“We set up the pack and play in your room,” his mother said. “And Jenny fell asleep immediately once we put her in there in a snuggly.”
“The what and what?” Jaxon asked, sounding as confused as Austin had been in the store when he’d been looking for all the baby paraphernalia.
“The pack and play is a portable crib. Until we know for sure that she’s mine, I’ll make do with that,” Austin explained.
“And the snuggly is a zipper-like thing that bundles the baby and makes her feel cocooned and safe,” his mom said. “But if she is yours, you’re going to need to turn one of the bedrooms into her room. You’ll have to buy a real crib and furniture, and … I’ll go shopping with you for all the baby things you didn’t buy this trip.”
Her excitement seemed to build and Austin knew he had to cut it off quickly. “I’ve got it, Mom. I know. But let’s not rush things.”
The truth was, he needed the time between now and when he learned the results of the paternity test to come to terms with his new potential reality. Thank God Quinn had agreed to help him.
He glanced around the room, seeing his brothers and his mother. “Where’s Quinn and Bri? Are they upstairs?” He hoped he didn’t sound as panicked as he felt at not seeing Quinn. In just one night, he’d grown used to her soothing presence to help with the baby. Hell, he was getting used to seeing her in his home, period. Besides, she’d promised she’d stick around.
“Bri went home with her so she could pack up a suitcase. She couldn’t exactly live in your sweats and the same pair of underwear for the next five days.” His mom took the lined-up bottles and began to put powdered formula in each. “I’m going to make you premade bottles and refrigerate them. That way you’ll just have to heat them in the bottle warmer over there.” She pointed to one of the items she’d set up.
He strode over and hugged his mother tight. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Taking care of that adorable baby isn’t a hardship. I can’t wait to come back home and spend time with her. But I’m glad Quinn volunteered to stay. She’s a sweet woman.” His mother met his gaze. “In fact, I’d go so far as to say she’s a keeper.”
“Mom, are you matchmaking?” Jaxon asked with a snicker.
“Shut up, asshole. Wait until it’s your turn.”
His mother frowned. “Language, Austin. And I’m just saying she’s good with the baby. And I might have seen how you look at her,” she added under her breath.
“Jesus. I’m leaving before she finds a woman to hook me up with,” Damon said. “You need anything, call me, bro. Just not for babysitting.”
“I’ll go with you.” Jaxon slapped Austin on the shoulder. “I’ll call and check on you. Behave with your assistant. You need her help, so don’t go trying to get into her pants.”
“Boys! Behave.” Christine shook her head. “Now go. I need to teach your brother how to make bottles.”
Jaxon snorted. “Love you, Mom.”
“Love you, Mom,” Damon repeated but they both obviously meant it. Then they walked out, bickering as they went.
* * *
Austin’s mother waited until Quinn returned before she left, promising to check in later. Quinn had gone upstairs to unpack her things, leaving Austin in the kitchen he no longer recognized. The counters were strewn with bottles and nipples, his once clean house now a cluttered mess.
“Jesus. How did this happen?” he asked out loud, talking to himself.
Light laughter sounded as Quinn joined him in the brightly lit room. “Do you really want an answer?”
Knowing the direction of her thoughts, he shook his head.
She’d changed into a pair of black leggings and an extra-long red tank top. He was used to seeing her dressed for work, and the sight of her wearing casual clothes that showed off her body, her full breasts and curvy hips, had him drooling. When it came to Quinn, it didn’t take much for her to have an impact.
He leaned against the counter and forced himself to focus. “Thanks for the help with the shopping list. And for everything else.” He didn’t know what he’d do if she hadn’t stepped up.
“You’re welcome. I’m not heartless and I won’t leave you stranded without help.”
He gestured toward the table and chairs and they settled in across from each other. He glanced at the baby monitor, which showed a sleeping infant, but his insides were jumping and he was nervous, waiting for her to wake up screaming at any moment.
