Beau’s suspicions were right. He wished like hell he’d been wrong because he could see the pain in her eyes, hear it in her voice.
Just as he started to reach for her again, she opened her eyes and held up one hand. “No. I don’t need to be consoled and please, don’t look at me like that.”
He didn’t know what she saw in his eyes, but how could he not comfort her? He may have the reputation of a playboy, and perhaps he didn’t do anything to rectify that with the media, but he did care.
Even though he’d only known Scarlett a short time, it was impossible to ignore the way he felt. Attraction was one thing, but there was more to this complex relationship.
Unfortunately, he had to ignore the pull and remain closed off from tapping into those unwanted, untimely feelings. He had a future to figure out and he’d already screwed up with one woman.
“I love being a nanny,” she went on, her voice still laced with sadness and remorse. “But my life changed about a year ago, and I just can’t do this job anymore.”
“That’s why you’re leaving.”
Beau crossed to the bed and sat down. Maybe she’d feel more apt to talk if he wasn’t looming over her in only his underwear. He never wanted her to feel intimidated or insecure. He doubted she really had anyone she could talk to and the fact that she chose him—after he’d somewhat forced her hand—proved she was more vulnerable than he’d first thought.
But he actually wanted to listen and he wanted to know how he could help...even if that only came in the form of making her forget.
“I can’t be in Stone River.” Scarlett’s words cut through his thoughts. “There are too many memories here of my life, my hopes and dreams. Starting over somewhere fresh will be the best healer for me.”
He understood all too well about needing to start over. The need to find a place that would be comforting and not pull you down further. Her reasons for leaving Stone River were the exact reasons he’d left LA. They both needed something new, something that promised hope for an unknown future.
“I’m sure that wasn’t an easy decision to make,” he stated.
She turned to face him and shrugged one slender shoulder. “There wasn’t much else I could do. After my surgery, I took a position out of the field, in the office. I love the people I work with. I just couldn’t be a nanny anymore. I thought working in the office would be easier, but it wasn’t. I was still dealing with families and listening to the stories of my coworkers. Then Maggie asked me to fill in for these few weeks before I leave and I couldn’t tell her no.”
“I’m glad you didn’t.”
Scarlett stared at him for a minute. The lamp on her bedside table set a soft glow on her mocha skin. Skin he ached to touch again. Scarlett was one of the sexiest, most passionate women he’d ever known, and after hearing a bit of her story, he knew she was also one of the strongest.
“Me, too,” she whispered.
He did reach for her now and when her hand closed in his, he pulled her toward him. Scarlett came to stand between his legs and she rested her hands on his shoulders.
“What surgery did you have to have?” he asked.
When she pulled in a shaky breath, he placed his hands on her waist and offered a comforting squeeze.
“I had a hysterectomy,” she explained. “The short version of my story is I had a routine checkup. The test results came back showing I had some abnormal cells and the surgery was necessary. Unfortunately, that took away any chance I had at my own family, but in the end, the threat of uterine cancer was gone.”
He couldn’t imagine wanting something, dreaming of having it your whole life and then not obtaining it. There was nothing Beau didn’t covet that he couldn’t get through money or power. That’s how he’d been raised. Yes, his parents had instilled in him a strong work ethic, but he also knew that at any given time he could reach for anything and make it his.
Yet with all his money, power and fame, he couldn’t make his own future stable when he was so confused where he should land. And if he had the ability, he’d sure as hell do something to make Scarlett’s life easier.
With a gentle tug, Beau had Scarlett tumbling onto his chest. He gripped her thighs and helped her straddle his lap. As he looked up into her eyes, he realized that if there was any woman who could make him lose his heart, it could be her.
Which was absolutely crazy. Why was he even having such thoughts? He’d screwed things up before when he’d let his heart get involved. Wanting a woman physically and thinking of deeper emotions were two totally different things and he needed to refocus before he found himself even further from where he needed to be.
Between all of this with his family and now his mixed feelings for Scarlett, he needed to remain in control before he completely lost himself.
“Let’s keep our painful pasts out of this room, out of this bed,” he suggested as he nipped at her chin. “For as long as you’re here, stay with me.”
Her eyes widened as she eased slightly away. “You want to continue this fling?”
“‘Fling’? That’s such a crass word.” He let his hands cover her backside and pull her tighter where he needed her most. “We don’t need a title for this. Just know I want you, for however long you’re here.”
Scarlett laced her hands behind his neck and touched her forehead to his. “I swore I wouldn’t do this with you,” she murmured.
“Yet here we are.”
She laughed, just as he’d hoped. “I guess I’m wearing too many clothes.”
