The Billionaire Daddy. Renee Roszel

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      After Opal left, Lauren stood for a long minute, gazing at her precious niece. “No problem,” she finally murmured, but it came out sounding dubious. The full weight of what she’d done was settling in.

      She would be living with a man she hated—spying on him—and even more disturbing than that, the well-being of an infant, not quite six months old, was in her hands!

      Hysteria welled up inside her. What had she done? Being a high school music teacher hadn’t exactly qualified her for digging up incriminating evidence on wild living playboys. Not to mention one other tiny detail. Though Lauren had done plenty of babysitting, and loved children, she’d never cared for actual babies! “Oh, Lauren,” she mumbled, “what have you gotten yourself into?”

      Dade and his new nanny sped along the highway toward the Hamptons in his luxurious silver limousine. As he spoke on his cell phone to his secretary, leaving last-minute instructions, he glanced at his new employee. She sat stiffly in the forward seating area, which faced the back seat where he was positioned. The arrangement accommodated more comfortable conversation. He half grinned at the thought, since his new nanny had not only said nothing, she hadn’t even made eye contact. It seemed she had no interest in anything or anyone but the baby.

      What was her name, again? Miss Something Quinn. Was it Nelda or Gilda Quinn? He couldn’t recall what the agency told him. He’d been in a foul mood at the time, so her given name had hardly been his main concern.

      His business calls finally concluded, Dade slipped the phone into his slacks pocket. He surveyed the nanny as she gazed at Tina, secured in her car seat. The nanny had the strangest expression on her face. It looked like adoration. He lounged back, straightening his legs and crossing them at the ankles. His shoes almost touched her, but she paid him absolutely no heed, just kept gazing at Tina.

      He supposed nannies—at least the really good ones—adored children. He’d certainly had good luck with the other nanny—until this morning. He cleared his throat to get his new nanny’s attention.

      Nothing.

      It irritated him that she ignored him so completely. She hadn’t even acknowledged him with a glance when Goodberry helped her into the car. Such total lack of notice didn’t happen to him. People came to attention in his presence, skittering around, catering to his every whim. Wealth and power had that effect on people. Especially people whose livelihoods depended on his approval.

      In the eleven years since he’d taken over his father’s electronics business, he’d turned it into a multibillion dollar corporation, no small part of that success due to several of his own patents. He’d learned to take for granted that his vice presidents would snap to attention when he cleared his throat. So why couldn’t this wisp of a woman oblige him by at least glancing to see if he was choking to death.

      She made a cooing sound and stuck a finger against the baby’s palm. When Tina grasped it, Miss Quinn smiled. Dade dipped his head slightly to get a better look. Were her eyes swimming with tears? He frowned. Tears? Perhaps the woman had allergies, or was in the weepy part of her cycle. She couldn’t be that overcome by having a baby grasp her finger. Or maybe she could. Nannies were most likely a very sentimental breed when it came to their charges.

      He cleared his throat again. Seconds ticked by while he felt the ignominy of being scorned. He counseled with himself, Dade, buddy, I hope you haven’t become a pompous ass, expecting the world to revolve around you.

      Her lack of attentiveness irked him. After all, the woman worked for him. She owed him the courtesy of acknowledging that he existed on the face of the earth! He scanned her from head to toe. She was pleasant looking, in a sensible-shoes way. Her brown hair was cropped to just above shoulder length in a straight, no-nonsense style. Her eyes were a no-nonsense olive-drab, and her lips had spent most of their time in his presence pressed together in a no-nonsense grimace.

      Only now, with the baby, had he seen her smile. The sunny expression turned her cheeks a fetching pink and brought a radiance to her eyes that gave them a whole other dimension. A mossy green, soft and lush. The combination of her no-nonsense demeanor, plus her visible softness where Tina was concerned, pleased him, even if she did ignore him with what seemed like a very real desire to have him disappear.

      He grinned to himself at the ridiculous thought. This was a well-paying job, and cushy as jobs went. She had no reason to dislike him. He decided to give up on subtle, and take the direct approach. “Miss Quinn?” He paused, with no intention of going on until she acknowledged him.

      She didn’t make a single move to let him know she’d heard. He pursed his lips with annoyance.

      “Miss Quinn, do you have a hearing problem?” he asked, more loudly.

      Her glance flicked his way, though she didn’t quite meet his eyes, more like his cheek. “Oh, uh, no. I can hear.”

      He crossed his arms before him. “Don’t you think, when your employer speaks to you, it would be polite to answer?”

      Her no-nonsense face paled, and her brows quirked downward. “I didn’t—I mean…” When she met his gaze, tiny lightning bolts of unease flickered in her eyes. “Yes, sir.” She inclined her head, and Dade thought she was going to look at the baby. Instead, she watched him from beneath her lashes, like a feral cat peering out from the underbrush.

      Lord, what was that look? Fear? Hate? He couldn’t tell if she was about to faint or attack. Attack? He grinned wryly at the crazy notion, concluding he knew what was wrong. He’d been a brute when she arrived, and she was afraid of him. He damned himself for his churlishness. She probably thought he was an ogre to be avoided at all costs.

      In an effort to make amends, he decided light conversation was in order. After all, they would be living together. He didn’t want her to pass out every time he spoke to her. “What’s your first name, Miss Quinn?” he asked.

      A flash of discomfort skidded over her features, and Dade wondered why the question might cause her trouble. He’d taken care to use his most diplomatic tone.

      “I—” She swallowed and lifted her chin a notch. “I prefer Miss Quinn, sir. Or just Quinn.”

      Her cool reply surprised him. He observed her silently for a moment, experiencing a mixture of amusement and exasperation. With a quirk of his lips, he nodded. “Okay, Just Quinn. Call me Dade.”

      She didn’t smile, merely lowered her gaze to the baby. “No, thank you, sir.”

      No, thank you, sir?

      With a quizzical lift of a brow, he watched her features change from frosty to sweet as she gazed at the baby.

      He didn’t recall a time when he’d felt so thoroughly dismissed. It appeared that the truly proficient nannies of the world felt superior, a bit arrogant, being in such demand. Not particularly familiar with nannies himself, their pecking order was new to him. Even if the agency hadn’t faxed him her résumé, Miss Quinn’s haughtiness alone had to mean she was one hell of a nanny.

      Or maybe she simply hid her anxiety better than most. Some people defended themselves with belligerence. He decided to try again to develop a rapport. Perhaps a compliment. “You don’t look thirty-seven, Quinn,” he said. “I wouldn’t have guessed you are even thirty.”

      She flicked him a wary glance. The smile he offered her was so courteous he could have been poster boy for the Kindly Scouts of America.

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