An Unexpected Father

by Marie Ferrarella

  She might have anticipated what he wanted to say, but not what came afterward.

  “Join me?” Brady asked, nodding at the chair opposite his.

  Harper glanced at the mug of coffee she had poured for herself earlier. She had kept taking small sips of the brew while she worked.

  “Okay,” she agreed, bringing the mug over to the table, “but just for coffee. I’ve got two small tornadoes to beat to the punch.”

  Brady laughed.

  “I probably shouldn’t say that,” she amended. “Let me rephrase. I want to be upstairs and getting the boys up before they have a chance to come bounding out of bed and get rolling on their own,” she told him instead.

  The idea of actually waking the twins up voluntarily seemed totally foreign to him. “I always thought it was criminal to wake them up. I was confident that they’d be up and creating havoc soon enough.”

  Harper smiled at his honesty. In his defense, she could see where he was coming from. “I guess we have different approaches. Mine works for me.”

  Brady could only shake his head. “More power to you, Ms. Radcliffe.” He saw her wrinkling her nose. “What is it?” he asked, waiting for her response.

  It wasn’t what he anticipated.

  “Given the close proximity that we’ll be working in, I think you should call me Harper. It’s less formal,” she told him.

  Brady had always found that he was usually able to read people—at least he could before this bombshell had exploded in his life. After all, he’d had no clue that his late best friend had made him the guardian of his twins—certainly not until all of this had engulfed him, blotting out his old life.

  In Harper’s case, he had thought that calling her by her first name was a liberty that would spook her and cause her to step back. Obviously he was wrong there, too.

  “I didn’t want to take any liberties that might make you feel uncomfortable,” he explained.

  Maybe she had misjudged him. For that matter, maybe he was more sensitive than she had given him credit for.

  “I appreciate that,” she told him, her eyes smiling at him. “But Harper will do just fine. Calling me Ms. Radcliffe makes me feel like an old schoolmarm out of the 1890s.”

  “Can’t have that,” Brady agreed. And then what he was putting in his mouth registered belatedly with his brain. He looked at his fork in wonder, as if he hadn’t really been paying attention to what Harper had prepared for him. “Damn but this is good. I know it’s only scrambled eggs, but this doesn’t taste like any scrambled eggs I’ve ever had before. What did you do to them? And moreover, have you ever thought of opening up your own restaurant?” he asked as he took another big bite of his serving.

  Brady watched as the smile on her lips seemed to take over every inch of Harper’s face. “And call it what?” she asked, amused. “Eggs Galore? No. That’s a very nice compliment,” she responded, “but I’m very happy being a nanny. As a matter of fact, when I had to stop being a nanny, those were the longest, emptiest three months of my life.” Although she had always longed for a family with all the trimmings, she had learned that wanting and having were two different things. Much to her dismay, love had never found her. That was the main reason she had initially decided to fill the emptiness by becoming a nanny.

  Brady realized that he had no idea what had transpired to bring that hiatus about.

  He knew that he thought of Harper as a great nanny because he had witnessed her with the twins and was impressed with both her creativity and her ability to all but pull a rabbit out of a hat. She didn’t seem to get flustered by anything that the dynamic duo came up with. As a matter of fact, she was utterly unflappable.

  But he still wanted to know what had happened to separate her from the vocation she professed to love since she did clearly love it.

  “Just what happened to your last position?” he wanted to know. “You didn’t mention it.”

  She took a breath. Incidents and details crowded her mind, jockeying for position. She wasn’t up to putting them in order, nor did she want to remember them—not yet.

  “Long story,” Harper told him evasively, then reminded Brady, “and you did say that you were in a hurry.”

  Brady knew evasion when he encountered it and grinned at Harper.

  “Yes, I did, didn’t I?” And he really was. Finished eating, he rose from his chair. “But this isn’t over,” he informed her. “You’ve aroused my curiosity, Harper Radcliffe,” he told her. “When I get home tonight, you’ll have to tell me what went down that wound up separating you from a job you obviously love.”

  Harper was not about to be honest with him and tell him about the obnoxious octopus that had been her employer’s husband—a little fact that didn’t keep him from making more and more uninvited advances on her.

  Instead, she forced a smile to her lips. She had the next eight hours to come up with a believable story, she thought as she watched her new employer walk out the front door.

  With any luck, that would be enough time.

  Either that, or maybe he would even forget about asking her about it by then.

  Chapter Ten

  Callum Fortune stood back and covertly observed his cousin go through his paces at the Hotel Fortune concierge desk for the good part of an hour.

  Finally stepping forward, Callum came up to the desk and openly complimented Brady. “From the moment I first laid eyes on you, I just had this feeling that you were going to work out.”

  The Hotel Fortune had been Callum’s latest project. Something he had undertaken with the hope of bringing even more tourism to Rambling Rose.

  A real estate developer and contractor by trade, Callum and his siblings involved in Fortune Brothers Construction had been experiencing a great deal of success in their efforts to build up the small Texas town of Rambling Rose a section at a time. Their pediatric center, veterinary clinic, upscale retail stores, wellness spa, and farm-to-table restaurant had all been well-received by the locals and were doing quite well.

