The Nanny and the CEO Read online

  One dark brow dipped. “Do you need it enough to come with me this evening? We’ll be taking Jamie to a party.”

  She folded her arms. “Why do I get the feeling this isn’t just any party?”

  “My parents expect me to marry again and have a woman picked out to become the next Mrs. Nicholas Wainwright. Her name is Jennifer Ridgeway. I haven’t seen her since her teens, but be assured her pedigree forms part of the framework of the upper crust. She’ll be at the Yacht Club with her parents.”

  “I can see you’re planning an all-out revolt.”

  “Yes.” Reese could swear she saw fire in his eyes. “The sight of my son with his unsuitable nanny will dash every hope on all sides and make a statement that nothing else could do. It will be my virtual abdication from the family.”

  Whoa.

  She felt Nick’s conviction to her bones and knew tonight would change the course of his life and Jamie’s forever. More than anything she wanted to be along to watch history being made.

  “What should I wear?”

  The lines darkening his face vanished. She saw his chest rise and fall due to the strength of his emotions. “How about that yellow outfit with a white ribbon around your ponytail?”

  “I can do that. What about you?”

  “No pedigreed member of the Yacht Club shows up in anything but formal dress. I’ll wear a tux.”

  “And Jamie?”

  A smile hovered around his compelling mouth. “His navy outfit with the Snoopy and his white high-tops. He’ll be the first baby who ever made it inside the doors. If you’re ready for Miroff and Hooplan, I know you’ll be able to handle this crowd.”

  Her eyes suddenly moistened without her volition. That crowd included his parents, the two people responsible for bringing him into the world. She knew deep down somewhere he loved them because they were his parents. They’d bestowed every gift on him, given him every opportunity. There’d only been one thing lacking. She kept swallowing, trying to get rid of the thickness closing up her throat.

  “How soon do you want to leave?”

  “As soon as you can get Jamie and yourself ready. We’ll be flying out to Long Island in the helicopter.”

  “I’ve had my shower. All I have to do is change clothes, then I’ll take care of the baby and load his diaper bag.”

  He held her gaze. “One thing before we leave.”

  Adrenaline caused her heart to pound hard. “What is it?”

  “I couldn’t help but see the name of the person who sent you the postcard. Who’s Rich?”

  “My study partner at Wharton.”

  Nick cocked his head. “Does he measure up to your brilliance?”

  Since emailing Rich a little while ago, Reese decided she’d better tell him now. “His full name is Richard Bonner.”

  His brows knit together. “That sounds familiar.”

  “It’s because he just received word from the dean that he’s been chosen to do an internship at Sherborne and Wainwright this fall.”

  He gave her an incredulous stare. “For years my uncle Lew has been in charge of choosing the interns. If they’re not bright enough for him, he won’t take one.”

  “Then there you go. Rich is the original whiz kid. He’s apoplectic with joy about being chosen to work for the top company in New York. In case you’re wondering, he has no idea you’re my employer and I have no intention of ever telling him. Just imagine how crazy that would have been if you’d been stuck with me for a second round.”

  “Crazy doesn’t begin to describe it,” he ground out.

  Two hours later the helicopter started to make its landing. Nick turned to her. “Welcome to The Sea Nook Yacht Club, listed on New York’s Historical Register. Former home to the tall ships on Long Island’s Gold Coast. Members only.”

  As it set down, Reese found the sight of the sprawling Tudor/Elizabethan estate overlooking the ocean surreal. Sailboats and yachts with pennants fluttering dotted the marina and beyond. To her, the world Nick had inhabited all these years was just as fantastic in its own way as Middle Earth or the Land of Oz.

  Jamie reached for her after they climbed out of the helicopter. She held him as they walked next to Nick, who carried the baby’s carryall and diaper bag across the grounds to the entrance. He looked adorable in his little navy suit. One day he would grow up to be as fantastic-looking as his gorgeous father, whose appearance in a black tux blew her away.