He stripped her shirt off, sliding his hands and eyes over her bare torso, her breasts. “Let’s make each other forget.”
* * *
Scarlett pushed Madelyn in the child swing that had been hung on the back patio. Even though winter had settled in and they were closing in on Christmas, the sun was shining bright in the cloudless sky and with a light jacket and pants, the day was absolutely beautiful.
Madelyn cooed and grinned as the swing went back and forth. Scarlett couldn’t help but return the smile. It was impossible to be unhappy around Madelyn. Even when she’d fussed about her sore gums, Scarlett cherished the time. Madelyn was such a special little girl and having a father who cared so deeply made her very fortunate.
Beau had made a difficult decision to leave his Hollywood home and find out what life he and his daughter should lead.
Maybe he’d go back to his home in LA, but for now he seemed to be in no hurry. After spending the past several nights in his bed—well, hers—Scarlett wasn’t in too big of a hurry to leave, either.
But she had to. She couldn’t stay here forever playing house. There was no happily-ever-after for them, no little family. No, Scarlett wasn’t going to get that family...at least not with Beau.
Maybe one day she’d meet a man and he might have kids already or maybe they’d adopt. She still couldn’t let go of that dream. A new dream had replaced the old one and Scarlett had a blossom of hope.
Strong arms wrapped around her from behind, pulling her out of her thoughts, and Scarlett squealed.
“It’s just me,” Beau growled in her ear. “Unless you were expecting someone else.”
Scarlett eyed him over her shoulder. “My other lover was supposed to come by because I thought you were out.”
He smacked her butt. “There are no other lovers as long as I’m in your bed,” he said with a smile.
Which would only be for another two weeks.
Scarlett didn’t want to think of the end coming so soon. Only a few days ago she was counting down until she could hightail it out of town, but now...
Well, falling into bed with Beau had changed everything.
“I thought you were with Colt and Hayes looking over résumés for guides for the dude ranch.”
The new business venture of the Elliott brothers was due to start in early spring. Scarlett had heard Beau discussing how much still needed to be done, she was only sorry she wouldn’t be around to see how magnificent all of this would be. Pebblebrook was a gorgeous, picturesque spread and no doubt they would draw in thousands of people a year.
Scarlett wondered if Beau and Colt had told their dad about the ranch, about the way they were closing in on making his dream a full reality, when they’d gone to see him yesterday morning. But Beau had been closed off when he’d returned. Scarlett hadn’t wanted to press him on a topic that was obviously so sensitive. She couldn’t imagine that bond father and son had shared growing up and how much this must be hurting Beau.
Growing up, she did everything to avoid her stepfather and mom. They’d been so caught up in their own worlds anyway, so she went unnoticed.
“We finished early,” Beau told her. “I told my brothers I needed to get back home to see Madelyn.”
Scarlett gave the swing another gentle push and turned to face Beau. Those dark eyes, framed by thick lashes, all beneath a black brim only made him seem all the more mysterious. Over the last week she’d found out that there were several sides to him, and she had to admit she liked this Beau.
The man before her wasn’t the actor she’d seen on-screen or the playboy the media portrayed. This Beau Elliott was a small-town rancher.
Albeit a billionaire.
She glanced over at Madelyn. “She woke from a nap about twenty minutes ago, so you’re just in time.”
Beau slid his hands up her arms, over the slope of her shoulders, and framed her face. “I may have wanted to see you, too.”
Scarlett couldn’t help the flutter in her chest. The more time she spent with him and his daughter, the more she realized how difficult leaving would be. But she’d be fine. She had to be.
“I also left because I have a surprise planned for you.”
“A surprise?” she repeated, shocked he’d think to do anything for her. “What is it?”
Beau slid his lips softly over hers, then stroked her cheeks with the pad of his thumbs. “If I tell you then it won’t be a surprise.”
“Oh, come on,” she begged. “You can’t tease me like that.”
He thrust his pelvis toward hers and smiled. “You weren’t complaining about being teased last night, or the night before, or the night before that.”
Scarlett slapped him on the chest. “Fine. But you’ll pay for that.”
Beau grazed his mouth along her jaw and up to the sensitive area just behind her ear. “I’m counting on it.”
Madelyn let out a fuss, which quickly turned into a cry. Before Scarlett could get the baby from the swing, Beau had moved around her and was unbuckling her.
Scarlett stepped away and watched as he cooed and offered sweet words and patted her back. Something stirred inside her. An unfamiliar feeling. An undeniable feeling.
She was falling for Beau.
How ridiculous that sounded even inside her own mind. But there was no denying the fact. Beau Elliott had worked his way past her defenses and into her personal space, quite possibly her heart. There was no future here and she was a fool for allowing this to happen.
