laughed. “For a woman. I was wondering if it would be okay if I asked her out sometime.”
“Coco?” Benjamin said.
“Yeah. She’s pretty and nice. She seems like she would be fun.”
“No,” Benjamin said instinctively and without hesitation. He didn’t have to think it through.
“No?” Jace echoed, clearly surprised.
“No,” Benjamin repeated, bemused by the odd gnashing feeling inside him. “We’re trying to get the baby used to living here. Coco is the most important ingredient in that equation. I don’t want her distracted or bothered.”
“I wouldn’t bother her,” Jace muttered.
“That’s right. She’s off-limits. Feel free to spread the word to the rest of the men,” Benjamin said. With no female employees besides his housekeeper, Sarah, dating hadn’t been an issue, until now. Even though Coco was attractive and appeared fun, he didn’t want any additional complications in the picture with her. There were enough with the whole royalty thing. He hoped she would be able to put that on the back burner, but if she couldn’t they would have to work something out. He had to think about what was best for Emma, and what was best for Emma was Coco.
* * *
Coco dressed Emma in a light jacket, tucked her into the stroller and took her for a walk. There was a slight nip in the air, but it was sunny and the time outside would do them both good. Coco headed for the back of the house, where a trail divided two fields. Chatting about the cattle and the trees, Coco alternately walked and ran. Emma let out a giggle when Coco ran.
“So you like a little speed in your stroller, do you?” Coco asked, glancing at the baby. “Your daddy’s not gonna be happy if you feel the same way when you get your first car.” Coco ran and Emma giggled again.
She turned around to return home, alternately walking and running. As she approached the back of the house, though, she noticed that Emma had fallen asleep, her head drooping to the side and her baby lips gently parted. Her heart twisted at the sight of her, so relaxed and at peace. As she rounded the corner to the front of the house, she wondered if she should take her up to her crib for a quick little snooze before dinner.
Three men and a woman immediately lunged toward her. She heard the click of cameras in between their questions.
“Miss Jordan, is it true that you are the illegitimate daughter of the former Prince of Chantaine?”
“Who are you?” Coco asked, shocked by their approach. She instinctively stepped in front of the stroller to protect Emma. “How did you find—”
“Your Highness,” the woman began, “how does it feel to become a princess? You must be so excited.”
Coco shook her head in confusion, distracted by the man shooting photographs of her. “I’m not a princess.”
“Is it true that the Devereau family wishes to deny your place in the royal family?” a man asked.
Emma began to fuss.
“What place?” Coco asked and turned to pull Emma from the stroller. What a ridiculous question, she thought.
“Your rightful place in the royal family,” the man said. “Surely you know you’re due certain rights and privileges.”
“Not really,” Coco said as Emma began to wail.
“But you’re a princess now,” the female reporter said.
“I’m not a princess,” Coco said flatly. “And you’re making the baby cry. Are you proud of that?” she said more than asked and walked up the steps to the front door.
Chapter Four
“What I want to know is how in hell four reporters got past my men,” Benjamin said to his foreman.
“We haven’t been policing it 24/7, Ben,” Hal Dunn said. The two had known each other since Benjamin was eight years old and Hal had been a young new worker on the ranch that Benjamin’s father had then owned. Now Hal was Benjamin’s right-hand man. “They could have sneaked through the wooded area in the front of the property.”
“Well, I don’t want to hear about anyone sneaking in anywhere,” Benjamin said. “And 24/7 starts now.”
“Got it,” Hal said. “But I can tell you that whoever pulls that midnight shift is gonna want extra pay.”
“Done,” Benjamin said. “Just don’t make it too much or you’ll get squabbling over who gets to take the night shift.”
“That’s for darn sure,” Hal said with a rough laugh then turned sober. “Hope they didn’t upset the little one or the nanny too much.”
“Coco said Emma started crying but stopped as soon as th
ey stepped inside the house. Coco seemed pissed off, but I think she may have been more rattled than she wanted to admit. I don’t think she really expected any extra attention from the press, even though we were warned.”
“Well, hell, she’s royalty. That’s big news around here,” Hal said. “Maybe big news everywhere.”
