Page 7 of A Baby for the Billionaire Cowboy

Xander’s heart gave a pang. Poor Daisy. Having a baby should be a joy, but he knew it wasn’t always. She was probably physically uncomfortable, and maybe anxious and sad as well, if she didn’t have family support.

“Okay.” He set down the box and straightened.

Mama smiled and squeezed his arm. “Not like I have to tell you to be a gentleman. I just mean be extra nice to her. Make her feel welcome, but don’t work her too hard. I’d better get back there, or she’ll know we’re talking about her.” She headed out.

He took a minute to get the rabbits settled and gather his thoughts. It sounded like Mama came up with this job as a favor to Daisy, rather than because they needed the help. They could have simply given her a bunch of money, so she could relax at home and concentrate on her pregnancy and later her new baby, but the family had been hesitant to give money directly to individuals for fear of getting overwhelmed with requests. Plus a lot of people didn’t like taking that type of charity. Maybe Daisy was one of them. Well, he’d give her some easy inside work and let her take her time on it. She probably got tired easily.

When he got out to the living room, Mama pushed back her chair and stood up. “My mind isn’t too good right now, but I’m going to meet with Carly to get an update on the family fund. Xander will find something for you to do, sweetheart. You’ll be more comfortable in the new office building. The chairs are better there, and I know what it’s like when you’re pregnant.”

Xander didn’t know what it was like, but he took that as a hint. “If you’ll come with me, I’ll show you around.”

Daisy took another sip of whatever was in her cup, some sort of herbal tea judging by the color, and stood up as Xander hovered close by. Should he take her elbow or offer an arm? She seemed to be managing fairly well though. She was pregnant but not huge the way women got when it was close to time to give birth. Would it be rude to ask how far along she was? He wouldn’t normally ask a woman anything about her body, but most pregnant women were excited about the baby and happy to talk about it. Except maybe Daisy wasn’t, from what Mama had said. He didn’t see a ring on her finger. Not that he could read too much into that. She might be married but not care to wear a ring, especially if her fingers were swelling. Or she might be unmarried and still chose to have a baby. But since he had no idea of her situation, he kept quiet as he led her to the new office.

The office held three desks with computers—Xander’s, Mama’s, and Carly’s—in one room. They’d agreed that they preferred to share the space under normal circumstances, rather than be isolated. They also had a smaller room with a sofa and small table, for phone calls, since those would distract the other people trying to concentrate. A kitchenette along one wall of the main room had a refrigerator, microwave, coffee maker, espresso maker, and electric kettle to heat water for tea. Xander still sometimes walked back to the house for a beverage or snack, because he liked to stretch his legs and visit the chickens and rabbits. But it would be nice for Daisy to have everything right here, including a restroom.

He gestured toward Mama’s desk. “Have a seat.”

She settled in the chair. She was even shorter than Mama. Her feet weren’t going to touch the floor when the chair was high enough for proper ergonomics. Xander dropped to his knees and stuck his head under the desk. The chair jerked back. He glanced over as Daisy tucked her dress over her knees. His face warmed. He probably should have warned her what he was planning to do. He grabbed the footstool and shifted it out a bit. “You’ll want this.” He wriggled backward and stood.

Daisy looked up at him. He had no idea what to do next.

To start, he could stop looming over her. He moved his chair over from his desk and sat.

“Um. I’m not sure...” He thought of the software they used. He doubted he would be a good teacher. Besides, it would take weeks to cover everything, which would only put them further behind. Maybe she could take an online course. “I guess we should start by figuring out what you already know and where you need training.”

“I’m familiar with accounting software, spreadsheets, word processing, and databases.”

“Oh. Good.” She looked so young. “How old—sorry. Don’t answer that. None of my business.”

Her mouth twitched with amusement. “I’m twenty. Math was my best subject in school. I worked for a small business owner who trained me in the way he liked things done.” She paused, and her mouth twisted oddly, as if she might be sick. But she got it under control and went on. “Might be you like things done different. I can adjust. Maybe we should go through one of these statements in the inbox, and you can tell me exactly how you’d like it done.”

“I don’t suppose the specifics matter, as long as it’s accurate.” Xander wasn’t sure what to do with his hands. He was more comfortable out with the animals, or working on his own. Mama knew that. Did she assign him this job because she wanted to force him out of his normal territory? She was usually more sympathetic.

Maybe Mama was truly just tired, and Carly wasn’t here at the moment, so that left Xander. He’d have to do his best.

He grabbed the stack of papers in Mama’s inbox and shuffled through them. “Thank you for answering me. You don’t have to explain anything though.”

Her eyebrows went up. “I got this job without even a job interview. It’s not unreasonable for you to ask about my experience.”

“Well. I guess so. I haven’t hired anyone before. My oldest brother, Josh, takes care of hiring the ranch hands. Carly—that’s Josh’s wife and the lawyer who takes care of most of the family trust and charitable fund—she deals with the financial advisors and so forth. You’ll meet her today. Probably Josh too.” He pulled out some bills that had been paid.

Daisy nodded. “I heard about your family from my great-aunt, Rhonda Gillespie. She told me everyone’s names, so I hope I can keep them straight. I’ve been staying with her for the last couple of months.”

Xander winced. “I suppose she knows as much about us as anyone in town.” He avoided Mrs. Gillespie. She was blunt and direct, which normally he appreciated, as he didn’t have to figure out what people were trying to say behind the words they used. But she asked embarrassing questions that put him in the awkward position of being rude to an elder and family friend or answering questions that were really none of her business.

He handed her the bills. “These need to go into the accounting software. Oh, wait. We need to set you up with a profile on the computer network. Give me a minute.”

He moved to his own computer, woke it up, and signed in. He glanced over at Daisy flipping through the papers. As he worked on setting up her account, some of her words sank in. She was related to Rhonda Gillespie. Xander had fetched Mrs. Gillespie from the fundraising dinner, because a young woman needed to see her.

He studied Daisy from the corner of his vision. Could it be? Almost everything about her was different, from her build to the shape of her face to the way she wore her hair. But underneath all that... It might be. He couldn’t quite see how he got Desiree out of Daisy, but it wasn’t impossible.

In which case... they’d met before. Had she recognized him? He thought back to her initial greeting a little while before. She’d had a moment of warmth that suddenly faded, but the memory was jumbled with the surprise of seeing a stranger in the house and the distraction of the rabbits.

He couldn’t tell her now that he remembered her. Could he? She hadn’t said anything. Maybe she hadn’t recognized him either. It had been dark. He’d been wearing a tuxedo instead of his usual jeans and T-shirt or flannel shirt. It might be embarrassing to both of them to bring up the memory of that dance in the dark. It hadn’t exactly been in character for Xander. Even now his face heated—his whole body heated—at the thought of holding her in his arms. He’d thought of her for days after that, wondering who she was and what had become of her.

That night had ended with a fire in the theater, which was the main talk of the town. No doubt Rhonda Gillespie’s pregnant niece showing up had raised some eyebrows, but Xander rarely went into town, so he missed out on most gossip, and Mama had been on her vacation.

He should pretend he didn’t recognize her.

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