by Leanne Banks
“The boys are mine,” he said, his jaw locking in resolution. “It may take me some time, but I’ll figure it out. The boys are important to me. I held them minutes after they were born. I would do anything for them. We’ve just all been thrown a loop. We’re all dealing with the loss of my brother and sister-in-law. I will be there for them. I will be.”
She nodded slowly. “Okay. I’ll try to help you with your nanny situation.”
He paused and the electricity and emotion that flowed between them snapped and crackled. “Thank you.”
She nodded. “It’s late. I may need to borrow one of your shirts and I should talk to my security.”
“No problem,” he said, but the way he looked at her made her feel as if he’d much prefer she share his bed instead of taking the guest bed alone.
Bridget took a quick shower and brushed her teeth with the toothbrush Ryder supplied. Pushing her hands through the sleeves of the shirt he left in the guest bedroom for her, she drank in the fresh scent of the shirt. She climbed into bed, wondering what had possessed her to get involved in Ryder’s situation and she remembered all the things she couldn’t control or influence. Maybe, just maybe she could wave a magic wand in this one and help just a little.
It seemed only seconds after she fell asleep that she heard a knock at the door. She awakened, confused and disoriented. “Hello?”
“Bridget,” a male voice said from the other side of the door. “It’s me, Ryder.”
The door opened a crack. “I just wanted you to know I’m leaving.”
Her brain moved slowly. She was not at the hotel. She was at Ryder’s townhome. “Um.”
“The boys are still asleep.”
She paused. “The boys?” She blinked. “Oh, the boys.”
He came to the side of her bed. “Are you okay?”
“What time is it?”
“Five a.m.”
“Is this when you usually leave for work?”
“Pretty much,” he said.
“Okay,” she said and tried to make her brain work. “What time do they usually get up?”
“Six or seven,” he said. “I can try and call someone if—”
“No, I can do it,” she said. “Just leave my door open so I can hear them.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. Check in at lunchtime,” she said.
“I can do that,” he said and paused. “Did anyone ever tell you how beautiful you are when you’re half-asleep?”
Unconsciously, her mouth lifted in a half smile. “I can’t recall such a compliment.”
“Nice to know I’m the first,” he said, bending toward her and pressing his mouth against hers. Before she could say a word, he left.
Bridget wondered if she’d dreamed the kiss.
She fell back asleep for what must have been 30 seconds and she heard the sound of a baby’s cry. It awakened her like cold water on her face. She sat upright, climbed out of bed and walked to the boys’ room. She swung open the door to find Travis and Tyler sitting in their cribs and wailing.
“Hi, darlings,” she said and went to Travis. “Good morning. It’s a wonderful day to be a baby, isn’t it?” She saw a twisty thing on the side of the crib and cranked it around. The mobile turned and music played. “Well, look at that,” she said and touched the mobile.
Travis gave a few more sobs, but as soon as he looked upward, he quieted as the mobile turned.
Bridget felt a sliver of relief. “Good boy,” she said and went to Tyler’s bed and cranked up the mobile. Tyler looked upward and gave up his halfhearted cry, staring at the mobile.
Diaper change, she thought and took care of Travis. Then she took care of Tyler and hoisted both boys on her hips and went downstairs. She fed them, changed them again and propped them on a blanket in the den while she called her sister’s friend for a reference for the best nanny agency in Dallas. Three hours later, she interviewed four nannies in between feeding the twins and changing more diapers and putting them down for a nap. When they fussed at nap time, she played a CD more repetitious than her brother’s top-adviser’s speech on a royal’s duty. She’d heard that lecture too many times to count. The huge advantage to the babies’ CD was that it included singing. Bridget wondered if she might have been more receptive to the lecture if the adviser had sung it.
The second prospective nanny was her favorite. She received letters of reference on her cell phone within an hour and sent a generous offer that was immediately accepted. After she checked on the boys, she ordered a nanny/babycam. Next in line, she would hire a relief nanny, but right now she needed a little relief of her own.