He glanced at his assistant, who, in the last twenty-four hours, had shocked him with her baby abilities. He’d called her because he couldn’t think of anyone else to help him, but he hadn’t really expected that she’d be a pro.
“So tell me. How do you know so much about babies?” he asked.
Quinn blinked, obviously surprised by the question.
He leaned his arms on the table and studied her. “I mean, you jumped into the deep end with me like a champ. You knew exactly how to make a bottle, change a diaper, and calm a crying baby. Not to mention that shopping list. So where did all this knowledge come from?”
She sighed. “My family. It’s big like yours. Both my parents worked and I’m the oldest.” She shrugged. “They needed someone to watch the younger ones. And when my aunt had babies, it was always Quinn can watch the kids. It’s not that I minded so much as that it was just expected.”
“So while I was busy being pushed harder and harder in football, you were playing nanny.”
Her pretty green eyes opened wide. “Exactly! It got to the point where my parents thought I might as well become a full-time childcare giver. Nobody ever considered I might have other dreams for my life.”
He’d known her for a little over a year, and he’d never doubted her ability to run his office and business. “You’re damned good at your job, Quinn. And what you didn’t know about sports when you signed on, you learned on your own. I’ve always seen your drive to succeed.”
Her cheeks flushed at the intended compliment. “Then you saw something my parents didn’t. Even my brother doesn’t really understand me. I’m glad you do.”
As she met his gaze, an appreciative smile tilted her lips. “Look, I don’t mind helping you out for a while but I love my job. And I never wanted kids. Not after raising everyone else’s. So after you hire a nanny, I’m back to being your office assistant. Agreed?”
He swallowed hard, not understanding why her words caused a heavy weight in his chest. “Of course we’re agreed. Besides, for all I know, Jenny’s mother is going to show up any day and demand her daughter back.”
At that, Quinn frowned. “She doesn’t deserve to get Jenny back. Not after abandoning her on your doorstep.”
“On that we agree.” He didn’t know what he was going to do about Jenny, and any time he thought about it, panic set in. So he’d just take each step as it came. He’d have a paternity test done. He’d hire a nanny. He’d figure things out.
Quinn propped her chin in her hands. “While we’re sharing personal information, I’m curious how you accepted the news that Paul Dare was your father so easily? I started working for you right after you found out but you all seemed to handle it well.”
He rose and walked to the refrigerator and pulled out a can of soda. “Can I get you something?”
She shook her head. “No, thanks. I’m good.”
He popped the top and took a long sip before meeting her gaze, taking the time to figure out how to explain his unusual family situation.
“You know how you said nobody asked you what you wanted to do in your family?” He walked back to the table and sat down once more. “Well, nobody asked me what my dreams were, either. My father, the one who raised us, was a hard-ass bastard, if you want to know the truth.”
“How?” she asked softly.
“He wanted to live his lost dreams through us. He’d always planned to play pro football but an injury derailed him. Then, as we know now, he couldn’t have kids. Suffice to say, he was angry and bitter. B
ut if he couldn’t play, his boys damn well would.” Jesse Prescott’s no-choice attitude had pervaded the household.
“I guess that explains all the athletes in your family,” Quinn mused.
Austin pulled another long sip of bubbly soda. “In part. The truth is, I always excelled at the sport and I wanted to play and make the pros. But Dad … Jesse … he worked us hard. He coached. And if I lost, I had to walk home from the game. At ten years old. Same for my brothers.” The memory caused an old ache to open up inside him, and his muscles stiffened as the memories returned.
“That’s awful.” Quinn’s soft hand covered his.
He shrugged. “I had it easier than Jaxon, who preferred baseball to football. That pissed Dad off. And Damon was good, but football didn’t come as naturally to him as it did to me. So he had it hard, too. And Braden? The one with the brains and no desire to be a jock?” Austin shook his head, not wanting to subject her to the yelling that used to go on in the house. All the while his mother would try and play mediator.
