She stared at the ceiling, blinking back tears. “I got fired from my last job. I’ve never been let go in my entire life, and this family meant the world to me. It destroyed me. I took one more nannying job after that, but I only lasted a day. I had to do something else. I couldn’t go back.”
“So you were really attached to the children?”
“Child. Singular. A little girl named Chloe. She was a few months older than Oliver.” She cast her sights down at the baby and pressed her lips together solidly. “I can’t talk about this, Aiden. I really can’t.”
He pulled her into his arms, breathing in her sweet scent, overcome with the memory of how good this had felt last night. They fit together well. “It’s okay to tell me. Maybe you’ll feel better if you get it out. That’s what you told me the night we sat up on the terrace and I was still upset about my mom.”
She settled her head against his chest, trembling. “I became romantically involved with my boss. I fell in love with him.”
“Go on.” He choked back his discomfort at the thought of her with another man.
“I knew it was wrong, but I was so drawn to him and I adored his daughter and it just happened. His wife had passed away before I was hired and he seemed to need me and care about me, but I read the whole thing wrong.”
He caressed her arm, closing his eyes and drawing in a deep breath. Her anguish poured into him. He longed to take it away. He also needed to know more. What kind of monster was this man who’d captured her heart and thrown it away? “What happened?”
Sarah looked up at him, but he didn’t let go. He wanted her to know that he was there for her. “I told him the truth. I told him that I loved him. He actually laughed at me. He thought I was kidding. He thought we were having a fling. He’d assumed that I’d done it before, but I hadn’t. And when I told him that it wasn’t a joke, he fired me. He didn’t want me around his daughter. He said he couldn’t trust me anymore. Do you have any idea how awful that felt?”
“He couldn’t trust you because you loved him?”
“Yes.”
“That’s horrible.”
“It’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to me. Unrequited love is one thing, but it’s quite another to have your bond with a child stripped away. I’ve always cared deeply for the children in my charge. I never knew another way. Leaving was always the hardest part, but at least it’d always been on good terms. This was just solid rejection. I was hollowed out. That’s why I don’t nanny anymore.”
Oliver crawled over to them and pulled himself to standing with the help of Aiden’s pant leg.
Sarah picked him up, tears streaming down her face. She smoothed his hair back and kissed his cheek. “I’m sorry. I know this is way more than you ever wanted to know about me. But now at least you know why Kama means so much. I can’t go back to my old life.”
Aiden had started over many times. He knew the appeal of a new beginning. “I understand. Completely.”
She sighed and managed a smile before she handed over Oliver. “Thank you. I appreciate that. Now I need to go upstairs and regroup and try to figure out how I salvage this Sylvia Hodge thing. Are you okay to do bedtime on your own?”
“Yes, of course. I’m sure you want some alone time anyway.” He really hoped the answer was that she didn’t want to be by herself, that she wanted to stay up and talk after Oliver went to bed.
“I do. I need some time to think. Plus, a few more nights and you won’t have me around to help. You might as well start acting like I’m not even here.”
Fourteen
Sarah was working feverishly on an email to Katie and Sylvia Hodge Friday morning, when Aiden strolled into his home office, phone in hand. He grinned like a man without a single worry.
“Probability of paternity is 99.9 percent. Oliver is mine.”
Sarah jumped out of the chair and raced from behind the desk, throwing her arms around him. “I knew it. I just knew it.”
Unfortunately, the instant she was pressed against him, her body wanted to stay, especially when he returned the embrace with a firm squeeze, rocking her back and forth. With the clock ticking, should she take these happy moments? Even when they’d haunt her later?
“I knew in my heart that he was my son, but I don’t think I realized how much it would mean to have the confirmation. Considering my own history, this gives me peace. Oliver and I are a family. No one can take that away from us.” Aiden released her from their hug. It was impossible to ignore how enticing he was when he was so relaxed. Good news suited him well. “The lawyers will be by in an hour to do the final paperwork. They’ll have it before the judge this afternoon. Then we’ll be done.”