Midnight Call (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (5 page)

Greg nodded. “Well, it’s a good thing we are getting you out of here today. No one should have to put up with that.”

“Not that I’m not grateful for you showing up when you did, but what are you doing here so early?”

“Oh, I came to see if you needed any help to finish packing. I figured we could go ahead and take a load over to the house when we go, and then the guys and I could come back for the rest.”

Nadia couldn’t believe how thoughtful the guys were being. She had a feeling they weren’t being that way just because they were desperate for help with the baby either.

Because she had stayed up so late packing, everything was ready to be loaded up. She helped Greg carry most of her clothes and her few boxes of belongings to his SUV. Nadia could feel the landlord’s beady little eyes on her back as she made each trip to the car. Once everything was packed, she did one last walk through the apartment to make sure she hadn’t left anything and informed Greg she was ready to leave. She wouldn’t miss the crappy apartment or the sweaty creep one bit.

“Once we get you to the house, I will get one of the guys to come back with me as soon as possible for the furniture,” Greg said as he pulled out of the parking lot. “I don’t trust your landlord to not bother anything while we’re gone.”

So he saw her landlord glaring at them as they left, too. “Actually, the only thing you have to get is my bed. The rest of the furniture came with the apartment. Everything else I own is in the back of your SUV already.” Nadia thought it was sad that she had so few possessions, but she was determined to make a life for herself. Using Daddy’s money would defeat that purpose, so that meant she had to budget and save. Ramen noodles weren’t so bad when you got creative. From the corner of her eye, she saw Greg frown, but he didn’t ask any questions. Nadia was glad for that. She wasn’t ready to answer anything just yet.

The rest of the trip was made in comfortable silence. She thought of all the things she’d read on the Internet the night before about taking care of babies. The task ahead seemed impossible, and she’d almost called the guys a few times throughout the night to tell them to find someone more qualified. All she could think was what if she ended up doing more harm than good? The only thing that stopped her was the thought of holding that sweet baby in her arms again. She rationalized with herself all night and came to the conclusion that new moms did this all the time without any practice beforehand. They made it out okay, so why couldn’t she? She promised herself she would try for the guys and the baby. If she saw she couldn’t handle the situation, she would tell the guys so they could find someone else.

Nadia was so lost in thought she didn’t realize they had arrived at the house until she heard Greg’s door shut as he got out. He came around and opened her door for her before she even had her seatbelt unbuckled. Greg reached for her hand to help her down, and Nadia had to bite back a gasp at the jolt of electricity that shot through her palm. She looked up into Greg’s warm brown eyes and saw that he had felt it, too. He hadn’t stepped back when she slid out, so she was standing pressed against his front. She could feel the warmth of his body heat and firm muscles pressed against her. She wanted to lean in and rub herself against him and purr like a kitten. The man was gorgeous from his thick dark hair down to his lips. Most women would kill to have lips that pink so they would never have to wear lipstick again. Nadia wanted to lick and nibble on them. Maybe suck on that full bottom lip.

“Oh good, you made it,” she heard Steve yell as he opened the front door.

Nadia cleared her throat and moved away from Greg. She could feel the heat rising in her cheeks when she saw Greg’s wicked grin as she turned away. She couldn’t help but think the man knew exactly what she was fantasizing about doing to him. And a fantasy was all it would ever be. There was no way Nadia would get involved with someone she worked for. If that were the case, she would have stayed with her slimy boss. Nadia shuddered just thinking about her ex-boss. She had to admit that, compared to him, it wouldn’t be a hardship to sleep with Greg to keep her job. Watching Steve as he made his way over to her in his ragged jeans and a T-shirt that was so thin and threadbare it was practically see through, Nadia realized she had to include him in the list of “Bosses that I would do.” Not that she was keeping track or anything.

