Page 7 of The Housekeeper's Billionaire Boss
“When you put it like that, it sounds bad, but yes.” That wasn’t totally true. Yes, his mom would go wild over Ellie, but he liked Molly. Having her around for the holidays would be a plus in his book. “So, willing to bail me out?”
Molly lowered her gaze to Ellie and inhaled deeply. “Itwouldbe nice for her to have her first Christmas surrounded by people. Way better than my little one-bedroom apartment.” She lifted her head. “I don’t know, Mr. West. I feel like I’m taking advantage of you. I don’t feel right about it.”
Josiah wanted to knock himself over the head with a frying pan. Women! Arguing with one was akin to telling a river to stop running. Neither listened. “You aren’t, but…if it will help, you can clean the house while you’re there.” Not that any of his family would let her lift a finger, but what she didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him…yet.
When she didn’t answer, he pulled from the Flynn Rider school of thought and hit her with a smolder. “Please?”
With a gasp, her mouth dropped open. “You just Flynn-Ryder smoldered me. That isnotokay.”
For a second, he froze. He’d never been called on it before, and in a way, he was kinda impressed that she did. “In my defense, you did leave me no choice. A man has to do what a man has to do.”
Molly giggled, and Ellie cooed. “You’re not going to take no for an answer, are you?”
Josiah shook his head. “Once you meet my mom, you’ll understand just how dire my circumstances are.” He slipped his finger into one of Ellie’s hands. “Besides, Ellie likes me. I can read babies, and she’s totally telling you to save me.”
“Your mom’s right. You’re wasting your powers. I’m just not sure if they’re good or evil.” She grinned and sighed. “All right. I think it would be good for Ellie to have a nice Christmas. But,” she said, pointing her finger at him, “I’m cleaning house while I’m there. You got it?”
Oh, he got it, and he’d get it even worse when they got to Caprock Canyon and there was no housework to do, but it was worth it. His mom would be so starry-eyed for Ellie and Travis that Josiah and Bear wouldn’t even be on the radar. Shoot, Bear would probably give him half the ranch for that.
The holidays had just gone from miserable to awesome.
Chapter 4
Molly stopped at her apartment door and stuck her key in the lock. She turned to Josiah. It felt so odd to call him that, but he’d made a good point that they couldn’t go through the holidays with her calling him Mr. West. Every male on the West side of the family would be responding.
“Is something wrong?” he asked and looked down at the car seat he was holding. “She’s still sleeping soundly.” He glanced back up innocently as if to say he was capable of handling her.
At least he hadn’t used the smolder against her again. He’d seemed amazed she’d known what he was doing. As gorgeous as he was, using that against a defenseless woman just wasn’t right. How was she supposed to keep things professional? Especially since now she was mixing even more pleasure with business by going to his hometown with him.
“No, nothing’s wrong. I just…” Why had she said he could come with her while she packed? He’d see where she lived, and while it wasn’t rat-infested, it wasn’t a nice apartment like his. Not until they reached the front door did she suddenly become conscious of it.
“Just what?”
Aside from the fact that he’d already spent money on her and Ellie, she was worried about going home with him. What if his family didn’t like her? Just because he was nice didn’t mean his whole family was, despite his reassurance to the contrary.
“Molly?”
She chewed on her lip. “I’m…”
He held her gaze, his blue eyes seeming to bore straight through her. “Your apartment doesn’t define your abilities as a mother, if that’s what you’re worried about. At least, I don’t think so.”
Molly rolled her lips in and quickly turned to face the door again, blinking back tears. He’d read her mind. Not that she thought she wasn’t providing for Ellie well enough; just…people could be so judgmental. She unlocked the door and stepped inside, holding it so Josiah could walk in.
“Are you sure you’re okay waiting for me to pack?” Molly asked as she flipped the light on.
“I’m fine. We’re in no rush.” He smiled.
That smile. It had to be the most perfect smile she’d ever seen, aside from Ellie’s, of course, and she was going to be spending the holidays with it. And those lips. A set of the most perfectly kissable lips ever…that belonged to her boss. Maybe on the road to Caprock Canyon, he’d do something disgusting and kill every fantasy she’d been having since she started working for him six months ago.
When she adopted Ellie, she’d made a promise to put dating on hold. Josiah was the first man to test that resolve. How he was still single was a mystery she couldn’t figure out.
“What?” he asked, his head tilting.
She startled as she realized she’d been staring at him. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she said, “Nothing. Let me pack. I’ll be quick.”
“Sure,” he replied, taking a seat on the couch.
Molly hurried into her bedroom and dug in her closet for a suitcase. In the very far corner, buried under comic books and well-read books, she found a soft-side suitcase that had seen better days. It would have to do.
