Page 33 of You've Got Male

One was an addict. One was on trial for insider trading. The youngest lived on his dad’s yacht, and the other two worked for Frank. And his wife didn’t work. She just didn’t want to get elbow deep in dirty diapers. Or things like parenting and emotions.

“So about the job?” Jonah prodded, knowing he’d promised his daughter he’d be back in five minutes.

“I’ve been meaning to fire Henry. Father of new twins. You can have his office.”

“You can’t fire him because he’s a new dad.”

“You want the job or not, son?”

Did he want it at the expense of someone else? Hell no. Butdid he want a big fat paycheck in his account? Desperately. And he knew that Rochester, Lemon, and Links was the only firm in town that would trust him with large accounts. And it wasn’t like they would keep Henry even if he declined the job. But taking the job was wrong…right?

Shit. His moral compass was all over the place. Desperation could do that to a man.There were other jobs,he decided,ones that didn’t require taking some poor new dad’s desk.It would likely be closer to an entry-level job, working on smaller accounts until he could prove himself. But would it make enough to cover the mounting bills?

He was wading through the giant pool of Frank-sized shit—how had he forgotten about this—when he felt a little sweaty palm slide into his.

“What the hell is that?” Frank bellowed as if he’d just seen a seven-foot-tall cockroach.

“Da-da, I went poopoo,” Waverly said.

Jonah looked Frank in the eyes. They were bulging, bloodshot with rage. There was even spittle in the corner of his mouth.

“I almost did, too, honey. Daddy almost did, too.”

Chapter Eleven

Evie

The birds were chirping, the sun was out, her parents weren’t at the shop, and not a single suitor was in sight. What a glorious day. The only storm cloud around was the conversation with Jonah from the other day.

None of it sat right. Not only had she inadvertently hurt Ryan, she’d asked Jonah to lie to his family. What kind of person asked that of a friend? A desperate one, that’s who. She thought back to their near-miss sex-capade and knew that he had made the right decision by turning her down. But rejection still hurt.

However, she wasn’t going to think about Jonah right now. She was going to think about her good day.

“Barbara,” she said, setting an oversized mug on the counter. “Hazelnut latte for Barbara.”

Evie went back to the register and asked the next customer, “What can I get you?”

“Fifteen minutes of babysitting.”

Evie had to blink. She knew the voice but barely recognized theman in front of her.

Jonah?

He was wearing a charcoal suit with a deep blue button-up and his hair was actually styled. Well, as close as it could come to a style when he clearly needed a haircut. Then there was his beard, now more like a five o’clock shadow on his ruggedly masculine face that had her traitorous heart taking a nosedive into her stomach.

Double-checking that her mouth wasn’t gaping open, she said, “Look around. I’m one of two baristas here.”

His eyes widened as if just noticing that there were other people in the shop. “I know this is a big ask, but I’m desperate.”

Well, she was embarrassed. She’d hoped to go at least a week before she had to see him—long enough for them both to forget her ridiculous proposition. She could still taste the whipped cream from being pied and there he was looking larger than life, and sexier than a desperate man had the right to look. But beneath the good looks was a frazzled father.

Waverly had her arms locked around his neck, there was a suspicious brown stain on the cuff of his shirt, and he had the look of a parent who was one temper tantrum away from going under.

“What happened to daycare?”

“They won’t let her come back until she’s potty trained so I hired a sitter for the day and she was a no-show.”

“You’re not helping your case here,” she said, repeating his words from the other day.

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