Bridget sank onto the couch and wondered when her day had felt so full. Even at this moment, she needed to use the bathroom, but she didn’t have the energy to go. She glanced at herself, in her crumpled dress from yesterday with baby formula, baby food and liquid baby burp. That didn’t include the drool.
Crazy, but the drool was sweet to her. How sick was that? But she knew the twins had drooled when they’d relaxed and trusted her.
She laughed quietly, a little hysterically. Anyone in their right mind would ask why she was working so hard to find a nanny for a doctor with two baby boys. Maybe a shrink could explain it, but these days, Bridget had a hard time turning down a cause of the heart. And Ryder and the boys had struck her straight in the heart with a deadly aim. She hoped, now, that she would feel some sort of relief.
Leaning back against the sofa with her bladder a little too full, she closed her eyes. Heaven help her, this baby stuff was exhausting.
Ryder left the office early, determined not to leave Bridget totally in the lurch with the boys. Stepping inside the front door, he found Bridget, mussed in the most alluring way, asleep on his couch.
She blinked, then her eyes widened. “Oh, excuse me. Just a second,” she said, then raced down the hallway.
He listened carefully, automatically these days. A CD played over the baby monitor, but there were no other sounds. A double check never hurt, he thought, and strode upstairs to listen outside the nursery door. Nothing. He opened the doorknob in slow motion and pushed the door open. Carefully stepping inside, he peeked into the cribs. Both boys were totally zoned out. He almost wondered if they were snoring but refused to check.
Backing out of the room, he returned downstairs to the den. Bridget was sipping from a glass of water.
“Are they still asleep?” she asked.
He nodded.
She grimaced. “I hate to say this. You have no idea how much I hate to say this, but we need to wake them or they’ll be up all night. And I’m not staying tonight.”
“Yeah,” he said, but he was in no rush.
“I hired a nanny. She can start Monday. I’ve also ordered a baby/nannycam for your peace of mind. The next step is hiring a relief nanny because the twins are especially demanding at this age. Well, maybe they will be demanding at every age, but we have to deal with the present and the immediate future.”
Ryder stared at her in disbelief. “How did you do that?”
She smiled. “I’m a fairy princess. I waved my magic wand,” she said. “Actually I got into the best nanny agency in Dallas, used my title, interviewed four highly qualified women in between changing diapers, selected one applicant, received references, blah, blah, blah and it’s done.” She lifted her shoulders. “And now I’m done.”
“I’m sure you are. In any other circumstance, I would invite you out to dinner for the evening.”
“Lovely thought,” she said. “But I feel extremely grungy. The opposite of glamorous. I’m going to my sister’s ranch for the weekend. You can call me next week about all the doctors you want to send to Chantaine.”
His lips twitched. “You don’t really think I’m going to sell out one of my residents for this, do you?”
“Sell out is such a harsh term,” she said with a scowl. “I believe it’s more accurate that you’re giving them an opportunity for hands-on experience in a beaut
iful environment with a compensation that allows them to concentrate on treatment rather than their debt.”
He lifted an eyebrow. “Pretty good.”
She shrugged. “It’s the truth. My security is waiting to drive me to my sister’s house. Can you take it from here?”
“Yes, I can. Do I have your number?” he asked. “For that dinner I promised.”
She looked at him for a long, sexy moment that made him want to find a way to make her stay. “Some would say I’m more trouble than I’m worth,” she said.
“They haven’t seen you with twins,” he said.
She smiled slightly and went to the kitchen. Out of curiosity, he followed and watched her scratch a number across the calendar tacked on the fridge. “Good enough?” she asked.
“Good enough,” he said.
“Don’t wait too long to call me, cowboy doctor,” she said and walked toward the front door.
“I won’t,” he said, his gaze fixed on the sight of her amazing backside. “G’night, gorgeous.”
She tossed a smile over her shoulder. “Same to you.”
