those come from?”
“I called Bradley. There didn’t seem to be much in the kitchen cupboards, and I figured you could use a pick-me-up.”
What? “Isn’t Bradley in Virginia?”
Nick shrugged. “Bradley’s a global presence.” He pulled a penknife from his pocket and made use of the corkscrew. “Cheers. Wonder what tomorrow will bring?”
“More of the same, I guess. You’re good with children.”
“Probably because I’m just a big kid myself.”
“What’s your family like?”
He grimaced, and at first, I thought he wasn’t going to answer. “Dysfunctional is the best description. My parents divorced when I was ten, and my father died when I was twenty. Mom lives in Seattle with her second husband and my half-brother. That’s it for biological family.”
“I’m so sorry about your dad.”
“Don’t be. He wasn’t much of one.”
“You lived with your mom, then?”
“No, I lived at boarding school. Or rather boarding schools. I managed to get expelled from six of them. Eventually, Father sent me to stay in Switzerland and told me not to bother coming back until I got my act together. Mom’s new husband wasn’t interested in having me around either.”
Wow. I thought my upbringing had been tough, but I’d had Momma, and there was never any doubt how much she loved me. Nick didn’t seem to have had anyone.
“That’s awful. What happened in Switzerland?”
“I did a lot of growing up. As well as learning how to ski.” He cracked a smile for a second, but his expression quickly grew serious again. “Then Father decided he’d had enough of paying for me to have fun and decreed that I’d come back to the US and go to college. I had a place at Stanford. The plan was for me to get my MBA and take over his business.”
“Oh my gosh, Stanford? It’s so tough to get into. I bet an MBA from there opened plenty of doors.”
“Probably would have if I’d gone. That life wasn’t for me, and needless to say, Father was furious. We barely said two more words to each other before he died. Anyway, enough about me. Want to watch a movie?”
There was absolutely nothing subtle about that change of subject. I didn’t push it. Nick clearly wasn’t happy discussing himself, and I could understand that. Maybe he’d open up more in the future?
“A movie sounds great.”
I raided Tori’s DVD collection and found a copy of The Spy Who Loved Me. Surely that would be acceptable? I held it up, and Nick nodded his agreement, but that didn’t stop us both from falling asleep halfway through.
I never found out how the movie ended, and I didn’t care. All that mattered was being wrapped up in Nick’s arms again, which was how we woke at almost one in the morning. Nick’s eyes popped open as I stirred, and we quickly untangled ourselves. What was I thinking?
“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean...”
He stretched his arms above his head. “Yeah. Probably not a good idea. Where are you going to sleep?”
“I’ll borrow Paul and Tori’s bedroom. Uh, are you going to a hotel or something?”
“I was planning to take the couch.”
My boss on the couch? “I can sleep down here.”
His mouth set in a firm line. “No, you can’t.”
“But—”
A shake of his head sent me on my way, and I didn’t have the energy to argue. But I chided myself as I climbed the stairs. How could I have left Nick to sleep on a pull-out bed with Gordon snoring next to him? He may have been super-rich, but in some ways, he was so incredibly normal.
In the morning, Nick dropped me and the boys off at the hospital. By limo, no less. I was getting dangerously comfortable with that mode of transport, but the boys were more used to riding in the back of Paul’s cab and bounced around like lunatics. I kind of preferred them tired.
The chauffeur opened the door when we arrived, and Nick hung up from his phone call. “Good luck. I’ll send the car and driver back for you—they’re yours for the time you’re here.”
By the time I opened my mouth to thank him, he was gone.
Inside, I swapped with Paul, and he went home with the boys for the shower I insisted he take.
“Thank you,” one of the nurses murmured as she showed me to Tori’s bedside in the intensive care unit. “He needed a break.”
I’d tried to prepare myself for what Tori might look like, but I’d done a woefully inadequate job. IV lines ran into both of her arms, and