  Nick had told her he wanted to arrive before anyone else. He preferred that his parents make the entrance with the Ridgeways instead of the other way around. The sight of Nick already installed with his nanny and child would set the ground rules in concrete for the future.

  The club had its own concierge, a burly man complete with beard, dressed like a proper sea captain in a smashing blazer and slacks. He swept across the enormous foyer with a smile on his face. “Good evening, Mr. Wainwright.”

  “How are you, Max?”

  “Very well indeed. It’s been a long time since we last saw you here. May I take this opportunity to tell you how sorry I am about the loss of Mrs. Wainwright? It was a shock to everyone.”

  “Thank you.”

  “You’re the first of your party to arrive. We’ve put you out in the conservatory. Your father wanted the best view and we were able to accommodate him.”

  “Thank you.”

  The man’s gaze flicked to Reese. “On vacation are you, miss? I’m sorry, but only members of the Yacht Club are allowed inside. You’re welcome to stroll about the grounds with your child, of course.”

  Nick’s eyes caught hers for a moment. She saw a wicked gleam of amusement in their dark depths. He was enjoying this. “She’s with me, Max. Ms. Chamberlain is my nanny and this is my son, Jamie. He’s just out of the hospital and won’t be separated from us yet.”

  Reese had to give the host points for his aplomb in an awkward situation he’d most likely never had to deal with before. She could hear him trying to decide how to handle this. He cleared his throat. “Of course. Go right on out.”

  “Thank you, Max.”

  Reese had to put up with unfriendly stares and lifted brows from the beautiful people decked out in formal attire. Nick appeared oblivious. He led her through some tall paneled doors to another section of the club, which had to have been someone’s spectacular estate at one time.

  They came to a private room with high paneled ceilings, all of it surrounded by floor-to-ceiling glass windows, a modern innovation. It was almost like being on the water. He pulled out a chair where he put Jamie’s carryall, then fastened him in it.

  Reese sat down next to the baby. “I believe if I were prone to it, I’d be seasick about now.”

  A heart-stopping smile broke the corner of his mouth. “It’s been known to happen in this room.”

  “What’s the history of this place?”

  He took a rattle from the diaper bag and handed it to Jamie, who claimed it in a fist and put it directly in his mouth. They both laughed.

  “My mother’s ancestor, Martin Sherborne, was an English sea captain in the early 1600s who traded in all sorts of lucrative things that brought him wealth. When he bought up a lot of the land around Sea Nook and had this place built, the colonial governor of New York conferred the title of Lordship of Sherborne on him.

  “Eventually his grandson donated this place to the Sea Nook Township and built Sherborne House where my mother grew up. It’s located about ten miles from here. The estate borders Wainwright Meadows, known for its horses, where my father was born.”

  “How did they amass their wealth?”

  “His ancestry developed tools for steam engines. Their manufacture proliferated beyond anyone’s expectations. For those who live here, Sea Nook is known as Little England.”

  The sommelier approached, wanting to know their preference of wine. Nick turned to her. “Nothing for me,” she responded.

  “We’ll both wait,” Nick told him.

  Reese leaned over to
kiss the baby. “Did you hear all that your daddy said, Jamie? You could have been its newest prince,” she teased, but she shouldn’t have said anything because she saw Nick’s jaw harden.

  “Could have is exactly right. Don’t look now but my cousin Greg has just arrived. It appears he’s alone. He and his wife live at our property in the Hamptons. They’re having difficulties right now.”

  Add one more property to the growing list. “Are you close to him?”

  “No, but he works in the office and so far we’ve managed to get along.”

  “That’s something at least.”

  When Nick smiled like that, she couldn’t breathe. “At least,” he drawled. “I’m afraid I’ve overloaded you with too much information.”

  “Not at all. It’s like attending an on-site live college course covering the aspects of upper-class society in Colonial America. I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.”

