chiseled features formed him into more god than man. Broad shoulders that crowned a muscular upper body, he oozed with a natural arrogance that I couldn't resist. I’d tried once, after he’d hired me to be his assistant. In all fairness, I’d stayed out of his bed much longer than anyone expected. Knowing him now, I wish I hadn’t waited so long. There were few vices in life more delicious than being completely owned and possessed by a man as powerful and certain as Smith Price. I hated the idea that I’d lose even a moment of them to my own stubborn willfulness. Even now, I had half a mind to drag him away to bed—or the nearest flat surface.
But we had a guest and judging from the way her incredibly thin lips had formed a straight, flat line, she disapproved of...from the looks of it, everything. The rest of her was equally sharp from the beak-like nose to her tightly pulled back hair. I forced a warm smile on my lips and strode over, hand extended.
“This is my wife, Belle,” Smith introduced me, and the potential nanny gripped my hand so firmly I thought it might snap off. “Belle, meet Martha.”
“It’s a pleasure,” I said smoothly, earning me nothing more than a grunt before she returned her attention to Smith. I took the seat next to my husband on the sofa.
“And the hours?” she asked, ignoring me entirely.
“We haven’t quite decided on that.” He glanced at me for confirmation.
“We only need someone part-time,” I told her. “After she’s born and we’ve been home for a while and settled in.”
“You don’t want part-time,” she said—not to me, but Smith.
Oh hell no. A hand fell on my knee and squeezed. A warning from Smith not to get too riled up. Could he sense that I felt left out of the equation?
“We don’t?” he asked politely. I’d heard him use this voice before. He reserved it for small talk.
“Consistency is key. It will be several years before the child can go off to school, but structure is essential. You’re both business owners. Neither of you can commit to being the primary caregiver,” she said, nailing the situation a bit too precisely for comfort. “Someone must be around to make certain discipline and structure are strictly enforced.”
“I don’t think babies require discipline,” I blurted out before I could stop myself. Did she think she was being asked to run a nursery or a boot camp?
Martha’s withering glare suggested she felt differently.
“It’s certainly something to keep in mind,” Smith mused, squeezing my knee twice, our secret code for let me handle this. “As you can see, we’re still figuring out the best fit, and we will have a while before we need someone here.”
“There are always preparations to be made,” Martha said.
“Naturally, but we’ll want to wait for construction to finish, regardless.” Smith seamlessly transitioned the excuse from reason to another. “We’ll be in touch.”
We all rose and Smith showed her out of the room. When he returned, my eyebrow was etched into a question mark.
“Where did you find that battleaxe? I thought their type had gone extinct.”
“I think they were all simply banished to the countryside,” he said wearily. “Ready for round two?”
“Do you think they’ll all be like her?” I asked, wondering if our day would be full of disapproving Marthas.
“Let’s hope not.”
Our wish was granted, but not in the way we’d hoped. There were a few more stern, conservative governess types amongst the candidates, one former school-teacher, and an American college student clearly looking for a quick visa fix. None of them quite fit the bill. They all wanted live-in situations and full-time. I could hardly blame them for that.
“Doesn’t anyone just want something on the side?” I grumbled.
Smith reached down and grabbed my ankle, pulling it into his lap, he popped off my slipper and began to rub my foot. A moan spilled out of me and he chuckled under his breath.
“Never stop,” I ordered him, my eyes rolling back as I relaxed into the massage.
“Not stopping is what got you into this trouble in the first place, beautiful,” he reminded me in a gruff voice that sent my thoughts to darker places only he could take me.
“Shut up and rub my feet.”
He obliged, his strong hands working away the stress that had plagued me the whole week. “Maybe, we need to consider hiring someone full-time.”
My eyes flew open, the spell broken. “What? No.” I shook my head. “I don’t