Merry Christmas, Babies. Tara Quinn Taylor
Joe jumped to his feet and glared down at her—until he realized what he was doing. He sat down again, this time beside her on the sofa, and studied the class ring he’d worn since college.
“Did she tell you this yesterday?” he asked more calmly, though inside he was still bouncing off the walls.
He wasn’t going to lose her over this. Couldn’t she see that their lives were irreversibly linked?
Elise peered at him as though assessing his emotional weather. “Two weeks ago,” she finally said quietly.
This wasn’t like her. Not at all. Elise faced challenges head on. She always had a plan. She never procrastinated.
“Were you planning to wait until you had a ‘complication’ before you did something about having a live-in caregiver?” he asked. He instantly regretted his sarcasm. She was an adult with a right to whatever life she wanted.
His role was to support that just as she’d supported him all these years. Somehow.
“I’ve been reviewing potential applicants for ten days.”
Joe felt relieved. “And?”
“I can’t afford anyone without a police record.” She chuckled as she spoke. Joe failed to see the humor.
“The down payment on the office suite put you in a tight spot, didn’t it?”
“That and the mortgage on this place,” she admitted. “A couple of years ago I tied up most of my funds in an IRA. I’d lose half of it to penalties if I cash in early.”
A couple of years ago they’d seen their first sizable profits in the company. He’d invested a chunk, as well. “If you’d told me that buying the suite would be a hardship we would have held off.”
“Look, I’m perfectly comfortable as long as I don’t see a huge increase in monthly expenses. Besides, we needed to move if we were going to continue to grow. Not only was there not enough space in the old offices for more staff, but with the kind of clients you’re bringing us, these millionaire business owners, we needed an office that would instill confidence.”
They’d had several conversations to that effect, he knew, mostly at her instigation. They’d both taken a risk, expecting a payoff within the next eighteen months.
“I could sell this place.” She glanced around, her eyes wide and unexpectedly childlike, but when she looked at him again she was her usual practical, calm self. “But not in time to hire someone immediately. I’d have to list, sell, close and move. And in another five months or so, I’m going to need the room. Anyway,” she added, her chin lifting, “I can afford this house. I make enough to provide everything I’m going to need for the babies. I just can’t afford a full-time nanny. Or a full-time companion for myself while I’m pregnant.”
She’d been expecting one child, not four. A normal pregnancy, not one that was going to tax her body to the limit—and possibly beyond.
“What about someone from the office? They all love you. Have you asked if anyone wants to move in here—just until the babies are born and you’ve got a routine established?”
“Would you want one of your employees living with you? Hearing you puke by night and taking orders from you by day?”
The sarcasm wasn’t like her.
“No.”
“Besides the obvious conflict of interest, there is no one.” Her tone softened. “Mark and Sam are out.”
“But Angela and Tamara are both single.”
“You need to spend more time in the office, Joe, if you want to keep up on the staff’s personal lives.” Her chiding was playful. “Angela just moved in with Richard last weekend, and Tamara’s mother fell and broke her hip—she’s staying with Tamara indefinitely.”
Joe got up and crossed to the window looking out on the sizable expanse of thick green grass that ran from house to road. He could see three huge old trees surrounded with colorfully blooming flower beds and knew there were more around back. The lot Elise’s house sat on took up a city block. There were no sidewalks, just lush green space with quiet streets bordering three sides.
A perfect yard for growing kids. They could have a softball game on one side of the house, play regulation croquet, play hide-and-seek, swing as high as the sky. So why did he feel, as he stood there, that the place was a trap, imprisoning him?
His car was there—at the end of her drive. He could leave any time. Would be leaving soon for a day on the river.
He was a free man.
“I’ll do it,” he said.
FOR ONE SECOND Elise felt enormous relief. She’d never considered such a solution and it was so perfect, so right. This was about money and Joe had as much interest in her financial status as she did.
To a point.
And then he turned around. A man with a great body, wearing an old pair of denim shorts and white tank top. A man who oozed sexuality. And he was her business partner.
“It would never work,” she said.
“Of course it would.” His face was serious, his hands were shoved in his pockets and his feet were planted slightly apart. “It’s the obvious answer.”
Elise suddenly wished that she’d showered, put on makeup. Washed her hair.
She wanted to stand, too. Face him eye to eye. Knew it was important. But she couldn’t do it. Not in old sweats and a sleeveless pajama top. She settled for sitting upright with her feet on the floor. Then, crossing her arms, she reminded herself that she was alone, free, boss of this house. Of her life.
“You and I are so good together because we’ve always managed to keep our private lives separate from our work partnership.”
Not entirely true, she knew, but close enough. His expression didn’t change.
“Can you imagine what we’d do to each other if we attempted to share living quarters?” she asked.
“Isn’t that what we do every day?” he countered. He stepped closer. “For the past ten years we’ve been together at the office for more waking hours of the day than we’d be home together at night.”
“But that’s because we were working. And you were out on sales calls a lot.”
“We co-own the office, Elise. We’ve managed to decorate, furnish, coexist without ever arguing.”
“We argue all the time.”
“We debate. And not about the office. Not about anything that matters.”
That was true. But—
“Let’s not make a major event out of this, okay?” he said. Not since his mother had been diagnosed with kidney disease had he looked this serious. “It’ll only be for a few months—until the babies are born and you’ve got a routine established. You can bring people in to help with feedings. At the end of the year, assuming I do my job, there should be enough of a profit bonus to enable you to hire a full-time nanny until the kids are old enough to go to day care. If that’s what you plan.”
Elise was impressed that he’d thought her life through with such detail. Still…
“No. I won’t risk our working relationship because I made a choice that had unexpected consequences.”
“It’ll be more of a risk if B&R loses you.” He was really worried that might happen.
“I told you, I won’t let this affect—”
“Cut the crap, Elise,” Joe said, his face flushed. “When are you going to get it? You aren’t in control here. You have no way of knowing what the next months are going to bring. And if you don’t start facing reality, the results could be a lot