Page 35 of The Billionaire and the Nanny

Umm, what?

Leo froze on his way to the door and turned around like a man being tortured. I didn’t blame him one bit.

“Daddy has meetings today, honey,” he said evasively, but Maddie wasn’t having it.

Her lower lip curled in the most adorable pout and I saw Leo visibly melt at the sight of it.

“Please, Daddy,” she said, her lip quivering slightly, and her father sighed in defeat.

“Fine. I’ll meet you at the store. Call me after you pick Maddie up from school,” he told me before he made his escape.

I nodded silently, wishing I could ask him to grow a backbone. If he gave in so easily every time his daughter pouted, he was going to have a spoiled little princess on his hands. But I couldn’t quench the little spark of delight at the prospect of spending some time with him.

CHAPTER 16

TIA

Idropped Maddie off at school and asked Sam to take me to the nearest Target, where I stocked up on the basics. I bought three pairs of no-name jeans and some cheap band t-shirts. Then I went hunting for undies. Plain cotton ones. I had no use for lace or silk right now. Maybe I could resume my love affair with Victoria’s Secret after I saved some money, but that was a long way off.

Then I picked Maddie up and gave her a snack in the car before I called Leo. He answered on the first ring, sounding abstracted.

“It’s me,” I stammered.

Of course, he knows it’s you, you idiot. He has your number saved in his phone, I chastised myself silently.

“I’ll see you at the store in ten minutes,” he replied curtly.

I scowled at the phone. If he could be distant, so could I.

He was waiting for us outside the store when we arrived, and to my surprise, the store was empty. There was a closed sign at the door.

“Are they closed?”

“I requested them to close the store for the next hour or so. I wanted us to shop in peace,” he explained. “Maddie isn’t used to the paps, and I didn’t want our family outing to be splashed over the internet tonight.”

This was new for me. Sure, my family was rich. But Leo was fucking wealthy. The kind of wealth that can close a store at will because they know he’d probably spend more money there in an hour than all the other customers they’d have that day.

But he was right. As one of New York’s most eligible bachelors, Leo and his daughter were extremely newsworthy. And if someone posted pictures of this outing online, my brother would know where to find me.

I decided not to waste too much time browsing their dresses and led Maddie to the kids’ section. She tried on some outfits, and her doting Daddy bought them all, to the store assistant’s delight.

“Tia, did you find anything?” he asked.

I shook my head.

“I’m good, thanks,” I replied shyly.

As I went to talk Maddie out of a shiny Chanel purse that was almost as big as she was, I passed a glass cabinet full of vintage jewelry, and a pair of ruby earrings caught my eye. I stared at them in surprise because they were a lot like a pair my grandmother used to wear. My aunt living in Dubai inherited those earrings, but these were a very close match.

I discreetly inquired about the price and almost swallowed my tongue when the shop assistant showed me the price tag. There was no way I could afford them. I thanked her politelyand walked over to where Maddie was trying to cram some Lego blocks into the Chanel purse.

I talked her out of it gently and lured her out of the store with the promise of ice cream.

“And after that, you can build your own vintage store out of Lego. You can even hang these clothes in there,” I suggested.

She agreed happily and followed me to the car while Leo paid for her purchases. He went back to the office immediately and I had to buy Maddie the biggest sundae in Eddie’s Sweet Shop to make up for his absence.

The next few days sped past in a whirl of school and Lego club. I settled into a routine and kept out of Leo’s way most days. Maddie and I had begun to stop at an animal shelter on the way home, and she developed a strange fascination for a one-eyed monster of a cat named Louisa.

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