Page 163 of The Nanny and the Beefcake
“You don’t have to do this, Raz. I’ll be okay. I’m used to being disappointed by my dad. It just happened when I was feeling so…” she trailed off.
“What were you feeling, plum?”
How was she supposed to explain it?
One minute, she dared picture what a real life with him and Sebastian could be like. And the next, the universe had served up her father on a platter.
It had delivered the man to her doorstep.
But it wasn’t her doorstep.
It was the doorstep of a rental home—a rented respite from the worries of making rent and supporting her brothers.
Sometimes the universe communicates silently through vibes and rhythms. Sometimes, it whispers its plan in the air. And then sometimes, it drives up to your house, snoops around, and breaks your heart.
Think of a time when you were truly happy.
“We know what happens if Doug wins the Ass-in-Nine. What happens if you win the race? You’ve never told me.”
Why had she chosen this moment to ask him that? After the train wreck of an encounter with her father, she shouldn’t care what Raz thought should or shouldn’t happen. She couldn’t entertain thoughts of making a life with this man or any man, not when the universe had just served up the ultimate reminder of why she had to guard her heart. But she couldn’t quiet the little voice in her head, or maybe it was the pull of her heartstrings, the faint whispers asking one poignant question.
What if she could trust her heart to another?
The competing thoughts went back and forth in her mind like a game of mental tug-of-war.
Come on, chi. A little balance could help right about now.
“No,” she breathed, pressing her fingertips to his lips. “I shouldn’t have asked. You don’t have to answer.”
“I do. I owe it to you because the answer is you, Libby.”
“Me?”
He stroked his thumb across her bottom lip. “You trust the universe, right? You believe it guides our paths?”
“Yes.”
“Then we leave it there. If I win, you’re meant to be mine.”
The breath caught in her throat. Did he mean it?
“And if you lose?” She had to ask. They were in dangerous waters—at least, she was.
He tightened his hold on her, determination flashing in his eyes. “I thought you knew the answer to that by now.”
“And what is the answer?” she whispered.
That self-assured beefcake grin spread across his lips. “I don’t lose.”
Twenty-Four
Erasmus
Cameras flashed,and Raz turned up the wattage on his grin. He glanced at Libby, sharing the spotlight with him today, and his heart swelled in his chest like a lovesick schoolboy.
But there was no fighting this feeling.
They’d made it to race day.