Steve wasn’t as tall or as big as Greg. She’d noticed the other day he was the shortest of the three standing about five foot eleven. He was slender, but Nadia could see his muscular chest and stomach through his shirt. For a guy who sat at home in front of a computer all day, Steve was no slouch. He was also gorgeous with his messy platinum blond hair. Most guys had to work to achieve the just-rolled-out-of-bed look, but Nadia had a feeling this was natural for Steve. His ice-blue eyes just made her want to roll right into bed with him.

This is going to be harder than I thought
. Nadia pushed away her thoughts of attacking both guys on the front lawn and followed them into the house. She grinned and groaned under her breath. The view from the back was just as nice as the front.

Jackson met them at the door and immediately placed Addison in her arms. He then kissed her on the cheek and left to help the other guys without saying a word. That simple kiss sent heat flowing through her body and straight to her core. Nadia couldn’t understand why the simple touches from these three men set her on fire. Normally she had a better handle on her feelings. Rather than drive herself crazy thinking about her attraction to all three guys, she decided to focus all her attention on Addison. That was the only way she was going to get through this situation.

The baby was still asleep, and Nadia considered that a good thing. No reason to show her lack of experience as soon as she’s arrived. She carried the baby over to the sofa and sat. She nuzzled the soft fuzzy red hair sprouting out of Addison’s head and took a deep breath. She loved that fresh baby smell, a cross between baby powder and baby shampoo. The guys had obviously been taking great care of her. She didn’t understand what they needed her for, but she was grateful they were giving her a chance. Nadia propped her arm against a few pillows to help support the baby and settled down to watch Addison sleep.

* * * *

Jackson stood by the sofa and stared down at Nadia sleeping with Addison wrapped in her arms. He didn’t know anything about their new nanny other than the facts that Steve had pulled from her background check. He did know she came from a wealthy, influential family. He wondered why she was out on her own living the way she did. From what Greg had told him about her apartment and their encounter with her landlord, Jackson had to wonder if maybe she’d had a falling out with her parents. Her story was hers to tell, so he and his two roommates decided not to pry deeper into her background. Steve would have been able to find everything out about her. He was that good, but they felt it was an invasion of her privacy. Jackson felt that as long as there was nothing in her past that questioned her ability to take care of his niece then she was okay with him.

Watching Nadia sleeping and how she wrapped herself protectively around the baby to make sure she didn’t fall off the couch helped Jackson breathe a little easier. He knew she had just arrived, but so far, it seemed like everything was going to work out. He still felt the pain in his chest when he thought of his sister and what she’d gone through. It wasn’t fair that she would never hold her daughter in her arms. She would never see that her daughter was going to have fiery red hair with her mother’s beautiful green eyes. Thinking about the baby’s red hair made Jackson think about Addison’s father. He and his sister Sarah both had dark, almost black, hair, so that meant Addison had inherited her hair color from her father. Based on the letter that Sarah had left him, Jackson was glad the man was not involved in the baby’s life. Whoever this guy was, he was bad news. Sarah had hidden her pregnancy from him so he knew nothing about the baby. Jackson wished he could track the guy down and hurt him the way he’d hurt his sister, but unfortunately Sarah had never mentioned his name or where to find him in her letter.

Jackson felt his fists clenching and forced himself to relax. Thinking about things he had no way of changing was pointless. He had to admit it did feel good to finally know his sister had never truly left him. Sarah would never know how much that letter meant to him. He had read it so many times since he received it that he had it memorized. The letter had become so worn from him carrying it around with him so much that he’d had to tuck it safely in his drawer for fear he would tear it. It didn’t matter. He could see the letter in his mind:

Dear Jackson,

Hey, little brother. I’m sure you probably hate me, and I am the last person you probably want to hear from right now. Let me start off by saying I’m sorry. I know those words probably mean nothing to you at this point, but I still have to say them.