  Which was why the pushback against the luxury hotel Callum had wanted to proceed with next had been such an unexpected, unpleasant surprise. But it turned out that the down-to-earth locals resented such a large-scale project being forced down their throats—or at least that was how the residents of Rambling Rose viewed the idea of an unwanted “monstrosity” being built in their midst.

  After much negotiating, a level of understanding between the two sides was finally reached, thanks in no small part to the intervention of Callum’s cousin—and Brady’s older brother—Kane, as well as Rodrigo Mendoza, the restaurant consultant for Provisions who had ultimately contributed his expertise to the hotel, too. Rodrigo was also engaged to Callum’s sister Ashley, the general manager of Provisions. Thanks to his experience, Rodrigo had a little more insight into the locals’ reactions to the original building plans—and had been able to convince Callum to scale back.

  After all the protests were aired and reviewed, Callum and his siblings wound up designing a more welcoming and homey, albeit upscale, boutique hotel than they’d originally planned. But it was well worth their efforts.

  After its official opening last month on Valentine’s Day, the Hotel Fortune was a certified success. Though Callum had hired a general manager, he still made it his business to check in on the operation of his pet project. Today that meant observing their new concierge.

  Granted, Brady had no experience in that area, but he had managed a sporting goods store, so he was no stranger to management and thinking on his feet. In addition he had good business sense.

  The best part of all, in Callum’s opinion, was that Brady had more than a little charisma. And that, he knew, was something that couldn’t be taught. A person either had it or he didn’t and that came in quite handy when dealing with guests.

  After watching his cousin in action after a hotel guest came dow
n to register a complaint about her accommodations and then left with a smile on her face, Callum knew that he had hired the right person for the job.

  “You’re a natural, Brady,” Callum told his cousin, well pleased.

  “Just grateful for a chance to prove myself—and earn a living,” Brady replied modestly. “I’ve got mouths to feed now.”

  He had learned not to allow compliments to go to his head. The last six months had taught him that fate was mercurial. He was determined to keep one eye on the prize and one eye on the future. It wasn’t just about him anymore. He had the twins depending on him and he couldn’t lose sight of that.

  Wrapped up in getting Hotel Fortune off the ground and up and running, Callum had gone off track about that. “Right,” he said with a nod. “How are the twins doing these days? I’ve heard some pretty hair-raising stories,” Callum added with a hearty, amused laugh.

  Brady leaned in a little closer, not wanting his voice to carry. “Quite frankly, it’s one big balancing act,” he admitted.

  “I can give you the name of a babysitter if you need one,” Callum offered.

  He was fairly certain that he and his wife could share a contact or two that they trusted to watch their two-year-old girls. After all, he didn’t want to risk losing Brady since his cousin seemed to fit so well into this new position.

  “Thanks,” Brady demurred, “but it looks like I won’t be needing a sitter.”

  Callum grinned. He was really feeling good about the hotel. Things were finally all coming together and he could afford to relax just a little. Even laugh a little if the situation called for it.

  “I didn’t know you dabbled in black magic,” he said to his new concierge.

  Brady picked up on Callum’s inference and got a kick out of it. “No black magic. I lucked out and hired this fantastic nanny.”

  “Fantastic, eh?” Callum raised his brow, instantly picking up on his cousin’s enthusiasm.

  “She is absolutely incredible with the twins,” Brady said with gusto. “She had them both eating out of her hand within minutes. I never saw anything like it. I don’t know how she does it,” he said quite honestly, “but I am definitely going to make sure I hold on to her.”

  “As long as you don’t wind up actually holding her,” Callum warned.

  Brady looked at his cousin, puzzled. “I’m not sure I follow you.”

  “I’ve learned that business and pleasure don’t always mix,” Callum cautioned. “If this nanny is an answer to a prayer, as you seem to indicate, I’d make damn sure I didn’t do anything to rock that boat—or you risk this nanny handing in her notice. These are very tense times, cousin. Even the most innocent of moves run the risk of being misunderstood and since you’ve indicated that you’re very pleased with what this nanny brings to the table and manages to do to keep your world running well, I’d make sure that your positions of employer and employee don’t wind up getting blurred.”

  Funny that his cousin should mention that, Brady thought. Because if he was being strictly honest about it, he would have to admit that he was attracted to his boys’ nanny.

  Very attracted.

  But Callum was right. The last thing he wanted to do was throw a monkey wrench into the works and risk losing someone whom the twins responded to and obviously liked. No possible, fleeting romantic tryst was worth that. Not when Harper Radcliffe could afford him the peace of mind that the dynamic duo were being looked after and well taken care of.

  Brady flashed a smile at his cousin and employer. “Message received. Loud and clear,” he assured Callum. “Besides, I wouldn’t want to wind up confusing those energetic little rug rats about where Harper and I stand.”

  “Harper?” Callum questioned.

  “That’s the nanny’s name. Harper Radcliffe,” Brady told his cousin. “I actually find myself daydreaming about being able to look forward to some sort of a routine in the coming days—other than here at the hotel,” he qualified.

