The Buchanan's Baby (Billionaire Romance) (Bought By The Billionaire Brothers) (8 page)

“I want to be,” he said. “But I don’t know how.”

“Well neither does Dillon but he’s excited to find out. You need to stop being so afraid of failing and just go for it. I think you’ll be a natural.”

“Yeah? Why do you say that?” he asked.

“Because at your core, you are sweet and sensitive and caring. What more do you need to be a good father? I know you’ll put the baby before your needs because you’re already doing it.”

“How do you know?”

“How many women have you slept with since landing in San Jose?” Penny asked, startling Nolan with the bold question.

“None,” he answered. “I haven’t been in the mood.”

“Let’s examine that for a minute: you, the perennial lover of women, haven’t been in the mood to chase down some strange tail. Either you have a fever or you’re growing up.”

He shuddered. “Don’t say that. Sounds like a death sentence.”

“It’s not,” she assured him with a light laugh. “It’s actually pretty awesome. Welcome to the Grown Up Club.”

“W
ell, don’t welcome me just yet,” he warned, thinking of his unfortunate sexual flop the night before. He knew at the time he shouldn’t have left with CeCe but he had anyway and it’d turned out embarrassingly awful. So, clearly, his judgment was still suspect. But he appreciated Penny’s insight. “My brother is a lucky man,” he said with a sigh and Penny chuckled warmly.

“No, I’m the lucky one. Now, go get your girls. I won’t accept anything but total triumph. Got it?”

“Yes ma’am,” he said, smiling.

“You can do this, Nolan. Trust in yourself,” Penny said.

Trust. Commitment. Responsibility — the trifecta of terror. He wished he had Penny’s faith. “Thank you, Penny.”

“You bet. Take care, Nolan.”

Nolan murmured his goodbye and clicked off. Woo Shannon? He knew how to get a woman into his bed but he had no idea how to build a solid foundation for a relationship. In the past he’d never cared to learn but now, he needed a crash course if he were going to make this work with Shannon.

Sweat broke out along his hairline. The stakes were high and as Penny said, winning was the only option.

So where to start?

Suddenly, an idea came to him and a slow grin spread across his lips.

Penny said to make a grand gesture — and he knew just the way to do it.

It’d been a long time since he’d tried his hand at cooking a decent meal but he was going to give it a try and hope his efforts didn’t end up a smoking mess. But more importantly, as he stood at Shannon’s doorstep, holding two grocery bags filled with cooking supplies, he hoped she didn’t slam the door in his face or worse, push him down the stairs.
He knew either reaction would be warranted given how badly he’d botched their picnic. This time, he was determined to keep things light and friendly, without broaching a single topic that revolved around touchy subjects.

Shannon opened the door and immediately groaned when she saw him. “What now?” she complained, then eyed his grocery bags with open suspicion. “What’s that?”

“These,” he hefted the bags higher “are filled with organic vegetables and pasture-fed beef and some other assorted goodies that I’m going to — hopefully — transform into something edible with your help.”

“Is that so?” She crossed her arms. “And what makes you think I want you in my
neighborhood, much less my kitchen?”

“I screwed up,” he admitted, going straight to the point. “I don’t know what I’m doing and it’s difficult for me to handle not being in control. This is my attempt at an apology —
 again. Only this time, I promise to do it right,” he added sheepishly. “I promise no talk of anything remotely touchy for either of us.”

“What will we talk about?”

“For starters, I hope it’s how to cook without burning because I’m starving.”

She sighed, shaking her head as if she knew she shouldn’t let him in but did anyway. “Fine. I can’t believe I’m going to say this but, c’mon on
in.” Shannon moved aside and he walked past her into the tiny apartment. He tried not to notice how cramped everything was and how her furniture was worn and secondhand. He found the kitchen easily and started unpacking the bags. Shannon followed, scooping Aubrey up from the floor where she was playing, watching him with a perplexed expression. “I have to say I’m a little confused by all of this,” she said.