“But back to your question, Paul was our pseudo-uncle. The voice of reason to Jesse’s irrational behavior. He was always there for all of us. So finding out that Paul was our biological father was almost a relief.”
Quinn squeezed his hand tighter. “Yeah, I get it now. Becoming a Dare was actually a good thing.”
He grinned. “The fact that being a Dare came with a shit ton of cousins? That was unexpected and it’s been surreal getting to know them a little at a time.” He laughed as he said, “There are a lot of Dares.”
She chuckled. “I know a little something about big families.”
“We do have that in common.” Before he could say more, a loud wail pierced his ears, sounding like it came from directly across the room. He turned and caught sight of the baby monitor that showed Jenny winding up as she let out another ear-splitting cry.
“I’ll get her. Can you heat a bottle?” Quinn asked.
And just like that, their warm bonding moment was over.
* * *
Quinn and Austin passed the weekend taking care of the baby, with her teaching Austin the minute details of infant care, including diaper changing, because Quinn refused to pull all the heavy duty. He was by no means a pro but he was definitely getting the hang of things. But after dinner, and giving Jenny a bath, which had been an experience in and of itself because Austin hadn’t been prepared for babies to be so slippery, they’d put her to bed.
And Quinn rushed to her own room, admitting she was a coward. Their conversation this afternoon had shown her Austin was a real man with past pain just like she had. But if they were going to take care of Jenny together, Quinn needed to be smart. The last thing she ought to do was fall for her boss. One day she hoped to find a real love, and Austin didn’t do long-term or serious relationships. And now he potentially had a practically newborn baby while Quinn was finished raising other people’s kids.
Finally, Monday arrived and they returned to work. Quinn stood at her desk in the office, Jenny strapped to her chest in a Baby Bjorn. Jenny wouldn’t settle down in the car seat carrier and she clearly needed snuggles and body contact. If not for the fact that Austin had a meeting with Ian Dare, a team owner and his cousin on Paul Dare’s side, she’d have strapped the baby to Austin and enjoyed watching him squirm.
It was actually endearing, the way he was trying to get comfortable with Jenny. Last night, while Quinn had showered, he’d laid the baby on his bed and talked to her in a gallant effort to keep Jenny from becoming hysterical. Holding her hadn’t worked. Austin was still too tense, hence Quinn’s determination to strap him to the baby for some bonding time soon.
But it never failed, just as Austin lifted the baby against him, Jenny’s little lips would pucker and she’d pull in short, panicked breaths, obviously not knowing what to make of the new man in her life. So he’d placed her down on his mattress and made the cutest baby noises and faces at her.
If Austin realized Quinn had snuck to the doorway to watch, he’d have been mortified. As for her, all the viewing had done was serve to ramp up her desire for the man. Hot, sexy, and he put his all into everything he did, including attempting to be a dad to a baby he didn’t know for sure was his.
Doing her normal routine, she was filing papers, Jenny dozing against her. Most of their system was computerized, but there were recent things they wanted to get their hands on quickly so they printed and she organized.
“Excuse me. Quinn?” a masculine voice said.
She turned to see Ian Dare standing at her desk. As his football team was located in Miami, Ian had been a frequent visitor to Dare Nation since Quinn began working there. More often since he and Austin had been pronounced family.
“Hello, Mr. Dare.”
“I told you to call me Ian.” He looked at her and his eyes opened wide. “What the hell are you doing with a baby?” Ian Dare was known for being blunt, often to a fault, but he had been around her often enough to know that she hadn’t been pregnant and the baby wasn’t hers.
“Umm…” She and Austin hadn’t discussed how she should handle questions. Ian was his first appointment of the day, and Quinn had a feeling a part of him was still in denial.
On the way to work, she’d offered to start looking into nanny agencies and set up appointments with potential candidates and he’d agreed. So she’d begun researching agencies and would discuss possibilities with him tonight, but for now…
“She’s mine. Maybe.” Austin stepped out of his office and strode over to Ian. “Good to see you,” he said, extending his hand.