  Callum laughed. “I see that your requirements are really low—not including the hotel,” he added with an amused smile.

  “Oh, on the contrary, Callum. My requirements are very high. You weren’t there for these last six months,” Brady told his cousin. “My entire life went from carefree to chaos.” He stifled a shiver as he recalled certain instances. “Make no mistake about it, this woman is worth her weight in pure gold—maybe even platinum.”

  Callum sympathized with his cousin. He didn’t know if he would have had the stamina that Brady did. And once again, he had to give credit to his wife, who was herself a single parent to young twins when they met. Still, he couldn’t resist poking fun at Brady. “Don’t take this the wrong way, Brady, but whatever you do, don’t let this Harper person suspect that you feel that way or you’ll wind up turning your whole paycheck over to her every week.”

  Despite the humorous tone, Brady found himself getting defensive for Harper’s sake, although, quite honestly, he wasn’t sure what that was all about. “I don’t think she’s the type to take advantage.”

  “Well, for your sake, I really hope you’re right,” Callum told him. “But be careful. You don’t know her all that well.”

  “I’ve entrusted that woman with the lives of two little boys. My two little boys. I know her well enough,” he told his cousin, then added, “Call it a gut feeling.”

  Callum nodded and held up his hands. “Okay, cuz. Good enough for me.”

  Brady wasn’t fooled by his cousin’s tone for a moment. Because they were still at work, though, Brady felt it prudent not to comment on Callum’s words of caution.

  Instead, he went back to work.

  * * *

  Because he was still engaged in learning all the preliminary details involved in running the concierge desk, Brady wound up putting in an extra-long day.

  He wasn’t able to get back home until almost nine thirty.

  As he let himself in, Brady couldn’t help thinking back to when nine thirty was just the beginning of the evening for him, not the tail end of the day.

  Now it felt like he had put in an eternity and a half since this morning. All he could think of was crawling into bed—fully dressed—and falling asleep.

  As Brady turned the key in the lock, opening the front door, he fervently prayed that his human jumping beans had been put to bed. Even so, he had visions of them standing on the other side of the door, ready to jump up at him.

  Ready to play.

  With this unsettling image in mind, Brady slowly eased open the front door, looking around twice before finally stepping inside the house.

  As he did so, he released the breath he was holding. It didn’t seem possible, but the twins had to be asleep. Otherwise, he knew they would have come bounding out of nowhere to greet him.

  Listening, Brady embraced what were clearly the sounds of silence, praying they would last until he could reach the sanctuary of his bedroom and shut the doors.

  “Don’t you want to eat?”

  Surprised by the voice that seemed to come out of nowhere, Brady swung around and saw Harper standing a few feet away.

  Once she saw Brady pull up outside, Harper had debated keeping silent and just letting him go up to his room before going home herself. Not only did she know he had to be tired, but that way they wouldn’t have to finish the conversation they’d started that morning. She could put off having to explain why she hadn’t been able to work as a nanny for months.

  But doing that would mean allowing Brady to go to his room without having anything to eat. Of course, he might have very well gotten something to eat before he left the Hotel Fortune, but in good conscience, she didn’t want to just assume things.

  So, she put her own comfort aside and asked her question the moment he entered.

  Brady didn’t answer the question immediately. He just stared at Harper as her question final
ly registered.

  Finally finding his tongue, Brady answered her. “Thanks, but after getting Team Chaos bedded down for the night, you probably just want to go home and get some well-earned rest yourself.”

  She had to admit that his answer caught her off guard. But then, she didn’t think that way.

  “I know I’m just the nanny, but I don’t see my job ending when those little dynamite sticks defuse and close their big blue eyes,” she informed him. “Besides, when you called earlier to say you’d be working late, I decided to make you a light dinner. I figured that anything heavy wouldn’t sit well and might wind up keeping you awake.” Harper gestured toward the kitchen. “Come,” she invited. “Sit.”

  The tone was one he guessed that she used on the twins. “I’m not a little boy,” he pointed out.

  “No, you’re not,” she agreed. “But you don’t have to be a little boy to need a little accommodating yourself. I’m just doing my part,” she told him with a smile. “And the sooner you stop arguing with me and eat, the sooner we can both go to bed.”

  No sooner had she said that than the words replayed themselves in her head.

  Appalled at how that had to have sounded, she turned a bright shade of red from her cheeks all the way to the tips of her ears.

  Her eyes darted toward his face. “I mean—”

  At another time, Brady might have gotten a kick out of watching Harper try to talk her way out of what she had inadvertently said. But he was tired and besides, he actually felt bad for her. After all, he reminded himself, the young woman was just being kind and thoughtful, going out of her way for him. Making her feel uncomfortable was no way to pay her back.

  “I know what you mean, Harper, and you’re right. I should just shut my mouth and stop giving you a hard time for being so thoughtful.” He sat down at the table, all but collapsing in the chair. “Just know that if the meal involves a lot of chewing,” Brady warned, “I’m not really up to it. I know my day was nothing like what you probably went through,” he allowed, “but I feel as if someone used my body as a dust mop to clean everything up throughout the entire hotel.”