He turned to her, his gaze taking in the mental picture of Shannon and Aubrey. Shannon wore motherhood well. It was a wonder no man hadn’t staked his claim on her yet. He cleared his throat, determined to keep his thoughts pure and his motives innocent. “We don’t have to be enemies but I realized we aren’t even friends, yet. I want to change that. You’re the mother of my child and I want to get to know you.”

A smile played on her lips, plainly warmed by his honest answer and he returned the smile. “Do you think we could do that?” he asked.

She considered his request and then nodded. “Yeah, I think we can. Or at the very least, we can try. I’d like to get to know you, too.”

“Good.” He breathed a sigh of relief. “How about you start with the salad and I will try and figure out how to grill this steak in an oven.”

“Or,” Shannon said, grinning. “You could make the salad and I could fire up the barbecue I have on my patio. I’m a grilling queen.”

He couldn’t have been more relieved and he wasn’t afraid to show it. “Far be it from me to keep a woman from showing off her natural talents. Please, by all means, take over the meat detail. I will not consider it a slight to my manhood in the slightest to chop lettuce.”

She laughed and placed Aubrey in the living room with some toys. “Okay, keep on eye on Aubrey while I heat the grill.”

Nolan began the process of washing the produce, all the while watching Aubrey as she played quietly with her favorite toys, and he was struck by how calm he felt in such foreign surroundings. By all rights he ought to feel as if he were ready to jump from his skin but in fact, the opposite was happening. Don’t analyze it, a voice warned.
Just enjoy it.
Shannon returned and went to her cupboard to pull a dusty bottle of wine. She looked at him in question, almost nervously, as she said, “Drinking alone seems so pathetic. I’ve had this bottle of wine for quite a while now but since I never have anyone to drink it with, I’ve kept it in the cupboard.” She bit her lip, unsure and Nolan gently took the bottle from her hand. Her shoulders slumped ever so slightly as she said, “Never mind—“ but Nolan was already expertly popping the cork. “Oh!” Her cheeks colored as she emitted a small laugh. “I’ll get the glasses,” she said and he grinned at how cute she appeared when she was flustered.

She poured the wine, saying, “I don’t know if it’s good wine or not. I won it in a raffle.”

Nolan took an exploratory sip, swished it in his mouth for her benefit and finally swallowed in approval. “Tastes good to me,” he announced. “I’ve never been a wine snob. If it tastes good, I drink it. I don’t care about the vintage or the price tag.”

Shannon smiled and her face lit up with such beauty that Nolan had to wonder why he hadn’t chased her down that morning, begging her to come back to the bed. How could he have let her walk away without so much as a phone number? Damn, he’d been an idiot.
“Tell me about Shannon Garrity,” he said as he chopped tomatoes. “Tell me something I don’t know…something shocking.”

She glanced at him from beneath her wine glass, her blush deepening. “How shocking?” she asked and the breath left his lungs. Oh God, he wanted to know every deep, dark secret she’d ever held to her breast. He forced a negligent shrug that belied the intense longing he was suffering and she released a shaky sigh, saying, “Well, I’m allergic to strawberries. I puff up like a blowfish and I itch like crazy until I can get some allergy medication.”

“Oh, come on,” he chided her playfully. “You can do better than that. I mean something truly shocking, though the strawberry allergy is good to know in case, Aubrey is also allergic. For the record, I’m allergic to garbanzo beans.”

She made a face. “Eww. Who eats them in the first place. So gross.”

“Well, thankfully, I’m not a huge fan either but my entire life I had to avoid a three-bean salad because people always seem to put garbanzo beans in it. Ruined many a family outing,” he said with mock sadness. She laughed and poured more wine. Nolan accepted the refill but joked, “Careful, I’d hate to think you’re trying to get me drunk to take advantage of me — which I wholly support, of course.”

She laughed and wagged her finger at him, though her cheeks had blazed.
“None of that, look what happened the last time.”

Nolan’s gaze strayed to Aubrey and he said with a shrug, “I don’t know, seemed to work out pretty well. She seems like an awesome kid.”

“She’s the best,” Shannon agreed, her eyes sparkling but wary. “However, I’m not looking to give her a sibling anytime soon.”