Bridget felt Valentina search her face. “Twin boys? Dr. Ryder? What does any of this have to do with you?”
It was Saturday morning. Noon, actually, as she sipped her tea and entered the world of the waking. “I didn’t mean to get involved, but I didn’t have a choice. I mean, the boys were orphaned. Ryder is grieving at the same time he’s trying to take care of the babies. Trying to take on someone else’s job because he’s medically unable.”
Tina stared at her in disbelief. “Are you sure you’re okay? Maybe you need more rest.”
Bridget laughed. “I’m sure I’ll take another nap, but the story won’t change tomorrow. It was something I had to do.” She paused. “You understand that, don’t you? When you have to fix it if you can?”
Tina’s face softened and she covered Bridget’s hand with hers. “Oh, sweetie, I’m so sorry,” she said, shaking her head.
“For what?”
“The Devereaux fixing gene has kicked in,” she said. “It’s a gift and a plague.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, you finally understand what it means to be a Devereaux Royal,” she said, her expression solemn. “If you see a need, you try to fill it. If you see a pain, you try to heal it. It’s your purpose. It’s our purpose.”
“So, I’m going to be doing stuff like this the rest of my life?” Bridget asked, appalled.
Tina nodded and Katiana banged on the tray of her high chair, clearly wanting more food.
“Oh, I hope not.” Bridget didn’t want to feel that much. She didn’t want to get that emotionally involved. Surely, she could get this out of her system once and for all with Ryder and the babies and then get back to her true self in Italy.
Bridget sighed. “What I really want to do is wrap up this doctor thing as soon as possible. I’m concerned it may not happen as quickly as I like.”
“Why not?” Tina asked as she gave Katiana slices of peaches.
“I don’t understand it all, but the way Ryder talks about it, going to Chantaine would be death for a physician’s career. Sounds a bit overdramatic to me, but I need to get further information. In the meantime, Stefan has asked me to make some more official appearances, so I’ll be traveling and spending more time in Dallas.”
Tina frowned. “I don’t like that,” she said. “I thought you were going to spend most of your time here with me.”
“I’ll still be coming to the ranch as often as possible, but you know how Stefan is. He likes to maximize our efforts.”
“How well I remember,” Tina said with a groan. She dampened a clean cloth and wiped off Katiana’s face and hands.
Katiana shook her adorable head and lifted her hands. “Up,” she said.
“Of course, Your Highness,” Tina said and gave her daughter a kiss as she lifted her from the chair.
Katiana immediately pointed at the floor. “Down.”
“Please,” Tina said. Katiana paused.
“Please,” Tina repeated. “Can you say that?”
“Psss,” the toddler said.
“Close enough,” Tina said with a laugh.
Bridget stared at her sister in jeans and a T-shirt and sometimes had to shake her head at the sight of her. “I’m just not used to seeing you quite so domesticated.”
“I’ve been living here for more than two years now.”
“Do you mind it? The work?” she asked. “At the palace, you could have had several nannies at your beck and call.”
“I have Hildie the housekeeper, who may as well be Katiana’s grandmother, and Zach. I like the simplicity of this life. Before I met Zach, I always felt like I was juggling a dozen priorities. Now between him and Katiana, the choice is easy.”
“Must be nice,” Bridget muttered as Hildie, Zach’s longtime housekeeper, strode through the door carrying a bag of groceries.
“Well, hello, all Your Highlinesses. We’ve got a roomful of royalty today. Miss Tina, did you offer your sister some of that strawberry bread? Looks like you’re having a late breakfast. Although that should come as no surprise considering when she got here last night,” Hildie said, lifting her eyebrow.
Bridget wasn’t quite certain how to take the stern-looking gray-haired woman. Tina insisted the woman had a heart of gold, but she seemed to rule the house with an iron hand. “Good morning, Miss—”
“Call me Hildie, and it’s afternoon. Do you feel like some pancakes or a turkey sandwich? You looked pretty rough when you got in last night,” Hildie said as she began to put away groceries.