“Because it’s going to change the world if Coco is a princess,” Benjamin said with more than a touch of sarcasm.
Hal gave a combination of a wince and shrug. “Guess that’s true. What else do you want us to do?”
“Just guard the perimeter,” Benjamin said.
“Will do,” Hal said.
A few moments later, Coco bounced down the stairs with Emma bundled in a fleece outfit “We’re ready to go to the doctor,” Coco said.
“What?” Benjamin said. “Why does she need to go to the doctor?”
“It’s a regular appointment,” she said. “Remember, you told me you wanted me to go with you?”
“Yeah, I remember,” he said, thinking he should have added the appointment to his cell calendar schedule. He must have put it on a different calendar. Having trespassers on his property had gotten him sidetracked. “Maybe I should have someone drive you to the pediatrician,” he mused.
“Absolutely not. If we start behaving differently, then we’ll have to do it for the next year. There’s no need for such insanity.”
“I could have one of the men follow her,” Hal said.
“No,” Coco said. “If we take the casual route, then the press will back off,”
Benjamin gave it a second, and even third, thought. “I think it would be a good idea to have one of our men backing you up.”
“Overkill,” she said.
“Better safe than sorry,” he said, enduring her scowl. “We have to think about both your safety and Emma’s safety.”
Her complexion paled. “I would guard Emma with my life.”
“I know you would,” he said. “But I don’t want it to get to that point.”
She took a deep breath and nodded. “Okay.”
Benjamin scrubbed his jaw with his hand. “I’ll reschedule my other appointments for this afternoon. I need to stay on top of Emma’s health.”
Coco blinked and took a quick breath. “Uh, okay. That’s a great idea. You just need to remember to take off your hat.”
Benjamin felt Hal’s confused gaze. “Emma doesn’t like my hat.”
“Damn,” Hal said. “That’s a shame.”
“Tell me about it,” Benjamin said and sighed. He took off his hat and clutched it in his right hand. “Let’s go,” he said to Coco and led the way to his SUV.
“Her car seat is in my car,” she said.
“No problem,” Benjamin said and transferred the seat from Coco’s car to his. He watched as Coco wedged Emma into the car seat and shook his head. “Bet she hates that.”
“If you give her enough toys, she forgets about it,” she said. “But I’m glad we don’t have to go on any long trips.”
“You and me both,” he said as soon as everyone was buckled in place.
He pulled away from the house and drove down the long drive to the public road. He noted a few cars parked alongside the public road and frowned but hoped they weren’t newspeople.
Driving toward town, he checked his rearview mirror, relieved when it didn’t appear that he was being followed. “So what’s the purpose of this appointment? Any shots?”
“It’s a regular checkup. Yes to the shots,” she said.
“Damn,” he muttered. “One more opportunity for her to associate me with pain.”
“They really do forget quickly,” she said.
“I’ll let you hold her during the shots,” he said.
Knowing the bond between Emma and Benjamin was still a bit tenuous, she acquiesced. “This time,” she said.
He slid her a sideways glance. “This time?”
“Yes,” she said. “There may be times when Emma will need support. She may break a leg—”
“Not on my watch,” he insisted.
She smiled. “She may fall and need stitches.”
“You’ll teach her to be careful,” he said.
“Accidents happen. How many broken bones and stitches did you get when you were growing up?”
“That’s different,” he said. “I’m male.”
“Ooh,” she said, drawing out the one syllable in a way that clearly indicated she disagreed. “Big mistake to think that because she’s female, she won’t have accidents. Plus there are illnesses that could take her to the hospital.”
Benjamin’s stomach turned. “I don’t like the sound of any of this.”
“Too late,” she said. “You’re already her father. The good news is that you can take this all one step at a time. Plus you’re already the type to man up, so you’ve got that on your side.”
Benjamin turned the corner to the road where the pediatrician’s office was located. “What makes you so sure about that?”
“You wouldn’t have gone after Emma right after Brooke died if you weren’t a responsible man. You wouldn’t have hired me ASAP. You wouldn’t have taken off your hat for Emma and allowed her to spit peas at you.”
“Well, I guess there’s that,” he said dryly and brought the car to a stop in front of the pediatrician’s office.