  “Greg!” Nick stood up and shook his cousin’s hand. He was dark like Nick, a little shorter and heavier. “This is Reese Chamberlain from Lincoln, Nebraska. Reese, this is Greg Wainwright, one of the vice presidents of the brokerage.”

  “How do you do, Greg.” She extended her hand, which he shook. Nick’s cousin couldn’t take his eyes off her. Nick didn’t blame him. Anyone seeing Reese with that oval face and high cheekbones would call her a classic beauty. In the candlelight her light blue eyes let off an iridescent glow.

  “Come around and say hi to Jamie.”

  His cousin’s gaze shifted to the baby, but he didn’t move from his stance. He flashed Nick one of those looks that said he needed to speak to him in private. Not this time. Nick had an idea what it was all about. In fact he’d been anticipating it.

  “Won’t you sit down? Or are you waiting for Uncle Lew?”

  Greg shifted his weight, a sign that he was losing patience. “I need to talk to you alone for a minute. I tried to reach you earlier.”

  “I’m aware of that. You can say anything you want in front of Reese.”

  “Father sent me in here to talk sense to you.”

  “What sense is that?”

  “This is a special dinner party.” His brows lifted. “Max has let everyone know the…three of you are here,” he said in a quieter voice.

  Good. “Let’s call a spade a spade. This was planned so the widower could meet wife number two, but my life has changed since Erica’s death, Greg. No one owns me.”

  His face closed up. “Then I’m afraid you’ll be dining in here alone.”

  “My parents should have thought of that before they tried to maneuver me into something that would hurt the Ridgeways. The fact is, no one consulted me. I intend to enjoy my dinner with my son and Ms. Chamberlain. You can tell that to Uncle Lew in private. What he tells father is up to him.”

  Greg studied him through new eyes. “What’s happened to you?” It was a genuine question, requiring a genuine answer.

  “The truth? I became a father, but I discovered I want to be a dad. Ms. Chamberlain is teaching me how.”

  His cousin seemed to have trouble articulating before he nodded to Reese and walked out of the room.

  “Nick—”

  The tremor in her voice was one of the most satisfying sounds he’d ever heard.

  “The swordfish here is excellent by the way. If I order it for you, I promise you won’t be disappointed.”

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  FOR five solid days starting the next Monday, Reese took Jamie with her every morning and afternoon to hunt for an unfurnished studio apartment near Miroff’s located on Broadway and Seventh. She needed one close enough to walk to her job.

  By midafternoon she finally found it six blocks away above a small bookstore with signs saying that it was going out of business. You had to enter the store and walk to the back where there was a circular staircase leading to the studio. Both were owned by the bank.

  She couldn’t allow herself to think about where she was living right now. Moving from Nick’s thirty-million-dollar penthouse to the tiny hole-in-the-wall that had no AC would be like going from the proverbial sublime to the proverbial ridiculous.

  In order to hold it, she arranged for a six-month sub-lease starting now, even though the two guys living there wouldn’t move out until the end of August. She would buy a futon and use it for a bed. Reese wouldn’t need anything else since she’d be slaving day and night at the brokerage. If she was careful, the salary Nick paid her would cover the rent through January.

  The small stipend she received from Miroff’s would have to be enough for her food and any other incidentals. But at least she’d taken care of her housing problem and could spend the next week studying for her exam coming up a week from today. With a sigh of relief she phoned Paul and asked him to drive her and Jamie to the park.

  “This is more like it, huh.” She gave him a bunch of kisses before carrying him over to the pond. “You like these sailboats?” In her mind’s eye she could see the larger sleeker ones and yachts moored at Sea Nook. That night had marked another change in Nick. He seemed charged by a new energy.

  Throwing off the yoke of his other self acted as some kind of catharsis. Twice this week he’d come home early, pulled on a pair of jeans with a T-shirt and made dinner. He put Jamie in the swing to watch him and held long conversations with him. When everything was ready, he’d invite her to eat on the terrace with them.

  He cooked steaks and potatoes both times, reminding her of her father, who was a meat and potatoes man, too.