Ian shook it, but his expression was still one of utter shock. “I assume you’ll explain.”
Austin nodded. “How’s Jenny doing?” His gaze settled on Quinn, warming her from the inside out.
“She’s good.” Quinn smiled and his stare lowered to her lips.
She swallowed hard and forced herself to focus on both men instead of being obvious in her desire for Austin.
Now that she knew the men were cousins, the similarities were unmistakable. The dark hair, same indigo eyes. Ian was more staid and uptight than Austin, his hair well cut while Austin’s was longer, sexier. While Ian wore a suit and tie, Austin presented a more relaxed but no less potent version of utter masculinity in a pair of well-tailored black slacks and a light blue button-down shirt, sleeves folded up neatly. And where Ian had shaved this morning, Austin had a sexy scruff she often wondered about. How would that light beard feel rubbing against her thighs as he went down on her?
She cleared her throat. “Can I get either of you water, coffee, or anything?” Her gaze encompassed both men, and she hoped the warmth she felt on her cheeks wasn’t obvious.
“No, thank you,” Ian said.
“I’m good.” Austin smiled at her, and the sinful grin didn’t help alleviate the ache her dirty thoughts had caused. “Quinn, hold my calls please,” he said, gesturing for Ian to head into his office.
Knowing he wanted to discuss his brother’s final year under contract with Ian, she nodded. “Will do.”
Ian headed into the office, and instead of following him, Austin walked over to her, sidling up close. His warm scented cologne sent her senses into overdrive. “How are you really doing?” he asked her.
She swallowed hard. “I’m okay. She’s fast asleep and a good baby.”
He leaned down and kissed the top of Jenny’s head, his hair brushing against Quinn’s cheek, causing a further spike of arousal she didn’t need.
That was the sweetest thing she’d ever seen and definitely worked on softening her heart toward this always enigmatic man. Danger surrounded her at every turn, and her emotions and heart were in the most jeopardy.
* * *
Whenever Austin found himself in the presence of one of the Dares, they always made him feel welcome. Like family. Ian wasn’t an exception. In fact, he’d been the first to reach out after Paul broke the news about being their biological father. And despite their new familial sta
tus, Austin and Ian still managed to negotiate like business owners, without personal feelings getting involved.
Austin lowered himself into the chair behind his desk and met Ian’s gaze, noting the questions clearly etched on his cousin’s face.
“Well? Are you going to explain the infant dangling from your assistant’s chest?” Ian asked in the wake of the silence surrounding them.
“I found her on my doorstep Friday night.” Austin shifted in his seat. This was the first time other than his immediate family that he’d had to explain Jenny’s presence. It wouldn’t be the last, either.
“No shit?” Ian asked.
“Nope.”
“And you think she’s yours?” Ian asked.
Scrubbing a hand over his face, Austin groaned. “The note left with her says she’s mine. Based on how old we think she is, the timing seems to work, but of course I’m having a DNA test run. My lawyer said he’d have someone stop by tomorrow to swab us and handle getting the results.” He hadn’t let himself deal with what he’d do in either case.
“And how’s it going with the baby?” Ian astutely asked.
Austin frowned. “She takes one look at me and screams like I’m an ax murderer.” But she really was adorable with those big blue eyes and chubby cheeks.
His cousin chuckled, leaning back in his chair. “Babies take getting used to. I should know. I’ve had three. Rainey is five going on eighteen, Jack is two, and baby Gracie is almost a year old,” he said, his voice softening at the mention of his children. “But they’re the best and you should enjoy it while she’s young. Assuming she’s yours.”
Austin groaned. “I don’t know how you do it. One is killing me. My kitchen’s been taken over by bottles and my house by baby equipment, and she wakes me in the middle of the night screaming.”
“So you have your executive assistant helping you out?” Ian asked.
Austin nodded. “Quinn is the only one who can step in right now, and she’s got the magic touch. The baby adores her.”
Dare To Resist (Dare Nation Book 1) Page 7