“Good point,” he agreed, though his heart had taken a leap at the idea. He mentally shook himself.
No more pitstops in Crazytown
. The very idea of…a delicate shudder tripped down his spine but he covered well by returning to the salad, saying, “Okay, Grill Queen, get ready to show your skills because my salad is going to win awards.”

Shannon laughed and grabbed the meat to put on the grill. “Tough competition but I think my grilling skills are going to make your salad look like amateur hour,” she boasted as she disappeared out the door.

Nolan popped a piece of lettuce in his mouth and chewed. This felt too good. Too easy. Maybe it was the wine. He tossed a few croutons down his throat, hoping to soak up some of the alcohol. The last thing he needed was to give into his baser urges and ruin the entire evening. He was determined to be on his best behavior, no matter that Shannon appealed to him on every level. Shannon reappeared, and he fought to keep his gaze anywhere but on her lean body including the cutest pair of tits he’d ever seen. Bee-stings, that’s what they were. He remembered them well. He distinctly remembered sucking the pearled nipples into his mouth and how Shannon had arched and moaned, gasping as he’d coupled his attentions to her breasts with a finger slipped deep inside her wet and ready core.
No! Don’t go there
. Too late. “Are you okay?” Shannon asked as she pulled plates from the cabinet. “You look a little flushed.”

“I’m good,” he said quickly, wondering how he was going to hide his growing erection. Perhaps he could hide it behind the salad bowl. No, that wouldn’t look weird at all. No weirder than him springing a boner while shredding fresh spinach leaves.
Ugh. “Um, I think Aubrey might need a diaper change,” he lied. “I figured it was best if a professional handled the situation.”

To his relief, Shannon laughed and walked over to Aubrey and picked her up to check. “Nope, all clean,” she said, adding, “You know, diaper duty will be part of the deal. You’ll have to learn eventually.”

“True. Is there a class I should take or is it pretty self-explanatory?”

“It’s not that hard, I promise. I’m sure you can figure it out but I’ll let you off the hook for now.”

“Thanks,” he said, smiling. Finally, his cock had settled down — talking about changing potentially poopy diapers had definitely helped — and he could breathe easier. “Salad’s done,” he announced with flourish. He was pretty proud of his greens, if he did say so himself.

“I’ll go get the steaks,” Shannon said, lifting Aubrey and sliding her into the high chair before heading out with the plate and tongs.
She returned a second later with two smoking hot and delectable steaks that made Nolan’s mouth water.

“I think I’m in trouble,” he admitted. “That steak smells like heaven.”

“I warned you, I had skills. We should’ve made a wager. I could’ve come out on top,” she teased.

On top
. He groaned privately as his obnoxious man-brain supplied all sorts of ways for her to be on top of him specifically. Was he suddenly regressing to a seventeen-year-old twerp who couldn’t wrangle his sexual drive for one blessed night? He didn’t realize he was frowning until Shannon called him on it, worried. “I was just kidding. I’m sure your salad is wonderful.”

He chuckled, embarrassed.
If only his worries were about the quality of his salad. “I’m just starved. I’m about to start gnawing on the wood fixtures if we don’t dish up soon.”

“Oh, well, don’t do that or else I’ll never get my deposit back,” she quipped with a flash of
a shy smile. She handed him a plate. “Here, you can have the bigger steak.”

He watched as Shannon began cutting tiny pieces of meat for Aubrey and shredding the salad into smaller, toddler-sized bites and he was struck by how the simple scene made his eyes inexplicably water. He thought of the meals he’d had as a child growing up in the Buchanan household and he couldn’t recall a single time the family had eaten together. He looked away, discomforted by the tightness in his chest. Not everyone had an idyllic upbringing, he thought trying to shrug it off but that tight feeling remained until he felt compelled to rub his sternum.
Determined to shake off the melancholy that hovered at the edge of his thoughts, he dug into his steak and was rewarded with a pretty fucking amazing mouthful of meat. “Damn, that’s good,” he murmured around the hot bite, he added without pausing, “You win.”