Page 7 of Billionaire and Nanny Secret

“Then, how about we get you started,” I suggested, turning off the ignition and pulling the key out. “Lasagna for dinner?”

Her eyes lit up. “Yes!” she exclaimed. “I like your lasagna.”

“Then let’s go.”

I grabbed Paige’s backpack for her and followed her into the house. She was skipping, and I knew that the second the sugar was out of her system, she was going to be fully asleep. I needed to have her get her homework done before then and some food in her stomach. After that, I’d be the one to tuck her into bed and wish her a good night.

She settled at the kitchen table, and I took out her folders and put them in front of her. She took her pencil and got to work while I took out the ingredients that were needed for lasagna.

One thing that I hadn’t known before I’d taken the job was the fact that I was to be a ‘live in’ nanny. In the large house that Ezra and his daughter occupied, I had my own little wing with my own bedroom and bathroom.

It was a bit overwhelming, at the beginning, considering that it wasn’t what I’d expected. Kayley had failed to mention that little detail, but I should have known. She hadn’t moved in with me until she’d quit her job as a nanny.

But now, it was just routine. It was what I was used to.

Ezra was a man who thrived on eating healthy. He condemned most fattening snacks because he was someone who worked out extensively. And when he wasn’t working out, he was working. That was basically all that his life revolved around. Those two activities and then his daughter.

Cooking had been intimidating, but now I managed, excelled even, if I allowed myself to gloat. The lasagna smelled absolutely delightful as I put it together and then thrust it into the oven. My stomach growled, and I frowned, trying to remember the last time that I’d eaten. I definitely hadn’t eaten lunch, but I did eat breakfast. Still, I was starving.

“Is the food almost ready?” Paige asked me, as she looked up from her homework. I barely realized that we’d been in the kitchen for over an hour now. Poor thing was probably starving, considering that she hadn’t gotten her after-lunch snack like she usually did.

“Almost, sweet girl,” I told her. “Do you want a snack?”

“Yes, please,” she nodded her head.

“No snacks before dinner.”

My lips separated as I turned around. Ezra was standing in the kitchen, loosening his tie.

Nothing about him should have been this attractive. Even when he was doing the simplest tasks, everything about him screamed ‘hot’ and ‘sexy.’ It was impossible for him to complete a task without his body completely oozing out how much sex appeal he had, which was more than should have been legal.

3

Ezra

After the long days that I tended to have at work, it was always nice for me to be able to come home to a hot, fresh meal. It was one of the things that I enjoyed most about having a nanny. When it came to cooking, I wasn’t the greatest, something I gathered from all of Paige’s complaining. Considering the exclusive salary that I paid, I figured that it wasn’t too much to ask the nanny to cook as well, especially considering that they didn’t even have to pay for their room and board.

Everything was free to them. I liked to call it a little gift from me to them.

Coming home was already one of the better parts of my day, even the best part on some days. Usually, I returned to my nanny cooking dinner and Paige, somewhere in the house, running around, watching television or doing homework.

But coming home to Quinn was an entirely different type of euphoria. There was something about her that just set my blood on fire and left everything inside of me aching for her. It was almost a punishment, really, desiring something so much that I knew I couldn’t have.

It was the same thing as putting beer in front of a recovering alcoholic. It just shouldn’t be done.

But what reason did I have to fire her? Quinn was perfect at her job. My daughter happened to love her, and when it came to cooking and cleaning, she was spectacular. So, instead of finding ways to fire her, I made myself scarce. I couldn’t tempt myself with her if I wasn’t around to see her.

In reality, I should have known better than to hire someone I found this attractive. Her best friend, my last nanny, Kayley, had been different. Yes, she had looks that most men would stop to take a second glance at. But her personality was what set me off from her. She was so into herself, so self-indulgent.

She took care of Paige, and that was the most important thing to me. I would never be with someone who was so selfish. Quinn wasn’t like that in the slightest. I should have realized that in the beginning, and I should have stayed very, very far away.

My eyes looked over her, taking in what she considered appropriate clothing. I was a gentleman, but I couldn’t stop them from straying to the white skirt that rose so high, I was sure if she bent down, I’d see everything. And her shirt, a low-riding crop top. I saw much of what women in her generation called acceptable clothing. They clearly thought the more skin, the better.

And, unfortunately, it was the way to catch a man’s eye. But it wasn’t always a good thing, especially not where I was concerned.

“Hi, Mr. Ledger,” Quinn greeted me in that sweet voice of hers. I realized that her cheeks were tinted pink, as if I’d caught her doing something she wasn’t supposed to be doing, and, in a very miniscule way, I had.

I was strict when it came to my rules only because I wanted what was best for my daughter. I was a bit of a health freak myself. I thrived on working out and eating well, and I wanted the same for my daughter. She was going to start gymnastics in the fall, and I thought she would enjoy it immensely.

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