  “Oh—my phone’s ringing. Let’s find out who it is.” She pulled out her cell, but didn’t recognize the name on the caller ID. After a slight hesitation she clicked on.

  “Hello?”

  “Ms. Chamberlain? This is Albert.”

  “Hi, Albert!”

  “Sorry to disturb, but you have a visitor and I knew you’d gone out. He says it’s urgent that he sees you. His name is Jeremy Young.”

  Reese closed her eyes tightly. She didn’t blame her ex-fiancé for coming all this way without telling her. If their situations were reversed and she couldn’t let him go without trying one more time, she would do the same thing. Her dad had probably told him about the internship and he’d made up his mind to talk to her again in the hope she wouldn’t take it.

  But it was no use. Their romance wasn’t meant to be. Her plans for the future were set. She was so close now.

  And then of course there was Nick. Every living moment with him meant falling deeper and deeper in love. She wouldn’t be with him much longer, but it didn’t matter. He’d colored her life forever. Nick and Jamie had her heart. All of it.

  “I’m leaving for the apartment right now. Would you mind letting him in the penthouse? He’s flown all the way from Nebraska and will appreciate freshening up before I get there.”

  “I’ll be happy to.”

  “Thank you.”

  She hung up. “Let’s go home, Jamie. We’ve got company.”

  When she pushed the stroller into the apartment a short time later, Jeremy stepped in the foyer from the living room.

  “Reese—”

  His was a dear face. Familiar, yet she couldn’t conjure any feeling for him. Six months ago she couldn’t have imagined not flying into his arms.

  “It’s good to see you, Jeremy.” He was an attractive six-foot blond with dark blue eyes. He wore jeans and a button-down shirt with the hems out, his usual style when he wasn’t in a business suit. But the wide smile that had been his trademark was missing. She saw pain in his eyes.

  “You’re not angry I just showed up?” he asked with an edge.

  “No. How could I be? I’m only sad that you spent your time and hard-earned money for nothing.”

  “That’s a matter of opinion. I’ve had some time to think since your dad told me you got that internship. I’d like to talk to you about it.”

  “Of course. Come out on the terrace with me and Jamie.” She pushed the stroller through the apartment.

>   The second she opened the sliding door and they walked out, he let go with a long, low whistle. She watched him walk over to look out on the city. “My hell… I know there are people in the world who live like this, but to see it all up close makes me think I’m hallucinating.”

  “I’ve done a lot of that myself.” She put Jamie on the lounger and changed him. Jeremy returned as she was snapping his suit.

  “He’s a cute baby. How old is he?”

  “Four months.”

  “How much longer will you be here?”

  “Until the end of August. That’s when I start at Miroff’s.”

  “Reese,” he whispered. “I’ll move to New York and get a bank job. If you’re determined to be a career woman, then so be it. I don’t want to lose you.”

  She hugged Jamie to herself, needing a minute to comprehend what he was saying. Reese could only imagine what it had taken for him to come to her like this. She needed to be so careful, but whatever she said, he was going to be hurt.

  Taking a fortifying breath, she faced him. “I’ll always love you, Jeremy, but I’ve had months to think about everything, too. Your instinct is to be the provider and come home to a wife who takes care of you and your children. A lot of men are like that. It’s a wonderful instinct.

  “What’s wrong is that you met a woman like me who needs intellectual stimulation beyond mothering. I’d like to believe that in time I can do both. If we did get back together again, I’m sure it wouldn’t be long before you’d start resenting me and I’d get upset with you because I would know I wasn’t making you happy. It just wouldn’t work.”

  “You’re different than before,” he said on a burst of anger.

  She pressed her lips together. “I’ve had to put you away. It wasn’t easy.”

  “But the point is, you have let me go.”

  “Yes,” she answered honestly. This tearing each other apart was exactly what she didn’t want to happen. “Jamie needs his bottle. I have to get it from the kitchen.” Jeremy followed her. She took it out of the fridge and warmed it in the microwave.