Leaving you was one of my biggest regrets. All I can say is I was young and stupid and thought I was in love. By the time I realized I had made a huge mistake, it was too late. My pride and the last words that I said to our parents when I left kept me from coming home. I want you to know I never truly left you though. I was always watching from afar. Your high school graduation, college graduation. I am proud of the man that you have become.

Anyway, enough of that. If you are reading this, then something has happened to me. I know it sucks that I am not telling you all of this in person, but at least I had enough sense to write it down on paper. That has to count for something, right? I have no right to ask you, but you are the only person that I can trust. I need you to take care of my baby. PLEASE. I know you can give her the love and care she deserves. I want you to teach my baby those same values I have seen in you.

When the baby is old enough, will you tell her that I loved her even before I ever saw her? I want her to know that she was the best thing that ever happened to me. I have regretted a lot of things in my life but she was never one of them. Let her know I’m sorry I will miss out on a lot of important milestones in her life, but she has you, and I know you will be there for her.

I’m not trying to guilt you into this, and I want you to think long and hard before you accept. This is a huge responsibility for anyone. If you decide you can’t handle it, I will understand. All I ask is that you make sure she goes to a good home and has the love and care she deserves. You are probably wondering where her father is. He is not a good man. He knows nothing about the baby, and I went through a lot of trouble to keep it that way. You should have no problems from him, but if he ever finds out about her, I beg you, please do all that you can to keep him from her. She deserves better than him. If you don’t do anything else that I ask in this letter, please do this. Keep him away from her.

Again, I know I have no right to ask you any of this, and I am sorry I put you in this situation. Hopefully, everything will turn out all right and you will never see this letter, but I had to cover all my bases. Anyway, know that I love you and let the baby know I love her with all my heart.

Love,

Sarah

Jackson finally had an explanation from his sister about why she had left all those years ago, and now, he had Addison. He was determined to make the best of what he had.

Nadia stirred and opened those golden brown eyes. She looked directly at him, and Jackson couldn’t make himself turn away. Both Steve and Greg had talked about how gorgeous she was and how much they were attracted to her and now Jackson was able to see what they were talking about. Nadia was beautiful with her long hair and classic features. She smiled at him then, and her whole face lit up. Jackson wanted to kiss her at that moment. He had never had that instant attraction to a girl like he did with Nadia. Unfortunately, both of his best friends were attracted to her as well, so that meant she was off limits. Rather than ruin their friendship, they had made a pact early on that, if more than one of them was attracted to the same girl, they would all stay away from her. Seeing as how they would all rather stay in on a Friday night instead of going out and actually meet women, that was not a hard pact to follow. It was going to be hard staying away from Nadia though, since she was going to be living with them, but it was something they were just going to have to do.

“Sorry I fell asleep. I must have been more tired than I thought.”

“It’s no problem. We want you to make yourself as comfortable as possible. This is your home now, too, so if you want to take a nap on the couch then go right ahead,” Jackson told her. He didn’t say he’d wished he could curl up behind her and take a nap with her and Addison as well. No need to run her off before she got moved in.

Jackson pointed to the baby, who had been lying there staring up at Nadia. “It looks like you have another admirer.”

Nadia frowned as if she wanted to say “Another?”, but she didn’t say anything. She looked down at the baby and began talking to her in a low voice. Jackson wasn’t able to hear what she was saying, but it looked like she had Addison’s undivided attention. He decided to leave them to it and headed to the kitchen to fix them some lunch.

While Greg and Steve were gone to get the last of her belongings, Jackson decided to use the alone time to get to know Nadia a little better. If she planned on helping take care of his niece, he wanted to know everything possible. He knew they were doing things backward by hiring her before getting to know her, but they were desperate. In the few days since he and the guys had brought Addison home from the hospital, they had suffered through exploding diapers, huge amounts of spit-up, and major slobber. Who knew something so small could make such huge messes? Jackson wasn’t complaining though. He loved his niece with all his heart. Addison had quickly wrapped him around her tiny fingers. He smiled at the thought as he put together a few sandwiches for lunch.