came back from the convenience store.”
He said, “Hum,” and reached for the morning paper again.
“Ty,” she said, using his first name to snag his attention. When he looked up, she said, “I’m getting the impression you’re missing the big picture.”
“And what would that picture be?”
His voice dripped with strained patience and she almost laughed. If he thought his nerves were strained, he should get a look at hers!
“That you are this baby’s guardian.”
“That’s not something I’ll easily forget.”
“Maybe you won’t forget it, but you’re not acting like a guardian.”
“I see. You don’t want to do the nanny work, so you’re dumping it off on me.”
“I stayed up all night with this baby while you slept. I took her to the store while you slept…”
“I wasn’t sleeping. I was up at six. Working.”
“You were up at six yet you never volunteered to help me?”
“You’re the nanny!”
“You’re the baby’s guardian! Dear God, Ty, are you going to make her live like a pet? No, I take that back, most people’s pets get more attention. You’ve all but ignored this little girl.”
For a few seconds Ty just stared at her, then he quietly said, “In order to be able to support that little girl, I have work to do. That’s why we made this arrangement.If you don’t like it, there’s the door. But, remember, if you leave, you don’t do the PR.”
At that moment, walking out the door and never looking back sounded like a fine deal to Madelyn. But in twenty-four hours of caring for the baby, remembering Sabrina had lost both of her parents, remembering she’d been taken away from everybody and everything familiar, Madelyn had grown to love her and couldn’t desert her to a man who didn’t even acknowledge her existence.
She didn’t know how she would do it, but somehow, some way, she would get this stubborn, self-centered, self-oriented, tunnel-visioned, chauvinistic, completely-incapable-of-affection man to love this baby.
“I’ll stay.”
He smiled triumphantly and turned his gaze to the newspaper again. “I thought so.”
Righteous indignation thundered through Madelyn. Before he’d said that she was miffed. Now she was mad. He was in for trouble the likes of which he’d never seen before.
Chapter Four
M onday morning as Ty stepped into his charcoal-gray trousers, he heard the baby crying. He zipped and buttoned quickly, then walked to the bedroom where he’d set up Sabrina’s crib.
He wasn’t a complete idiot. He knew what Madelyn had been telling him Saturday evening. Caring for a baby was hard and she wasn’t a professional. She was simply somebody who knew enough to help him get over the rough spots. She couldn’t handle being up all night and caring for the baby all day and still do the PR work she wanted to do.
Though that was the job she’d agreed to.
Still, he’d heard her walking the floor with the baby in the hours before anybody’s alarm was scheduled to ring, and he understood that nobody could function without sleep three days in a row. So, in order to have at least a semipleasant person running his house whilehe went to work, he would handle some of the morning baby things and let her sleep in.
Standing over the crib, he said, “Hey, kid. You want to keep the noise down?”
Sabrina stopped crying and Ty smiled. There. That wasn’t so hard. He sometimes believed women made caring for babies much more complicated than it needed to be. He reached in to pull Sabrina out, but as he did, she started to cry again.
“Oh, come on!” he said, bringing her nose almost to his nose. She angled her pajama-covered feet on his white undershirt. “You don’t have two skilled professionals here,” he told the baby who again stopped crying and only looked at him. “You’ve got to cut us a break.”
Sabrina slapped his face. Twice. Then two more times before Ty realized she wasn’t hitting him as much as his face was in the way of her
He said, “Hum,” and reached for the morning paper again.
“Ty,” she said, using his first name to snag his attention. When he looked up, she said, “I’m getting the impression you’re missing the big picture.”
“And what would that picture be?”
His voice dripped with strained patience and she almost laughed. If he thought his nerves were strained, he should get a look at hers!
“That you are this baby’s guardian.”
“That’s not something I’ll easily forget.”
“Maybe you won’t forget it, but you’re not acting like a guardian.”
“I see. You don’t want to do the nanny work, so you’re dumping it off on me.”
“I stayed up all night with this baby while you slept. I took her to the store while you slept…”
“I wasn’t sleeping. I was up at six. Working.”
“You were up at six yet you never volunteered to help me?”
“You’re the nanny!”
“You’re the baby’s guardian! Dear God, Ty, are you going to make her live like a pet? No, I take that back, most people’s pets get more attention. You’ve all but ignored this little girl.”
For a few seconds Ty just stared at her, then he quietly said, “In order to be able to support that little girl, I have work to do. That’s why we made this arrangement.If you don’t like it, there’s the door. But, remember, if you leave, you don’t do the PR.”
At that moment, walking out the door and never looking back sounded like a fine deal to Madelyn. But in twenty-four hours of caring for the baby, remembering Sabrina had lost both of her parents, remembering she’d been taken away from everybody and everything familiar, Madelyn had grown to love her and couldn’t desert her to a man who didn’t even acknowledge her existence.
She didn’t know how she would do it, but somehow, some way, she would get this stubborn, self-centered, self-oriented, tunnel-visioned, chauvinistic, completely-incapable-of-affection man to love this baby.
“I’ll stay.”
He smiled triumphantly and turned his gaze to the newspaper again. “I thought so.”
Righteous indignation thundered through Madelyn. Before he’d said that she was miffed. Now she was mad. He was in for trouble the likes of which he’d never seen before.
Chapter Four
M onday morning as Ty stepped into his charcoal-gray trousers, he heard the baby crying. He zipped and buttoned quickly, then walked to the bedroom where he’d set up Sabrina’s crib.
He wasn’t a complete idiot. He knew what Madelyn had been telling him Saturday evening. Caring for a baby was hard and she wasn’t a professional. She was simply somebody who knew enough to help him get over the rough spots. She couldn’t handle being up all night and caring for the baby all day and still do the PR work she wanted to do.
Though that was the job she’d agreed to.
Still, he’d heard her walking the floor with the baby in the hours before anybody’s alarm was scheduled to ring, and he understood that nobody could function without sleep three days in a row. So, in order to have at least a semipleasant person running his house whilehe went to work, he would handle some of the morning baby things and let her sleep in.
Standing over the crib, he said, “Hey, kid. You want to keep the noise down?”
Sabrina stopped crying and Ty smiled. There. That wasn’t so hard. He sometimes believed women made caring for babies much more complicated than it needed to be. He reached in to pull Sabrina out, but as he did, she started to cry again.
“Oh, come on!” he said, bringing her nose almost to his nose. She angled her pajama-covered feet on his white undershirt. “You don’t have two skilled professionals here,” he told the baby who again stopped crying and only looked at him. “You’ve got to cut us a break.”
Sabrina slapped his face. Twice. Then two more times before Ty realized she wasn’t hitting him as much as his face was in the way of her
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