“Do they give you a beer after this?” he asked.
She laughed. “No. Not until you get home. Let’s go. It won’t be as bad as you expect.”
Automatically returning his hat to his head, he ushered Coco out of the car and freed Emma from her car seat. She was staring hard at him.
“Hat,” Coco prompted.
“Oh. Okay,” he said and removed it again, setting it in the front seat.
He handed off Emma to Coco and escorted them inside. They sat in the waiting room for fifteen minutes. Afterward, Emma was weighed and measured while they waited for Dr. Apple.
The jovial man walked into the examination room with a friendly, booming voice. “Hello to Emma and mom and dad.”
“You didn’t read the report. Emma’s mother died last month. Coco is her nanny.”
Dr. Apple frowned. “Oh, please accept my condolences. This must be a difficult time for you.”
“Yes, but not in the way you’re thinking,” Benjamin said. “Emma’s mother and I weren’t married.”
Dr. Apple’s mouth formed a perfect O.
“Yeah, and Emma hates me. She screams bloody murder every time I come around,” Benjamin said.
“She’s not screaming now,” Dr. Apple said.
“This is the exception,” he said.
“Not true,” Coco said. “All you have to do is take off your hat.”
Benjamin couldn’t deny her statement.
“Hmm,” Dr. Apple said. “Let’s check out your baby.”
The doctor conducted the examination and ordered the vaccinations. Emma was above average in her weight and height. She had gained in both since her last appointment. According to Dr. Apple, Emma was thriving. Benjamin was certain the primary reason for that was Coco.
The nurse entered and administered the punishment. Emma screamed in fury and agony. His heart wrenched. He watched Coco wince then immediately turn into comfort mode. “There you go,” she said rubbing the baby’s arm. “What a brave girl. All over in no time. You’re such a good girl.”
Emma quickly became distracted by Coco’s words of praise. Her cries subsided and she gave a few extra sobs then sighed.
“You can give her a low dose of baby acetaminophen if she appears uncomfortable,” the nurse said. “She’s a beautiful baby.”
Coco smiled. “Thank you. We think so, too.”
They walked out of the office
and Benjamin helped Emma into her car seat and escorted Coco into her seat. Emma sucked on her pacifier.
“Poor thing,” Coco said. “They go through so much they don’t understand.”
“Yeah, but it’s necessary to keep them alive,” Benjamin said. “I would be a rotten father if I didn’t protect her against the diseases she could get.”
“That’s right,” Coco agreed. “And you’re nowhere near a rotten father.” She glanced behind her. “Besides, she’s sleeping now.”
Benjamin felt something inside him ease. “Good. Just tell me we have that baby Tylenol ready.”
“We do,” she assured him. “Along with your beer.”
* * *
The next day, the story hit the Dallas and Houston papers. The weekly Silver City paper wouldn’t be far behind. The house phone started ringing. Everyone from newspaper reporters to radio DJs to television reporters wanted to interview Coco about her association with the Devereau family.
Sarah fielded the calls when Coco was busy with Emma, but she was getting antsy by late afternoon. “I don’t think I can do another day of this. These phone calls have totally interrupted my cooking and cleaning schedule.”
“I’m sorry,” Coco said as the phone rang again. “Maybe we should let the calls go to voice mail.”
Sarah scoffed and shook her head. “It’ll fill up in an hour. I swear, it must be a slow news day for everyone to get worked up over this.” She picked up the phone. “Garner Ranch.” She paused a few seconds. “Miss Jordan has nothing to say to the press. Pass that along to all your colleagues so they’ll stop calling. Goodbye,” she said and hung up the phone.
“They’ll stop when they figure out I don’t know anything about the Devereaux. As long as I continue to be boring, they’ll get bored, too,” Coco said.
Sarah snorted. “I don’t know what you’ve been drinking, but this is a great story. Pretty girl, orphaned by her adoptive parents, finds out she’s a princess—”
“I’m not a princess,” Coco said. “I’m a nanny.”
“Hmmph,” Sarah said. “Try telling that to the reporters.”
“I have,” Coco said.
The phone rang again and Coco reached for it. She didn’t want Sarah getting any more cranky than she already was. “Garner Ranch,” she said.
