Page 6 of The Housekeeper's Billionaire Boss
“Eloise Grace. I call her Ellie for short.” With her soft blonde hair and blue eyes, her name most definitely fit her. This little person in his arms was the most perfect little person on the planet. Well, next to his nephew Travis.
With another quick glance up, he said, “I like that name. It fits her. How old is she?”
Molly blinked a few times. “Six weeks tomorrow.”
Josiah didn’t think she could be much older than that. “She’s precious.”
“Okay, why are you not married? Do you have some growth I’m unaware of, or…what? Because I can’t figure you out.”
With a snort, Josiah shook his head. “I’m told I haven’t found the right woman yet.” He stroked Ellie’s cheek with his finger. “I’ve just been busy, and…” What could he say? That he was too chicken to date after being used the last time? Or did he tell her he was desperate to make his family proud of him and he was too busy to date? “I’ve really got no better answer than that.”
Ellie gurgled and little bubbles formed on her lips. It wouldn’t take him but a second to fall head over heels for this little girl. Who wouldn’t? “Man, she’s just amazing. I didn’t know you were even pregnant.”
She hesitated a second. “I wasn’t.”
He looked at her and blinked. “Huh?” That was the best he could come up with? Huh?
She softened and took a deep breath. “My brother got his girlfriend pregnant, and they were going to put her up for adoption. I couldn’t let them do it. I mean, I know I’m not perfect, but I knew I’d take care of her and love her, so I adopted her.”
A newfound respect for Molly filled his heart. “That’s a pretty big sacrifice.” He looked back down at Ellie, her little smile and big eyes turning him to mush.
“But so worth it.”
“I can’t disagree.” He looked up at Molly and smiled. “A beautiful single woman with an equally adorable baby. And you’re asking me how I’m still single?”
“Most men don’t think like you.” She reached her arms out to take the baby, and he reluctantly handed Ellie back to Molly. “Besides, I don’t really want to date. I need to focus on her, and a relationship right now just isn’t a great idea. Maybe when she’s older.”
Oddly enough, that hit Josiah hard. He’d thought of asking her out a few times, but he just couldn’t. Aside from the fact that he thought she was dating someone this whole time, he was her employer. A boss asking the housekeeper for a date made him feel uncomfortable. What if she took it wrong? “I can see your point.” Now he was glad he didn’t ask. If she’d said no, who knew how long it would’ve taken to muster up the courage to ask someone else.
With a heavy sigh, she moved toward the couch. “Let me get my coat on, and I’ll let you go so you can head home.”
“Are you going to be spending the holidays with your parents? I’d guess they’d be thrilled to see her.”
Molly shook her head. “You’d guess wrong. I don’t have a bad relationship with my parents, but we’re not the Brady Bunch. Most likely, they won’t even be in town.”
His mouth fell open. “But you do have family to spend the holidays with, right?”
“No,” she said just above a whisper.
That wasn’t going to work for Josiah. “Come spend them with my family.”
She vehemently shook her head. “Oh, no. I couldn’t. You’ve been wonderful, and I can’t do that.”
How could he get her to accept the invitation? “It’s not about you. It’s about Ellie. Shouldn’t her first Christmas be spent with a houseful of people?”
Her lips pinched together, and she glared at him. “I’m more than enough for Ellie.”
Whoops. That had not gone as planned. “No, I mean, you’re more than enough. That’s not what I’m saying.”
“Then whatareyou saying?” she asked, her eyes narrowing a little further.
“That if you come home with me, maybe my mom will be too focused on Ellie to ask me about my dating life.” Dude. He’d pulled that out of nowhere, but, man, that was a slam dunk of an excuse worthy of a high-five. With the recent birth of Gabby’s baby boy, it would be one baby for each grandparent. It would be perfect.
Molly chuckled and shook her head. “Just how much real estate do you sell? With that kind of charm, I’m thinking it’s a lot.”
“I do okay, but,” he held up a finger, “I wasn’t kidding about my mom. My sister is married, and both my brothers Wyatt and Hunter are married. That leaves me and Bear.”
She held his gaze a moment. “So you’re asking me because you want to use Ellie to keep your mom from bugging you about dating?”