“She was taking care of twin babies,” Tina said, clearly still amazed.
Hildie’s jaw dropped. “Twin babies,” she said. “You?”
Bridget grimaced. “I know it’s totally improbable. Hopefully I won’t be put in that type of situation again.”
“She was helping a doctor who had become a guardian to his brother’s two babies because the brother and sister-in-law were killed in an accident.”
Hildie shook her head, her brow furrowing in deep sympathy. “That’s terrible, just terrible. You did the right thing,” she said to Bridget. “Let me fix you a pie. I’ll fix you any kind you want.”
Surprised, Bridget felt a rush of discomfort mixed with pleasure. “Oh, I don’t need a pie. You’re delightful to suggest it, but—”
“I insist,” Hildie said.
Tina lifted her shoulders helplessly. “You’re going to get a pie whether you like it or not. You may as well pick what you like, and I guarantee it will be the best pie you’ve eaten.”
“Well, if you must, I would like the most decadent chocolate pie you can bake.”
Hildie cackled with laughter. “Chocolate. You can tell the two of you are sisters. And you may try to hide it, but you have that fix-it compulsion just like your sister.”
“I don’t have that compulsion,” Bridget insisted. “It’s temporary. Like a virus. As soon as I take my long break in Italy, I’ll be cured.”
Hildie laughed again and shot her a look of sympathy. “Don’t worry, Your Highliness. It may take a while, but you’ll figure it out.”
Bridget frowned because it seemed that Hildie knew something she didn’t. Hmm. The prospect didn’t please her, but the chocolate would help.
Chapter Three
Three nights later, Ryder met Bridget at an exclusive Mediterranean restaurant in Dallas. He remembered she’d said she preferred Mediterranean and Italian food. With the Dallas skyline outside the window beside them, he couldn’t look anywhere but at her. Her blue eyes sparkled with a combination of sensuality and warmth. Her black dress—yet another one—dipped into a V that cupped her beautiful breasts and her lips were, again, red.
“Thank you for joining me,” he said after they’d placed their order.
“Thank you for inviting me. Who’s watching the twins?” she asked.
“A neighbor and her daughter. I’m paying doub
le. Amazing how easy it was for them to commit when I said that,” he said.
She laughed. “They’re adorable but exhausting. How was the new nanny?”
“Scary efficient. This was her first day and she’s already whipping all of us into shape,” he said, amazed at how good he felt just to be with Bridget.
“Good. Next step is to get a backup,” she said and took a sip of wine. “In the meantime, about Chantaine’s medical program…”
He stifled a groan. “Do we have to discuss business?”
“Briefly,” she said and lifted an eyebrow. “Remember that we held our discussion while the twins were screaming after I had cared for them during your meeting and—”
“Okay, okay,” he said. “Do you want me to be blunt?”
“I would love it,” she said, leaning forward and propping her chin on her hands.
“The truth is, there’s no true professional advantage for the residents to go to Chantaine after they graduate. There’s no extra education, association with an expert, or certification.”
“So money is not enough,” she said.
“No,” he said.
“Hmm.” She tilted her head. “So the whole game would change if Chantaine could offer exposure to a noted expert in a particular field?”
He nodded.
She took another sip of her wine. “Thank you.”
He could tell her brain was already racing. “You’re plotting and planning,” he said.
She smiled, her sexy red lips lifting upward, sending a sensual heat through his veins. “Yes, I am. I’ll figure something out. It’s the Devereaux way.”
“I did an internet search on you,” he admitted. “You’ve mostly stayed out of trouble. How did you manage that?”
“I’m flattered. Of course, I did research on you right after the cocktail party. How did I stay out of trouble?” she asked. “It’s all relative. My sisters did me a huge favor. I wouldn’t wish it on her, but Ericka went to rehab, and then after that, Tina got pregnant. What a scandal. So my little tumbles—”