Of course she didn’t allow anything. There had been no stopping these feelings. From the second Beau showed her just how selfless he was, how caring, Scarlett couldn’t help but fall for him.
Beau lifted Madelyn over his head and spun in a circle. With the sun off in the distance and the soft rolling hills of the ranch as the backdrop, Scarlett had to tamp down her emotions. The father/daughter duo was picture perfect and maybe neither of them realized how lucky they were to have each other.
Scarlett let them have their moment as she slipped inside the tiny cabin. As silly as it was, she’d come to think of this little place like home. This was nothing like the massive home she’d grown up in. The place might as well have been a museum with the expensive furniture, priceless art and cold atmosphere.
Maybe that’s why this cozy cabin touched her so much. There was life here, fun, a family. All the things she’d craved as a child and all the things she wanted as an adult.
But they weren’t hers...and she needed to remember that.
Instead of dwelling on those thoughts, Scarlett moved to the kitchen where she’d baked sugar cookies earlier. They were ready to be iced and taken to Annabelle, Alexa and Pepper.
Scarlett didn’t proclaim to be the best baker, but she did love her sugar cookie recipe. In fact, she’d made extra just for Beau. Maybe part of her wanted to impress him still, which was silly, but she hadn’t been able to help herself. She cared for him, so much. Much more than she should be allowed.
The man came through the doorway just as her thoughts turned to him once again. Of course, he was never far from her thoughts, just as he was never far from her in this tiny space.
“I thought I smelled cookies when I came in earlier.” He held Madelyn with one strong arm as he came to stand on the other side of the island. “But it looks as if you have enough to feed a small army. Are we expecting company?”
Scarlett started separating the icing she’d made into smaller bowls so she could dye it in different colors. “I’m taking a dozen each to your brothers’ houses later. I just... I don’t know. I thought I should do something and I love to bake. I think Christmas just demands the house smell like warm sugar and comfort.”
She applied two drops of yellow food coloring into the icing for the star cookies, then she put green drops into another bowl for the tree cookies. The silence had her unsettled so she glanced up to find Beau staring at her with a look on his face she’d never seen before.
“What?” she asked, screwing the lids back on the small bottles of food coloring.
“You watch my baby all day, you cook, you decorate—”
“Don’t call that tree in the corner decorating,” she grumbled. “Maybe I baked because I need a chance to redeem myself.”
He chuckled and shifted Madelyn around to sit on the bar and lean back against his chest. He kept one firm hand on her belly.
“The mantel is beautiful and way more than I’d ever think of doing, and the front porch looks like a real home with the wreath and whatever you did to that planter by the steps.” He slid his hat off and dropped it onto a bar stool. “I don’t know how you do it all. Maybe women are just born with that gene that makes them superhuman.”
“We are.”
His smile widened. “And a modesty gene, too, I see.”
“Of course,” she said without hesitation.
“Regardless of how you get everything done, I’m grateful.”
The sincerity of his statement just pulled back another layer of defense she’d tried to wrap herself in. Unfortunately, every time the man opened his mouth, he stripped away more and more. She was losing this fight with herself and before these next couple of weeks were up, she had serious concerns about her heart.
“How long until the cookies are ready to deliver?” he asked.
“I just need to ice three dozen.” She glanced behind her to the trays lining the small counter space. “I can ice the dozen for us after I get back.”
“You made cookies for us, too?”
Scarlett laughed. “You think I’m baking and not thinking of myself?”
Madelyn let out a jumble of noises as she patted her father’s hand. Was there anything sexier than a hunky rancher caring for his baby? Because she was having a difficult time thinking of anything.
“Well, as soon as you get those iced, you’ll get your surprise,” he told her. “This will all work out quite well.”
“What will?”
“The deliveries, your surprise.” He leaned in just a bit as his eyes darted to her mouth. “Coming back here later and pleasuring you.”
Her body heated, not that she needed his promise for such a reaction. Simply thinking of him incited her arousal. But all of the emotions swirling around inside her were so much more than sexual. Her heart had gotten involved in this short span of time. She hadn’t seen that coming. She’d been so worried about not falling for his seduction, she hadn’t thought of falling for the man himself.
Damn it. She was sinking fast and not even trying to stop herself. Why bother? Why not just enjoy the ride as long as this lasted?
She deserved to go after what she wanted, no matter how temporary, and she wanted Beau Elliott. Considering he wanted her just as much, there was no reason to let worry in now.
For the time they had left, she planned on enjoying every single moment of her last job as a nanny.
As for her heart, well, it had been broken before. But she hadn’t experienced anything like Beau Elliott. Would she ever be able to recover?